Trance (2013 Movie) Explained [Plot And Ending Explained]

Danny Boyle’s 2013 psychological criminal thriller Trance is a thriller. A bunch of men trying to steal a painting is the subject of the movie. Nevertheless, things don’t work out as expected, and they ultimately need a hypnotherapist’s assistance to bring out a forgotten recollection. James McAvoy, Rosario Dawson, and Vincent Cassel play the main characters, and the movie left us wondering what actually transpired at the conclusion. There will be spoilers in this explanation of the Trance movie’s plot and conclusion.

Trance (2013) A Summary of the Story

Trance’s denouement, in contrast to Inception’s, did not make it apparent what was real and what was a dream. So, there can be several theories, and they are all valid. Please leave a comment in the space provided; I’d love to read it.

Simon, who is he?

Simon, an auctioneer, has a dependency on gambling. He considers using hypnosis to stop because he has accumulated a lot of debt. Elizabeth learns the hard way that he similarly struggles with trust and control over his wrath.

Elizabeth Lamb| Who is she? What is she seeking?

Simon chooses Elizabeth at random as the hypnotherapist who will assist him in quitting gambling. The two of them fall in love, but over time Simon’s trust difficulties interfere and the relationship devolves into Elizabeth’s worst nightmare of an abusive one. Elizabeth wants to leave. Legal authorities sympathise with her but take no action to assist her. She decides to resolve the situation on her own.

Hypnotism is used by Elizabeth to make Simon forget about her. She is conscious of the possibility that Simon will one day recall and come back to haunt her. She then asks Simon to help her steal a pricey painting by Francisco Goya called Witches in the Air. In this manner, Simon will be found guilty in the best-case scenario while Elizabeth receives a pricey painting in the worst-case situation.

What does the artwork Witches in the Air represent? Elizabeth wants it, so why?

Witches are depicted attacking one person in the picture. The onlookers are either horrified yet powerless to act, or wilfully stupid and unwilling to help. The image of the donkey represents ignorance.

Simon was the witch, while Elizabeth was the victim.

Police officials showed little interest. Attorneys advise her to leave the country or alter her name. They stand by and do nothing.

The vast majority of individuals are as stupid as a donkey about the suffering that comes with being in an abusive relationship.

Elizabeth is asking for this painting so she can keep it as a prize. She requests that Simon deliver it for her.

Describe Franck.

The idea that Simon and Franck are the same person is widely held. Even if I adore the theory, I’ll explain why it’s improbable further down.

Simon asks Franck, a skilled thief, to assist in stealing the picture. In exchange for Simon’s inside job, Franck settles Simon’s gambling debt. Franck is granted unauthorised entry to the auction house by Simon so they can prepare their weapons.

The 2013 film Trance: How Robberies Work

On the day of the auction, Franck shows up with his guys and gases the proceedings. In accordance with the plan, Simon removes the picture and gets it ready to be hidden in a safe. At the drop-off location, Franck is meant to meet Simon, steal the artwork from him, and get away. But, Simon chops out the artwork and keeps it in his coat because Elizabeth instructed him to take it on her behalf.

Simon and his two team members are stopped by Franck, who also removes the painting case. To open it and see if the painting is inside, he places it on the ground. Simon tases Franck in order to create a distraction. Being extremely irate, Franck strikes Simon in the head and takes the case. Franck notices that the picture has been removed when they arrive at their safe place. He is aware that Simon took it out but is unable to stop him because Simon has been admitted to the hospital.

How does Simon use the artwork? That girl in the red automobile, who is she?

When Simon regained consciousness, he was still carrying the picture in his coat back at the auction house. Elizabeth’s mind-lock was released as a result of the blow to his skull. Simon doesn’t remember Elizabeth, but he does recall his last feelings, which were rage and a sense of being taken advantage of. When Simon is about to take off, Elizabeth texts him telling him to bring her the object. She includes a picture of herself to remind Simon of the owner of the painting he stole.

Unluckily, Simon is struck by an errant vehicle, and at that very moment, he projects Elizabeth onto an errant stranger who gives assistance. In his wrath, Simon chokes the girl and flees in her car. He drives it to a parking lot, throws her body in the trunk, and then drives away with the painting. He starts to go but passes out along the way.

Why is Simon acclaimed as a hero?

Once Franck had rendered Simon unconscious, the two coworkers accompanying him fled. They would have explained to the authorities how Simon used the taser to try to thwart the heist if they had asked. Later, Simon is discovered unconscious and bleeding from the head somewhere else. He is then taken to the hospital. The media commends him for his courageous deed.

Returning to hypnosis once more!

When torture fails, Franck understands that Simon has truly forgotten where the painting is. He gives Simon a list of potential local hypnotherapists and asks him to choose one. Simon chooses Elizabeth because she sounds a bell. He poses as someone else and says that he is seeking for his misplaced car keys. Elizabeth is horrified that Simon has come back to her thanks to her plot. She observes that he is wearing a wire and that his nails have been filed down.

The initial session is ineffective since it only helps Simon find his vehicle keys, not the painting. Simon visits Elizabeth once more. As she asks to meet with the others, she confirms inaudibly that Simon is in difficulty and speaks into his microphone. She meets Franck and the crew, who decide to reward her with a portion of the painting sale in exchange for her assistance in finding it.

Elizabeth’s Strategy

Elizabeth doesn’t want the money; she only wants the picture for herself. She puts off asking Simon to tell her where the artwork is. She begins by stating that Simon is worried Franck would murder him once they find the painting. The men are subsequently each hypnotised by Elizabeth to reveal their worries to Simon and, more crucially, to her. She then informs Franck that Simon appears to have grown fixated with her. Simply put, Simon is just starting to recall Elizabeth when she turns things around.

In order to obtain that painting, Elizabeth tells Franck she will go out with Simon. She returns to Franck and claims Simon is unwilling to act because he is envious of him. Afterwards, Elizabeth sleeps with Franck. She would have taken use of this chance to acquire everything she needed to know to put locks on Franck’s mind, even though it was not depicted in the film. Be aware that she goes swimming because she wants to experience Franck’s life so she can later benefit from it.

Sadly, Franck’s henchman notices Elizabeth and Franck together and goes to tell Simon about it. Simon is incensed that Elizabeth had an affair with Franck. By shaving her pubic hair, she convinces Simon that the henchman is lying and causes him to relax. This scene is significant because Elizabeth already took care of Simon in a similar manner while they were dating. Simon is overcome with emotion, and Elizabeth takes advantage of this to induce a dream for him.

Simon has a dream where he hears Franck and his men discussing killing him after they have the picture. This dream is brought on by Elizabeth. Simon is led to Franck’s gun by Elizabeth. Also, she persuades Simon to tell her where the painting is. After Simon kills Franck and his men, Franck’s corpse awakens and begins to speak. The subconscious message Simon is giving himself is that Elizabeth is up to no good.

Elizabeth’s plot is foiled when Franck’s men seize her as she attempts to take the artwork. Franck and Simon are sent to acquire the artwork while holding her captive. Fortunately for Elizabeth, Simon defeats Franck and goes back to kill the henchmen who try to abuse her sexually.

Getting The Red Vehicle Back

Franck, Elizabeth, and Simon go to get the automobile. At gunpoint, Simon drives them to a remote location, where Elizabeth tells the tale of how she forced Simon forget about her and the events from their past. Elizabeth discovers the girl’s decaying corpse and the artwork when she opens the boot at a distant spot. Because Elizabeth gave Simon’s subconscious mind those instructions, he allows her to take the painting. While Franck is still inside, Simon begins to fill the automobile with fuel and start it.

When Elizabeth locates a truck, she crashes it into Simon’s flaming automobile. In the process, she kills Simon, but Franck lives. She checks to make sure Franck is still alive before leaving the area.

What would have occurred if Simon’s body and the automobile were discovered by the police?

The impact of the police discovering the automobile, the dead girl, and a dead Simon is not depicted in the film. Records show that Elizabeth took this car from the parking lot, making her one of the main suspects in a double homicide. Somehow, she makes a tidy getaway. You’re probably wondering, “What if the entire ending was solely in Franck’s mind?” Nothing would then be important. Why that is unlikely will be discussed in more detail below.

Trance (2013) The Defining Moment

The conclusion of the 2013 film Trance shows that Elizabeth was the brains behind the hypnosis that led to Simon helping her take the painting. In a final scenario where Franck is hypnotised, she appears to like him and gives him the option of forgetting her.

It follows that the last scene is obviously filmed inside Franck’s head. We see a pattern where Franck picks up a package and finds a gadget with a message from Elizabeth. We observe Simon going through exactly the same process during one of his hypnosis sessions.

Franck’s swimming pool scene and him stepping out of the automobile are cut together to emphasise the significance of the fact that Elizabeth saved him. And he’s at a crossroads where he must decide. He will also lose track of his memories of nearly drowning and being burned alive. Despite her sincere feelings for Franck, Elizabeth tells him she can’t allow the picture be sold since it holds too much significance for her. Franck is still unsure about whether he wants to forget Elizabeth when the movie comes to a finish.

When and how did Elizabeth put Franck under her spell?

To hypnotise Franck, Elizabeth had all she needed. To be sure she could put him there in this dream sequence, she even dove into the water to see what it was like. But as the movie makes clear, in order for hypnosis to be effective in this way, the subject must be in front of Elizabeth. It’s not some X-Men mind trick that she can use from anywhere. Thus it seems that some time after the climax, she was able to surprise Frank and mesmerise him using his needs and worries. We know that Elizabeth is standing next to Franck in the real world, watching for his decision as he makes it.

Why it’s doubtful that Franck and Simon are the same person!

It seems entirely plausible that Simon’s psyche was torn apart when Elizabeth played with his thoughts and instructed him to want to forget her and steal a painting for her. Simon might have established Franck as an alter ego to enable him to commit a crime that he otherwise wouldn’t. It would make sense for Simon to blame his alter-ego, Franck, for taking the painting. In truth, Simon is the mastermind behind the insider attack. Simon only needed to recruit some muscle to assist with the robbery.

The issue with this theory is as follows.

In the heist scene, two additional individuals are seen seeing Franck hit Simon over the head. Simon is praised for performing a brave act because of these two and their account to the authorities. If Simon and Franck had been left alone in a Fight Club-style situation, Simon would have been the main suspect in the robbery. We also know that Simon’s courageous deed is true since Elizabeth reads about it online. Simon is additionally discovered comatose and checked into the hospital.

There is no possible for two other men to have witnessed Franck knock Simon out if Franck and Simon are the same person. Because of this, I think this notion is fantastic but implausible.

That’s all, then! What did you think of the conclusion to the 2013 film Trance? Please share your thoughts in the section below.

ALSO READ THIS: Campion 2018 Full Movie Explained