Throughout the film, Rusty's conscience is riddled with guilt. His protestant and rigid upbringing constantly gnaw at him, and he knows that no matter what happens, he will have to pay for what he has done. Even though he wasn't the one to kill Carolyn, he still feels responsible, and that is why the audience gets the feeling of uncertainty about his guilt. As we watch it, there is a constant feeling of sympathy and judgment for Rusty as we wrestle with deciding if he is guilty or not. He is guilty and feels guilty for something, just not for what he is accused of. For his whole life he has taken pride in the fact that his life has been dedicated to his family and his work, but even he is not strong enough to withstand temptation. He gives into it, and for that he knows he will not escape the consequences, whether it is in his own mind or in reality. He has dedicated his life to bringing justice, and he knows that justice will not overlook him for his infidelity.
In the final scene between Rusty and his wife, we see a twisted form of justice unfold. The guilt he has felt the entire movie turns into a punishment. It is a punishment that will gnaw at him, just like the guilt did. He must live with a murderer for the rest of his life. He must sleep beside a murderer and raise his son with a murderer but in his mind, he feels as though he was a murderer too. He feels this way because he drove his wife to her insanity, and he places this punishment on himself because of this. The ending shows a twisted form of justice, which he has always had so much faith in. It is twisted because the killer is not convicted or punished. The justice system has failed, but the consequences remain. Can the couple ever be happy again after what they have done to each other? This is left to the mind of the audience.
It is certainly a twisted form of justice, and Rusty isn't helping the situation by destroying evidence just as Lipranzer did with the glass. Good blog.
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