Sunday, September 24, 2017
Shiny, Happy People
The concluding scene of The Last Laugh depicts the incredible gluttony and generosity of the unnamed, demoted doorman after he miraculously inherits a fortune from a dying American millionaire. He feasts on mounds of food, eating caviar as if it were candy and drinking champagne as if it were water. A tracking shot of the "spread" emphasizes the opulence and indulgence of our hero. What is the point of this ending? Is is a happy ending or a parody of a happy ending? Is this supposed to be objective reality or a fantasy? Is this a cynical commercial ploy or is there deeper significance to the ending?
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In my opinion, I believe that the ending of F. W. Murnau’s The Last Laugh was made strictly for satirical purposes. The original ending, where the doorman returns to the bathroom where he works to sleep after getting rejected by his family, is a more tragic yet realistic finish to the film’s themes and messages. After watching the film, it seemed to me that the new ending did not relate to the doorman’s overarching conflict. The reason that he got the demotion to washroom attendant was because of his frailty and age. For the movie to end with a celebration of wealth and riches seems uncharacteristic because, in my opinion, it tries to say that money can solve all of your problems and make you happy; this I feel is a false notion that is not true nor realistic. I believe that Murnau intended for this ending to a parody of a happy ending as a response to his distaste with making a new ending to his film. It seems that the new ending is more of a fantasy because of how everyone acts nicer to the doorman now that he is richer with his abundance of food (caviar) and other accessories (the monocle). I think the most realistic part of this unrealistic ending is the fact that the doorman stays loyal to his friend, the nightguard, who stayed supportive of him throughout his troubles, instead of sharing his wealth with his family. While there is no cynical commercial ploy, I do believe that the deeper significance to the ending of The Last Laugh has to do with friendship and showing that being supportive and loyal can go a long way in the end.
ReplyDeleteThe concluding scene of The Last Laugh depicts a satirical happy ending through a tracking shot in order to emphasize the director’s displeasure with the necessity of the additional ending. Throughout the entire film, the main character’s downfall and displeasure carried the plot, making the “new” and “happy ending” an eye sore and an outlier for the plot of the film. It is clearly depicted through the intertitle before the inclusion of the concluding scene that the new ending is purely a fictional fantasy rather than a snippet of reality. In the original ending, the doorman is depicted cleaning the bathroom while he reflects on the misfortune in his life that has just occurred and the humiliation that he has just endured. This imagery is depicted with a high camera angle, creating the feeling that the once admired doorman is now a powerless low life in the community. In the new ending scene, the camera angles and movement are very different. The man is mostly depicted from a straight shot, or even occasionally a low shot like when he is at dinner. This change in angle depicts not on the change in power, but also a change in mood of the film itself. The camera movement emphasizes this ideal as well because the majority of the final scene was filmed with a tracking shot. It follows the movements of the main character, and his miraculous fortune through dinner all the way out to the car in which he, a friend, and a homeless person are picked up in. This drastic change in filming can only be a result of the director creating a satirical ending, and should be taken with a grain of salt. The original message of the film can be seen through the first ending. It shows the flaws in society through a realistic path of an ordinary man’s life.
ReplyDeleteI think that the ending of The Last Laugh or rather the second ending of The Last Laugh is supposed to be somewhat of a parody of a happy ending. After the movie ends there is an intertitle which allows the viewer to come to this conclusion. The intertitle reads something along the lines of, “Though I wanted to end the movie here, I had to end it on a happy note as life sadly seldom does.” This tone suggests that the director was forced to make this change, and that he originally intended the movie to end on a much more depressing note. Then there is the matter of actual second ending itself. After this heart-breaking scene of the doorman losing everything he held dear it dramatically switches tone to very cheerful. The doorman gets a fortune so great a man had to die for the doorman to get this money. Then the camera pans over to the former doorman/bathroom assistant who is sitting at the table ordering very fancy food from the restaurant in the hotel he used to work at. The abruptness of the change in tone and circumstance experienced by the audience I believe is the director’s way at poking fun at the producers that made him make a new ending for the film because the original ending was too sad. The objective of the film itself was going for realism, yet when forced to make an unrealistic ending he went overtly fantastical to ensure that his original ending was the best ending for the film.
ReplyDeleteThough the Last Laugh ended with a concluding scene that many could consider cliché, I believe that it ties many of the loose ends in the film. When the unnamed protagonist was a doorman, his neighbors had treated him with the upmost respect. They had always stopped to let him pass, waved and greeted him. This respect was lost almost immediately after the doorman’s demotion. He was then greeted with humiliating laughter that had destroyed his confidence. The protagonist’s family did not want to have anything to do with him. As soon as the demoted doorman had received the inheritance, he then received respect from all of his former colleagues. These people had paid him little to no mind over his years of working at the hotel. Now they were required to treat him hospitably, greeting and respecting him. This respect can be seen as a replacement to his old gossiping neighbors and did wonders to his esteem. The protagonist always took great pride in his work as a doorman. His many years of service to the hotel guests makes the ending evermore ironic. The roles were switched and after many years of attending on others, he was now being waited on. Even his former employer that gave him the demotion that led to his downfall had to display his respect. This is an interesting and rapid change of plot, but it does a good job of displaying a full circle effect. The morals appear to depict something along the lines of “What goes around, comes around” or “Treat others how you would like to be treated.” After seeing the protagonist’s misery and depression after the demotion, this scene is all the more satisfying. The Last Laugh’s closing scene is truly a happy ending that ties all the loose ends.
ReplyDeleteThe ending of The Last Laugh is a parody of happy ending as it portrays the main character as gluttonous and prideful. As the unnamed main character stuffs his face with luxurious food, wine, and cigars, the audience’s attitude towards him changes. With the original ending, the audience pities him and feels bad that everything turned out so terribly for him. The original ending was sad, but much more realistic. I think I actually prefer the original ending because its flows better with the rest of the movie, it’s not confusing, and it’s depicts more realistic emotions through the main character, such as broken-heartedness and loneliness. The “new” ending is really random and doesn’t fit the rest of the film. For the first time in the film, the main character lives an expensive life. I got a sense of pride as well when he gave out money to the doorman, who were supposedly now below him. I don’t think he gave them all tips in an act of generosity, but rather in an attempt to spite them, tried to show off how rich he now was. This new ending is not an accurate portrayal of true happiness. In fact, the entire movie gave the impression that true happiness stemmed for a good job and family as he became depressed in response to losing his job and loved ones. This added-on ending says that happiness really stems from money and expensive things, which is widely accepted as untrue, especially in today’s world.
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