Stoker Ending Analysis

Delivered to our screens in 2012, Stoker is a delightfully horrific movie. Glorifying the internal damage of a girl who on the outside is seen as perfectly innocent. This is her characters main theme and is constantly referred to in the visuals of the movie, often by her choice of white flowing dresses. This costuming choice stands out as the use of white contrasts the deeper meaning of India's character as white has connotations of purity, whereas her personality appears dark and twisted.

In the final scene we see India shot from a low angle, therefore establishing her superiority in the situation, as she looks down the barrel of the gun it is as if she looks down upon the audience, putting them in the position of the Sherrif. The use of camera angles to present a hierarchy is extremely common and most audiences would notice this. This creates suspense by giving the audience a chance to question whether she will shoot or not. Moments before this, a shot reverse shot is used to show the conversation between India and the sherrif, the camera is close up to their faces, delivering to the audience the characters emotions. This sequence shows that they both appear smug as he doesn't expect what is coming next.

Fast camera movements are used to elaborate on the confusion and fear that the sherrif will be feeling. As a young girl, her character would be assumed to be kind and delicate, however she is repeatedly shown as destructive, to herself and others. One example of this is her puncturing the blister on her finger, the blood could be seen as a representation of her internal pain following her fathers death. Another is her rolling the egg across the table and cracking it slowly, this may show that her inner damage begins to show externally.

The destruction of innocence is extended metaphorically throughout the film, in the final scene we see a blade of grass, once a pure part of nature that is seen as good, coated in blood and therefore consumed by pain, much like India herself.