Remember Me Ending Explained: Does Robert Pattinson’s Tyler Survive?
The Remember Me ending earned the ire of many critics with its shocking last-minute twist since it surprisingly relates to the events of 9/11.
The Remember Me ending, released in 2010, was a controversial film that drew criticism due to its shocking 9/11-related twist. Released in 2010, it was Robert Pattinson's first attempt to expand his repertoire beyond the Twilight series. Despite being a divisive and often parodied Twilight movie, the Remember Me film generated controversy, particularly with its 9/11 twist at the end.
The Remember Me movie revolves around the relationship between Emilie De Ravin's Ally and her love interest Tyler. Tyler's relationship with his father, Charles, is strained due to his brother's suicide. The movie's strained relationship worsens with Tyler's courtship of Ally. Tyler's first blowout with Charles occurs when he fails to attend Caroline's art show. Their reconciliation occurs when Charles arranges a lawyer for Tyler, leading to a controversial ending.
Does Robert Pattinson’s Tyler survive?
Remember Me is a 2010 American coming-of-age romantic drama film directed by Allen Coulter and written by Will Fetters. It stars Robert Pattinson, Emilie de Ravin, Chris Cooper, Lena Olin, and Pierce Brosnan.
In the Remember Me ending, Robert Pattinson's Tyler dies offscreen, with his fate only revealed when his grave is seen next to his brother's. This tragic role marked a significant departure from his Twilight star status, which was at its peak during the movie's release and heavily featured in its marketing materials.
The actor gives a solid turn and is one of the better elements of the flawed film, with many Remember Me reviews singling out his anguished performance for praise. However, fans of the popular Twilight franchise and Pattinson did not expect to see him killed off, let alone killed off in an ending that used one of living memory’s greatest atrocities as an unexpected twist. As such, the audacious Remember Me ending was divisive for both critics and audiences.
Although Tyler is not alive at the end credits, his father Charles survives the events. Despite Tyler's visit to the North Tower, his father is either late to work or held up elsewhere, which is crucial to the movie's thematic preoccupations, as he is only visiting.
Remember Me’s core theme and message behind its story is the importance of accepting fate and chance despite tragedy often befalling innocent people, and urges viewers to search for meaningful connection when faced with unexplainable cruelty. What the former proves about the latter, however, is that this thematic depth doesn't justify the Remember Me ending's narrative decisions.
Actual meaning of the ending
Remember Me urges viewers to improve their relationships with family, romantic partners, and friends before it's too late. The movie's central thesis is that lives intersect unexpectedly and are impossible to track, making it crucial to forge meaningful connections and stand up for the less fortunate. Some fans argued that the movie's ending early, with Tyler dying in the 9/11 attacks, might have been more tactful.
However, it could also have made his effect on the lives of his sister, his father, his roommate, Ally, and her father much less impactful, as viewers would be expecting him to be a tragic figure of unrealized potential.
Thus, keeping the ending as a shocking twist effectively recreated the real-life impact of such tragedies by leading viewers to become invested in a character before stealing them away with an explanation in a brutal, unexpected fashion.
The Remember Me movie's twist ending has been criticized by many critics, with some arguing that it could have been handled better and others deeming any 9/11 mention in a movie not centered around the attacks exploitative. Roger Ebert, a renowned critic, argued that the movie's twist ironically worked against its own interests, making the characters irrelevant and upstaged the story.
The Remember Me ending, despite being a screenwriter's decision, failed to deliver a solid ending to a domestic drama. The 9/11 twist was more of a grab for attention than a solid ending. Although it generated discussions and attention, it wasn't the right kind of chatter, and the film underperformed at the box office, largely due to the twist ending.
Remember Me got an abysmal 26% critics score on the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes. While the movie does have an average 69% audience score, it wasn't enough to save the Remember Me ending from critics' wrath. On a budget of $16 million, the movie only made back half of that during its domestic opening. Remember Me's saving grace is that it made $56 million worldwide.
At the time of the making of Remember Me, less than 10 years had passed since the tragedy of 9/11. Many felt that it was too soon to depict the event, especially in such a blasé manner. It seemed that the 9/11 twist ending didn't pay off.
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