Thinner Movie Ending Explained, Plot, Cast, and More
by Ushapriyanga
Updated May 02, 2023
Thinner Film
Thinner is a 1996 horror film directed by Tom Holland, based on Stephen King's novel of the same name, and starring Robert John Burke, Joe Mantegna, and Kari Wuhrer. Despite its talented cast, the film received negative reviews from critics, with many criticizing the bland and weightless plot, rushed pacing, and unconvincing makeup effects.
The film holds a 13% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a score of 33 out of 100 on Metacritic, with critics generally finding the movie to be a pedestrian and unremarkable adaptation of King's work.
A few critics, such as Lawrence Van Gelder of The New York Times, praised the film's slick production values, strong performances, and impressive makeup effects, but even these reviews noted flaws in the film's storytelling and characterization. In a retrospective review, Nathan Rabin of The A.V. Club criticized the film's cartoonish performances and lack of genuine suspense or wit.
Thinner Movie Ending Explained
Billy Halleck is a wealthy lawyer who is overweight and resides in Connecticut with his wife Heidi and their daughter Linda. After successfully defending a notorious Mafia boss in court, Billy celebrates his victory with his wife. However, Heidi, concerned about Billy's unhealthy relationship with food, tries to distract him with oral sex while he is driving.
This leads to Billy accidentally hitting and killing an elderly Romani woman named Suzanne Lempke. Despite committing this crime, Billy is acquitted with the help of his friend Judge Cary Rossington and the local police chief Duncan Hopley, who even commits perjury to protect him.
Thinner, written by Stephen King under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, is a book that stands out among his work as particularly vicious. The characters cursed in the story are all detestable, and the film adaptation must find a way to make the story's inherent nastiness watchable.
Writer-director Tom Holland took six years and several rewrites to bring Thinner to the big screen, resulting in a roughness that's evident in the tonal shifts and lack of balance.
The film's protagonist, Billy Halleck, is not likable, making it difficult for the audience to root for him. Additionally, the practical effects used to create Halleck's obesity are distracting and unconvincing, as is Robert John Burke's acting through them. Burke's performance doesn't improve as his character loses weight, relying heavily on under-the-eyebrow glowering.
Thinner Plot
Billy Halleck, an overweight lawyer from an affluent family, lives with his wife Heidi and daughter Linda in Connecticut. He has just defended Mafia boss Richie "The Hammer" Ginelli in court, resulting in an acquittal for a murder charge. While Heidi tries to persuade Billy to stop his obsession with food by giving him oral sex as he drives, he accidentally runs over and kills an elderly Romani woman named Suzanne Lempke.
Despite his guilt, Billy is acquitted with the help of his friend Judge Cary Rossington and the corrupt local police chief Duncan Hopley, who commits perjury. Suzanne's father Tadzu Lempke is outraged and curses Billy on the courthouse steps by touching his face and saying "Thinner". Billy then begins to lose weight rapidly, without any changes in his lifestyle.
Heidi suspects cancer and calls Dr. Mike Houston, whom Billy believes is having an affair with his wife. Rossington and Hopley are also cursed, with Rossington transforming into a lizard-like creature and Hopley developing pus-filled ulcers. Both of them commit suicide.
Billy tracks down the Romani camp and tries to reason with Tadzu, but Tadzu warns him to leave or face a worse curse. Gina, Tadzu's great-granddaughter, shoots Billy's hand with a ball bearing from a slingshot. Billy enlists Ginelli to attack the Romani camp and force Tadzu to lift the curse. Tadzu mixes Billy's blood into a strawberry pie and declares that whoever eats it will die quickly and release Billy from the curse.
Billy refuses to eat the pie himself and instead gives it to Heidi, who happily eats it and dies overnight. Billy discovers that Linda has also eaten some of the pie and decides to eat the rest of it to spare her. Just as Billy is about to eat the pie, Dr. Mike arrives unannounced and grows uncomfortable when he sees the situation. Billy invites him in for a piece of the pie and closes the door with a smirk, implying that he intends to kill Mike with the curse
Thinner Movie Cast
Casts
Characters
Robert John Burke
Billy Halleck
Joe Mantegna
Richie 'The Hammer' Ginelli
Lucinda Jenney
Heidi Halleck
Michael Constantine
Tadzu Lempke
Kari Wuhrer
Gina Lempke Romani
Bethany Joy Lenz
Linda Halleck
Daniel von Bargen
Chief Duncan Hopley
John Horton
Judge Cary Rossington
Howard Erskine
Judge Phillips
Terence Kava
Gabe Romani
Irma St. Paule
Suzanne Lempke
Elizabeth Franz
Leda Rossington
Stephen King
Dr. Jonathan Bangor
Sam Freed
Dr. Mike Houston
Antonette Schwartzberg
Mama Ginelli
Sean Hewitt
Dr. Fander
Josh Holland
Frank Spurton
Peter Maloney
Biff Quigley
Ed Wheeler
Detective Deevers
Kenneth Londoner
Andrew Richards
Robert Fitch
'Flash' Enders
Walter Bobbie
Kirk Penschley
Jeff Ware
Max Duggenfield
Time Winters
Prosecutor
Thinner Where to Watch?
You can currently stream the horror movie Thinner, featuring Robert John Burke, Joe Mantegna, and Michael Constantine, which was written by Stephen King. It's available for viewing on various platforms such as HBO Max, The Roku Channel, Spectrum TV, Prime Video, and Vudu, and can be watched on a Roku device.
To portray the character Billy Halleck as obese, makeup effects expert Greg Cannom designed several fatsuits and added latex pieces to enhance the actor Robert John Burke's facial features. In addition, Cannom created a full-body suit that included silicone breast implants, which Burke wore during a shower scene in the movie.
Thinner Movie Ending Explained - FAQs
"Thinner" is a horror novel by Stephen King, published in 1984 under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. It tells the story of an obese lawyer named Billy Halleck who accidentally runs over and kills an elderly Romani woman, and is subsequently cursed by the woman's father to lose weight rapidly. The curse leads to a series of horrifying events as Billy's body wastes away.
Yes, there is a film adaptation of "Thinner" released in 1996. It was directed by Tom Holland and starred Robert John Burke as Billy Halleck.
The film adaptation of "Thinner" makes several changes from the novel, such as altering some of the character's motivations and fates. For example, in the film, Billy's wife dies from eating the cursed pie, while in the novel, she dies from a heart attack. Additionally, the film's depiction of the Romani people has been criticized as stereotypical and offensive.
The film adaptation of "Thinner" stars Robert John Burke as Billy Halleck, Joe Mantegna as Richie "The Hammer" Ginelli, and Michael Constantine as Tadzu Lempke.
The film adaptation of "Thinner" is available to stream on various platforms, including HBO Max, The Roku Channel, Spectrum TV, Prime Video, and Vudu on your Roku device.