Place Of Bones Ending Explained: Place of Bones is a Western drama thriller directed by Audrey Cummings about a mother and her daughter who survive on a lonely ranch in the Wild West. Hester constantly complained to her mother about food scarcity. With the nearest town 95 miles to the west, the mother and daughter had little food to eat. Pandora, however, felt that God would provide them with food and that they should never lose trust in his miracle.
Every Morning, Hester went to her father’s tomb on the hill close to the property. Even though their property was barren, she hoped that if she continued to do her daily work with utmost determination, they would be able to survive. Hester and Pandora’s life changed when they saw a man on their property. He was severely injured, and they dragged him to their home.
Hester and Pandora’s greatest worry was the threat of the outlaws, and they hoped that the stranger they brought home would help them determine whether they were in danger.
Who was the stranger?
Calhoun was the bandit that Hester and Pandora had forced into their house. A few robbers were already looking for him because he had just stolen money from a bank. After extracting the bullet from Calhoun’s leg, Pandora attended to his wound. At first, Calhoun was a little taken aback because he had not anticipated being in the company of two women.
He thought Pandora may be interested in the cash in his saddlebag, but she made it clear she didn’t want any portion of the money he had stolen. In his defence, Calhoun said that the reason he and his friend Bob Kenny stole money from the Union Bank was because they were going through a difficult moment. As soon as they exited the bank on Valverdi Way, Bob was shot and killed. Calhoun was pursued by the townspeople, but he was able to escape and killed three guys to defend himself.
He couldn’t ignore the possibility that Pandora would exploit him, even though he was in a safe area. Nothing was keeping her from collecting the money, even though he was unable to walk due to a leg injury and had a bag full of cash. Pandora declined his offer to give him some cash in exchange for some meat. When he took his revolver from his saddlebag and pointed it at the mother, she informed him that she had earlier taken out the ammunition.
When Calhoun awoke the following morning, his leg was severed. He let forth a painful, angry scream. His leg became infected with gangrene, according to Pandora, who had no choice but to amputate it. It was unbelievable to Calhoun that Pandora had operated on him without requesting his consent.
He feared that being unable to move without help would leave him even more exposed. Calhoun remained wary of Pandora and Hester despite the appearance that they were taking care of their guest, as good Christians should. Just because she wanted him gone, Pandora offered to buy him a horse, a saddle, a bottle of whisky and a change of clothes in addition to walking him to Buffalo Creek.
Calhoun thought the deal was too good to be true and questioned her hidden motivation. Pandora explained that she anticipated Calhoun to provide her information about the individuals who had followed him to the property the night before. Calhoun had lied about his friend Bob Kenny. Bob was with him, along with Teche Masters and Ed Singleterry, and they had managed to flee the town where they had stolen the money. That night, the four got drunk, and they quickly lost control of their greed, resulting in the shooting.
When the smoke cleared, Calhoun realised he was the sole survivor. However, Pandora quickly discovered that the struggle was far from ended. Calhoun’s friend Bob Kenny had a brother named Bear John, a popular bandit known for his ruthlessness. Calhoun felt Bear John would seek vengeance if he discovered Calhoun had killed his brother.
Bear John was aware of the robbery, and their plan called for everyone to meet the next day. Pandora predicted that Bear John would arrive at her property to exact revenge, and he was not alone. He was accompanied by three other men: Cherokee Jack, his tracker; Minor Wilson, known for his nasty character; and Little Pete, the most innocent of the group.
How did Hester and Pandora defend their ranch?
Calhoun urged that the mother and daughter flee, but Hester and Pandora refused; instead, they intended to battle the outlaws. Pandora claimed that she and her husband had established the ranch, and She would never leave it. While the property had become barren over the years, they did previously have a farm with livestock and horses.
Pandora saw the place as a treasure trove of memories, and she wanted to cling to them until her death. Hester, Pandora, and Calhoun prepared to confront the outlaws. While testing an old rifle at home, Calhoun stated that his friends Teche Masters and Bob Kenny had fantastic firearms, and Hester immediately devised a scheme. She avoided discussing it with her mother, knowing that she would end up worried about her.
Hester set off alone into the desert in pursuit of Calhoun’s three buddies, who had died in a shootout. After a lengthy walk, she spotted the dead and grabbed the guns. She didn’t expect one of the men to be still alive, so she stoned him to death.
Bear John was resolved to seek vengeance after discovering his brother’s lifeless body. Calhoun, according to his tracker, betrayed his companions and fled with the money. He first shot Teche when he was fast asleep, then he finally killed the other two. Cherokee Jack followed Hester’s footprints and eventually arrived at the property.
Hester was forced to lock herself in the barn and stabbed Cherokee Jack when he tried to kill her. Pandora and the outlaws tried to reach an accord. She was prepared to hand over the saddlebag if they dropped their firearms. However, both sides were aware that the situation would not be so easily handled. Hester shot Cherokee, resulting in a firefight.
Pandora decided to assist Hester in exiting the barn as the day faded into dusk. Bear John had been waiting for this moment, and the mother and daughter were promptly assaulted. While Hester was able to return to her home, Pandora ended up locking herself in the smokehouse. Bear John struck Pandora, knocking her out.
John dragged Pandora inside the home and shot Calhoun. He repeatedly kicked Pandora, believing that the mother was now too weak to attack him. John approached Hester and threatened to Sexually abuse her, but happily, her mother intervened. John had no idea Pandora was such a strong lady who would go to any length to protect the ranch and her kid. She held the money in her hand and threatened to burn it down to distract John.
The outlaw vowed not to harm her if she gave him the money, but she couldn’t believe him. John threatened to kill her and her children if she burnt the money. Pandora had already begun dropping the bundles of cash into the fire as John went for his weapon. Calhoun unexpectedly stabbed the outlaw with a pitchfork, and Bear John slumped on the floor.
Why did Pandora kill Calhoun?
Calhoun was bleeding and had no chance of surviving. Pandora thanked the stranger for assisting them. Calhoun was proud that he died protecting a woman and her child. He implored Pandora to bury him with his severed leg, believing that a cripple would not be able to meet Hades. To his amazement, Pandora responded that she had not kept his leg, but that he had already served him the meat.
This was hardly the twist Calhoun or the audience had expected. Pandora and Hester had run out of meat, so the stranger came to their Rescue. Given that the next town was almost ninety miles away and they didn’t have a horse to go there, it’s understandable that Pandora and her daughter had been Dependent on such blessings for quite some time.
She didn’t care about the money as long as Calhoun’s presence provided them with men to slaughter. Perhaps Calhoun’s leg was not infected with gangrene, and Pandora severed it to immobilise him.
At the end of Place of Bones, Hester seized a knife and slit Calhoun’s throat. They no longer needed him alive. Pandora thanked God for supplying them with enough food to last a long time. She dismembered Calhoun’s and the outlaws’ bodies in the smokehouse, while Hester buried Calhoun’s severed head in the ground as a symbol of respect—Calhoun’s desire of seeing the Greek God of the Underworld, presumably, went unfulfilled.
Were Pandora and Hester cannibals?
The ending of Place of Bones reveals Pandora and Hester’s cannibalistic behaviour. Pandora’s overprotectiveness towards her daughter was also disturbing. Her personality was similar to that of her father, who disapproved of Pandora and her husband’s love and intention to construct a ranch. Pandora detested her father because he had always sought to own her.
She was grateful to her husband for protecting her from her father, but he was shortly dead. Pandora’s father had hired a killer, who arrived at their property and shot her husband in front of her and her kid. Pandora murdered the man, and we can presume that was her first desperate act of survival. It had been four years since her husband’s death, and they had eaten all of their cattle and horses while waiting for a blessing.
Calhoun might not be the first man they’ve pursued, given how confident and strategic the mother and daughter were in their plotting. They waited for bandits to arrive at their ranch for assistance, and they thanked God for constantly providing them with just enough food.
Pandora never let Hester leave the ranch—perhaps because she was overprotective, or because she was afraid her daughter would abandon her for a man, like she had done before. But Hester was an inquisitive young woman who may one day leave her mother’s nest to explore the world outside their property. Will Pandora behave as her father did? We can only hope for the best outcome.
