What's the point in.. *spoiler*

This is a very good film, first of all. The point is to show Babbage as a possible perpetrayor. This is the sort of dark film "a la 'Seven'". BTW, there was one stolen (yes) scene from "Seven" in the same surroundings and with Gere acting very much like Pitt, they both had a gun in one hand, they both were in crisis because could not make up their minds whether if to shoot the pointed person (actually guilty), they were both filmed from a plane, they were both in a sort of desert. Babbage's violend behavior and unorthodox methods of interviewing suspects make him a believable character as quilty himself. Furthermore, I really liked that such a convulsioned personality as Gere's character could not really get into a sexual/emotional relationlship with Clare Danes' "Allison". The editing, the shaking camera, the colors coming in and of sepia and B&W provide the almost dreamy or "stoned" quality of texture aimed by the Director. Thus, some issues are left unanswered simply because such answer is not yearned by the Director. If the viewer does, well, let (s)he be his/her own answering element.

we learn that he has been fired from his job because he cannot follow protocal and also because some of the offenders he is in charge of have got together and complained about him and his tactics

so by showing him assulting the offenders we see him decompensating as the pressure of the job gets to him and his disgust for the offenders reaching breaking point

it backs up the storyline, quite simple if you payed attention



you can't spell slaughter without laughter...

Babbage hits them because he has come to hate them. He has come to believe all these offenders are worthless, recidivist scum. So he hits them. It is illegal for him to do and says a tremendous amount about his character, where he is at mentally, etc.