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The John Doe killer was anything but lazy and he did not cut corners. When Detective Mills shot him, it was so that Mills could "become wrath" and thus close the circle.
My comment about laziness was tongue-in-cheek. But I still maintain that in carrying out the last two killings, he broke with his ritualistic rules and became inconsistent. In none of the first 5 murders did he make the victim "become" the deadly sin. The victim, in his perception, already embodied the sin, and the murders were about punishment. The last two were not about punishment or divine retribution but about "making a statement." Still a cool twist in movie-making, but not true to how ritualistic obsessed serial killers work.
Still a cool twist in movie-making, but not true to how ritualistic obsessed serial killers work.
That's because the killer was not actually a "serial killer". If we are going by that method, all the murders would have been the same type of victim, under the same sort of circumstances- not a series of very different victims for different reasons. The guy is smarter than that. This is what makes it a good plot, and a cool twist.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TracySam
In none of the first 5 murders did he make the victim "become" the deadly sin. The victim, in his perception, already embodied the sin, and the murders were about punishment. The last two were not about punishment or divine retribution but about "making a statement."
I'd say it really depends on the sin.
That, and it's not necessarily about "punishment", per se, it's more about the consequences of our actions, and the ways in which we punish ourselves.
*Also the fact that it's not too late to change things. Yeah, the movie is done and over with, but the lesson remains the same.
That's because the killer was not actually a "serial killer". If we are going by that method, all the murders would have been the same type of victim, under the same sort of circumstances- not a series of very different victims for different reasons. The guy is smarter than that. This is what makes it a good plot, and a cool twist.
I'd say it really depends on the sin.
That, and it's not necessarily about "punishment", per se, it's more about the consequences of our actions, and the ways in which we punish ourselves.
*Also the fact that it's not too late to change things. Yeah, the movie is done and over with, but the lesson remains the same.
No, a serial killer kills mutiple times over a period of time, with parallels & similarities between each murder, and often following compulsive rituals. The first five murders certainly fall into the definition of serial killing. The fact that the victims were perceived "sinners" and their deaths were the killer's "punishment" constitutes ample similarity. The last two murders were just a literary/theatrical device.
I think it was really about punishment, not just natural consequences of our actions. Punishment requires a "punisher." Natural consequences just require a person doing something risky and possibly immoral, and experiencing negative outcomes simply from the environment or from themselves.
For example, for "Lust" the natural consequence would be getting an STD. Punishing ourselves would be guilt and shame about debasing ourselves and others. But having someone stab you to death in a sexual act is punishment.
The last two murders were just a literary/theatrical device.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TracySam
I think it was really about punishment, not just natural consequences of our actions. Punishment requires a "punisher." Natural consequences just require a person doing something risky and possibly immoral, and experiencing negative outcomes simply from the environment or from themselves.
Natural or unnatural, what I'm getting @ is the punishment itself is a form of consequence for the people who chose their own risky behaviors. They put themselves in the position of being targeted by the killer in this particular movie because they fit the roles perfectly.
I tend to consider "Horror" movies to include something both frightening AND supernatural: ghosts, zombies, monsters, vampires, demons, etc.
This was a psychological thriller more than a horror story, though the story can make you feel "horror."
Were you feeling the horror? I was!
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I was!
