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Plot Summary

The Voices (2015) Plot Summary Explained

Release, runtime and language
2015 · 103 min · English
JustWatch #4,303 29
Directed by
Marjane Satrapi
Starring
Ryan Reynolds, Anna Kendrick, Gemma Arterton, Jacki Weaver, Adi Shankar

A woman investigates her sister's mental breakdown, but her own sense of reality starts to unravel as she uncovers disturbing secrets. The search for answers blurs the line between paranoia and truth, leading her into a chilling psychological journey that questions the stability of the human mind.

On this page (6)
  1. 1 Where to watch
  2. 2 What happens: full plot
  3. 3 Plot questions answered
  4. 4 Movie threads
  5. 5 Movies like The Voices
  6. 6 Every angle

Where to watch

Where to Watch The Voices (2015)

Where can you watch The Voices? Stream, rent or buy it in the US, including on Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus and Fawesome: current JustWatch availability with up-to-date prices.

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Full plot summary · contains spoilers

What Happens in The Voices: Full Plot Summary

The whole story of The Voices (2015) explained, from the opening scene to the final frame: every key event, every twist and what it all adds up to. Read it as a quick recap before the sequel, to check a scene you missed, or to finally understand what really happened.

Jerry Hickfang's existence is a chaotic intertwining of reality and delusion, revealing the complex nature of his schizophrenia. By day, he endures a monotonous routine working at a plumbing fixtures factory, and at night, he's isolated above a bowling alley, with the sounds of laughter and clattering pins echoing in the void of his loneliness.

As Jerry grapples with his fragmented mind, he tries to manage the conflicting narratives he shares with his court-appointed therapist, Dr. Warren. In his troubled mind, he believes he converses with his lovable dog, Bosco, and his sardonic cat, Mr. Whiskers, who lead him through bizarre dialogues.

Jerry’s attempt at a social life takes a turn for the worse when a dinner date with his coworker Fiona falls apart as she opts for karaoke with friends Lisa and Alison. However, when he drives Fiona home after her car breaks down, the encounter spirals after a deer crashes through his windshield, which seems to plead for mercy with its eyes.

In a dark twist of fate caused by his hallucinations, Jerry interprets the deer's gaze as a cry for him to end its suffering—an action which sets off a tragic chain of events. Fiona's sudden flight into the woods from the distressing confrontation leads Jerry down the path of violence, resulting in a horrifying accident where he wounds her, then, in a panic, proceeds to inflict fatal harm, overwhelmed with regret and tears.

Back at his increasingly chaotic home, Bosco beseeches Jerry to contact the authorities, while Mr. Whiskers instills feelings of shame that prevent him from doing so. Consequently, Jerry takes a menacing route—dismembering Fiona's body and stowing her remains in Tupperware, haunted by the chilling demands of her decaying head that urges him to resume his medication.

As reality continues to blur, Jerry confronts flashbacks of his abusive father, which have marred his psyche. Waking to a grotesque landscape of garbage, animal waste, and blood, he makes the fateful decision to discard his medication, thus reopening the floodgates of his troubling hallucinations. Fiona’s head now becomes a grotesque muse, insisting that he finds “a friend” for her, and with Lisa as his potential next victim, he lures her to his childhood home—haunted by memories of his mother’s tragic demise.

Just as Jerry prepares for new violence inspired by his mother's death, the unexpected presence of Lisa pulls him from the edge. She offers comfort and a kiss, anchoring him back to reality. However, the gruesome reality of Fiona’s remains causes a confrontation with the past, forcing him to face the grotesque drive propelling his heinous actions—realizing that the voices urging him on are mere fabrications of his deteriorating mind.

When Lisa unexpectedly shows up at his home, the horrifying condition of his apartment is revealed—fiona’s head among other remnants of his crimes. In a gruesome turn, Jerry succumbs to his delusions yet again, leading to another horrific act where he dismembers Lisa and preserves her head with Fiona’s in his refrigerator.

Amidst the shock of Lisa's disappearance, Jerry's coworkers scramble to piece together the truth. As they uncover the dark history of his past—including his mother’s death—Alison ventures into his apartment but meets her end at Jerry’s hands, who is spiraling further into madness as he builds a dreadful collection of severed heads.

Faced with the cacophony of voices in his head, Jerry feels compelled to confess to Dr. Warren regarding his gruesome acts, prompting him to kidnap her in a frenzied bid for guidance. As the authorities close in on his crumbling reality, he spirals deeper into insanity, taking Dr. Warren to the bowling alley—where chaos ensues leading to a catastrophic gas leak explosion.

In the aftermath of fiery destruction, Jerry finds himself caught between the insistent urging of Mr. Whiskers to continue his spree and Bosco’s counsel to surrender. Ultimately, he succumbs to the smoke and flames, existing in a surreal void where he reunites with his deceased companions. Here, a strange reconciliation occurs as Mr. Whiskers and Bosco confront their differences, culminating in an unexpected visitation from Jesus. This leads to an eccentric celebration of life, death, and redemption through song and dance, leaving Jerry to offer heartfelt apologies to his victims—Fiona, Lisa, and Alison.

Last updated: November 21, 2024 at 11:03

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Plot questions answered

The Voices Plot Explained: Your Questions Answered

The questions people ask most about The Voices (2015): what happens in the confusing scenes, why the characters do what they do, the twists, hidden details and what the ending means. Each answer contains spoilers.

Q1

Why does Jerry kill Fiona after the deer accident?

Jerry kills Fiona because his schizophrenia causes him to misinterpret reality. When a deer crashes through his windshield, Jerry hallucinates that the animal is pleading with its eyes for him to end its suffering. In his distorted state, he sees this as a command. When Fiona runs into the woods in shock from the accident, Jerry's delusions convince him she is in danger and he must protect her, leading to the violent attack.

  • fiona death
  • deer accident
  • jerry killings
  • mental illness
Q2

What happens to Lisa after she goes to Jerry's apartment?

Lisa is murdered by Jerry after she visits his apartment looking for answers about Lisa's disappearance. Despite a moment where Lisa offers Jerry comfort and a kiss, pulling him briefly back to reality, the sight of Fiona's preserved head causes Jerry to snap. He dismembers Lisa and adds her head to his collection in the refrigerator alongside Fiona's.

Foreshadowing: Earlier in the film, Fiona's decapitated head tells Jerry he needs to 'find a friend' for her, foreshadowing Lisa's fate.

  • lisa death
  • jerry murders
  • fiona head
Q3

Why does Jerry keep Fiona and Lisa's severed heads?

Jerry keeps the severed heads because his hallucinations demand it. After dismembering Fiona, he experiences her decapitated head continuing to speak to him, insisting he take his medication and later demanding he find 'a friend.' The heads represent his fractured reality where he cannot accept the finality of death, and keeping them near fulfills the persistent voices in his head.

  • severed heads
  • tupperware
  • hallucinations
Q4

What triggers Jerry's descent into violence?

Jerry's violence is triggered by a combination of stopping his medication and his existing schizophrenia. After the deer accident, he wakes up in a horrific scene and deliberately flushes his antipsychotic medication down the toilet. This decision unleashes his hallucinations full-force, transforming his delusion-driven compulsions from merely conversing with pets into murderous commands.

Foreshadowing: Throughout the film, Bosco urges Jerry to take his medication while Mr. Whiskers encourages his darker impulses, showing the medication's role in controlling his condition.

  • medication
  • schizophrenia
  • violence
  • breakdown
Q5

Why does Jerry decide to stop taking his medication?

Jerry stops taking his medication after waking up surrounded by garbage, animal waste, and blood following the Fiona incident. Overwhelmed by guilt and the chaotic state of his home, he makes the conscious decision to abandon his pills. This moment represents his surrender to his deteriorating mental state and his inability to cope with the consequences of his actions.

  • antipsychotics
  • mental health
  • self-sabotage
Q6

What happened to Jerry's mother in his past?

Jerry's mother died when he was a child, and his memories of this trauma are revealed through flashbacks showing his abusive father. This childhood trauma is a key factor in his schizophrenia and the root of his psychological damage. When Jerry lures Lisa to his childhood home, he is specifically drawn back to the place where his mother's death occurred, using it as a setting for potential violence.

  • childhood trauma
  • mother death
  • abuse
  • father
Q7

What do Bosco and Mr. Whiskers represent in the film?

Bosco and Mr. Whiskers are hallucinations representing Jerry's competing internal voices. Bosco, the loyal dog, represents Jerry's conscience, urging him to take medication, turn himself in, and do what's right. Mr. Whiskers, the sardonic cat, represents his destructive impulses, encouraging violence and shame. The two animals literally argue throughout the film, symbolizing Jerry's internal battle between sanity and madness.

  • bosco
  • mr whiskers
  • hallucinations
  • conscience
Q8

What does the surreal ending of The Voices mean?

The ending shows Jerry dying in the bowling alley explosion and entering a surreal void where he reconciles with his deceased victims and hallucinations. In this bizarre afterlife, Bosco and Mr. Whiskers finally agree, Jesus appears, and Jerry apologizes to Fiona, Lisa, and Alison through song. The ambiguous ending suggests Jerry found some form of redemption or peace, though the tonally dissonant musical celebration leaves whether this is truly redemptive open to interpretation.

  • afterlife
  • ending
  • redemption
  • jesus
  • surreal
Q9

Why does Jerry kidnap his therapist Dr. Warren?

Jerry kidnaps Dr. Warren because his hallucinations compel him to confess his crimes and seek guidance. Overwhelmed by the voices demanding he continue his killing spree while also urging him to confess, Jerry acts desperately to get help from his court-appointed therapist. He takes her to the bowling alley, where the chaotic gas leak explosion ultimately occurs.

  • dr warren
  • kidnapping
  • confession
  • therapist
Q10

What is the significance of the deer in the accident?

The deer is the catalyst for the entire chain of violence. When it crashes through the windshield, Jerry experiences a hallucination where he perceives the animal's eyes as pleading for him to end its suffering. This misinterpretation triggers his first violent act and sets him on the path to murder. The deer represents how his schizophrenia transforms ordinary events into delusional commands.

  • deer crash
  • hallucination
  • trigger event
Q11

Why does the final confrontation happen at the bowling alley?

The bowling alley is significant because it's where Jerry lives, above the alley in lonely isolation. When he takes Dr. Warren there, it's his attempt to bring his two worlds together: his fantasy life and the reality of his crimes. The gas leak explosion that follows represents the complete collapse of his constructed reality and the destructive end of his fractured mind.

  • bowling alley
  • final showdown
  • explosion
Q12

What happens when Fiona's car breaks down?

After Jerry's dinner date with Fiona falls apart because she chooses to go karaoke with Lisa and Alison, he still drives her home when her car breaks down. This seemingly helpful act is what leads to the deer accident and subsequent tragedy. The breakdown essentially traps Jerry with Fiona at the moment his hallucinations escalate, turning a minor kindness into the catalyst for disaster.

  • car breakdown
  • date
  • lisa
  • alison

Movie threads

More Movies Like The Voices, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes The Voices tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Psychological unraveling stories like The Voices

Stories where a character's grip on reality slowly and terrifyingly disintegrates. If you liked The Voices and its portrayal of a mind coming undone, you'll find similar movies here. These films often feature unreliable narrators, surreal hallucinations, and a steady descent into madness, creating a deeply unsettling and thought-provoking viewing experience.

  • unreliable narrator
  • psychological
  • surreal
  • hallucinatory
  • tragic
  • unsettling
  • Tone: dark, unsettling, tragic
  • Pacing: steady, psychological escalation
Why these movies?

The story pattern: These stories typically follow a protagonist who initially appears functional but is hiding severe psychological distress. Through triggers, trauma, or a breaking point, their perception of reality fractures. The narrative is presented from their skewed perspective, using hallucinations and delusions to create a world where truth is ambiguous and the ultimate destination is often tragic collapse.

Why they belong together: They are grouped by their shared core experience: placing the audience directly inside a character's psychological breakdown. The tone is dark and unsettling, the pacing is often steady as the collapse is methodical, and the emotional weight is heavy, dealing directly with mental illness and the loss of self.

Dark comedy horror movies with a tone like The Voices

Horror films that balance gruesome terror with moments of shocking, absurd comedy. Fans of The Voices and its unique mix of gruesome horror and darkly humorous moments will enjoy this selection. These films share a similar tonal balance, where laughter is uneasy and derived from the absurd, often making the horrific elements even more impactful.

  • darkly humorous
  • grotesque
  • unsettling
  • bizarre
  • absurd
  • violent
  • Tone: dark, grotesque, humorous
  • Pacing: variable, often steady
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The narrative pattern often involves a protagonist or situation that is inherently tragic or horrific, but the presentation includes absurd, ironic, or bizarrely funny elements. This creates a constant tension between laughter and dread. The plots can vary widely, but they are unified by this specific, challenging tonal mix that refuses to be purely scary or purely funny.

Why they belong together: They are grouped for their distinctive and hard-to-balance tone. They share a dark, often bleak core, but leaven it with a sense of the absurd. The pacing can vary, but the intensity is typically high, as the comedy does not diminish the impact of the horror; it accentuates it through contrast.

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Movies Like The Voices

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Every angle

The Voices (2015) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

Everything about The Voices in one place: what happens in the plot summary, the timeline in chronological order, the characters and meaning and a spoiler-free summary. What's After the Movie adds the cast, box office and post-credit scenes.

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