What was the purpose of keeping Castor Troy alive after the face transplant procedure?
In the 1997 movie, Face/Off, FBI Agent Sean Archer (John Travolta) has been pursuing terrorist Castor Troy (Nicolas Cage) for over 6 years.
During an ambush at Los Angeles airport, Castor makes a comment to Sean about a bomb that is located somewhere within the city of Los Angeles. Sean does not know whether to believe him or not. Before Sean can find out the truth from him, Castor is knocked into a coma.
In an effort to find the location of the bomb from Castor's brother, Pollux, Sean must go through an experimental face transplant procedure to become Castor.
Archer affirms the threat is real, but is unable to convince Pollux to talk where the bomb is located. At suggestion of his partner Tito, Archer secretly undergoes a highly experimental face transplant procedure by Dr. Walsh to take on Castor's face and appearance. Archer (now played by Cage) is taken to the same high-security prison where Pollux is, and slowly convinces Pollux that he is Castor, gaining information on the bomb's location. Meanwhile, Castor wakes up from his coma prematurely and discovers his face missing.
After the face of Castor is placed onto Sean, they place Sean's face into some sort of preserving agent for reattachment to Sean after the assignment is complete.
Sean makes the comment to "take this face and burn it" when the assignment is completed. There is no more use for Castor at this point in the movie.
Is there an explanation given as to why Castor Troy is still being kept alive after the procedure was completed?
Best Answer
This is addressed (to some extent) in the film's original script
ARCHER: Why are you keeping him alive? (gets no answer) As long as he's breathing, he's dangerous.
MILLER: Relax, he's a turnip.
The short answer is that he's currently in FBI custody as a hospitalised prisoner in what appears to be a normal ICU unit. They've certainly put about the story that he's dead (and presumably assigned him a witness protection name) but there's no special indication that they're in a position to just kill him.
Since turning off the life-support of any patient requires a vast amount of time, effort and numerous court appearances, it's presumably a lot easier just to leave him in what they feel is an irreversible coma.
On top of that, if the story ever comes out that they decided to turn off his life support without speaking to his family, every person who was involved would be going to jail for a very long time. Far better to just leave him to quietly rot.
Pictures about "What was the purpose of keeping Castor Troy alive after the face transplant procedure?"
What are the blue pills in the movie face off?
In the film, it comes in a blue capsule and is dissolved in mescal at the drug dealer's house. On the internet, people guess the drug is ketamine, which serves as an animal tranquilizer, and a dissociative anesthetic for humans, and can be ingested by dissolving the powdered form in liquid.Does Archer get his face back?
As the FBI surround the pair, Eve is able to convince the agents of Archer's true identity. After Archer's transplant is discovered, the face transplant is reversed and now, Archer, back in his former self, returns home to his wife and daughter, and helps to introduce Adam into his new home.Why do they swap faces in face off?
To foil a terrorist plot, an FBI agent undergoes facial transplant surgery to assume the identity of the criminal mastermind who murdered his only son, but the criminal wakes up prematurely and seeks revenge. Sean Archer, a very tough, rugged FBI Agent, is still grieving for his dead son Michael.Face/Off - Castor Troy awakens from his coma
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