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Neo-noir thrillers are straightforward movies. So there is no point in looking for any deeper meaning other than 'everything is bleak and depressing'. However, it occurred to me that Galveston (2018) might not just be a solid neo-noir thriller but contain a critique of toxic masculinity, male heroism, and domestic abuse. I'll do my best to make it short.
-- major SPOILERS ahead --
Roy starts out as an antihero. He didn't intend to do it, but by defending his own life, he saves Rocky's life too. Together, they're on the run from Stan, Roy's former boss. Later on, in order to provide Rocky with money for a better future, Roy decides to blackmail Stan. This, however, puts Rocky and Roy in danger as it pushes Stan to hunt them down more aggressively, which ultimately leads to Rocky being raped and murdered. Roy is therefore (at least partly) responsible for her horrendous death. Roy involuntarily contributing to Rocky's death might be understood as having been foreshadowed by 3 scenes:
1) From his ex-girlfriend we know that Roy is a domestic abuser and that she is better off without him. Roy might be perceived as a very likeable guy with good intentions, but from the interaction with his ex-girlfriend it becomes clear that he can be a threat to women close to him.
2) Roy yells at Rocky, grabs her throat and punches a hole in the wall for (quote) "whoring around" and lying to him. Though he manages to calm down, this scene underscores what his ex-girlfriend was saying about him.
3) Although not front and center, there is yet another domestic abuse victim in the movie. At a motel BBQ, Roy can be seen casually chatting with a domestic abuser. A few scenes later, there is the police and an ambulance in front of the abuser's apartment. It later becomes clear that the domestic abuser had killed his own wife.
Roy's ex-girlfriend survived, but the domestic abuser's wife at the motel is dead and in the end Rocky is also dead. So, the movies makes it clear that domestic abusers radiate danger, and so does Roy despite having good intentions.
During hurricane Ike 20 years later, Roy meets Rocky's daughter, Tiffany. Still being unclear about Rocky's fate and why she was abandoned, she demands to know the truth about what really happened 20 years ago. With the hurricane approaching, Roy agrees to tell her the truth under one condition: after telling her the truth, she must leave for her safety immediately.
Now, here is the interesting part.
Considering what is shown in relation to domestic abuse in the 3 scences mentioned above, the fact that Roy insists on Tiffany leaving for her safety might be intended to have a double meaning. He clearly refers to the hurricane as a present danger, however, given Roy's 'karma' as a domestic abuser, he might as well refer to himself as a danger. Tiffany actually offers him to leave with her, but he declines. Roy goes on to say, (quote) "[Rocky] didn't leave you, you weren't abandoned, never abandoned". But then the scene cuts off, leaving it to the imagination of the viewer whether and how Roy would go on to describe to Tiffany the circumstances of Rocky's horrendous death and his own involvement in it.
Does he tell Tiffany about his own involvement in her mother's death?
Does Roy have a cathartic moment at the end of the movie?
-- major SPOILERS ahead --
Roy starts out as an antihero. He didn't intend to do it, but by defending his own life, he saves Rocky's life too. Together, they're on the run from Stan, Roy's former boss. Later on, in order to provide Rocky with money for a better future, Roy decides to blackmail Stan. This, however, puts Rocky and Roy in danger as it pushes Stan to hunt them down more aggressively, which ultimately leads to Rocky being raped and murdered. Roy is therefore (at least partly) responsible for her horrendous death. Roy involuntarily contributing to Rocky's death might be understood as having been foreshadowed by 3 scenes:
1) From his ex-girlfriend we know that Roy is a domestic abuser and that she is better off without him. Roy might be perceived as a very likeable guy with good intentions, but from the interaction with his ex-girlfriend it becomes clear that he can be a threat to women close to him.
2) Roy yells at Rocky, grabs her throat and punches a hole in the wall for (quote) "whoring around" and lying to him. Though he manages to calm down, this scene underscores what his ex-girlfriend was saying about him.
3) Although not front and center, there is yet another domestic abuse victim in the movie. At a motel BBQ, Roy can be seen casually chatting with a domestic abuser. A few scenes later, there is the police and an ambulance in front of the abuser's apartment. It later becomes clear that the domestic abuser had killed his own wife.
Roy's ex-girlfriend survived, but the domestic abuser's wife at the motel is dead and in the end Rocky is also dead. So, the movies makes it clear that domestic abusers radiate danger, and so does Roy despite having good intentions.
During hurricane Ike 20 years later, Roy meets Rocky's daughter, Tiffany. Still being unclear about Rocky's fate and why she was abandoned, she demands to know the truth about what really happened 20 years ago. With the hurricane approaching, Roy agrees to tell her the truth under one condition: after telling her the truth, she must leave for her safety immediately.
Now, here is the interesting part.
Considering what is shown in relation to domestic abuse in the 3 scences mentioned above, the fact that Roy insists on Tiffany leaving for her safety might be intended to have a double meaning. He clearly refers to the hurricane as a present danger, however, given Roy's 'karma' as a domestic abuser, he might as well refer to himself as a danger. Tiffany actually offers him to leave with her, but he declines. Roy goes on to say, (quote) "[Rocky] didn't leave you, you weren't abandoned, never abandoned". But then the scene cuts off, leaving it to the imagination of the viewer whether and how Roy would go on to describe to Tiffany the circumstances of Rocky's horrendous death and his own involvement in it.
Does he tell Tiffany about his own involvement in her mother's death?
Does Roy have a cathartic moment at the end of the movie?
Last edited by goodgoo; 07-31-23 at 05:29 AM.