I Want Opinions
I finally got around to watching the movie Once in its entirety. Since Netflix doesn’t allow users to give fractions of stars, I’m going to give it 2 stars (instead of 2.5), which means “I Didn’t Like It”. The “Girl”, played by Markéta Irglová, really annoyed me. Specifically during the beginning of the film. I’ll explain.
The movie opens with the “Guy” (why don’t they have names?) performing one of his original songs late at night. Then, the “girl” appears and tips him (poorly). The guy is basically blowing her off, but she is persistent, and flirty (in my opinion). They meet again the next day and hang out a bit. And again on the following day. Mind you, both of them are flirting like crazy. Later at night, they’re at the guy’s place on his bed listening to his music. As the girl is about to leave, the guy asks “do you want to stay over?”. The girl is taken aback, and her response is brief silence followed by “well.. fuck this”. She leaves and the next day, the guy is apologizing for ‘how he acted’!
First: The fact that the girl has a husband would justify her reaction if the guy knew about it! He didn’t find out until way later. Second: If you have a husband, girl, why are you totally into this guy? Third: Your husband left you, you’re acting like you’ve moved on. What’s the problem with someone you’re clearly into asking if you’d like to spend the night? Fourth: React nicer! How about something like “Aw, I’m sorry you thought that’s what was going on here. I have a husband, you see, and do not want to sleep with you”. Not “well fuck this”!
I feel that this was a legitimate question given the circumstances leading to it. It was a yes or no question without any sort of pressure at all. I’m not saying that she was wrong to turn him down, just her reaction was out of line. A simple, kind “no” would have been appropriate.
Thoughts? Comments?
As an aside, why can’t Netflix users give star fractions? The recommendation engine displays them! No fair.
At first, it seems to me that it is a little one-sided. She does clearly like him, but he’s far more infatuated. He’s also rebounding, from the looks of it, which would account for that, whereas she is still married. I’m not so sure she’s *really* into him romantically. The thought occurs to her (as she acknowledges at the end of the film), but she is still devoted to her husband, so the thought is fleeting at best. The attraction for her is more artistic or intellectual - she hasn’t got anyone to connect with musically. You can see this in her reaction when he asks her to put words to his song.
Its possible that she shares his affection completely - you could support it with evidence from the film, certainly. In that context, her brisk refusal might make more sense - she does love him, and she is married, and she wants to, but she can’t.
Those were my thoughts and comments, carefully constructed to avoid spoilers. Maybe I’ll write my own thoughts about the film with some more depth later. To answer your question - I don’t know. I do think you got the time frame off just a little bit though. When guy asked her to spend the night, they had only spent the one day together. If she doesn’t like him, then she’s not out of line for snapping. If she does feel the same way as he does, then her tone is justified if she feels torn or conflicted.
To quote Ulysses Everett McGill, “It’s a fool that looks for logic in the chambers of the human heart.”
Pete
12 Jun 08 at 9:14 am
I agree with Pete.
I rather liked that movie. :-p
Eva
12 Jun 08 at 5:32 pm
I agree with Pete. You can’t try and use logic to explain the emotions flying around during a scene like that.
I love this movie. But I’m very personally biased.
Casey
15 Jun 08 at 7:29 pm
I told Adam this, but it’s a neat little tidbit all the same…
I saw Damien Rice play at the Orpheum Theater in Boston on Dec. 12th 2006 - after the movie had filmed, but before it had been released. Guy and Girl with the opening act. I don’t recall them mentioning the movie, but they did play a couple of songs, including Falling Slowly and Lies, that appeared on the soundtrack. I knew about the film for a good year before I actually saw it, and it was fun to recognize the actors and the songs from that show.
Pete
16 Jun 08 at 9:42 am
That is a neat little tidbit!
Makes me wish I was at that show, too!!
*jealous*
And it sucks that I don’t have some Damien Rice OR the Once soundtrack on my iPod at the moment. Stuck down here in Paraguay for a few weeks.
Eva
16 Jun 08 at 3:18 pm