The Prestige

 SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

Director/writer Christopher Nolan has given us complex films (Memento, Inception, Interstellar). Here he uses the story of competing magicians in The Prestige (2006) to explore what defines one’s identity. He also uses the performers as a metaphorical vehicle to explore the magic of filmmaking, which is also an illusory art, and how far some may go to succeed in the creative process to achieve recognition, or “prestige.”

The story takes place in 19^th century England and begins with Cutter (Michael Caine) doing a voice-over that describes the three parts of a magic trick. The “pledge” introduces something ordinary. In Nolan’s case, where nothing is ordinary, he presents some intriguing events that will be explored later but for now sets us up for what is happening in the present. The “pledge” is followed by the “turn,” which is a special action, like making something disappear. Cutter says the audience wants to know how the magician did that exceptional move, but “You don’t really want to know. You want to be fooled.” Cutter is talking about the willing suspension of disbelief, which is necessary to buy into stories, and which the filmmaker depends upon. The third part of the trick is the “prestige,” which, through a surprising act uses the “magic” to return things to the way they were before the start of the trick.

Nolan actually subverts these parts. His opening gives us intriguing shots he will expand upon later to lead us up to the present, which is one of three timelines in the film. The first image is of something common, a top hat, but there is a field filled with them, making it unusual. As Cutter speaks he is telling the parts of a trick to a little girl, Jess (Samantha Mahurin), which we later discover is the child of magician Alfred Borden (Christian Bale), and this scene will reappear at the end of the movie. There are shots of the other magician, Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman) performing his transporter trick on stage amid electrical discharges from a machine. There is a worker there who is blind – a clue. He drops through a trapdoor into a tank of water which the astounded Borden witnesses.

Nolan then transports us to a courtroom where Borden is on trial for the murder of Angier. The depiction of current events is the first timeline. Cutter, Angier’s magic trick engineer, is testifying, saying Borden placed the tank under the trapdoor to drown his competitor. Cutter is not willing to reveal the details of the “transported man” trick Angier was performing at the time of his death since it is very sought after and knowledge of the trick would render the act worthless. He reveals to the judge in private that a “wizard” invented the electrical machine which was not an illusion, but did what it appeared to do. This statement is a half-truth, as we discover, and fits in with the theme of illusion versus reality in the story. He tells the judge that magicians dress up “plain” and “sometimes brutal truths.” Like most artists, they present truth clothed in fiction. He says that the water tank joined the two men in an awful way, which we later learn.

Owens (Roger Rees), a lawyer, visits Borden in jail. He says he represents Lord Caldlow who wants to buy Borden’s version of the “transported man,” and has already purchased all of Angier’s belongings. Borden refuses, and Owens uses Jess’s fate as leverage, saying Caldlow will intervene to save her from becoming an orphan in a workhouse. He also gives Borden Angier’s diary which relates his attempt to find out about Borden’s transporting trick. Later, Fallon, Borden’s engineer, nods his confirmation that the state will put Jess in an orphan work program after Borden is hanged. Borden tells Fallon to get in touch with the lawyer, Owens, that he has reconsidered selling him his transported man trick. He hasn’t lost his skill despite the finger loss as he fools a nasty guard by securing the man in a leg chain.

The contents of the diary are the second timeline in the film. The diary tells of Angier trying to decode Borden’s notebook (we later learn how he acquired it), which needs a five-letter encrypted word reveal Borden’s illusions. Angier travels to Colorado to meet the now-renowned Tesla (David Bowie) who Angier believes helped Borden do his famous trick. (Angier is limping, and we learn of the injury further on. He also wears a hat like those in the first shot. More of Nolan’s teasers). Angier is already a known magician under the name The Great Danton. The question of what is one’s true identity enters here, as we see later that disguises are used in various ways to trick others, and of course the audience, which is part of showmanship.

As Angier reads Borden’s notebook (which is a story within a story), the movie presents the third timeline. It relates how Angier and Borden in the past worked for magician Milton (Ricky Jay), along with Cutter. Angier and Borden pretended to be members of the audience and tied the wrists and feet of Julia (Piper Parabo) in a water-escape trick (we have an echo here of Angier drowning in the water tank in the first montage). Angier kisses Julia’s leg while he puts rope around it, and Cutter divulges their relationship when he says Angier could be seen kissing his “wife.” Borden complains that Milton’s act is boring, and he thinks there should be more risky tricks like the bullet-catching bit. Cutter says that an audience member could substitute a button instead of the blank and kill someone. He also warns Borden about the type of knot that Borden uses on Julia’s wrists, which may look better but is difficult to slip off. (There is a foreshadowing here).

Cutter tests the men’s magical insight by sending them to see a Chinese magician make a large fishbowl with water and a fish appear from behind a scarf. Borden says the magician held it between his legs under his robes. He walks in a halting manner in real life to hide his deception. Again, what appears on the surface is not a true picture. Borden says the real trick is his daily performance, pretending to be handicapped. It is the Chinese magician’s devotion to his craft that Borden admires. Nolan could be saying the same about any artist committed to his craft.

Angier can barely hold the fishbowl without water, and marvels as to how the Chinese magician lives his act, pretending to be a cripple. Angier has his own secret, which we get a hint of when he says he uses a fake name so his family will not know he is trying to be an entertainer. The implication is that he comes from a prestigious family who would not cherish him trying to earn a magician’s prestige. The film stresses deception in art and in life, and how they merge.

Borden reads in Angier’s diary about how Borden requires self-sacrifice in magic and comments about how Borden doesn’t understand that extreme level of sacrifice that he has undergone. We see Angier looking at a cameo of Julia when we hear these words. (Of course, Borden can’t see this fact by reading. It takes Nolan to manifest the narrative visually). The story eventually shows us why Angier speaks of personal loss.

There is a scene where Milton takes the ordinary, a bird in a cage, and slams down on it while it is covered with a drape. The cage disappears (the “turn”). He then supposedly brings back the bird from under a handkerchief (the “prestige”). A boy in the audience cries, perceiving that the original bird was killed and another took its place. His insight is confirmed by Borden disposing of the dead bird in the collapsed cage hidden in the table, while other birds in the back room await their fate. We have here a foreshadowing of Angier’s ultimate trick (which was implied by the opening scene of the film showing the numerous hats). Borden later tells the boy that “the secret impresses no one. The trick you use it for is everything.” The suggestion is the way one uses the mystery is what’s important. Again, the same can be said of filmmaking.

Borden and the boy’s aunt, Sarah (Rebecca Hill), begin a relationship (which eventually mirrors to some degree that of Angier and Julia, as the story revolves around itself). When he walks her home, she says she can’t invite him in just then. He seems to leave, but then is inside her place asking her about what she wants in her tea. Is he that good a magician, doing his transporting man trick, or is there something else going on?

At the next performance of the water tank escape, Julia gives Borden a nod and he proceeds with tying the rope around her wrists. However, she can’t slip the bonds and she drowns. The implication is that one can go too far in one’s passion and the result is collateral damage to others. The personal loss Angier noted in his diary is obvious now, and he becomes devastated and full of wrath because of Julia’s death. Borden infuriates Angier even more by saying he doesn’t know which type of knot he used.

With the death of Julia, Milton’s career is over, Borden and Angier go off to establish their own careers. Sarah meets the bearded and bespectacled Fallon. Sarah informs Borden that she is going to have a baby. He says he loves her, but she says, “not today.” She explains that “maybe today you’re more in love with magic.” Sarah seems okay with sharing Borden with his other passion, at least for now.  

Angier continues to read Borden’s notebook. He relates performing in front of a disapproving crowd. Although Borden has great tricks, he is not a showman and does not wrap the magic in an intriguing way. He gains the audience’s attention by starting the bullet-catching trick. Angier shows up in disguise and volunteers to be the shooter. He adds his own round of ammunition to the pistol and demands to know what knot did Borden tie around Julia’s hands. Again, Borden says he doesn’t know. Angier fires the pistol and maims Borden, blowing off the ends of two fingers. Borden’s words reiterate that he agonizes over what knot he tied. Angier is outraged that Borden could not know, since the man was an accomplished magician. The suggestion is that Borden may be working on an unconscious level at times, not sure what is real and what is an illusion, since his magic is so real to him because he lives it, like the Chinese magician.

Angier’s diary recounts how he hooked up with Cutter who couldn’t find work after Julia’s death. They also hired an attractive assistant, Olivia (Scarlett Johansson), whose beauty Cutter said is an effective distraction, which adds to the audience not really wanting to know what is truly happening.

Angier doesn’t want to kill birds when doing the disappearing cage trick. Cutter lectures him, saying he is not a “wizard,” and he must get his “hands dirty,” if he wants to be successful. We again have the theme of how far an artist must go to perfect his work. However, Cutter invented a contraption that collapses the cage while sparing the bird. They get a gig working for Merrit (William Morgan Shepphard). Angier attempts to do the disappearing bird trick. But a disguised Borden seeks revenge and acts as a volunteer from the audience. By mimicking Angier’s attack on himself, he sabotages the trick, killing the dove and breaking the female volunteer’s fingers. Angier’s hands have now been dirtied. Merrit terminated their run, and Angier must come up with a show-stopping performance to redeem his reputation.

By reading Borden’s diary, Angier believes that his antagonist acquired a machine from Tesla to perform his incredible trick, and he asks Alley (Andy Serkis), Tesla’s assistant, a second time to meet Tesla. Alley shows how Tesla can turn on lights without wires. Angier sees how science is magical without tricks. He goes to an alternating current demonstration where Alley argues against Edison’s attempts to “Smear” Tesla’s works (the rivalry was real). The electrical discharges jumping from conductor to conductor frighten the audience, as if they are seeing the power of a god. Angier follows Borden who also attended the demonstration. Angier’s diary says he was envious of seeing Borden with his wife and child, but he also knew that Borden tormented his family with his obsession over his magic. In a way, Borden has a split personality according to Angier. We discover that he is not far from the truth.

By this time, Olivia and Angier have become involved romantically. In Angier’s diary we learn that, in disguise, he witnesses Borden premier his “Transported Man” trick. He goes in one door of a closet at one end of the stage and comes out another door at the other end of the stage in the time it takes to bounce a rubber ball on the raised platform. Cutter says he is using a double, but Olivia noted a gloved hand on the man occupying each closet, revealing the lost fingers. Angier says he will get even with Borden by stealing his trick.

Cutter says the only way they can duplicate Borden’s act is to find a double for Angier, which they do. He is Gerald Root (also played by Jackman). He is a drunken, out-of-work actor. He says to Angier, “Did you think you were unique, Mr. Angier? I’ve been Caesar. I’ve played Faust. How hard could it possibly be to play the Great Danton?” Root as an actor assumes other identities, false fronts, to present the illusion that he is someone else. A performance in its own way is a sham to temporarily convince the audience that what they are seeing is real. Nolan is stressing the illusion versus reality aspect of the performing arts.

Angier’s team dresses up the trick and call it “The New Transported Man.” Instead of a closet they have just two door frames. But there are trapdoors at the thresholds. Angier must be the first man as he has the ability to dramatically introduce the act. Behind the open door he falls through the trapdoor onto padding below. Root emerges at the other end. He overacts his part, and even kisses Olivia. Angier is not able to experience the adulation of the crowd, and enjoy the “prestige,” since he is below the stage. They must keep Root under wraps because if he surfaces and is recognized as working for Angier, the illusion is destroyed. Angier’s life is copying that of Borden, and the two stories begin to blur together as the story unfolds.

Angier is obsessed with learning how Borden does his trick without a double so he can be the one on the stage accepting the audience’s adoration. He sends Olivia to work for Borden as a spy, but she is to tell him the truth, that Angier sent her to discover Borden’s secret of the Transported Man. Angier assumes Borden will want her as a counterspy to access Angier’s secrets. Even though Angier has become very successful, Borden’s keen eye can tell that his double is overweight and drunk. Olivia tells Borden that she is sick of Angier’s obsession with Borden, which turns out not to be too far from the truth.

Angier reads in Borden’s diary that Borden found Root and convinced him that he had the power in the act. Root then acts to subvert the performance unless he gets more money and control. Borden sabotages the act eventually by removing the padding under the trapdoor and Angier injures his leg when he falls through during one performance (remember his limp at the beginning of the film?). Instead of Root appearing through the door, it is Borden, and he tied up Root and has him descend from the ceiling with a sign that says he is Borden’s opening act. Borden has spruced up his performance by adding some of Tesla’s electronics and has Olivia for effect.

Cutter wonders if Olivia is now working for Borden since he discovered Root. It becomes very difficult to know what is a lie and what is the truth. Angier confronts Olivia with his suspicions. She says Borden uses a double since she has seen wigs, glasses and makeup about. Angier dismisses her impression, saying it’s misdirection, because Borden lives his act, the way the Chinese magician did. But sometimes the overly suspicious can no longer accept what is obviously true. Olivia gives him Borden’s notebook, and that is how Angier was able to read it (it took a while for the audience to discover this fact). Angier shows his obsession, and his downfall, as he says he only cares about Borden’s secret, not the death of his wife anymore. Both magicians let their preoccupation with their craft interfere with their attention to others. Olivia is torn, but Angier’s manipulation of her most likely is the reason she reveals that she has fallen in love with Borden.

Angier kidnaps Fallon as leverage to get Borden to explain his Transporting Man trick. He buries the man in a wooden box and when Borden shows up, Angier says Fallon wouldn’t talk, in fact, he says, “He doesn’t talk at all.” We never hear Fallon speak – another clue. Borden writes “Tesla” as the answer to how he performs his trick, and then saves Fallon by digging him up. There are a number of references to being in boxes, or cages, losing freedom and wanting to escape.

Angier wants to see what machine Borden bought and he wants a duplicate. In his diary he writes that he finally met Tesla, who dramatically enters by walking through electrical streams, looking like a modern Prometheus (the mythological reference is used by Nolan in Oppenheimer). He confirms his view of how one can achieve anything if one has the “nerve,” the courage to apply oneself. Money is also a factor, and Angier says it is not a problem. We again get an idea about his background. But, Tesla also means there is a nonmonetary “cost” resulting from obsession. Tesla admits that he is a “slave” to his own obsessions, and “one day they’ll choose to destroy” him. Angier says Tesla knows urging caution about an obsession is pointless, basically saying that an obsession triumphs over all warnings. Perhaps Nolan is implying that the drive to fulfill one’s artistic vision sometimes will not be deterred by whatever negative outcomes surface in the pursuit of that quest.

Angier reads in the notebook as we get a scene which reveals that Olivia says to Borden that she had loved Angier but despised him for using her to steal his competitor’s secret. Borden wrote that Olivia’s loyalty was proven by not only letting him know where Root was, but also because Borden wanted her to give Angier the notebook. He was manipulating Angier by having him read it. “Tesla” was the keyword to the notebook, but not to his trick, he writes as he directly addresses Angier in the notebook. Borden thinks he’s sent Angier on a wild goose chase with Tesla, but it becomes an ironic twist in the plot.

An angry Angier confronts Tesla, saying he made the magician think that he constructed a machine for Borden so he could take Angier’s money to fight Edison. Tesla says the machine needs further experimentation. He tries using a cat as the subject of a test, but the cat is not transported. As Angier exits Tesla’s laboratory he follows the sound of a cat. He finds two cats, the original and a duplicate, as well as many reproductions of his hat (which was the first shot of the film). Tesla’s machine does not transport, it makes copies, so the uniqueness of the individual becomes dissipated.

Sarah is becoming more disenchanted with her marriage and is drinking alcohol more. Borden assures her that he loves her and Jess their child more than anything. Borden promised Jess he would take her to the zoo, yet he tells Fallon to do it and try and reassure Sarah that he loves her. We don’t see if Jess is disappointed his father doesn’t keep his promise. Borden sees Olivia who kisses him and he says he doesn’t want her to call him Freddie. Why? When she says she doesn’t trust Fallon, Borden says that Fallon protects all his interests. These are all clues as to Fallon’s true identity.

Edison’s henchmen have burned Tesla’s property, but he delivered the machine to Angier saying in a note that those interested in magic will accept it because they like to be “mystified.” Could that not also be said for us in the audience as we watch Nolan’s cinematic magic? Tesla also delivers a warning that although he has provided the goods for which Angier paid him, he tells him to destroy the machine since it will only be a source of grief. We have again the warning of going too far for one’s artistic passion. And, we see the overreaching danger of science (obviously a theme Nolan is interested in later in Oppenheimer). Borden receives this information by reading Angier’s diary. Angier’s writing addresses Borden directly (just as Borden did so in his notebook). Angier’s words say that he knows Borden awaits the death sentence for killing Angier. But, if the man is dead, how can he have written this closing? Borden tells Owens, the lawyer, that the diary is a fake, but Owens says it is in Angier’s handwriting. The theme of illusion versus reality continually surfaces, and it appears that here the diary is genuine. That would mean that Angier is not dead. Or, is he?

Sarah is unable to live in Borden’s world of lies, secrets, and tricks. She wants honesty, and he can’t do that because he puts his profession above all else. They go back and forth as to whether that day he loves her, and he admits that this day he does not. She can no longer continue in this state of imprisonment, which is like a life in a cage or a box, or a tank of water. Her escape is suicide as she hangs herself (a foreshadowing). Now both magicians have lost their wives, which shows them to have surrendered what they hold most dear because of their craft. Later, Borden tells Olivia he never loved Sarah, but only loves her. Is he a lying jerk, or is there something else going on? She says he is a cold man to be so dismissive of Sarah. She leaves, saying he and Angier deserve each other. In a way, they are psychological twins to her.

Angier reconnects with Cutter and says he wants to do the transported man to show Borden that he can do the trick without Root. Angier doesn’t want Cutter backstage and has hired blind stagehands (remember there was a blind worker at the very beginning of the film, which of course is now chronologically at the end of the tale). He wants total secrecy as to how his trick works. Angier turns on the machine for a patron, Ackerman (Edward Hibbert) Angier disappears and almost instantaneously appears at the back of the auditorium. Has Tesla perfected his invention? Borden shows up at Angier’s performance and although he saw that Angier disappeared through a trapdoor, he berates Fallon for not being able to figure out how Angier can show up fifty yards away almost instantaneously.

Borden sneaks under the stage and witnesses Angier falling through the trapdoor into a water tank that then locks. Borden tries to break the glass with an axe, but can’t save the drowning Angier. He has died as his wife did. Cutter shows up and Borden is found guilty of the murder of Angier, as has already been shown. Cutter meets with Owens and says although Lord Caldlow has purchased all the equipment, Cutter wants Tesla’s machine.

That same Lord Caldlow shows up with Jess at the prison since Borden struck a deal with Owens that he would deliver the prestige part of his tricks if he could see his daughter once more. Caldlow is Angier, and he says he “always have been.” We now know that Angier comes from an aristocratic family and that is why money was no object when it came to buying Tesla’s machine. Borden concedes that Angier no longer fears getting his “hands dirty.” Just like Borden, he is all in when it comes to his craft. Borden hands Angier the “prestige” parts of his tricks so that Jess will not be under Angier’s control. Angier is stealing what’s left of Borden’s family for himself. Angier says that Borden was the better magician, but Angier’s trick is better, so he rips up the papers. Borden shows Jess his rubber ball, the one he used in his transported man trick, and here symbolizes that he has a bit of magic left to get his daughter back. He screams that the man he was supposed to have killed is walking out the door, so he is innocent.

Cutter discovers Caldlow’s address and sees that Angier is still alive. Cutter wants the machine destroyed and Angier says it will never be used again, and will be placed with the rest of the show’s equipment. Meanwhile, Borden meets with Fallon, says he is sorry about Sarah, and throws him the rubber ball, telling him to live life for the both of them.

As Borden goes to the gallows he asks the guard, “Are you watching closely?” Is there one more trick to be played? Just before he is hanged (like Sarah, so poetic justice?), Borden says “Abracadabra!” There is a cut to the rubber ball bouncing toward Angier and a shot rings out as he is shot. The man with the pistol is Borden. Or is it? Just before his death Angier realizes that Fallon is Borden’s twin brother. His shooter reveals that they were both Borden and Fallon, sharing one life. They alternated who disappeared and reappeared in the transported man trick. The other brother sacrificed his fingers to make the illusion seem real. It was one who loved Sarah, and one who loved Olivia, so depending on who was with which woman, the truth was actually told.

Angier tells Borden the truth. Tesla did not perfect his machine. Angier used it to create a double of himself, shot the first duplicate, and drowned the other versions of himself so that there would only be one Great Danton remaining. His storage facilities have several water tanks with drowned versions of himself. As he said often in the film, “no one cares about the man in the box” and the film has repeatedly shown imprisonment and various, even lethal ways, of escape. There is always that risk for the sake of the magic. Angier paid the ultimate price, his own death, to come back in the prestige, to create wonder. Now that the show is over, the remaining duplicate Angier takes a figurative his last bow. He drops a lantern, and the resulting fire destroys his secrets.

Jess walks away with her “father.” Is it Fallon, or was it Fallon who was hanged, and Borden reunites with his daughter? Nolan keeps his secret, as all good magicians do, but he brings the man back, to earn the prestige.

The next film is Europa, Europa.

The Accidental Tourist

 SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

The film title, The Accidental Tourist (1988), based on Anne Tyler’s novel and directed by Lawrence Kasdan (Body Heat, The Big Chill, Silverado) suggests traveling is something problematic. It implies the danger in the act of traveling, possibly referring to life itself as being a scary trip. Kasdan said that he likes to explore how life is chaotic and how people try to control it. As William Hurt’s Macon Leary (an appropriate last name, suggesting a fear of what may occur) packs a suitcase, he delivers a voice-over narration about the business traveler needing to be aware of things going wrong. However, Macon acts in opposition to his advice, carrying more than one book since he knows he will use them as a tool to not be social. When he says don’t pack anything “dear,” that losing it would “devastate you,” we see him holding a picture of his young son, who he has already lost, and whose picture and memory he carries with him, despite his advice to leave anything precious behind.

On the plane he talks with Lucas Loomis (Bradley Mott), a large man who literally “looms” over others. He swears by Macon’s book, The Accidental Tourist, and says following its advice makes it seem he is traveling in a “cocoon.” That word stresses the isolation that Macon uses to protect himself from the pain that personal relationships can lead to. Loomis points out that despite Macon saying reading a book protects one from intrusive travelers, it didn’t work with Loomis. So much for Macon’s attempt at insulation.

Hurt reunites with his Body Heat co-star, Kathleen Turner, who plays his wife, Sarah. After his return home, we see a distance between the two, as they do not embrace or kiss after his time away. Macon shows more affection for his dog than Sarah. She mentions how the pooch still expects “Ethan to come home.” It’s been a year and the pain of the memory of the loss of their boy has made life with Macon intolerable for Sarah. She tells him she can’t live with him anymore, wants a divorce, and has already secured an apartment. He wants to persevere, but she sees people now as “evil,” since their son was killed by a gunshot wound to the head. Macon certainly wants no close contact with others. She says that his books show how people can travel without feeling “touched” by where they go, as if they never left home, which is what Macon desires. It is interesting that Macon is a man who wants to stay home, but travels a great deal. Perhaps this is either ironic or shows how he is torn about what he wants out of life.

Sarah sounds suicidal as she wonders how she can live in a world of “evil,” and asks what’s the point of existing? After she moves out, Macon continues his daily routines like shaving and eating, probably hoping that maintaining activities will propel him forward through life while not enjoying it.

Macon needs to board his dog, Edward, while he is away again. (Kasdan said that the dog is the “agent” that causes the plot to move forward). The prior place will not accept him because he did some biting (the animal’s anti-social attitude mirrors that of his human companion). Macon notices a boarding place and drags the reluctant Edward inside. There he encounters Muriel Pritchett (Geena Davis, who won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for this role). Muriel discovers quickly that Macon is available since he says that the apartment complex where his wife lives doesn’t allow pets. Edward seems to take to her right away, and the fact that Muriel smiles and repeats her own name to Macon shows that maybe she is drawn to the dog’s owner, also.

We again have Macon narrating for his readers. He says he encourages the use of the London “underground,” the subway there. Does he like the underground because he suppresses his feelings below the surface? He complains about the abrasive fabrics used in bedding, stressing how foreign traveling can be inhospitable. He says in London one can find food similar to what is in Cleveland. Macon emphasizes that the business traveler is not voluntarily visiting other lands for recreation. So, he wants him to feel like he is not away from home as best as he can. It fits his own desire to stay safe in a secure domicile. He does not wish to take chances on local adventures or cuisine.

Macon returns to pick up Edward. The camera lingers on Muriel to stress her unique expression in her appearance. She has flowers in her hair and very long fingernails. Her clothes are bright with patterns which are a far cry from Macon’s gray-suit wearing advice. She says he can call just to talk with her, but he admits he has no social desire to do so given his preference for being alone.

Macon has a nightmare where his son calls saying he is still at camp and his father forgot to pick him up. It’s an unconscious denial dream about his son’s death, and it also may contain guilt for not being there to protect his son. Macon receives a call from the pushy Muriel, who volunteers to take care of Edward’s growling when Macon leaves the house. She even invites Macon to dinner at her place. He says he would rather handle things on his own, which is his default position. She seems to understand that he is not ready to socialize so says she will leave it up to him if he wants to get in touch.

Macon sustains a broken leg in a Keystone Cop-like accident. He attaches a laundry basket to a skateboard so that it will catch the clothes coming down a shute that he can then wheel to the washer. But Edward hears the washer make a loud noise, gets freaked, and jumps on Macon, who puts his leg in the traveling basket. The broken leg makes the staid Macon even more stationary. Macon winds up at his deceased parents’ house where his quirky siblings live. Amy Wright plays his sister Rose, who drives a beat-up car showing a distaste for change. David Ogden Stiers is brother Porter, and Ed Begley, Jr. portrays brother Charles. They don’t answer the phone since it just interrupts their static way of life with intrusive information. They play a game called “Vaccination,” which is significant because they want to immunize themselves against the invasive elements of everyday disorder.

Julian Hedge (Bill Pullman) arrives. He is Macon’s publisher who came up with the slogan for Macon that says that armchair travelers want to leave home, while traveling armchairs want to stay put, equating some people with furniture, which would seem not to be a complimentary comparison. Julian comments that the family house is really “something.” It looks like a museum and Macon says that it was his grandparents’ home. Apparently, the Leary family likes living a static existence. When Julian discovers that Macon is separated from Sarah, Macon’s explanation for the split is that these things happen for no apparent reason. He is again in the underground, not wanting to bring deeper feelings to the surface. Edward growls as Julian leaves and when Macon reaches for the dog, he bites him. Porter says he should get rid of the dog. We then get a flashback of Ethan (Seth Granger) playing with Edward. Macon says he can’t discard Edward. He retains a connection to his son through the dog.

 Rose mentions obedience school. That suggestion brings Macon back to Muriel. She has a way with Edward, but she is not initially successful with training Macon. Muriel tells him that Edward isn’t taking him seriously. So, Macon even has trouble interacting with his dog. Muriel shows her unconventional side again, wearing a tiger-striped dress. She plays with items on the fireplace mantlepiece and has no qualms about exploring family pictures. When she finds out he writes travel books, she says she loves traveling. It fits with her extroverted style. In contrast he says travel is not liberating for him as he lets himself get bogged down in “red tape,” consisting of “ticket lines, custom lines.” She would love to see “romantic” Paris, but instead of acknowledging the wonder of the city, he mentions the rudeness of the citizens. Just like she helps to get the dog back in step with his surroundings, Muriel will help Macon return to a worthwhile life. As Maude in Harold and Maude is the mentor for Harold so he can see the total spectrum of life, it is Muriel’s job to add dimension to Macon’s limited world view.

Even from their first encounter, Julian asks about Rose, who smiles when she sees Julian. When Julian delivers some notes on Macon’s writing, the attraction between the two is obvious as they exchange agreement on the desire for marriage and children. Porter is not there because he went to a hardware store and may have become lost. This family is a real stay-at-home bunch.

That preference carries over in the scene where Macon, after having his cast removed, tells Muriel that he doesn’t go out to see films because he doesn’t “care for movies.” This fellow is such a fun guy. His words are ironic since he is a character in a movie. He says that films make everything seem too close up, while Kasdan gives us a close-up of the two, showing how filmmaking stresses its intentions. Muriel reveals about having a child and is divorced, so her son could use a father figure. Her romantic overtures are quite loud, but Macon is Beethoven-deaf to her flirtations.

Julian is at the Leary’s Thanksgiving dinner where Macon and Charles discovered the turkey was cooked at too low a temperature. Even cooking is a peril to these people. They don’t say anything about their trepidations concerning food safety until the bird is ready to be served, which embarrasses Rose, who prepared the meal. She shows her feelings, saying that they are conspiring to dampen Julian’s love interest in her because they want her to stay and take care of them and the house. She states that her brothers lost their chance at romantic happiness, and she will not give up her opportunity for success in love. Julian, showing his dedication for Rose, says he will have some turkey. Turns out he has two helpings and doesn’t get sick, which makes Rose feel vindicated about her feelings for him.

Muriel’s son, Alexander, has allergies to everything, maybe even what’s in the air, she says. She, too, has her burden in life to carry. She invites Macon to dinner with her and her son. He reluctantly accepts but then goes to deliver a hand-written note to Muriel saying he can’t make it. She opens the door to her place when he slips the note under the threshold. He finally shares his trauma with her and says he can’t have dinner with a child since it is too painful a situation for him. She silently holds him, allowing him to make an embracing confession. He says the loss of his son seemed unreal at first but now he feels worse because, instead of adapting over time to his death, the loss has become more real. He tells her, “Now, I’m far from everyone. I don’t have friends anymore. And everyone looks trivial and foolish, and not related to me.” His words ring true to anyone who has suffered a great loss. It jolts one into a broader perspective about life where everyday matters seem inconsequential. The numbing of emotions is an emotional defense to allow the individual to continue to exist, albeit in a blunted manner. Muriel tucks him into her bed as if comforting a child and says he can sleep there. She cuddles with him, and that closeness that he needed resurrects his physical need for intimacy which he consummates with her.

The next scene has Macon arriving at Muriel’s house and the neighbors recognize him, so we know he’s been around a great deal lately. He is even okay with spending time with Alexander, shopping for clothes, going to movies (which Macon used to dislike). When Alexander experiences negative behavior from other boys, Macon is there to comfort him. The boy holds onto Macon’s hand, establishing a father-son relationship that Macon lost. Macon is more upbeat now, even joking a bit, showing the effect of Muriel’s positive influence on him. The better-behaving dog, Edward, reflects the improvement in Macon’s personality.

In a way, Julian’s relationship with Rose mirrors that of Macon and Muriel. The publisher and the sister are also going through a rebirth cycle, as Julian is excited by Rose’s presence. He has an engagement ring and will ask her to marry him on Christmas. He says to Macon, “Isn’t it amazing how two separate lives can link up together? I mean two differences.” His statement could accurately apply to Macon and Muriel, too.

Porter wants to know what Macon is doing with, “this Muriel person.” The brother is condescending, saying that Macon is too good for the woman living in the slum with the diseased child, and that Macon has changed, obviously for the worse according to Porter. Macon knows he wasn’t such a “catch,” given his downbeat personality, and he probably is grateful for the change in himself. He tells Porter to shut up.

When Macon is concerned about Alexander’s inability to do math problems, he offers to pay to send the child to a private school. Muriel is sternly forthright when she asks about Macon’s intentions. She points out that she can’t jerk the boy in and out of schools if Macon is not committed to the relationship. She feels that sometimes he shows being ashamed to be with her, echoing what Porter said. She suggests that maybe he’ll even go back with Sarah. Their argument continues as he says in response to the possibility of them getting married that the institution is seriously flawed. She is angry, saying his decisions are selfish. Her words point out that Macon has no idea as to what he wants in the long term, and that lack of consistency impacts others with whom he is involved.

On Rose and Julian’s wedding day, showing the couple are not afraid to move forward with their lives, Macon encounters Sarah, who has learned that Macon is living with someone. The looks of Muriel from across the gathering show her worry about Macon having used her and is ready to return to his prior life. The man officiating at the wedding says that marriage is a sort of home, a sanctuary, where people can find solace in turbulent times. His words could imply that Macon might consider obtaining that peace either with Sarah or Muriel.

Muriel wakes up and sees a packed bag on the bedroom floor. Macon is just going to Canada for his writing, but she says that she doesn’t want to fear all the time that he will leave her. He says that he is not, but he tells her to go to sleep instead of definitively declaring his love for her.

Sarah calls Macon while he is in Canada, and says her lease is running out. She asks if she can temporarily stay at the family house. Rose is back there, too, taking care of her brothers, while delivering meals to Julian at their apartment. Sarah expresses feeling an emotional jolt when she received their divorce papers. Macon agrees to the living accommodations, but ends the call abruptly, showing he is upset. The past lives of both Rose and Macon are like black holes, trying to suck the two back into their insulated, womb-like existence. Sarah calls again after moving back to the house and says she is lonely, asks him to come “home” (that safe place) and that they can try to be together again. They do attempt a reconciliation, and even have sex. But, Sarah complains that Macon still lives “sealed up” and doesn’t share what he is feeling. He becomes angry and wants the discussion to end since it reminds him of how Sarah would bring up his faults and say that she knew him “better than he knew himself.”

Macon goes back to the house and Sarah says that she feels happy about being together again, enjoying the little things they shared doing together. She says, “anything different just doesn’t feel right.” The thrust here is that change is unwanted because it is upsetting. Rose tells Sarah, who asks when she is going to move back with Julian, that their apartment’s location would consistently confuse her and she would get lost when she left it. Her statement reminds us of Porter’s inability to navigate outside the family house. The Leary’s are definitely out of their element when outside of their comfort zone.

Macon types and narrates that travelers should not be “lulled into a false sense of security.” He pauses after typing and the sentence could reflect what is happening to him back at the house. Julian is worried that Rose has left him. Macon agrees that Rose (like himself and his brothers) has worn a “groove” in the house and can’t get out of it. Macon actually offers a helpful suggestion. He says that Julian should offer Rose the chance to help him at the office. He says to tell her that he needs her to “get things under control.” Macon knows of the appeal of a steady, safe routine, and believes his sibling Rose will respond to that request.

Macon gets on a plane to Paris. Apparently, Muriel is not ready to give up on Macon, and gets on the same plane after borrowing money for the trip to go to that romantic spot she hoped to visit, Paris. She argues that he needs her because he “was falling to pieces” before being with her. Macon clings to home by waking up Sarah with a phone call to maintain the umbilical cord to his safe past. Muriel pressures him into eating with her. Do they have beef bourguignon? No, they dine at Burger King, because, as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz would say, “There’s no place like home.”

Macon sprains his back. He seems to require recovery after setbacks, which includes the psychological one involving the loss of his son. His accidents, which fit in with the film title, show how life is an unexpected obstacle course that one can’t escape. Sarah finds out about the back problem from Rose and arrives ready to help Macon. She will visit the other cities on his itinerary so she can help him with his writing. She informs him that Julian moved into the house with the brothers. This fact suggests that Julian is capitulating to the influence of the emotional gravity of the Leary household.

Sarah offers that they go on a second honeymoon after she is done traveling to the other cities. But she saw that Muriel was at the same hotel as Macon. Sarah wants to know if the other woman’s son was what attracted him to Muriel. She also brings up the idea of having another child, which Macon dismisses. It must seem to Sarah that he was fine having another child in his life, but not with her. She feels that Macon could have done something to prevent Muriel from traveling to Paris. There is the implication that Macon’s passiveness may have led to the death of their child. She gives him pills that anesthetize his pain, but the action is symbolic of her wanting to control him, to lull him back into his prior life.

Macon seems to realize that going backward is not the right path for him. He tells Muriel in the morning that he is going back to Muriel. He admits he didn’t take “steps” in the past in a proactive way, but thinks he should now. He says, “I’m beginning to think that maybe it’s not just how much you love someone. Maybe what matters is who you are when you’re with them.” Macon seems to be saying what an individual becomes with the person one loves is what’s important. If loving someone diminishes oneself, then the relationship is unhealthy. He realizes that one can’t plan life like “a business trip.” Life is too complicated and full of variables, so “things just happen.” Muriel helped him “step out,” and “stay out” of the “Leary groove.” He is opening himself up to the sometimes scary randomness of life, which can bring its joys.

A young boy helps Macon get a taxi, and the youth reminds him of his son. It is a sign that he is on the right path, as he encounters Muriel, who is ready to leave, thinking she has lost Macon. They see each other and they smile. He has found a new home.

The next film is The Prestige.