Movies - TV
A Breakdown Of The End Of The Hit Horror Movie 'Smile'
By DREW TINNIN
Originally inspired by Parker Finn's award-winning short film, "Smile" has become one of the most successful horror films of all time due largely in part to a high-concept premise.
Its step-up provides a fairly effective means of exploring themes of isolation and mental illness where the demon becomes a metaphor for trauma.
Throughout the film, the demon isolates Rose and makes her feel like she's losing control of reality. The monster becomes a stand-in for the first signs of mental illness.
To stop the curse, Rose decides to kill herself in isolation so there are no witnesses. However, the place she chooses is the source of her unresolved childhood trauma.
Rose never dealt with her mother's death from a drug overdose. Now, the demon takes its final form and becomes a metaphor for guilt and grief.
The demon uses her guilt to finally take control and fully possess Rose. In the final moments, she kills herself and passes on the curse to Joel as he watches in horror.
The real horror of "Smile" isn't necessarily Rose's internal agony; it's the dismissive way she is treated by the people around her and how they begin to push her away.
The forced isolation only exacerbates Rose's symptoms, causing her to fall even further into a state of mental anguish. However, it's ultimately the curse that helps her heal.
Rose returns to the source of her pain and, in a mass delusion, sets fire to the demon and escapes, showing that she's finally at peace with her past.