The Innocents Ending Explained (Spoilers)

During the bright Nordic summer, a group of children reveal their dark and mysterious powers when the adults aren't looking. In this original and gripping supernatural thriller, playtime takes a dangerous turn.

The Innocents: Spoilers Below

The Innocents follows sisters Ida and Anna after being moved to a new suburb by their parents during the summertime. Right away, Ida's relationship with Anna is complicated due to her older sister's nonverbal autism. Ida is annoyed by the attention Anna gets from their parents and by her sister's repetitive behaviors. However, she soon meets some new kids in the neighborhood, Ben and Aisha, who have hidden supernatural powers. It is revealed that Anna also has some telekinetic and mindreading abilities, much to Ida's surprise.

Aisha is an empath who can telepathically hear and feel the thoughts and pain of others. She quickly develops a relationship with Anna, who helps her communicate with words over time, which comes as a shock to Ida and her parents. Ben is the polar opposite of Aisha, serving as the antagonist of The Innocents. Ben's telekinetic abilities are on par with Stephen King's Carrie, allowing him to move objects merely by looking at them, snap people's bones, and even crush their hearts. However, Ben's telekinesis isn't just terrifying; it allows him to control other people's minds. First, he uses this power to kill his bully, and later, Aisha, by mind-controlling her mother to kill her after she dares to defy him.

Ida quickly realizes that Ben intends to kill her and her sister after Aisha dies. She unsuccessfully tries to kill him by pushing him from an overpass onto a busy highway, and she returns from the hospital with a broken leg. While babysitting Anna, who regressed into silence after Aisha's death, Ida breaks out of her cast using what seems like her own supernatural power. She chases Anna after she flees the apartment to confront Ben. Ida locates Anna and Ben in the midst of a mental struggle. With Ida's assistance, Anna overpowers Ben and ends his destructive behavior by killing him.

On a surface level, The Innocents is a battle between good and evil, with Anna/Aisha representing the former and Ben the latter. However, there is much more to the story than that. The film challenges the notion that children are inherently innocent and good, as suggested by the film's title. The movie's young characters are just as complex as adults, setting The Innocents apart from other films about children. The film doesn't give us much information, but what we see suggests that Ben might be the victim of abuse and neglect. He has bruises and seems to hate his mother, so it's possible that he's not the villain of the story, despite his actions. The Innocents opens up a discussion of whether people are born evil or whether they are products of their environment. Is Ben evil by his nature, or did his environment and experiences mold him that way?

Still, the film's primary focus is Anna and Ida's complicated relationship. Ben believes he has found a partner in violence due to Ida's initial annoyance and dismal of her autistic sister. However, Ida remains caught in the middle of The Innocents' good versus evil theme. She has a morbid curiosity for life's darker aspects but, thanks to Aisha's kindness, quickly realizes it's not for her and leaves Ben behind.

Aisha's positive attitude rubs off on Ida, who comes to see her sister in a new light. Instead of seeing her as an emotionless and "mindless" nuisance, Ida realizes that Anna has her own emotional needs and feelings, which are just as valid as her own. This is demonstrated by Ida taking Anna's hand while fighting Ben. It is uncertain whether or not Ida actually assists in the mental conflict; however, she strengthens Anna with her support. Afterward, Ida has a newfound appreciation for her sister and a better understanding of their relationship, whether Anna can speak or not.

The film also highlights how children often have unique problems that adults don't necessarily understand, similar to the outcast protagonists in Stephen King's It. This is best seen when Ida asks her mother for advice but not for help. Ida attempts to deal with Ben's aggression herself instead, ultimately teaching viewers a lesson about the complexity and mystery of childhood. Sure, kids might not have supernatural abilities in the real world, but they're still forced to figure out the good, bad, and morally ambiguous areas of society.

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