Buster Keaton: Sherlock Jr.

Director - Buster Keaton
Writers - Jean C. Havez & Joseph A. Mitchell

Cast Character

Buster Keaton ... The Boy/Sherlock Jr.
Kathryn McGuire ... The Girl
Ward Crane ... The Villain
Joseph Keaton ... The Girls’ Father
Erwin Connelly ... Handyman/Thief
Ford West ... Theater Manger/Gillette

A movie projectionist and janitor (Buster Keaton) who is studying to become a detective is in love with a beautiful girl (Kathryn McGuire). On a date he presents her with chocolates and an engagement ring. However, there is another man who's also interested in his girl (Ward Crane).

One day he is accused of stealing his girlfriend's father's watch. He falls asleep on the job and dreams that he is a Sherlock Holmes-type detective, solving the case of who stole a valuable pearl necklace. - Wikipedia

Buster Keaton like no other director is a master or improbability, chance, surrealism and ingenious naivety. He is socially awkward and obsessively inventive. His small stature is no match for his determination and heart which are beating hard underneath his cool exterior. One always asks what is he thinking? He makes use of his calm demeanor in the toughest of situations and never looses his cool. He always thinks things out first before coming up with his wildly illogical and unpredictable solutions and inventions to solve the simplest of tasks. One movie that illustrates this is in his film The Boat when there is a hole in the ship and in his logic drills a hole in the side of the ship so the water can goes from one hole to the other. This makes sense in his completely rational mind but of course the ship leaks with water even more causing it to drown. This is one example why Buster Keaton is so funny. Other aspects include his use of vaudeville passed on from his parents as a tumbler which he worked for when he was young. He could take any fall and did all his own stunts and even broke his own neck in this film to which he found out much later in his career. The surrealist aspects which add to his absurd humor include painting a coat hanger on the wall to hang his jacket on. What is best about him is that he played working class characters that never resorted to cheating others to get ahead. He always had a decency about him in accomplishing his goals. He is funny because he takes things so literally oblivious to social clues and has an illogical way of viewing and figuring out things. He was ahead of his time and is still ahead of today's comedians. He never short changes himself on cheap gags and knows pacing, timing and how to build up a joke to hit the appropriate nerve to make you laugh.

Sherlock Jr. is his most surrealist film to date combining dreams, cinema and detective work. Being a detective at least in the movies is one of the most exciting professions there is. Buster's character of The Boy/Sherlock Jr. works in a cinema wanting to make his life of movies and fantasy a reality.

The film begins with the caption, "There is an old proverb which says: Don't try to do two things at once and expect to do justice to both." Our hero the projectionist tries to do both. He works at a movie theater while he studies to be a detective. He reads his How to be a Detective book with great interest. On his break the projectionist goes to the chocolate store looking for some treats to give to his girlfriend played by Kathyrn McGuire.

He sweeps the trash and finds a piece of trash stuck to his hand. The only way he can get it off is by putting it on the ground so someone can step on it. He finds a dollar now being able to afford that chocolate only to have a girl come to say she lost it. He tells her to describe it with the girl looking over his shoulder to see the eagle. She then describes to his request one of the most famous pieces of paper one can ever see and the projectionist gives it to her. Another woman says she lost a dollar and the projectionist, Buster Keaton, reluctantly gives her his own dollar. He appropriately takes her handkerchief to wipe off his tears now losing two dollars. Just to the projectionist's even further bad luck a tough looking man comes up and the projectionist gives him his dollar but the man refuses and looks in the trash to find a wallet full of cash. The projectionist goes crazy looking in the trash obsessively.

The projectionist uses his one dollar to buy a box of chocolates for the girl and changes the one on the box to a four so the gift looks more expensive being able to impress the girl. He meets her and they are both shy. He gives her the chocolates without ever changing his facial expression and flips the box so she can see the expensive price. Smooth. The villain played by Ward Crane enters and watches them later to steal Kathryn's father's watch.

The projectionist puts a ring on the girl's finger which she excitedly sees. When she looks at it she can't see the diamond so the projectionist pulls out his magnifying glass to show her. She tries to act thankful. The two touch hands nervously to have the villain come inside with a bigger box of chocolates taking her to another room. The villain gives the projectionist a banana and tells him to scram. The projectionist puts the banana peel on the ground and calls over the villain, trying to get him to slip on it which doesn't work. When he sees the villain touch his girlfriend he rushes back and slips on his own banana. Kathryn's father says someone stole his watch, so projectionist pulls out his trusty, "How to be a Detective" book. The villain gets worried so he plants the pawn receipt in the projectionist/Sherlock Jr.'s pocket. They see the pawn receipt and for the watch was four dollars and the price of his chocolates to the girl was the same - after he changed it. Now the villain has successfully framed him. The father kicks him out and the girl gives projectionist back his ring.

Sherlock Jr. now suspicious of the villain looks at his detective guide and sees Rule 5 - "Shadow your man closely." He does that literally. He walks one foot behind him ever so obvious. One great part is when the villain picks up a cigarette to smoke, takes a few drags and throws it behind him to have Sherlock Jr. catch it effortlessly and do the same. He even trips on cue with the villain. When the villain catches wind of Sherlock Jr. he locks him in the train car. Sherlock Jr. runs on the moving train cars, catches the water pipe from above and falls wet on the train tracks below. In real life Buster Keaton broke his neck and didn't find out until years later.

He goes back to his day job at the movie theater. The girl goes to the pawn shop and learns it was really the villain who sold the watch. Sherlock Jr. falls asleep and awakens from his body in a dream state. The next shot is clever because they overlapped two film negatives onto one another to give the illusion of Sherlock Jr. detaching from his body in his dream-state.

He watches the film and now he is transported as a character in a film within a film showing Buster Keaton's surrealist side. The two characters on screen become the villain and the girl. The dream Sherlock Jr. tries to wake up the sleeping Sherlock Jr. but it doesn't work. Sherlock Jr. rushes to the movie screen jumps into the movie once he sees the villain hold his girl's hand. The villain throws him out of the movie and into the audience.

Sherlock Jr. now interacts with a montage of images that put him in danger. As he tries to sit down the bench disappears to a new scene and he crashes on the floor to a new shot where cars almost hit him on the road. He goes from the edge of a cliff to a jungle with lions and dodging a train in the next shot. The camera dollies in and we enter in the film within the dream film of Sherlock Jr's mind. The father is missing some pearls and the villain and butler are working together. Here the villain is finally scared saying, "We are lost! He is sending for the world's greatest detective - Sherlock Jr.!" In our dreams we can be anything and no longer is the projectionist a meek worker - here is a grade A gumshoe.

The butler shows his secret weapon - exploding billiards balls and a latch under a seat to trigger a falling axe to kill Sherlock Jr. Enter in Sherlock Jr. dressing snappy and commanding the respect he so hungrily wants. People are awestruck by him in his dream state. He inspects each person with his sullen eyes. He tells the father not to bother explaining as this is an easy case for him. The butler tries to lure him to the trap chair but Sherlock Jr. straightens himself up. Sherlock Jr. avoids drinking the poisoned drink and trap chair and now begins playing billiards with the exploding ball. This now turns into a Clue like game. Sherlock Jr. begins hitting all the balls in except the explosive one adding to the absurdity. It's amazing to see how they shoot all the billiards balls in a way that the exploding ball is not once moved. Buster Keaton proves himself to be quite a pool player and most humorously misses the easiest shot making the cue ball sink in the pocket.

To the surprise of the villains the rigged ball doesn't explode. As the story progresses we see the caption: "By the next day the mastermind had completely solved the mystery - with the exception of locating the pearls and finding the thief." Gillette his assistant, a Watson type, helps him in his quest. The next shows Buster Keaton flirting with surrealism as he opens a safe door and enters outside in the daytime - when his previous scene is in the nighttime. Keaton is in love with absurdity and this is the fuel to his comedy. His characters are always sensibly illogical - their own worlds make sense to them with applicable laws and logic but not to the outside world.

He sees the villain and tails him again right behind him with no subtlety or restraint. The villain leaves his hat near a ladder upstairs to the roof to throw Sherlock Jr. off. Sherlock Jr. takes the bait and the villain locks him on the roof. Keaton shows his acrobatic skills as he grabs the train stop sign from the roof and using it to lower himself precisely as the villains car moves toward it landing him in the backseat. The timing is fluid and flawless. Sherlock Jr.now relaxes in the backseat cool and comfortable.

Sherlock Jr. finds a circular suitcase with a costume in it and places it on the window. The villain snatches Sherlock Jr. from outside and shows him a detective in a cage and threaten that when he is dead Sherlock Jr. will replace him. They tell him, "And now I'll tell you where our little sweetie is this minute!" We now see the henchmen bring in the girl to another location.

When the villain shows the pearls that were stolen earlier Sherlock Jr. grabs them, jumps through the window with the dress attached and seamlessly has it on him turning him incognito. As Sherlock Jr. walks away a man looks at the disgusted person's face and Sherlock Jr. makes a run for it. The next shots are something unexplainable in effects. This may be something Buster Keaton learned with his family in vaudeville. Sherlock Jr. sees a woman with a cart on her neck selling products - as she motions for him to come forward. He jumps into her chest and through the wall behind her without a camera cut.

As she walks away they inspect the wall and it turns revealing Sherlock Jr. who locks the wall in place trapping the men on the other side. Sherlock Jr. is now being chased on the highway and meets an undercover cop who helps him and lets him ride on the handlebars of his motorcycle. The undercover cop hits a bump and falls off to have Sherlock Jr. ride alone unaware. He weaves in and out of traffic saying to slow down but no one is driving the motorcycle. Adding to the ridiculousness his bike catches a tug-of-war competition and drags two men through the river. The next shot is superbly choreographed as Sherlock Jr. rides on a bridge to a missing chunk in the middle. Two trucks with flat tops ride through the missing area creating a floor so Sherlock Jr. can pass through. The last section of the bridge falls and has Sherlock Jr. land on the ground without special effects.

After dodging a train Sherlock Jr. looks behind him to be shocked no one is there. The butler who kidnapped her now gets fresh with her but our hero lands through the window kicking him to the ground. The car chase ensues and Sherlock Jr. throws the exploding 13 ball he saved to destroy the car behind him. He now lands in the water with his car that can float. He pulls up the convertible top to use as a sail and create his own sailboat. As he awakens he is back in the projector room in the movie theater. The girl visits him and tells him her father made a mistake about the stolen watch. They are both shy and Keaton looks to the hero on screen romancing the actress. He takes his cue and emulates him. He holds her and Sherlock Jr. holds the girl's hands. He looks to the character on screen and sees him put a ring on her finger to which Sherlock Jr. copies. Finally he sees the onscreen character give a kiss and he does the same. The next shot has the onscreen movie characters with a big family and Sherlock Jr. is finally confused.

Luis Buñuel: Belle de Jour

Director - Luis Buñuel
Writers - Luis Buñuel (adaptation) and Joseph Kessel (novel)

• Catherine Deneuve as Séverine Serizy, alias Belle de Jour
• Jean Sorel as Pierre Serizy
• Michel Piccoli as Henri Husson
• Geneviève Page as Madame Anaïs
• Pierre Clémenti as Marcel
• Georges Marchal as Duke
• Françoise Fabian as Charlotte
• Macha Méril as Renée
• Marguerite Muni as Pallas
• Maria Latour as Mathilde

What is the real reason to go to a prostitute? The sex is the last reason one goes to see one. One goes to avoid responsibilities of a normal relationship, to escape into a fantasy world, to become something else. One can use aggression and say anything to her without recourse or second thought. There are no apologies, no compromise and no boundaries. One can exercise his most most unusual fetishes. One doesn't have to show intimacy or warmth. One doesn't ned to be anything other than a form of payment. He is the money and she is the drug. The drug is not sex, the drug is the fantasy of importance to satisfy one's ego and pride. Most importantly is the ability to get something without dealing with it and its after effects. The sex is irrelevant and useless - it's just the fantasy that matters, the escape. One can forget about the other once the act is finished.


Belle de Jour begins on the countryside with a horse and carriage riding through. The two are husband and wife Severine and Pierre. He tells her, "Can I tell you a secret, Severine?" I love you more each day." He tells her she feels this coldness from her and she backs off. He tells her he cares about her but she says, "What good is your care?" She apologizes. Pierre stops the carriage and tells her to get out. The carriage riders tell her to shut up and tie her up. Pierre rips her clothes off while the carriage riders whip her. Pierre then says they can have sex with her. She wakes up from her daydream escaping from her bored marriage to have her husband ask, "What are you thinking?" She tells him she dream of being in a horse and carriage. They exchange, "I love you's" and sleep in different beds.

We see another couple who is bored. The husband's name is Henri Husson, her name is Renee. They exchange pleasantries. Henri Husson notices two beautiful women and says, "Look at that. Two beautiful sights." Pierre replies, "Why do you say that? Do you know them? Is that all you are interested in?" Henri Husson says, "Yes everything else is useless. A lot of waste time." Renee tells Severine that Henriette is working at a whorehouse several times a week. Severine says that must be terrible. The taxi driver tells them things have changed and they aren't so bad like they used to be like that before the war.

Severine arrives at her house to find a dozen red roses waiting for her. She asks who sent them and the housekeeper says, "Husson." She accidentally breaks the vase of roses showing her disregard for romance anymore. She asks her husband, Pierre, if he went to whorehouses before he met her. He says not often. She is curious about them and ask if they still exist. He tells her now they are clandestine. She asks him what happens. He jokingly tells her,"You pick one girl, spend half an hour with her and are depressed the rest of the day."

She play tennis and encounters Husson again. She sees Henriette leaving. He tells her most women who are working girls do it for the money. She says she doesn't understand and is wrestling with her own feelings concerning this profession. Husson says he goes often and glamorizes the place as a sort of place of desires. He tells her one that is near the opera called Madame Anois. She goes to the address curious and sees a woman who is most likely a working girl go into the building. Severine is scared and leaves.

She goes to the park and watches some kids play to try to return some purity to herself. It is autumn and the leaves have fallen dead around her much like the way she feels. She has everything in her life - money, friends and a stable husband but is bored and emotionally comatose. She visits the brothel and talks to Madame Anais. She gets immediately to business and tells Severine she will split the money half and half. Severine tells her she can only work two to five fearing her husband will find out. She goes to his hospital where he works as a doctor and offers lunch for him to keep the appearance of a normal wife intact.

She meets Madame Anois again and tells Severine she must be polite and cheerful. She has to enjoy her work. Madame Anois tells her if she likes the name "Belle de Jour" which Severine says it's okay. She sees the first client with two girls and cannot believe the situation she has put herself in. The client funnily makes a toast with champagne and says, "To the person I care most about! Me!" Severine cannot warm up to the touch of her first client. Severine is already cold to the touch to begin with and prostitution certainly won't help.

She goes home to take a thorough shower, making herself presentable to her husband. She burns her underwear and bra out of shame. She sleeps and finds herself in another fantasy. Pierre eats soup with Henri Husson. Pierre asks if the bulls behind him have names. Husson says one bull's name is expiation and another is remorse. They put their heads down in shame - particularly Husson who introduced Severine to her new career. Next Severine is tied up and Husson berates her calling her a bitch and a slut. Husson throws mud on her while Pierre watches. She wears white showing Pierre's vision of her purity while wanting to sexually corrupt her.

Severine goes back to work for Madame Anais. Severine/Belle de Jour meets a professor who gets into character which confuses Severine. Madame Anais shows her a peephole so Severine can learn. Charlotte performs the role that the Professor looks for. They role-play him being the incompetent servant, her being the angry boss. This turns him on. Every person's fantasy however strange is unique to them. Severine/Belle de Jour is shocked and disgusted at the degradation that turns this client on. She doesn't have to understand it but her character she plays does.

Severine, now Belle de Jour, meets a man who she warms up to and begins to loosen up. After she performs and lies in bed she seems to have finally enjoyed herself. She meets a client, the Duke, at a cafe and rightfully assumes her new identity, Belle de Jour. He is high class which makes Belle de Jour comfortable being a socialite. He invites her to his house for a ceremony that is important to him. His servant presents her with black clothes. The Duke films her as she pretends to be dead in a coffin. He brings her flowers to relive seeing his wife again. The man uses her as a vessel to communicate his feelings for his dead wife. It is the only way to express love to someone who is no longer there. His servant however throws her out into the rain once everything is finished.

When she sees her husband again she finally has some enthusiasm for sex after all the strange people she has met. Her desire for intimacy returns. Husson visits her at her home and tells her maid to tell him she is not there. In the next fantasy scene Husson and his wife Renee meet Pierre and Severine. Severine and Husson make a deal as if no one is there. He gives her an envelope and they have sex under the table. Renee tells Pierre Husson is giving her an envelope under the table. Pierre is unaware if what his wife is doing.

A gangster, Marcel, robs a man with his partner Hyppolite. They take off and leave. Hyppolyte visits Madame Anais. Marcel chooses Belle de Jour. He becomes immediately obsessed with her. He interrogates her with questions. She likes him and says she won't charge him. He cockily says, "Many girls would love to be in your place." She warms up to him because he only wants normal sex.

Marcel calls Anais to see if Belle de Jour is there. When she sees Marcel it is the first time she is happy in the film. He is immediately jealous knowing she has left for a few days. He should know you can never possess someone especially a prostitute. She confesses she loves her husband but still sleeps with him - it works well for her husband because her happier mood makes him think he is a result of it.

Husson comes to the brothel and sees Severine to her embarrassment and shock. He has found her out. She refuses to sleep with him being her husband's friend but is forced to by Madame Anais. She says she cannot resist what she does, she cannot live without it. He says he was attracted to her virtue. He says he can introduce some friends of his to her to humiliate her and chooses not to have sex with her. Never has she felt so naked now that a real threat is around her.

The next fantasy scene has two groups of carriages - among them is Pierre. They load guns, take paces back to back and draw fire on one another. Severine is tied up to a tree. Pierre rescues her and found she is shot. She needs her husband now more than ever to make things right. Severine chooses to leave her job. Marcel goes to Severine's house making her angry. He says he wants to see her again which she says is impossible. He say he expects to see her in three days at a hotel.

Marcel kills Hyppolite and makes a run for it. Marcel is shot and taken to the hospital. The doctor tells Severine he is in a coma. She goes back home to assume the role of the housewife again after Pierre has an accident. He is now in a wheelchair and blind. He needs her now and she is the one trying to cheer him up.

Husson visits Severine and says he will tell Pierre everything about her. She waits outside while the worst is done. He cannot talk and is physically incapable to. He only cries. He comes alive again in her fantasy and they are happy again. She looks outside and sees a house and carriage.

Death of a Cyclist

Director - Juan Antonio Bardem
Writers - Juan Antonio Bardem & Luis Fernando de Igoa

Cast Character
Lucia Bosè ... María José de Castro
Alberto Closas ... Juan Fernandez Soler
Otello Toso ... Miguel Castro
Bruna Corra ... Matilde Luque
Carlos Casaravilla ... Rafael "Rafa" Sandoval

While returning to Madrid after an illicit tryst, a wealthy socialite housewife and a university professor accidentally strike a bicyclist with their car. Although they see that he is still alive after the accident, they know they cannot summon help for him without their affair being revealed. They drive away and leave him to die. After the bicyclist's death is reported in the newspaper, the pair deal with ever-rising tension, borne from their fear that their deeds will be exposed. - Wikipedia

Why does one cheat? A man cheats because he is biologically programmed to do so. It is in his DNA. In order for his children to survive he hardwired to inseminate as many women as possible. Desirable men attract desirable women and vice versa because in our DNA we see that an attractive person has the most capability of being impregnated. Taller and stronger men are seen to be more protective therefore more sexually attractive while women with bigger breasts are seen to be better suited to milk and raise their children. This goes back to caveman days and is unconscious. He also cheats because a man is always yearning for freedom and commitment does not fit into that equation. Women often cheat while ovulating and according to the Sperm Wars writer Robin Baker 10% of people have fathers who they are unaware of. It is now said that number maybe up to 20%. So women unconsciously seek men who are able to give them a baby who will most likely survive and that is with a stronger mate. Men and women also use "peacocking" to demonstrate high status and desirable traits but body language cues to power. The funniest of these is when someone sees some they are attracted to is by taking up more space - leaning back, straightening one's posture and preening by women. Peacocking is also referred to wearing jewelry or physical items to stand apart and to "self decorate."

The film Death of a Cyclist begins as a an adulterous couple accidentally run over a cyclist and decide to to leave him there dying for fear of their relationship being exposed. Juan wants to go back but Maria tells him to leave. She enjoys a party with her husband and friends along with Rafa, the piano player. He plays music which entices Maria. She asks him what's it called? He says, "Blackmail." He tells her he saw her last night in her Fiat and she is not sure whether he means the accident or the affair.

The film hints at Film Noir with a despairing world, irredeemable characters and high contrast lighting. Jorge and Carmina are dating creating a tension of power as Juan is Carmina's brother who wants to rise above his assistant professor status in the university he teaches. Jorge is the dean and the only person who can make that happen. The next scene has Carmila lamenting that her brother is a failure because he doesn't want to do anything. Juan is disgusted and jealous seeing a newsreel at the movie theater about his dean and brother-in-law. He sees how powerful and far reaching his influence is.

In Maria Jose's and Miguel's room there are hieroglyphic characters on the wall showing there is some code they use to keep each-other in the dark. Her guilt of accidentally killing a cyclist is nonexistent whereas Juan can barely sleep. She disassociates from her feelings. Meanwhile Matilde at the university does a problem on the board while Juan reads a newspaper. He sees the headlines Death of a Cyclist and the tension rises with a close-up to his face. This is the perfect place to feel vulnerable because he is in front of all his students in the class feeling naked.

When Juan reveals to Maria Jose that the cyclist died it is appropriately at the horse track showing they are gambling with their life and their chances of getting away clean are decreasing. Rafa asks Maria Jose if she has seen the paper and reads the headline, "Death of a Cyclist" to show her he knows what they did. Juan hears this too. Only Maria understands that Rafa is threatening them. They go to a children's show to talk privately and lighten their sense of guilt. They go to regain their innocence.

Matilde Luque says she failed the exam because Juan was reading the newspaper while she was trying to show her presentation. He failed her not paying attention to what she was doing. Now she pleads with him to change the grade. He tells her to see the dean. He says his personal problems distracted him but Matilde calls him selfish and walks out.

The greatest tension in the film is Maria's dilemma finding out whether Rafa knows that she and Juan accidentally killed someone or that they are having an affair. The latter would be better but is still bad enough. It is appropriate that he threatens her at an abstract art exhibit because he is vague in what he is blackmailing her about. This adds to her anxiety. He tells her he wants money and to have her.

Juan, now doing his reporting work, visits Ms. Tejedor in a slum to ask some questions for a local paper. He learns from the landlord that a car hit Ms. Tejedor's husband. She tells him secret police talked to her. Maria tells Juan she hates Rafa because he is always gossiping. She tries to subtly convince him that there is more going on with what Rafa is doing but Juan doesn't pick up on this. Juan calls her to calm her down and an interesting shot shows Maria's face hidden with the mirror showing Rafa's conniving presence in the background outside.

When Maria and Juan talk again he says he would have married her if he didn't have to go to war. He is angry she didn't wait for him and instead married the rich Miguel. They talk about their complicated affair and what would happen to both if they were exposed. When she is with her husband they talk about how once Juan was a sweetheart of Maria's. The way they are framed is interesting with Miguel behind her not seeing each-other's faces. Miguel hints that a family name can be so easily tarnished especially with a murder. Her husband goes on the tell her a story of a prominent couple who lost everything because the woman cheated on her husband. The husband left her without a penny. She asks him who told him the story. He says Rafa.

The movie is frightening because it deals with upper class elites maintaining their manners and demeanor while being paranoid about being exposed of having an affair and an accidental murder. The frequent social parties they have to attend adds to the tension as the couple talk and try to fit into their pre-made roles. Maria and Juan confront Rafa trying to get information and Miguel sits with Rafa. Soon we see they are at war. Rafa hits the high key on the piano to build tension and to mock both Juan and Maria. In the hallway Juan confronts Rafa to get information and Rafa now drunk says he knows despicable things about him.

He goes inside to watch a flamenco performance and the high emotion of the music coincide with the intensity of what Juan is going through. Rafa whispers in Maria's and Miguel's ear something which cannot be heard. Rafa finally reveals what he knows and says he saw the cyclist on the road with Juan and Maria. Miguel is convinced his wife has done nothing.

Things compound as a riot erupts because Matilde was failed by Juan and they want answers. Instead of being angry Juan is joyed at the riot because they are fighting for Matilde in a just cause. It is the only thing right and pure in his life right now. The solidarity and justice he sees gives him something to yearn for in his corrupted life. He tells her he is not angry at her and she is relieved.

When Maria and Juan meet at the church she is happy and tells him Rafa knew nothing. Miguel believed nothing about Rafa. They use this setting as a way to absolve guilt like that of a confessional. She wants to do the right thing and send some money to the widow. Juan runs into Matilde and gives her an envelope with his resignation inside. He calls Maria and she tells him Miguel will take her on a trip abroad. he tells her that should turn themselves in to the police. She says she will go with him.

Miguel tells Maria she is selfish, greedy and lustful only caring about what he represents and not him as a person. He tells her he gave everything to her particularly her lifestyle and he can take it away. He gives her a time when the plane will leave and says she must make a decision - him or Juan. The next scene has Juan and Maria together and Juan takes comfort in re-instilling some dignity to his life after his crime. She asks him what he would do if she refused to see the police. He says he'd still go.

Matilde gives Juan's mother the resignation letter and warns he might be in danger because of something he said. Juan and Maria go to the spot where the cyclist died and feels relieved he is going to do the first right thing in so long. Fearing the worse Maria does the unthinkable and shows her true colors. Her worries proved to be of her own concern rather than the repentance Juan sought.

Charade

Director - Stanley Donen
Writer - Peter Stone

Cast Character

Carey Grant ... Peter Joshua/Dyle
Audrey Hepburn ... Regina Lampert
Walter Matthau ... Hamilton Bartholemew
James Coburn ... Tex Panthollow
George Kennedy ... Herman Scobie
Dominique Minot ... Sylvie Gaudet

Romance and suspense in Paris, as a woman is pursued by several men who want a fortune her murdered husband had stolen. Who can she trust? - IMDB.com

Charade begins in the dark landscape with a man murdered and thrown out of a train, he is Charles Lampert - Regina's husband. We learn later he is embroiled in a conspiracy to obtain $250,000 he and three other men who were with him in the military planned to split once they were released. The next scene is in the French Alps with a bratty kid who squirts Regina Lampert, played by Audrey Hepburn, in the face. He is her nephew. She tells her friend Sylvie she is getting a divorce and cannot get go on any more. Sylvie tells her not to get a divorce because her husband is rich. Love, Sylvie foolishly suggests should not be an aspect in marriage despite Regina telling her they don't love one another. She tells Sylvie her husband Charles is hiding something frightening from her, she can feel his lies.

Peter Joshua, Played by Cary Grant, retrieves Sylvie's child and introduces himself. The kid squirts Peter with his squirt gun. Peter asks her if there is a Mr. Lampert and she says they are getting a divorce. She asks him the same and he charmingly says they are getting a divorce as well. He asks her if there is only one Charles Lampert in the telephone book to which she wittily replies, "I hope so." She says goodbye to the child and finds her apartment is barren and empty - she has either been robbed or had her things stolen by her late husband. Inspector Edouard Grandpierre asks her to come with him ad reveals her husband is dead in the mortuary. She identifies the body.

Her husband was trying to leave the country but didn't make it as seen in the train incident. Her husband, Charles, sold all the things they owned in the house in a public auction. Now there is $250,000 missing from him and the only thing they find is one bag with personal items - his wallet, notebook, and a letter. She signs the list and the inspector shows that he has several passports. He is most likely in some intelligence bureau. Peter visits her and talks to her with a shadow covering his face. He is mysterious and most likely hiding a secret. Peter offers to find her a hotel. She attends his husbands funeral to which no on attends. One man comes in to look at the body and sneezes uncontrollably. Sylvie remarks, "He must have been allergic to him." - hinting at his possible less than pleasant demeanor. Another man puts a small flower on his body and mysteriously tells Regina, "Ms. Lampert mam, Charlie had no call of doing it that way." Man number three comes in all business and sticks a pin in hid body and throws it at him. A bald man gives her a letter from the American Embassy. Her husband was a very disliked individual. Hamilton Bartholemew, played by Walter Matthau, asks her if she knows what the CIA is. She finds her husband was wanted by the U.S. government.

He hands her photos of his husband and other men - all of whom were at the funeral. He tells her she is lead to what they want. They are after the money from the auction. Hamilton tells her that money belongs to him and the agency. He tells her to be careful and try to retrieve the money. Peter meets up with her at a children's show. She confesses that Charles was mixed up in something terrible. Peter tells her to make him Vice President in cheering him up. They go to a nightclub show and play a game to pass an orange from one person's neck and body to another. This builds a natural attraction between she and Peter. A man playing the game threatens her in the phone booth. Peter comes to her and finds her shaken up. Peter tries to know what is wrong with her but the only thing she can ask is, "Do you know what is wrong with you? Nothing."

She encounters a man in her room with a hook fist which Peter comes to the rescue. Peter climbs the terraces and comes into the room with the three men before and it is revealed he is in on their scheme. He tells them she can trust him. Peter is after the money as well. His buddies tell him not to forget about them. The music is pitch perfect to the new revelation. He asks her if she knows where the money is. She tells them men are chasing her. Charles, her dead husband, probably didn't have it on the train. The henchmen calls her and asks if Dyle is there? He tells her not to trust him fearing that Dyle will make off with the money once he gets it.

Regina tells him if she doesn't get the money Tex will kill her. Peter tries to comfort her and tells her not to worry - that he has taken a room next to hers. Now she knows she is pinned helpless. She calls Hamilton and she tells him there must have been another person in the photograph who is Peter. She tells Hamilton she will leave but he says he can meet her in 15 minutes. She looks through Peter's keyhole and sees he has a gun.

After meeting Hamilton he tells her Dyle is dead and in 1944 5 members of the OSS were ordered to deliver $250,000 in gold to the French underground. The five members were her husband Charles, the three men who came to her funeral and lastly Peter - Dyle. Instead of delivering the gold they stole it. Unfortunately for the others the real Dial died and Charles stole all the money before splitting it with the other three. She tells him she will leave Paris tonight. Hamilton wants information on Dyle. So now she is in charge of following him.

Regina calls Dyle after finding his true name. He reveals the real Carson Dyle was his brother. He says he is on her side. When she goes to try to find him, he is gone. Herman catches up to him and walks him up to the stairs. They fight on the rooftop. Dyle dodges Herman which he flies off the roof to hang tightly on the ledge.

When Regina sees him again they get down to business. They get a phone call and they have kidnapped her nephew. They search eachother's rooms to see thinking one of them has it hidden. Regina finds the suitcase but hides it in time. They find Herman dead in his bath.

The inspector threatens everyone that in his country they use the chopping blade as execution. He tells them he hopes they don't have to find out what death feels like. He tells her not to cry wolf as she does to get him out of the bathroom. He entertains her as he takes a shower in his clothes. Hamilton calls and tells Regina to be careful as Carson Dyle has no brother.

They go to a drink on a boat ride and she tells him she might be next dead. He tells her when he was younger he could have chosen to sell umbrellas or become a thief. He chooses the more lucrative career.

Gideon gets a phone call and agrees to meet a man which kills him. Tex calls Dyle and tells him he wants his money. Dyle accuses Regina of having the money now that only three people are alive that want it. Dyle looks at her receipt and finds she is missing Charles's agenda book that could lead to the $250,000. They remember he had an appointment Thursday at 5pm and look for any sort of clue. Tex is there as well looking about. Tex looks at the stamps and makes a connection. Dyle makes the same connection as he sees valuable stamps being bought and sold around him. He runs frantically back to the hotel.

Sylvie tells Regina that her nephew is trading in stamps at the fair. Regina freaks out realizing that the stamps are the prize. He tells Regina a man gave him a prize for the stamps. They find Felix who has the stamps now. He gives the stamps back to Regina. Later Regina finds Tex dead in his room with the word Dyle written on the ground. Regina calls Hamilton and tells him what just happened. She tells him Dyle killed everyone. He agrees to meet her. When Dyle sees her he chases after her. He chases her to the subway station. He makes it on the subway car in time looking for her. He exits looking for her. She hides in the phone booth and calls the American Embassy. She runs out trying to find an exit.

Dyle spots her and she runs out to the plaza. Dyle sees Hamilton and says Hamilton is Carson Dyle. They accuse each-other of lying. She can't decide who is telling the truth. While Hamilton explains what he went through in the military prison camp to Regina, Dyle maneuvers himself through the columns looking for a shot. They shoot at each-other missing through the columns.

The chase moves them to a theater auditorium. Hamilton spots Regina in one of the orchestra composer boxes. Dyle looks at the controls of the floor boxes and tries to guess where he is stepping and what latch will open the floor board to Hamilton's correct spot. He guesses correctly and Hamilton falls dead and Dyle guesses right.

Regina decides to return the stolen stamps to the Treasury department. She goes to Mr. Crookshaw's office and walks in to see the man who was formally known as Mr. Dyle. She demands to know what his real name is. He tells her he will prove his real name to her on their marriage license.

Ken Ichigawa: Fires on the Plain

Director - Ken Ichigawa
Writer - Shohei Ooka (novel) & Natto Wada (writer)

Cast Character
Eiji Funakoshi .... Tamura
Osami Takizawa .... Yasuda
Mickey Curtis .... Nagamatsu
Mantaru Ushio .... Sergeant
Kyu Sazanka .... Army Surgeon

Fires on the Plain is a film without pretense or agenda. Its sole purpose is to show the reality and futility of war. The film starts with a Japanese army officer being hit by his superior for insubordination. His superior tries to explain the gravity of their situation being under fire. He tells him they have already lost two thirds of their men. The men are weak and the soldiers are looking for food. The desperation begins to sink in to the berated soldier as he senses his superior's dilemma. Tamura has tuberculosis and is next to useless. He can't even concentrate to the complaints he is given. He promises to return to the hospital to not be a waste and eat rations from the platoon.

They spend all day digging air-raid shelters. They dig shelters while the superior searches the forest for food. He tells the platoon the CO ordered him to the hospital again, they tell him not to give up despite his illness. He seems more than dead already. He goes en route to the hospital and sees smoke and possible the enemy. He encounters a man, a Filipino native, who offers him food. The native then disappears while saying he will get some food. The soldier finally finds the hospital and is rejected because he is not seriously injured. They are stationed in Ormoc City, Philippines. They sit and wait while the island they are defending gets shot up. They are short on soldiers and hardly get food.

They fight and complain of people trading food jealous of what little each other have. Men greedily eat what little rice they have growing delirious. The music heightens their desperation. One of the soldiers is caught stealing yams and is thrown out of the infirmary.

They see smoke and know the enemy is close. Explosions break way and they assume position. Desperation mounts higher as one soldier drinks water out of a river. One man is overjoyed as he finds a grenade which is like gold to him. The cinematography is really effective here as the high contrast shows the severity of their situation. There is only victory or failure and they are clearly running out of food and sanity. Tamura sees a reflected light and goes to a village finding no one. He finally finds corpses all in one pile and breaks down. He follows a couple into a hut which they are scared speechless of him. The woman screams alarming him which he shoots. She is dead and he cannot fix his weapon letting her boyfriend escape in time. He throws his rifle in the river ashamed of the murder he committed. His first in the entire war.

The soldiers Tamura encounters ask where his rifle is. He says he lost it. He tells Tamura all units are retreating to Cebu. They see he has salt and offer to take him along for a share of the salt. He obliges. They wait to go to the village where he found the salt but he is afraid they will find the woman he shot. They are suspicious of him.

Soldiers on the march play dead to a plane they hear but it happens to shoot a few of them dead. The rest of the group get up as if nothing happened and continue marching. Tamura refuses to look at the dead soldiers keeping his eyes on the prize - Cebu.

Tamura ditches his boots to enjoy the water on his feet. American troops come in by jeeps and Tamura hides to watch them. This is the first time he and his fellow troops have seen them up close. Tamura finds his squad leader. The guy who asked for salt from him again asks for some salt desperately. Tamura gives him a few pieces and the soldier gives him some advice. He tells him not to trust the squad leader and he will leave him high and dry once he has taken whatever is valuable from him. Tamura should have taken his advice more gravely. The squad leader heads to Palompon.

Tanks patrol and soldiers run away, they are revealed. Explosions burst the ground while lights search the ground. The next shot shows all the dead men and ripped trees. American medics make way and check dead bodies. Tamura makes a surrender flag just in case. An American jeep comes up and one Japanese soldier surrenders which the Americans kill. Surrender has just left his mind. He walks through the field of dead bodies. He meets one of his fellow soldiers and once he dies he takes his boots. Another soldier he talks to grows delirious and eats dirt in absolute hunger. The soldier offers his arm to eat when he is dead and Tamura looks tempted.

Tamura gives a soldier monkey meat but the soldier's teeth fall out when he eats it. Later Tamura collapses and Nagamatsu carries him to a tent. They kill monkeys to eat - the only way for them to stay alive. They ration the monkeys carefully - three pieces a day - breakfast, lunch and dinner. They eat raw grass when the meat is gone. Their desperation is heightened at every moment.

Namagatsu doesn't sleep next to his comrade, Yasuda, because he is afraid he will steal he rifle. Yasuda asks to look at Tamasura's grenade which Yasuda steals. Tamasura tried to get it back but Yasuda pulls out a knife showing he means business. Everyone grows desperate for any food or ammunition available. Yasuda calls for Nagamatsu and Tamura. He apologizes and says he has the grenade hidden. Nagamatsu shoots him dead. Nagamatsu desperately cuts Yasuda's body for food which disgusts Tamura. Tamura gets the gun and kills Nagamatsu. Tamura walks into the enemy controlled land lets the enemy fire and chooses to die.

Krzysztof Kielslowski: The Double Life of Veronique

"If I have a goal, then it is to escape from this literalism. I'll never achieve it; in the same way that I'll never manage to describe what really dwells within my character, although I keep on trying."

Director - Krzysztof Kielslowski
Writer - Krzysztof Kielslowski & Krzysztof Piesiewicz

Cast Character

Irene Jacob ... Weronika/Veronique
Halina Gryglaszewska ... La Tante
Kalina Jedrusik ... La femme Barjolee
Aleksander Bardini ... Le ched d'orchestre
Wladyslae Kowalski ... Le pere de Weronika
Jerzy Gudejko ... Antek

"That's the star we're waiting for to start Christmas Eve. You see it?"

A little girl hangs upside down from her mother looking at the Polish sky and city upside down showing a duality in the world - a connection to something or someone else in the horizon that must be fulfilled. The next scene has a little girl playing with a leaf that her mother explains to her. She talks about the veins of the leaf hinting at t connection like veins between organs and of these two individuals from different places of the world. These two individuals are Weronika and Veronique.

The beginning of the film we see Veronique singing with rain coming down on her face. Inside he tunnel she kisses her boyfriend like that of sexual penetration. The colors are earthy and natural with a green hue on their bodies. Weronika awakens to see her father doing a house painting. She tells her father she feels she is not alone. Green colors flash on her face as if the cosmos tell her something is out there.

She visits her aunt, a tarot card reader, and tells her she knows she made love to a man in the passageway. She watches a choir sing and join in. As she walks past the crowd she notices a red bus and a woman who looks just like her. She wears the same color as Weronika. After she has her audition she walks home and almost collapses. The colors around her are brown and dead. The table inside the auditorium is red like the color she constantly wears. The judges tell her she has won the competition. In her apartment it is completely red as well like the colors of Cries and Whispers.

Her boyfriend follows her bus to give her a present. He tells her he loves and his room number at a hotel. She chases after him and catches a ride to her apartment. She looks out the window to see on old woman passing by. She offers help to which the woman ignores.

Next she is singing in a choir with the symphony conductor who trained her. She dazes in and out of consciousness to fall and die on stage. Her soul floats above the crowd and sees herself being buried. The camera moves to a new couple with Veronique - her double. The camera is in obscura as we are transferred into her complementary double. She is sad telling her lover she is somehow grieving for someone.

She sees her music coach and tells him she is quitting. He is angry saying she is wasting her talent. She goes to a school to teach a class and is told the room is taken. The children watch a puppeteer performance. The natural green light of the audience shows a naturalness to the talents the inhabited puppet has. A girl in the audience is scared and the realization is frightening as like the magician in Fanny and Alexander. She sees the puppeteer and feels a love she cannot explain.

She gets a phone call with the symphony before Weronika dies. She doesn't understand what she is hearing. Later it is revealed she has been put in a hypnosis of sorts to come to a place where the sounds of the tape take place.

Her friend asks if she can go to court and lie for her saying she slept with a man 13 times. She wakes up to a kid reflecting a light from a mirror in her window. The kid is gone but the light goes on a mysterious book. She asks her friend the name of the puppeteer. He is Aleksandre Fabbri. She reads the books he has written becoming fascinated by him.

As the postman comes in she guesses she will get an empty box of Virginia Cigars and is correct. Kielslowski is obsessed with chance encounters and atmosphere. Colors accentuate the mood and the direction of the film and are a character in itself. Veronique receives a tape in the mail. She looks out the window again and sees the same old woman from before. She listens to the mysterious tape she gets and it is of the opera of Weronika. Veronique seems to enjoy the effort made into the tape. She is not scared.

She looks at the envelope and sees it came from Paris. She goes to a restaurant and sees tapes and a recorder on a table. She infers this from the station said on the recording. The man emerges. He tells her he would have waited two more days for her. This startling hypnotic effect on her he has shows one of the film's central themes - that of lack of free will. Something outside oneself in control. She runs from him scared out of her mind. She takes the first cab she can to get out of there.

The puppeteer apologizes and sleeps on her bed. He says he loves her and she says the same back. She sees the photo of Weronika and cries knowing she is dead. She tells him she now knows why he did everything. It is his way of saying to surrender to him. To not be afraid anymore. She goes to his room and sees him making puppets. She understands now his revelation to her. She is not scared, she is joyful.

He reads her something he wrote. "November 23, 1966, was the most important day of their lives. That day, at 3:00 in the morning, they were both born, each in a different city on a different continent. They both had dark hair and brownish-green eyes. At two years old, when both knew how to walk, one of them burned her hand on a stove. A few days later, the other reached out to touch a stove but pulled back just in time. Yet she couldn't have known she was about to burn herself."

She now realizes sadly how utterly powerless she is to the puppeteer. She touches a tree softly and her father feels it. Part of that power is now hers.

The film's main them is the lack of free will concerned with the puppeteer. When he first does his performance at a school a little girl is terrified understanding his power. He uses it to bring Veronique in and show her who he is and what he is capable of which terrifies her as well. As she surrenders she gives up hope only to console her father stroking the tree to keep him in a cloud of security.

A similar situation is seen in Fanny and Alexander when the magician shows Alexander controlling a real human corpse giving him life. Alexander is terrified but grows accustomed to the power around him.

Francis Ford Coppola: The Conversation

Director/Writer - Francis Ford Coppola

Cast Character
Gene Hackman .... Harry Caul
John Cazale .... Stan
Allen Garfield .... William P. "Bernie" Moran
Frederic Forest .... Mark
Cindy Williams .... Ann
Harrison Ford .... Martin Stett
Robert Duvall .... The Director

The Conversation starts in San Francisco as we see the camera slowly zooming in on a crowd to a mime playing with people. Harry ignores the mime as he follows him. His team is keeping surveillance on a couple. Harry follows the couple as his crew watch from the building and surveillance van.

They are being ordered to follow them. His apartment has 3 locks and a high tech alarm system. As he motions in he sees a gift waiting for him. He calls the landlord paranoid on how she put it in his apartment. She tells him she has an extra key. Instead of being happy for the gift he is paranoid about the situation because of his job keeping tapes on others. He is a perfect example of one becoming their job. Harry plays jazz on his spare time. He is rather good. Stan, his coworker, played by John Cazale reads him an article about Harry in a Magazine concerning surveillance and wiretapping to cheer him up.

Harry syncs up all the tapes to create a clear sound reproduction. Harry is so paranoid he doesn't use his house phone if he has one. He goes to a payphone instead. He is stressed, guilt ridden. He probably doesn't like or agree with what he does but fortunately he is the best in his field.

He meets his girl and they have wine. He has a hard time relaxing with her because his job involves infringing on people's rights and privacy. He knows what he does is wrong but comforts himself knowing it's his job - or rather excuses himself. He pays her rent hinting she might be a working girl.

He meets Martin Stett played by Harrison Ford and says he will give Harry's tape to his employer. He takes the tapes back not wanting to anger his employer or make a mistake. He sees the same man in the building they were watching before and the woman on another floor. Harry moves away from her on the elevator not wanting to have a personal connection to someone he is eavesdropping on.

Harry goes back to the tapes to analyze them. He tries to figure out who she thinks has been recording her telephone calls. He makes out what he says and the man says, "He'd kill us if he got the chance." The couple is having an affair and embroiled in some financial scheme. The husband is a very powerful man. Harry goes to an electronic surveillance convention and a guy recognizes him because Harry is a celebrity in his field. Harry tests the equipment. A guy brags about his invention and tries to sell it hard. Later they bring some friends and girls to their work station and the same man before brags about his career. Harry meets a girl who has a an itch needing to be scratched. He doesn't pay much attention to her though. His work constantly watching people makes him unable to communicate with them on a personal level. He hides behind his technology which he thinks gives him an advantage but it is the ultimate disadvantage. His work consumes and infects him and has lost his inner child.

The guy from the convention wants to work with Harry and team up but Harry doesn't want to listen. Harry says he doesn't need the money. Harry has a pen in his jacket pocket that was a wiretap and feels violated and hustled by the man from the convention. He tells him to get out and the party is over.

Even as the girl is still there waiting for him to seduce her he is still listening to his tapes. His job corrodes his personal life and makes him a bit of a social robot. She tells him he doesn't have to feel anything towards her. He is still listening to the surveillance tapes in the most cold seduction ever seen. He is unable to connect to her and there is little rapport.

In his dream he tries to explain himself to the woman that is under surveillance. It is foggy showing the deception he is ashamed of using concerning his job. He rambles to her as she listens. She disappears. It is tense and taut.

As he awakens he looks for Meredith. He realizes the woman stole his surveillance tapes and he is more than angry. Martin Stett calls him and tells him he has the tapes and will pay him in full. He sees the director who the tape is about. Harry cannot keep his composure as he keeps hearing the lines from the tape, "He'd kill us if he got the chance."

He takes a room next to the one the couple said they'd say and puts a eavesdropping device to the next room where they are staying. He envisions her being killed and breaks down. He is able to sleep it off later. He lock-picks into the room out of curiosity and more-so to see if they are safe but he is abusing his power unjustifiably. He checks the shower to make sure she is not inside dead. As he flushes the toilet it overflows with blood and he runs out.

As he he goes back to his boss's building they don't let him up and is told to get out. He is too close to the truth now. The newspaper reveals that her husband is killed in a car crash and now she is taking full control of his company which is very lucrative. Harry imagines all the scenarios of who was involved and if the couple having the affair were involved with the murder.

Harry plays some jazz to take his mind off of what he now presumably knows. Now that Harry knows Martin Stett reveals he has been bugged and not look any further in the presumed murder. Harry looks everywhere for wiretaps and bugs. He shreds his apartment apart looking for bugs. He plays jazz again to forget about the complete mess he is in, that is all he can do.

Terrence Malick: Badlands

Director - Terrence Malick
Writer - Terrence Malick

Cast Character
Martin Sheen ... Kit
Sissy Spacek ... Holly
Warren Oates ... Father
Ramon Bieri ... Cato

Badlands begins with a girl called Holly remembering how her mother died. Her mother dies of pneumonia and her father moved from Texas to South Dakota. A garbage truck comes onto the road and we see Kit doing his work. As he smokes his cigarette he notices Holly twirling her baton. He asks Holly to take a walk with him. His friend tells him he has been fired and goes looking for another job. Holly thinks he is handsome and they make small talk.

He asks if she wants to go for a ride with and she goes on with him. Even though she doesn't have a lot to say he still likes her. He likes her maturity and that she isn't giggly. They share each-other's eccentricities and habits. Kit makes a vow he will always be with her. He wrote this down, put it in a box and sent it off in a balloon he found on his route. He tells her that these happy days are only temporary and will be gone forever. He is realistic and not blind to the emotion of love. She although awestruck is simple and practical. They don't have grand yearnings only to enjoy what is both feasible and attainable.

Her father finds out she has been seeing this guy and in punishment he shoots her dog. He puts her in extra music lessons after school and picks her up so she can't see Kit. Kit visits her father to have a talk. He tells him Holly means a lot to him. He tells him he has respect for her. Her father tells him he isn't good enough for Holly and that he doesn't want to see him again. Kit goes to Holly's house and packs her clothes. The father sees him in the house and tells him to get out of there.

The father says he will turn him over to the police and Kit says he won't let him do that. Kit shoots hm dead. Kit smokes a cigarette like nothing happened. Holly tells her father strangely that everything will be okay even though he is dead. Holly wants to call the doctor not accepting he is dead. Later she hits Kit finally accepting the death of her father. He leaves her in her house. She looks out the window and sees two children outside playing and realizes that's what she and Kit are. He records and burns the house down. They change their names to James and Priscilla and decide to go up north.

They build a house in the trees and learn to survive with only what nature provides. They find uses for everything. They survive by stealing chickens or melons and live without rules as children again. They build traps and Kit teaches her how to use a gun in case she needed it. She reads to him and he catches fish in the river with a wooden net he built. She wonders what life would be like if all this never happened.

Kit and Holly see a man with a gun and hide. Kit stays underground in a hole he built and shoots the three sheriffs dead. They leave their whole little built town behind. Kit didn't feel bad because he overheard them talking about a reward.

They visit Cato, an old friend, and give him a chicken. The man tells them there are sine coins a man found in the fields. He sees the man running to the house suspiciously and Kit shoots him knowing he will turn him in. Holly gets used to his shootings and introduces herself to the shot Cato. They meet a couple coming to the house and Kit locks him in an outdoor cellar.

Kit is beginning to realize how stupid some of his decisions were. In her dream world Holly imagines the screen going Sepia brown and the town closes down, people hide in their homes and a detective comes down from up north to find them. Her only way of coping with Kit and his maniacal behavior is to turn inward and imagine it is all a movie.

He goes to a rich man's house and wants to stay there a couple of hours. The man complies. Kit records his ironic beliefs in the old fashioned dictaphone despite all the murders he has committed, "Listen to your parents and teachers they got a line on most things so don't treat them like enemies. There's always an outside chance you could learn something. Try to keep an open mind. Try to to understand the viewpoints of others. Consider the minority opinion but try to get along with the majority opinion once it's accepted."

He takes the man's car and miraculously doesn't kill him and the maid. They look at the Great Plains on their way to Montana while Holly reads him celebrity gossip. Holly tells him they cannot keep living in the wilderness going from town to town. He buries their possessions to show that he is leaving his emotional baggage behind and starting fresh. They keep driving up north and Holly feels a block between them A helicopter comes before he can rob a man of fuel. Holly decides not to escape with Kit. They fire at Kit but he escapes giving Holly a time and place where they will meet again.

Kit fills his gas up again but flees the cops dodging cows on the road speeding away. They shoot at Kit in a car chase all throughout the desert until the cop car flips over. Another group of cops find him and he surrenders. The sheriff asks him if he likes people and Kit says, "They're okay." The the cop asks him," then why did you do it?" Kit says, "I always wanted to be a criminal just not this big of one."

He tells Kit he looks like James Dean which Kit takes as the compliment of the century. He's friendly and confident with the police loving the attention. Kit sees Holly crying not fully realizing she is the only one in the world who loves and cares about him. He is just too self-centered and immature to care. He signs all his arrest papers and is taken away by plane savoring his last moments of fame.