Luce Ending Explained, Know its Plot, Ending, Summary, and Spoiler
by Aishwarya R
Updated Apr 19, 2023
Luce
Luce is a 2019 American social thriller drama film directed, co-produced, and co-written by Julius Onah. It stars Naomi Watts, Octavia Spencer, Kelvin Harrison Jr., and Tim Roth. The film was based on the play of the same name by J.C. Lee, and tells the story of a couple (Watts and Roth) forced to reconsider their marriage and their family after an extremely disturbing essay written by their adopted son (Harrison Jr.) is brought to their attention by his teacher (Spencer). Principal photography took place in New York and Los Angeles, California and the film was shot on 35mm film. Luce had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 27, 2019 and was released in cinemas on August 2, 2019 by NEON. It received positive reviews from critics, who praised the cast's performances, Onah's direction, the writing, and the film's themes. The film made over $2.3 million worldwide. The film received multiple nominations from the various award organizations including the Black Reel Awards and various critics organizations, including the Hollywood Critics Association and the San Diego Film Critics Society Awards.
Luce Ending Explained
The film "Luce" challenges its audience to consider a range of factors when interpreting Luce's motivations and actions. Viewers are left questioning whether Harriet's concerns are valid or if Luce is intentionally challenging her. The film purposefully creates a sense of paranoia among the central characters and the audience, leaving the question of who is right unanswered.
There is no concrete resolution in the film, as it requires the audience to become a character in the story and draw their own conclusions. The ambiguity serves a purpose in encouraging viewers to think deeply about their own motives and perspectives. Octavia Spencer, one of the film's stars, explained that the film's ambiguities provide an opportunity for conversation and self-examination.
The film's open-ended conclusion offers a great opportunity for discussion among viewers with differing opinions. The more people talk about the film, the further they may get from reaching a concrete conclusion. Ultimately, the final moments of "Luce" will leave some viewers feeling one way and others the total opposite, but there is no right answer but only speculation.
Luce Plot
The protagonist of the story, Luce Edgar, was born in war-torn Eritrea and adopted by Peter and Amy in the United States. He excels at school as an athlete and public speaker, and is loved by his parents and peers. However, he harbors a grudge against his history teacher, Harriet Wilson, for getting his friend DeShaun kicked off the running team after discovering marijuana in his locker.
Amy meets with Harriet, who shows her Luce's paper about Frantz Fanon, a political revolutionary who advocated for violence to overcome colonialism. As a former child soldier, Luce's views concern Harriet. She also reveals that she found illegal fireworks in his locker.
Amy and Peter decide not to confront Luce, hiding the paper and fireworks. When asked about his teacher, Luce accuses Wilson of unfairly targeting students and using Stephanie Kim, a Korean-American classmate who was rumored to have been sexually abused, as an example. Although Luce is Harriet's star black student, he doesn't want to be a token. Luce eventually finds the hidden paper and fireworks.
Luce and Harriet discuss his paper, and he denies any belief in violence. However, a comment he makes about fireworks leads Harriet to interpret it as a threat, and she informs Peter. They confront Luce, and he denies ownership of the fireworks, claiming that the track team shares lockers. Peter believes Luce is lying, but Amy is unsure.
Harriet and her sister Rosemary, who suffers from an unspecified mental illness, have a strange encounter with Luce.
Luce promises to make things right with DeShaun. Meanwhile, Amy meets with Stephanie at a coffee shop, where Stephanie reveals that she used to date Luce but they broke up. Stephanie describes being sexually assaulted by several boys at a party, and how Luce intervened and comforted her after she awoke. Luce later learns about the visit from Stephanie.
Luce Ending Summary
Rosemary, who is looking for Harriet, arrives at the school and has a breakdown. She strips naked in front of a crowd before being tasered and taken in by the police. That night, Harriet's house is broken into, and Stephanie shows up shortly after to tell Harriet that Luce abused her sexually. A meeting with Luce and his parents is arranged after Harriet informs Principal Towson. With video evidence of his whereabouts, Luce disproves Harriet's claims, and Harriet's harsh questions prompt Amy and Peter to support their son. Harriet finds that Stephanie has passed on before she could rehash her allegation to Towson. Despite Harriet still arguing her side, Towson lets Luce go.
Fireworks that explode inside Harriet's desk set it ablaze at night. In the meantime, Harriet is placed on leave by Towson. Learning of the episode, Amy finds that the firecrackers in their house are no more. Amy insists that they will defend their son, despite Peter's belief that Luce was involved.
Luce shows up at Wilson's house with flowers and says that she feels bad about her job loss. However, he challenges her about putting Luce on a pedestal and ruining DeShaun's athletic career to refute this. She blames Luce for being double-dealing, safeguarding himself by utilizing other minority understudies, including Stephanie, to "get his things done" of trick against her. Luce argues that "that is not the same thing," but he does not deny the allegations against him.
Amy follows Luce to a hideout where he and Stephanie have sex. Luce arrives when Amy returns home and makes a duplicitous reconciliation with her. Later, Luce delivers a speech at school in which he expresses his gratitude to Amy and Peter for raising him and describes how fortunate he is to be an American with the opportunity to start over and tell his own story.
After that, Luce goes for a jog, where his face twists in rage.
Luce Plot Spoiler
The story of "Luce" centers around the titular character, Luce Edgar, an intelligent and accomplished high school student portrayed by Kelvin Harrison Jr. He excels in both track and debate, and is well-liked by his teachers and peers alike. However, when he hands in a history assignment, his actions raise red flags.
The assignment required the students to write from the perspective of a historical figure, and Luce chooses Frantz Fanon, a controversial figure who advocated for violence as a means to overcome colonialism. This choice surprises Luce's teacher, Harriet Wilson, portrayed by Octavia Spencer, who has known Luce for some time and considers him to be an exceptional student.
Harriet is concerned about the implications of Luce's choice and arranges a meeting with Luce's adoptive mother, Amy, portrayed by Naomi Watts. This meeting leads Luce's parents to confront the possibility that something may be going on with their son that they are unaware of.
As the story unfolds, tensions rise and secrets are revealed, putting Luce's character and motivations into question. The audience is left to wonder whether Luce is truly the outstanding student and athlete that everyone believes him to be, or if there is something more sinister lurking beneath the surface.
Luce Ending Explained - FAQs
Luce is a drama/thriller film.
Luce was directed by Julius Onah.
The main actors in "Luce" are Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Luce Edgar, Octavia Spencer as Harriet Wilson, Naomi Watts as Amy Edgar, and Tim Roth as Peter Edgar.
Luce follows the story of Luce Edgar, a high school student who was adopted from war-torn Eritrea by a wealthy white couple. When Luce's teacher becomes suspicious of his assignment on the revolutionary Frantz Fanon, she begins to dig deeper into his past, revealing a web of secrets and manipulation.
Luce has an R rating for language throughout, sexual content, nudity and some drug use.