Oscar-winning Irish actor, Cillian Murphy delivered an impressive, critically acclaimed performance once again. His latest movie, Netflix’s Steve tackles sensitive topics like teenage rage and mental health in the context of a British reform school in the 1990s. The film examines the toll of trauma and neglect on both the students and the staff of the institution. The characters, head teacher, ‘Steve’ (played by Cillian Murphy) and ‘Shy’, a troubled student (played by Jay Lycurgo), form the heart of the movie. Here’s an exploration of what actually happened at the end, whether ‘Steve’ was able to save ‘Shy’.
‘Steve’ meets ‘Shy’ while dealing with his own inner demons
Steve was co-produced by Cillian Murphy and is an adaptation of the novella, Shy by Max Porter. In the 1-hour 33-minute movie, Cillian Murphy brought the complex character of ‘Steve’ to life. ‘Steve’ is a compassionate but exhausted headteacher of a reform school for troubled boys. There, he meets different kinds of teenage boys struggling with varied troubles, including ‘Shy’, in whom he sees himself. The headteacher is battling his own mental health and an addiction to alcohol and painkillers. He is wracked with guilt over a fatal car accident he was involved in and is trying to numb his pain by focusing on saving his students.
However, things turn awry when ‘Steve’ is informed that the government-funded school is being sold off and will close in six months due to budget cuts. This news, which is kept secret from the students, puts immense pressure on ‘Steve’, especially as a documentary crew is also visiting to film a report on the school for selfish, commercial motives. During that time, ‘Steve’ resorts to the addictive substances once again, but pulls himself together by thinking of his students, particularly ‘Shy’, one of the most troubled kids.
What happens to ‘Shy’ at the end? Is ‘Steve’ able to save him?
‘Shy’ grapples with violent tendencies, his past trauma, and his uncertain future. Throughout the film, ‘Steve’s struggles mirror the turmoil of the young boy in his care. He sees a reflection of his own pain in ‘Shy’, particularly in his violent impulses and self-destructive tendencies. Steve’s’ message to ‘Shy’, “You’re not alone”, is a truth he must also learn for himself. ‘Shy’s’ inner pain is exacerbated when his mother calls him and tells him that she and his stepfather are severing all ties with him.
Despite ‘Shy’s’ desperate pleading, his mother is unwilling to change her mind, which leads to his already fragile mental state breaking completely. He is forced to make an extreme decision to end his life. He fills his school bag with stones and walks into a lake, planning to drown himself. However, a powerful force prevents him from doing so, and it is none other than memories of ‘Steve’s’ care for him. Meanwhile, the head teacher frantically runs to find ‘Shy’ after reading his goodbye letter, but he falls into a pit and is unable to reach ‘Shy’.
The film’s powerful exploration of grief and connection showed how ‘Steve’s’ spiritual presence, even in physical absence, gave ‘Shy’ the will to live, which ultimately became the catalyst for ‘Steve’s’ own survival. ‘Steve’ would have been consumed by guilt and unable to move forward if ‘Shy’ had chosen differently, and the weight of that responsibility would have devastated him, potentially leading to his own demise. Hence, the film ends on a hopeful note with both ‘Shy’ and ‘Steve’ getting a purpose to live.
What are your thoughts on the ending of Cillian Murphy’s Steve? Let us know.
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