Legends of the Fall
Movie Quote Quiz

One Stab: Tristan died in 1963. The moon of the popping trees. He was last seen up in the North Country, where the hunting was still good. His grave is unmarked, but it does not matter. He had always lived in the borderland anyway, somewhere between this world and the Other.

Tristan: Samuel, God bless you. You are good at everything you try to do. I'm sure it'll be the same with fucking.
Samuel: Tristan, really. We're talking about my future wife.
Tristan: Oh, you're not gonna fuck her?
Samuel: No.
Tristan: No?
Samuel: No! I'm planning to be with her.
Tristan: I recommend fucking.

Colonel Ludlow: Screw'm! Screw'm all! Screw the gov'm'nt.

Samuel: Nice shiner.
Tristan: Yeah, well, I hit her back.

Alfred: Susannah, you deserve to be happy.

Colonel Ludlow: There will be no more talk of wars in this house, damn IT.

Alfred: What is he wanted for, Sheriff?
John T. O'Banion: That would be of a private nature.
Colonel Ludlow: A private nature? That's a public office you hold, isn't it, Sheriff?

One Stab: It is hard to tell of happiness. Time goes by and we feel safe too soon.

Samuel: Tristan! Get back to your unit.
Tristan: Those boys are boring. I'd rather have you watching my back.

One Stab: Every warrior hopes a good death will find him.

Samuel: Still hung over?
Tristan: Still drunk.

Alfred: Don't mind my brother. Your dog has more breeding than he has.

Tristan: Miss Finncannon. It's a pleasure to meet you. I hope you and Ugly here find every happiness together.

Tristan: Alfred's going to do well wherever he is.
Colonel Ludlow: Except here with us.
Tristan: That's my fault.
Colonel Ludlow: I didn't say that.
Tristan: I couldn't bring Samuel back home alive either, could I?
Colonel Ludlow: Don't you dare say that boy! That was in God's hands.
Tristan: Was it?

Susannah: I still sometimes dream that I'm the mother of your children. I wanted her to die.

Susannah: Forever turned out to be too long.

Alfred: You don't have to be a genius to figure out they going to come after you for this.
Tristan: Yeah. Alfred?
Alfred: Yeah?
Tristan: I want to ask you to watch over my children. Watch over Samuel.
Alfred: Brother, it will be an honor.

Susannah: Tristan, I have nowhere to send this letter and no reason to believe you wish to receive it. I write it only for myself. And so I will hide it away along with all the things left unsaid and undone between us.

Alfred: I followed all of the rules, man's and God's. And you, you followed none of them. And they all loved you more. Samuel, Father, and my... even my own wife.

One Stab: It was a good death.

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Mistakes

Continuity mistake: Just after Samuel and Alfred say that they are going to enlist, Samuel has a weird looking face and notice Alfreds shoulder right behind him, then Susanna takes a few steps up the stairs very sad and Samuel walks a couple of meters towards her and then she leaves and then it switches to Samuel with the same funny looking face and Alfred is again right behind him. (00:24:20)

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Trivia

Trivia: When shooting the scene where Isabelle Two is shot and Tristan gets beat up by the policemen, the actor playing the policeman accidentally really hit Brad Pitt on the head with the baton, giving him a black eye. Shortly after that, they shot the tennis scene that's near the beginning, and Brad Pitt still has his black eye. They had to make up a couple of lines about his "shiner" to explain it.

Krista

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Questions

Question: Before committing suicide, why did Susannah cut her hair? I've seen this behaviour in other films but have never known the psychology behind it.

Hobbes

Answer: Cutting locks of hair is often done in memory of the deceased. Knowing of her impending death, she cut two locks so as not to have them tainted by blood, but dropped one on the floor. I imagine it was the one for Alfred, but it is just my opinion.

I have goosebumps with this interpretation. I always thought that it was related someone with "scalping." She kills herself. She is her own victim. I don't know.

I agree, I always thought it was a symbolic scalping.

Answer: I think Susannah cut two locks of hair, one for her husband Alfred and the other for her true love Tristan. They were mementos in some respect, but also a clue for her suicide - being married to one brother while loving the other who no longer wanted to be with her. Susannah was torn apart, in pain over losing Tristan and probably felt she could not be true or faithful to Alfred if/when Tristan came around again. She would also have guilt over violating her marriage vows if she were to be with Tristan again while married to Alfred.

KeyZOid

Chosen answer: To give a definitive answer would be misleading because there's no one specific reason why someone does this type of thing. People considering suicide often start exhibiting odd and/or uncharacteristic behavior such as suddenly cutting one's hair. In Susannah's case, it could be a form of self-mutilation, an attempt to change who she is by altering her appearance, or it is a way of controlling something in her life while other events spiral out-of-control, and so on.

raywest ★

Answer: I always thought it was she wanted people to know. She didn't want the wound to be covered.

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