The Ending Of Sympathy For The Devil Explained

While there are no comments from the stars of “Sympathy for the Devil” because of the strikes, in a brief interview, the director Yuval Adler said of Kinnaman’s performance at the end of the film, “You have the change that he needs to have as a character, which is remarkable because it sells you one thing and then flips it on you, so I like that aspect.” If only the critics agreed with him. The critics who liked the film did so because of Cage’s bravado performance. Those who didn’t saw it as more of the same from the star: over-the-top showboating. One thing almost everyone agreed on, however, was that the production didn’t quite pull off the ending.

For example, The A.V. Club’s Luke Y. Thompson enjoyed the movie, particularly Cage’s performance, except for the ending, which he said: “involve[s] some complicated backstory that’s hard to focus on or clarify.” The Hollywood Reporter’s Jordan Mintzer, who similarly gave the movie a decent review, claimed the final twist is “not totally convincing,” but still enjoyed Cage’s antics.

Meanwhile, the Observer’s Casey Epstein-Gross, who didn’t care for the film, said, “The entertaining surrealism that energized the opening movements fizzles out as the film reaches the third act, the reveals of which are both mundane and expected.” Ultimately, however you feel about the film, most people aren’t wild about the third act, particularly not the part where the Passenger reveals his true backstory.