Symbolism with the Dog?
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Margin Call
digital_signal_x — 14 years ago(October 25, 2011 01:20 AM)
The subplot with Sam Roger's dog is confusing - are we supposed to infer that he cares more about this dog then he does all the people his firm is/will be screwing?
Or is it that this cold, calculating company man's soft center has been crushed finally even after surviving a divorce, being passed over for promotion by younger players, and experiencing his division getting slashed and rebuilt repeatedly?
No pun, but throw us a bone here. Paul Bettany's scene shaving in the bathroom with the other analyst shows us more about his character, stamina, his emotional investment in the implosion happening around him then both of Spacey's longer scenes about the dog. -
leeandfong — 14 years ago(October 30, 2011 03:05 PM)
Sam had given his life to that firm. 34 years, as he keeps saying.
He's separated from his wife. We see him trying to sleep in his office.
He fires most of his people and then has to come out upbeat and motivational.
He is forced by his bosses to do something he finds unconscionable.
We're seeing that although he has the money, his life is miserable.
The only thing he has of worth is his relationship with his dog.
Then the dog dies and he has nothing. He is left alone, digging a hole in the middle of the night to bury the only bit of warmth and humanity he had left.
What's the metaphor or symbolism?
After 34 years of working in that job, that is what you become.
He even goes to Jeremy Irons begging to be let go from the firm, to which Irons demands another 2 years at least from him.
But the real symbolism is that finance creates or builds nothing. It is a void of emptiness and Spacey's character symbolised that.
Contrast that with Stanley Tucci's piece about building a bridge that served two communities; back when he did something constructive with his life, something he'd like to get back to. -
adam-pruzan — 11 years ago(June 13, 2014 07:06 PM)
This reply is excellent. I would offer 2 additions:
- "If you need a friend, get a dog," was for decades a standard line among traders on Wall Street. Michael Douglas's character, Gordon Gekko, uses the line with Charlie Sheen's character, Bud Fox, in the film
Wall Street
. Clearly, the dog is Sam Rogers' only friend (although Will Emerson is at least a loyal subordinate, which is something). - In the second-to-last scene, John Tuld tries to cheer Sam up by suggesting that securities trading is at least better than some things Sam could have done, such as spending his life ditch digging; Sam replies, "If I had, at least there would be some holes in the ground to show for it." The film cuts directly from that scene to the shot of Sam digging a hole.
- "If you need a friend, get a dog," was for decades a standard line among traders on Wall Street. Michael Douglas's character, Gordon Gekko, uses the line with Charlie Sheen's character, Bud Fox, in the film
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mikeyflatley — 14 years ago(November 01, 2011 03:23 AM)
da job is basically punishin sam's soul like da illness is punishin his dog so he begz 2 be let go much da dog is prolly beggin 2 be put down 2 end his sufferin. in da end, sam is denied resignation so he decides 2 bury his soul (dog) be4 in con't his job for at least another 2 yrz.
I live, I love, I slay, and I'm content -
legnadibrom — 14 years ago(December 29, 2011 08:13 PM)
you're still posting on the IMDB?
http://www.last.fm/music/Disuse -
CuriousGrl — 14 years ago(November 08, 2011 12:11 PM)
I think the dog represents Sam Roger himself. He basically lost everything that was alive in him. At the end he is digging the grave for himself, he is continuing digging the same grave he has been digging for the past 34 years at the firm.
My 2 cents -
chuck-526 — 14 years ago(December 17, 2011 05:24 PM)
Paul Bettany's scene shaving in the bathroom
Huh?
Please help me out here. Was that really Will and I didn't recognize him?
I thought that was some nameless trader who had just arrived, doing his normal early morning routine not any of the principal characters who had been up most of the night. (I've seen employees who wanted to "save time" or "get in early" or "not create a mess in their apartment" or "not wake their S.O." or "go to the gym first" or "ride a bicycle to work" do their whole morning routine including not just shaving but showering and dressing etc. at the office. So my understanding of what the movie showed seemed normal to me.)
