Stranger Things 3 - Break down of a Scene - Billy’s Memory
On re-watching the scene in which Eleven enters Billy’s memories I noticed something I had not noticed before giving me an answer to a question I had about the finale: How was Billy able to gain control of his mind? The answer to that is literally in the scene with his memories. There are 3 stages of his life shown in that scene.
1. When Billy had his mother.
2. When Billy’s mother left him.
3. When Billy became the host.
Take a look at these shots:
In the first one we have the first phase of Billy’s life. One where he is happy and loved by his mother. The second one is after Billy’s mother had left her husband and her son. And the third one is where Billy became the host. If you examine each scene you’ll notice some extreme differences.
In the middle image you can barely see Billy. His surroundings are not clear but clouded and chaotic. This is because that memory has been taken over by the Mind Flayer. Eleven cannot see the memory in detail because Billy cannot see it either. However, she can see the full details of the steelworks warehouse because now she is entering Mind Flayer territory. Remember that the Mind Flayer has dominance over Billy’s mind so it is in full view, no confusion. The storm here is calm, like being in the center of the eye of a hurricane.
Yet, the first memory, the one with a young Billy and his mother is left untouched. There is no storm hanging over it, no chaos, every detail left untainted. So how was Billy able to protect this part of himself? Why would the Mind Flayer not want to contaminate every aspect of his host? Especially considering this very memory became the Mind Flayer’s downfall in Billy’s mind.
I think the answer is that the Mind Flayer did not have access to it because Billy did not have access to it. The memory was happy at the time, but what came after made it a painful memory. So painful in fact, that Billy buried it down, repressed it so he would not have to face the pain and the abandonment. It also explains why he was able to reflect his abuse on others despite knowing how it felt. He simply didn’t acknowledge it.
Eleven was able to access that memory because one, she’s fucking powerful. And two, she was searching for Billy. Not the Mind Flayer. So it makes sense that she would head straight for the thing that was purely him and not tainted by another. When she reminded Billy of that memory she was accessing a part of Billy that was not flayed. One he could latch onto and use to become himself again. And not just himself as a person who was abandoned and abused, but a part of himself that had once been happy and loved. A part of himself that had once loved someone else. In the end, it did not matter that his mother had left him. She did not save him. But he loved her and remembering that part of himself allowed him to save himself, and go on to sacrifice himself to save Eleven.
Damn. Every time I think the finale can’t get any sadder I get fucked again.
