‘Carter’ Ending, Explained: Why Carter Has No Memory at the Beginning of the Film?
Carter is a new South Korean action film that arrives on Netflix to quench the thirst of all fans of the genre. Be warned, however, that this two-hour action film might be too much of a good thing. The film is composed of long-winded action sequences that don’t know where to end, and the editing that tries to piece the shots together as if they were just one continuous shot is very bad. The illusion of a single shot is broken constantly, but the movie keeps trying to do it during the entire running time.
The film tells the story of a secret agent that awakens without memory. The agent, named Carter, quickly finds out that he is in the middle of a very important mission. One that involves the governments of both South and North Korea, as well as a virus that seems to be transforming people into dangerous beasts. Carter must navigate the treacherous environment to save the world from the infection by finding a cure.
Carter is mainly an action movie, but there are important revelations along the way. The following paragraphs contain spoilers for the film. Read at your own risk.
What Is Carter’s Mission In the Film Carter?
The film starts right away with an explanation of the virus. This is a part of the plot that is both significant and, at the same time, just an afterthought. The movie never really goes into how the virus appeared on the scene or how the different organizations planned to go against it. Everything is explained in a very vague sort of way. The virus is very contagious, and it seems like the infected become quite aggressive. They lose all their hair and then die thirteen days after they got infected.
Carter wakes up, and he is quickly pointed at with a gun by a group of soldiers looking for a doctor. This particular doctor seems to have the cure for the virus. But Carter is alone in the room. Carter fights his way out, and he starts talking with a woman in his ear. He has something implanted in his head that has made him lose his memories, and he is also the only one that can hear the woman. He meets a couple of North Korean agents, who explain to him who he is.
Carter is actually a CIA agent who was sent as a spy to North Korea. Because of it, he is seen as a hero by South Korean forces. Right now, because of the virus, both Koreas are working to find a cure. North Korea has millions of infected people, but they have the necessary means to produce a vaccine for at least 100 million people. To do that, they need to bring the doctor and his daughter, who has the antibodies necessary in her blood to create the cure, back to North Korea.
But, of course, things are not that easy. The United States is also in the mix, and after Carter rescues, Ha-na, the doctor’s daughter, he is captured by US forces. They realize that Carter is the legendary agent who left for North Korea to be a spy. The USA denies having anything to do with the virus. Carter, along with Ha-na, manages to escape. Carter needs to take Ha-na into South Korea fast because his own daughter is infected.
Why Carter Has No Memory At The Beginning Of The Film?
As Carter makes his way beyond the North Korean border, he is received by Kim Jeon-Hyeok, a high official in the North Korean government. He has executed a coup d’état on the government, and he is now the leader of the nation. Carter finally reconnects with his wife, and Carter brings Hana back to his father. The doctor begins with the creation of the vaccine. But Hyeok betrays them. A fight ensues, and Carter kills Hyeok at the end of the film. He also manages to save his daughter by injecting her with the cure.
In a flashback, it is revealed that Carter went into North Korea as a spy, but fell in love with his wife, and he has a daughter. They were planning to leave the country when the infection started to run rampant among the North Korean population. However, they were intercepted by Hyeok. Carter promises that he will bring Ha-na and the cure back to North Korea, but Hyeok needs to leave his family alone. Carter also proposes that they use a method to delete his memories so that he cannot tell any North Korean secrets if captured.
That was the reason Carter didn’t have his memories at the beginning of the film. Towards the end, the doctor applies a procedure that brings back Carter’s memories, and he recognizes his wife and daughter. During most of the film, it is implied that it was South Korea that released the virus on North Korea to destroy the nation and end the war. However, it is also implied that it was the USA that spread the virus, creating chaos in the region for their own benefit.
The film ends with Carter’s family finally reuniting and the cure developed. However, the fate of the region is left ambiguous.
