Southbound (2015) – Ending Explained

Reading Time: 5 minutes

First published: 28 September 2022 @ 6:00 pm

Segments by Segments: How Do They Differ?

The next two segments are completely different, but they are excellently contrasting one another.

The first segment, “The Accident”, shows Lucas (Mather Zickel) tries to save Sadie’s life in an empty hospital room after hitting her with his car.

Lucas attempts to save Sadie by receiving telephone instructions from anonymous EMTs who are calling him while he is in the desert. But, he fails.

He accepts he is responsible for his sister’s demise, so Lucas escapes from the desert unharmed.

In the next segment, Danny attempts to rescue his sister from a demon that is hiding.

Danny tries to drive off with her, much to her dismay.

When Jesse reveals she executed their parents and that she doesn’t intend to leave, the other demons take Danny away as Jesse drives off.

The segments complement each other as they travel through the desert, a land of judgment.

When Lucas is careless, he causes Sadie to perish, but because he realizes he was at fault and tries to save her, the desert has forgiven him.

Forgiveness and Redemption

Jesse has admitted to her sins, but rather than asking for forgiveness, she wants to accept that this is the way she wants to live.

Danny, even though he wanted to go against what the people were telling him, will receive punishment even though what he was trying to do was heroic.

There is no reason to fight your way through what the desert decides for you.

You only have to face what difficulties you have and decide how to move forward.

The last section, entitled The Way In, concludes the movie with a thoughtful bow.

During a family vacation, a group of masked intruders breaks into the house and attacks the family.

Jem (Hassie Harrison), their daughter, gets the opportunity to escape. After hitting the mother, they show the father a photo of Catherine from the film’s first segment.

We also learn that the masked intruders are Mitch and Jack, who are trying to force their way in. Their father has something to do with Catherine’s demise.

Monsters Attack, and More Deaths

Jem goes back to confront them, but perished while trying to fight them.

The two men felt guilty about the things that they’ve done, and when they realize that they’re guilty, they decide to leave.

Floating monsters terrorized them as they drive into the city, and the scene end like where the movie started.

We already know some of Mitch and Jack’s dirty deeds, but when we think about how these stories in the film link, it feels like a giant, never-ending loop.

The film sets the stage for this to happen in the beginning, with a visit to a gas station. While the road looks like another realm, some people think maybe it was a kind of purgatory.

Each story shows off the dirty past of its characters, and how they choose to come clean about their mistakes.

Everyone is on the same path to remission, but only they can choose to go where it takes them.