This article discusses the ending of the Netflix film Lou (2022) and will contain spoilers and significant plot points.
I’m not sure Hannah and Vee knew the person they moved next door to in the pacific northwest, a statuesque woman named Lou. She stands six feet tall, with long grey hair and an arthritic left hand. A loner who ignores hunting laws, lives off the land, and almost hides from the rest of the world. She is also unhappy and has decided to kill herself. Lou has emptied her bank accounts and has left a note for someone that there is enough meat in the freezer for a month, and the money left is there for the recipient.
However, Vee is kidnapped by her father. Who? A man named Philip, who Hannah told the community died three months prior. So, on the night of the intense storm, Philip sneaks into her small home and kidnaps Vee when the power goes out. She runs over to use Lou’s phone, but the power is out there as well, and no cell reception. Lou, an exceptional hunter and tracker, goes looking for Philip and Vee in the lush greens of the pacific northwest.
It turns out this Golden Girl has a secret and some serious skills. Lou is Philip’s mother and manipulates Hannah into moving next door to her by having an associate of hers tell Hannah about a cheap property she can rent. This was so Lou could watch over them and see her granddaughter. But what is Philip’s issue? I mean, besides the normal mommy issues and teen angst he cannot seem to let go of? Unfortunately, Lou used her son as a cover for her job and even as bait for an operation. An operation that ended up with Philip being kidnapped and scarred for life.
Well, he also was a trained interrogator for the government. He tortures the enemy so he can retrieve valuable information. It just so happens the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Lou was a former CIA agent and has been on the run for decades. Why? Because she has microfilm and documents proving the CIA’s involvement in the coup of Iran.
Eventually, Hannah and Lou catch up to them both at the old lighthouse. Well, Hannah first after Lou was almost killed by her son the night before when she tried to end the issue without Hannah. She puts two bullets into her ex-husband and runs down the stairs to find Vee. There, she runs into Lou, and they find a bomb on the bottom of the structure. Philip’s plan was to kill everyone and most importantly, Lou.
Before Philip can set it off, Lou disables it. But when all three go to the beach for safety, it turns out Lou pulls a MacGyver by reversing the trigger and sets it off herself, allowing the government to see where all the fun is. Vee and Hannah run to safety while Lou and Philip fight on the beach while waves crash around them. Eventually, all the anger turns to tears, and they embrace. Right before, a government helicopter shows up above them, putting dozens of hot leads into their bodies. You will notice Lou holding her son with his back to the helicopter, almost like a shield.
The last we see of them floating to the ocean’s bottom, presumably caught in a current. Their bodies are never recovered.
Netflix film Lou (2022) ending explained
The final scenes show Hannah and Vee moving on with their lives. The government asks Hannah if she knows anything about the information Lou stole, but perhaps they are fishing to see if Lou is still alive. The final shot shows Hannah and Vee playing on what looks like a ferry. They have Jax, Lou’s loyal canine. Jax is now alert and looks at a woman in the distance as if they know her. The camera changes direction and is behind the woman looking over the three from a distance. We do not see her face, but her left hand holds the binoculars. It’s the same frozen claw-like position that Lou had from arthritis and work injury.
We can safely presume this is Lou, and she survived.
What do you think of the Netflix film Lou (2022) and the ending? Comment below.
You can watch Lou (2022) with a subscription to Netflix.
