"I'll see you again, this side or the other."
*This post is different from usual and contains spoilers*
On March 6th of this year, Warner Home Video released the ‘Ultimate Collector’s Edition’ of Ben Affleck’s 2010 crime/drama The Town on Blu-Ray. The major draw of this re-release is the inclusion of an alternate ending. When The Town was released in 2010 it easily made my “top 10 list” of that year, and the subsequent Blu-Ray release (which included an extended cut adding an additional 28 minutes of footage) was a day one purchase. Fast-forward to today and it still remains a film I adore. So of course I had to see Affleck’s alternate ending.
A quick refresher on the original ending: Ben Affleck’s character, Doug MacRay a professional bankrobber from Charlestown, is on the run from Jon Hamm’s Special Agent Adam Frawley and his FBI agents after the Fenway Park heist which resulted in the death of Doug’s crew/friends. The only thing he has left is the take from the heist and his love for Claire Keesey, portrayed by Rebecca Hall, who feels betrayed when she finds out Doug was one of the assailants to rob her bank and take her hostage. Despite this, she still loves him and secretly tips him off about the Feds at her place and the film ends with Claire finding the stolen money buried in her garden with a note from Doug saying she would find a better use for it then he would. The final shots show that Claire donated the money to renovate the hockey arena that Doug once played in, while Doug is seen looking over the water at sunset, safe but alone.
This ending was great in that it didn’t let the two lovers live happily ever after together, forcing the viewer to reconcile that when you live that type of life, you cannot have everything. The music is perfect, the shot composition and cinematography of Doug at sunset is beautiful, and Doug’s monologue over top of all this culminates in such a way that the ending feels real and earned. Basically, it was going to be a tough ending to top.
However, despite being the butt of many jokes, Ben Affleck has proven to be an incredible director despite only having two credits to his name (this, and 2007’s Gone Baby Gone), and I knew I was in for a well thought-out alternative rather than a cheap one that wouldn’t fit in the context of the film.
In the alternate ending, all the actions play out almost the same. After Claire warns Doug of the FBI at her place, we follow Doug leaving, something we did not get in the original. However, when Doug turns the corner to his car, he is confronted by three thugs he and his friend Jem (Jeremy Renner) had attacked earlier in the movie (one of whom has a broken leg courtesy of them). There’s brief dialog here that is incredibly intense and the tight shot focus and quick, back-and-forth editing force us to realize what Doug is realizing as he looks up in the sky and sees a plane leave; he isn’t going to make it. As the main thug holds his gun up to Doug, toying with him, Doug, defiant to the end, asks him about his leg. The thug immediately shoots him several times and Doug falls down and dies looking up at the sky, finally seeming at peace. The film continues with Claire seeing a news report that Doug was murdered. After this, the original ending resumes with Claire finding the money and the note buried in her garden. This time his words have a different weight and meaning to them, as she knows he is dead. The final shot is her at the refurbished ice rink watching kids play hockey, presumably coming to terms with Doug’s death and ready to try and move on. What’s truly remarkable of this version is it really changes the meaning of the film. While the original ending was about Doug and his personal journey with escaping his past life of crime and being able to leave Charlestown, this alternate ending infers that these career criminals can never escape their ‘birthright’ and the film becomes a story about this town and it’s hold over it’s residents. It’s dark, chilling, and, ultimately, an absolute joy to see how one change in the ending scene can completely alter an already incredible film.
Alternate endings are a tricky bag. They can be pointless (EuroTrip) or they can make the original ending seem terrible in comparison (I Am Legend). The Town somehow gives us two great endings that fundamentally change how we view the film. I can’t say which ending I prefer, but I’m certainly glad to have them both.
Follow @astraeus_
Follow @astraeus_
