Well I just saw this movie and I must say that, despite my skepticism about it originally, I loved it. However the purpose of this thread is not to become a complete fanboy over it, but rather to get the opinions of other people that have seen it (For those that haven't seen it but want to discuss the question at hand I will add a spoiler section).

Spoiler

The premise of the story is that a young couple, that happen to be private investigators, are hired by the aunt and uncle of a missing girl. The police are also on the case, however the aunt feels that they aren't going to be able to do everything properly because a lot of people don't cooperate well with the police. The mother of the girl is a drugged up 20 something year old who does not appear fit to be handling a 4 year old daughter, she is even hostile towards those trying to help her find the girl at first. The 2 P.I.'s meet 2 cops who are on the case, and they begin to work together to get the little girl back.

They believe that they have found who has the girl and set up a ransom point; however it goes sour and the little girl is believed to have fallen into the water, off a cliff, and drowned. The body is never found, however everybody assumes she is dead and life goes on, although the head of the missing kids unit retires early because he feels that this is all his fault.

The male P.I. (Patrick) becomes more involved when his friend shows him a house that contains 3 ex-criminals who he believes has another little boy. The 2 cops and Patrick raid the house and kill all 3 ex-criminals, however one of the cops dies. Lots of drama goes on for a while, however none of it is crucial to my question. The next big scene is Patrick begins to put the pieces of a conspiracy together. He figures it out and is question someone when the cop that is still alive barges into the bar where the question is happening. He ends up being shot by the bartender and dies a few minutes later after a chase.

Finally Patrick realizes how big the scandal really is and goes to visit the retired police chief. Low and behold the missing girl is alive and living, quite happily, with the chief. After a lot of conflict Patrick ends up calling the police and the chief is arrested and the child returned to her druggy mother. At the very end we see that the mother hasn't changed, and we are left with the question of, was it for the better that Patrick called the police?

My question to you DLP is this; do you believe that Patrick (the main character male P.I.) made the right decision about calling the police. I personally took a long time to think about what I would have done in his position and finally decided that I would have done the same thing. My reasoning for this is that while they all had the girls best interests at heart, they went about it the wrong way. If they got away this then who knows what they might get away with next.

If you disagree with his choice, then what would you have done?

 

Your reasoning depends upon the assumption that the legal way to do things is always the right way. Hate to burst your bubble of naivety, but that ain't always the case. The choice you admit you'd make punishes the ex-chief for trying to do the right thing by the kid, and dumps the kid back into her shit life with an apathetic druggie mother. Hope that gives you the warm fuzzies.

Your 'slippery slope' justification is a pile of bullshit and chips to boot. "Gee, illegally adopting the kid instead of returning her to a life of neglect, drugs and gods know what else, that sure turned out well. Let's go rob a bank!" Yeah, no.

 

You should NEVER ask questions like if this happened or if that happened because the fact is it didn't happen. The police chief saw something wrong and he took action to correct it end of story. Then we have this half wit wannabe goody two shoos that blows the horn on em because it wasn't legal and the girl goes back to suffering from neglect....I would have shanked the bastard if I was the Police Chief and I ever got out.

That is, of course, if the little girl doesn't get to him first.

 

True, and I did think about that when I was thinking about what I would have done. However by the same means if we are all going to judge what laws are right and what are long and do whatever the fuck we want, then whats the point of having them? If you are going to head a police department then it's my opinion that you had better stick to the damned law. Yes I know that isn't the case a lot of the time, just how I think it should be.

At Zephi, so your saying that if somebody sees something wrong with a person living then they should just go ahead and kill them? Different levels of breaking the law I know, however who honestly should be allowed to decide it.

Also you didn't reply to the part about what you would have done. Nothing?

 

I would have attempted to go through proper channels first, no need for things to get nasty if they don't need to, but if that failed and the law says no simply because of an outside influence or some such I would take action and I would only hesitate long enough to plan it out intelligently.

The fact remains that the way you would have it a little girl suffers and a just man is punished while you go home to a nice comfy bed. Congratulations you have just destroyed two lives you are a monster in my book, I'd thank you to go out of your way to avoid me or I might loose control of myself.

Also if you go by that reasoning then nobody on earth is fit to judge anybody, but we still do anyway because thats the way it is. Remember not to get caught up in the world of should be and ignore the world that is.

 

I warrant, "legally" he did the right thing.

However, with such a mother, the outcomes are generally always bad.

a) becomes addicted to drugs
b) becomes a whore to try and support herself/ mother
c) becomes a whore to support drug addiction
d) suicide
e) murdered
f) sold to black-market slavery

So really, I ask you. Would you knowingly condemn an innocent child to one, if not more of the presented futures?

As to what I woulda done...turned around, walked out and mutter about how fucked up life is.

Of course, my darker side would return her and become her pimp so I get a cut of the profits. And don't get any romantic ideas about me watching over her. I'd set her up with implants, clothes, food, etc. I have to protect my investment.

Reality ain't all sunshine and roses. It's bone-chilling night and devastated ground. Bleak, cold, harsh and ugly.

 

I actually agree with you now zeph, fact is thought that the police chief didn't try social services or other legal means first though. That is why I believe he got what he deserved. If he had tried, and failed, to get the little girl to be taken by social services then maybe I would be more on his side. Fact is thought that he didn't, so that is neither here nor there.

 

In that case I would have called social services and explained the situation to them and then let them take care of it, if the mother was as bad as you let on then it would have been an obvious outcome.

 

Unless there's physical abuse involved, it's damn near impossible to separate a child from her biological parents. Even if it does work, what's the kid face then? Bouncing around foster homes until she turns 18 and then being dumped onto welfare? Your faith in the system is rather cute, but come the fuck on. This is a textbook example of legal != right.

 

Ah, you have a point, I wish I could say I was naive about the failings of the system, but around here where I live the system has never really....well there was that one time with the patrolmen, but social services down here are scary as all fuck, their like the Alexander Anderson of the real world, just without the religion.

 

I loved the movie, but I can't say I agreed with his final decision at all. The mother was clearly an addict of some sort (seemingly coke). Addicts never make good parents, and seldom do they recover.

Besides that, I have a certain hatred in my heard for drug addicts as a whole, so I'm probably biased here, but the woman clearly never made a good mother in the first place.


I would have left things as they were, and pretended I had never visited the area. That way if they get caught I'm not involved, and the girl gets a better life.