*Warning: This article contains full spoilers for the ending of Straw.*
Straw, the new film from Tyler Perry, has been performing well since its premiere on Netflix last week.
The film follows Janiyah Wilkinson, played by Taraji P Henson, a single mother caring for her sick daughter Aria, who dramatically snaps after one day that goes from bad to worse.
The film starts out with an ominous scene in which we see her walking through the hospital with her sick daughter, a dazed expression on her face. We then cut to some time later, where we see Janiyah struggling to get Aria to school and telling her that she will be there later to cover her money for lunch, all the while dealing with an aggressive landlord and employer.
Events spiral out of control when she is called out of work by the school only to be told her daughter is being taken out of her hands, before then being run off the road by an aggressive cop.
This then leads to the loss of her job and her apartment.
An attempted robbery of the store where she works, for which she is wrongfully implicated, results in her finally snapping, as she shoots her employer, then holds up a bank after trying to cash her cheque.
This results in her and a number of hostages being held up in the bank, with police, FBI, protestors, and news cameras outside.
Viewers are placed directly in the shoes of both her and hostages, as misunderstandings escalate, and we see a sympathetic police officer attempting to persuade her to give herself up.
The film makes for a tense and hard-hitting drama, with a captivating performance from Henson, which helps us to understand where she is coming from.
By the end of the runtime, audiences are met with a number of surprise twists, that raise several questions about what really takes place at the film's climax.
Still left scratching your head as to the true meaning behind the film's ending, and what really happened to Janiyah? Read on for our explanation of the movie's twist ending sequences, but beware that there are major spoilers ahead.
Straw ending explained: What happened to Janiyah's daughter?
The biggest pressure that we see for Janiyah throughout the film is what will happen to her daughter.
It is the potential loss of her child that causes her to lose her job, and her desperation to make sure she can still provide for her which finally leads to her taking matters into her own hands, and attempting to get the bank to cash her cheque by force.
Throughout the subsequent hold-up, it's the question of how she will be able to care for her daughter after all this that is ever-present in her mind. We see her trying to explain this to the sympathetic police officer, Kay, and even persuading the bank manager, Nicole, to help care for Aria after she is incarcerated.
Viewers are hit with a bombshell, therefore, when we see Janiyah's mother ringing Janiyah up, to tell her Aria died. "She had a seizure, and we took her to the hospital, and she died."
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The revelation that Janiyah's daughter is dead sends her reeling. We see her tell this to Nicole, only for her to reveal that she had already known.
It's a moment that may leave audiences shook, since we'd already seen numerous scenes with Janiyah's daughter, Aria, seemingly alive and well.
But, in this moment, we are shown numerous flashbacks to these same scenes, where we see Janiyah talking with herself, speaking and interacting with thin air.
Even in scenes where other characters are present, viewers are shown reshoots of the same sequences in which it's made clear the little girl had not been there.
It's made clear in these scenes that Janiyah has not merely snapped from the stress, but has had something close to a full nervous breakdown.
Unable to face the reality, she has imagined her daughter was still there, when in fact she had passed away from her condition the night before.
Is Janiyah alive or dead?
This devastating moment is followed by an even more shocking sequence when, after seeing how FBI authorities are determined to escalate the situation, numerous armed officers burst into the building.
In spite of the hostages already having been released, we see these officers surrounding Janiyah, and opening fire.
The scene appears to be the final gut-punch at the end of the film, with Janiyah on the floor, seemingly dead.
It makes for a truly heart-rending moment after the full tragedy of her situation had been built up, and after we'd seen numerous police officers attempting to resolve the situation peacefully.
Sadly, it's a moment that feels all too believable after many similar scenarios in recent years.
Only a few seconds after showing us this image, however, the film abruptly cuts to the moments before this, with Janiyah still alive.
We see her accept that the situation is now over and that she must accept what has happened. Slowly, together with Nicole, she comes out of the bank and surrenders, in one of the most emotional moments in the film.
It may not at first be clear to audiences which sequence is real, and which is not. Ultimately, the fake-out shooting very clearly shows that both Janiyah and Nicole are aware this is what could happen, if she does not surrender. It also plays into our own knowledge and fears about how this could end on the worst possible note.
In the end, however, the film clearly implies that she does choose to surrender. The last sequence that we see in the film is her finally being taken into police custody, being driven off in a police car but with her hundreds of new supporters present for her to see.
Straw is now streaming on Netflix. Sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.
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