Finch: A discussion of the ending. (SPOILERS)
The acting, of course, was incredible. The story was heartwarming and the character of Jeff was developed with enough subtle robot-learning realism to appease sci-fi buffs like yours truly.
Where it fell short was in the ending.
The whole film is very 'close'. Hanks is the only human apart from a girl in a short flashback and the unseen driver of a menacing car. This closeness is maintained throughout, all the way to the end.
The idea of life finding a way is a theme but it is not developed very far. The end sees Jeff and Goodyear going off into the sunset with nothing having changed. Apart from the loss of Finch.
I think Craig Luck and Ivor Powell missed out on an opportunity to 'widen' the scope at the end.
I thought that the relationship between Finch (Hanks) and Goodyear (Seamus) was a metaphor for stewardship - stewardship of nature.
The apocalypse was brought on by a random event. A solar flare that stripped the ozone layer and allowed harmful UV rays to scour the planet of life.
Although this allowed for a short interval between the end of the world and Finch trying to keep his dog alive, I think that a deeper message could have been communicated if the disaster were brought on by human actions. For example, geo-engineering gone wrong.
Jeff is a marvel of Artificial Intelligence. A self-learning, empathetic singularity. Able to care for and take over ownership of Goodyear.
I wonder, if the idea of humanity's failure as a steward of nature was developed as a strong theme, that the eccentric project of this solitary genius could have become the next steward of nature. The next stage of evolution. So that, although humanity had died out, consciousness continued.
And without all that pesky violence and hubris.
The relationship between Finch and Jeff, the passing of the torch of care for man's best friend, could have been a metaphor for the passing of the torch from man to machine. The future of consciousness in the universe leaving the organic and progressing to inorganic life.
It could have ended with Jeff building another like him, and Finch's heartwarming project becoming the vessel for consciousness and future society. A mistake, like a mutation of evolution, allowing humanity to live on, in the new environment of their broken world, a ghost in their machine.
The scope of the story could then have 'widened' towards the end. The final message resonating deeper and ending with a future further than the immediate fate of Jeff and Goodyear, for the dog's remaining years.
What will Jeff do with his immortality once Goodyear is burned like his human master? Why were some plants and animals thriving on the west coast and not in other places?
There were unanswered questions which should have been answered/addressed to maximise the effect of the film.
What do you think of my alternative ending? Do you agree?
I'd love to hear your opinion. Please let me know in the comments.
R.S.