Re: Ending of Quad (film) --> Meaning?

[mleaman@sccoast.net (Mark Leaman)]

Ian poses an interesting question, and I've been watching the reactions.
Mainly because QUAD the album had/still has such an impact on my life. Ian
points out that Jimmy seems to live after having thrown the bike (read: the
Mod lifestyle) over the cliff. That's exactly how I saw it, down to the
detail of the end being the beginning (as Brenden points out). A similar
scene ended Harold And Maude, a dark comedy which is worth checking out.
Only they show the character after the crash.
As WFang points out, Jimmy is on a rock at the end of the album. Considering
all that has led him there. This is telling, I think. Townshend didn't write
the script of the movie, and for me the entire meaning of the work has been
changed. 
The album is about what's going on inside Jimmy, and the movie focuses on
what's going on around him. In the movie, there's nothing to show that he's
got four personalities at all. Unless you count his Dad's (very humourous)
line: "Bloody split personality!" Otherwise, Jimmy is just a confused young
man who can't seem to grasp why things keep changing. The scenes with his
Rocker friend Kevin show that Jimmy looks no deeper than the surface...as do
his actions with Steph. And his devotion to a single dogma to the
destruction of his lifestyle also shows that Jimmy isn't necessarily
mad...but he certainly isn't that bright.
Well, that's the movie. On the album, Jim is intelligent but restricted by
his quadrophonic nature. In the end, he considers the events...and,
according to the liner notes, he realizes that he has four personalities.
And therefore is one step closer to being cured. But there is no throwing
out of the lifestyle, nor regret...just realization. One can see why that
might be too weak an ending for the film. 
I would also like to add that the movie is one of my favorites, mainly
because it is one of the most realistic films I've seen. The party scene and
the street scenes...it's not like a movie at all, but real life. It should
have won an Oscar for that...
And that the meaning of TOMMY was changed in the film as well. However, I
was always of the opinion that the "evil" stepfather was new to the movie
script (there being no evidence of it on the album). Recently I got my hands
on a copy of the Scene Club videos (TOMMY videos, some of which are on The
Kids Are Alright). There is an interview on it, and Townshend mentions that
aspect on there in `69. So I suppose that was a part of the story that
didn't get out until the movie.
   Cheers                        ML