hapgilmore

I want to know why they killed the kid at the end? It seemed obvious he wasn't going to rat any of them out, yet they still thought it was necessary? Also, why did Timberlake go along with it?

freshticles

Mainly because this is based on a true story.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_James_Hollywood

DeputyDave

I, for one, hated the fact that this movie was made. This shit bag wanted more than anything for a movie to be made about his life, he said so on several occasions. I think he killed the boy simply because it would make him famous and increase the chances of a movie being made (and it did).

I'm not one to say there are ever any taboo subjects in film, but I hate the thought of this guy grinning in prison over his increased fame. At least they didn't use his real name.

JZ1276

so the real guy (truelove) did end up getting caught and going to prison? I dont think that was mentioned in the movie.

DeputyDave

Yeah, FBI top 10 and America's Most Wanted (both, I'm sure, fed his ego). He was a fugitive for a while but was finally caught. I don't think he's been convicted yet but he's in prison and I know he's facing the death penalty.

Jackskeleton

On that note I want to know why the Titanic actually sunk at the end of the film. I mean, it did look like a pretty ship that could withstand getting its hauls breached and all. Not to mention it was called an unsinkable ship and all.

So why folks, did it sink in the end? Anyone?

JCWBobC

Not to get to off topic but I was managing a video rental store when Titanic was released and their were people that got upset when they heard someone talking about the ship sinking because they hadn't seen the movie yet. They had no idea that it was based on a true story.

Bob

Sernov

Back to the OP's question. I was wondering this myself since I just saw this on a rental this weekend. It seems to me it was a constant escalation of "one up man-ship" between Truelove and the older brother which is a typical gangster mentality. It started out how Truelove was fed up with people owning him money. He's got that one guy (who eventually became the trigger man) already paying him back by being his errand boy. Then the older brother comes by saying he wants to split a deal with him instead of paying up the full amount. He attacks him in the room and then thru his girlfriend.

The older brother goes one up and attacks him back at his house, not to mention leaving a most humiliating steaming turd in his living room. He attacked his house, it became personal. Truelove had to one up him more. So he saw the little brother and one upped the older brother by going after his family. Giving Truelove the benefit of the doubt, he wasn't certain he was going to have him killed up until he called the kid's house and talked to the older brother. He was probably expecting him to call a truce etc. but instead, the older brother went off on him. I believe that's when he made the decision to have the kid killed, the ultimate "one up". He figured he was going away for life and had to run anyway.

MartinBlank

I figured they offed the kid because they all assumed they were already fucked for kidnapping, life in prison, right?

The scene right before the murder was the dad and the lawyer tellin' truelove to call it off...I found that to be a weird aspect of the film:

"Call it off"
--"They've probably already fucked it up/lost the kid"
END OF SCENE.

Zen Peckinpah

That scene was pretty damn intense.

Besides Black Snake Moan and Zodiac, Alpha Dog might take the cake for most underrated movie of 2007 so far. Totally didn't deserve a mid-January release.

Osiris3657

Saw this for the first time yesterday. I liked it, but feel like they made Justin Timberlake's character Frankie too sympathetic because he's played by JT. I'm sure the guy his character is based on was just as big a douchebag as the rest of them. I'm also willing to bet that Sonny (Bruce Willis) never actually told his son to call off the hit.
I swear Anton Yelchin hasn't aged a day since this movie.

Anyway for those who haven't seen it I'd recommend checking it out. Really fucked up story based on a true incident in SoCal in 1999. Teenage drug dealer gets back at a childhood friend who owes him a drug debt by kidnapping his half brother and holding him as collateral until he pays off the debt. Needless to say nothing goes as planned.

SuckaMC

I love the part where Ben Foster goes to that party and tears shit up.