Girl with a Gun is a compelling thriller with a strong revenge narrative. The protagonist, Tomi, is driven by the sudden loss of her parents and the discovery of a dark family history tied to their deaths. The title aptly reflects the central theme of the film, as Tomi takes up arms to seek justice and avenge her parents’ murder. Her journey becomes a tale of empowerment as she confronts those involved in the crime, wielding a gun as both a tool of vengeance and a symbol of her determination.
Spoilers Ahead
What Did Tomi Find Out After Returning To The Town?
One day, Tomi receives a phone call delivering devastating news: her mother has killed her father before taking her own life. Tomi is left reeling, unaware of any family feuds or problems that might have caused her mother to do something drastic. She returned to her hometown and reflected on the memories she shared with her parents. She remembered how, from a very young age, her father always used to train her in the use of firearms for protection against the government and scoundrels, preparing her for any sort of impending danger. Haunted by the circumstances of her parents’ deaths, Tomi begins experiencing nightmares. The next day, Mrs. Fletcher pays her a visit, ostensibly concerned for her well-being. However, Tomi becomes suspicious when she notices Mrs. Fletcher rifling through her belongings. Mrs. Fletcher then urges Tomi to visit the barn, where Tomi discovers a beautifully decorated space, leaving her perplexed about her father’s activities there.
While leaving the barn, Tomi spots another man in the adjacent barn, who stares back at her. Being suspicious, she goes to the barn to attack him, but he gropes her from behind out of nowhere, demanding the hidden money she knows nothing about. Despite her terror, Tomi manages to break free and aims her gun at him, causing him to flee in his car, prompting Tomi to fire a shot at the vehicle. In an attempt to clear her mind, Tomi goes for a swim. Upon her return, she finds the barn door open, revealing a man named Cody inside. Shockingly, Cody seems unaware of her parents’ deaths, causing him to panic and quickly leave in his car. She then encounters Uncle Ben, who reveals that he and her father had not been on speaking terms for a while. Uncle Ben suspects her father was involved in illegal activities, and that he wasn’t really a fisherman, suggesting her father’s demise didn’t surprise him. Uncle Ben also inquires if there was a message for him on the fridge, mentioning something about “green deep in four acres.” As Tomi gets to grips with the mystery surrounding her parents’ deaths, she realizes that her father’s self-defense lessons may have been more than just precautionary measures against external threats—they might have been preparation for the dangers lurking within their own community.
What Was Revealed About Uncle Ben?
The truth about Ben is revealed: he is an awful man attempting to drown the town with oil money and has blocked the fishing routes. A man named Eddie, who used to work with Robert, Tomi’s father, knows about Ben’s jealousy towards Robert, which led to Robert’s torment and eventual murder. Listening to this, Ben becomes enraged and kills Eddie, ordering him to be drowned. Tomi discovers that she owns her family’s land and farm, but there were three bank accounts, one of which was closed just two days before her parents’ deaths, which made her suspicious. Returning home, Tomi sifts through old pictures of her father and realizes she hasn’t visited the dock or her father’s boat, where he used to work with Cody. Armed with a gun, she confronts Cody at the dock, only to find out he is on her side and has always been loyal to her family. Cody reveals that five years ago, Uncle Ben made a deal with a land corporation and oil tycoons.
When the town began to suffer from the dried-up water, Robert asked Ben to release the water, but Ben refused. People lost their homes and rice fields and had trouble even surviving, all while Ben was getting wealthier day after day. In a desperate attempt to help the town, Robert went to Mexico at the suggestion of a man named Cidd, who told him that he could gather money by working for the drug cartel. This let Robert make some money, through which he started helping out the people in the town, and people started respecting him. This newfound respect for Robert angered Ben, and out of jealousy for Henry Fletcher, who was another cohort in Ben’s conspiracy he murdered Robert. Tomi realizes Cody may also be targeted by Ben due to his knowledge and loyalty to her family. She decides to trust only Cody, suspecting that others in the town, including the police, are involved in Ben’s conspiracy. Together, Tomi and Cody decipher the riddle “green deep in four acres,” which leads them to believe the pond on their family’s land, possibly spanning four acres, holds hidden money worth millions, left by her father. Tomi resolves to uncover the truth and locate the hidden fortune.
How Did Tomi Avenge Her Parents?
Tomi realized she couldn’t stay in town any longer, as everyone seemed to be after her for the money hidden in the pond. Determined to escape, she rowed out to the pond in a boat, retrieved the money, and stashed it in a bag. However, before she could flee, Uncle Ben and his cohort, driven by their greed, surrounded her, demanding the money. In the ensuing struggle, Tomi was punched, and Cidd seemingly shot her before dumping her body, unaware that she had already taken the money from the pond. Fortunately, Cidd had faked the shooting, secretly rescuing Tomi from the dumping ground once the coast was clear. Upon regaining consciousness, he revealed Ben’s true nature and how he had been responsible for Tomi’s parents’ deaths, framing her mother for the murder of her father. To right these wrongs, Cidd proposed seeking vengeance against those who had made her father suffer. Seeing this as the only path to justice, Tomi agreed. Together, Tomi and Cidd embarked on a mission of retribution. Their first target was the corrupt police inspector who had been complicit in Ben’s conspiracy, and she shot him in the head. Their final showdown brought them to Ben’s doorstep. Armed with determination and guided by the memory of her father, Tomi shot Ben, ultimately ending his reign of terror. In a cathartic act of justice, Tomi finally avenged her parents’ deaths, bringing closure to their tragic demise.
During Girl with a Gun‘s ending, a gray area emerges between good and bad. In a town where people resort to illegal means to survive, Tomi’s revenge might seem extreme, but she did what she had to. Alongside Cody, she claims ownership of the waterways, freeing them from greed and bureaucracy. Despite the moral ambiguity, she feels proud. Her father’s gun lessons finally served a purpose, enabling her to seek justice.
