Well, I thought the end of the film was pretty straight forward. The main character really had lost everything of value to him so clearly he had motive to want an end to his suffering. I did not think they were going to kill him but he faced the same fate as McMurphy in Cuckoo's Nest. Clearly the effort they made to bring him back was due to the fact that he had been a decent man driven to where he was by horrible circumstances.

I don't know, maybe this will sound odd but I thought the movie was more than the story was...meaning while the story is pulp and on it's surface full of holes, that works for the film because it adds to the level of uncertainty and disorientation the audience is meant to feel. It helps suck you into the world of the main character because he is so obviously uncertain and disoriented from the get-go. I have not read or seen anything from Scorsese on if this was his intention, I just assume it was. I'll be honest, I had the film all sorted out in the opening minutes but I thought it was such a fun ride that did not bother me a bit.