When a plot problem compromises the whole message of a movie...

[ultimatefan]

An example I recently saw was The Family Man. As those who seen it may know, it´s a pretty standard "heartwarming message movie" where Nic Cage plays a guy who left his college girlfriend to pursue his career and became this overachiever, womanizing and ultimately lonely businessman. Through the more than tired cliché of the wise/magic black guy who helps the white guy with his problems, he´s given a chance to know what his life could have been if he hadn´t left his gf. So, predictably, this rich eternal bachelor at first is horrified by the notion of having his glamorous life replaced by a home in Jersey with a couple of kids and a job as a tires salesman. Then, also predictably, that warm and loving family grows on the guy till he realizes he can´t see his life any other way. There´s a good chemistery between Cage and Leoni that actually makes it go from dull to watchable.

Spoiler

What is supposed to be the twist in the movie is that he can´t just stay in this happy family life, he was offered just a "glimpse" and he has to get back to his old life that now he hates. The "happy ending" is that he gets in touch with his old flame and they more or less get a second chance to work things out. The supposed message in all of this is it´s never too late to realize a mistake and find true happiness and love, etc. Problem is, they dated in college and were apparently together by the end of it. That means they were at least in their mid-twenties, and they get back together no less than 13 years later, which means Tea´s character has to be at least in her mid-to-late thirties, that is, on end of her proper years to get pregnant. That means the dream life he tells her about having two kids and **** is almost impossible at this point, and they most likely will have to go through all complicated and non-guaranteed solutions like artificial insemination to even get the chance to have kids. That basically contradicts the whole message of the movie, that is, it CAN be to late to fullfill certain dreams...

 

[블라스]

The Family Man rocks.

 

[ultimatefan]

The Family Man rocks.

Good for you you felt this way. I wish I did.

 

[Pink Ranger]

A woman in her late 30s and early 40s can still have children though, through normal means. Menopause happens differently with different people.

In fact, a lot of professional women these days are having children later. The debate on whether that's a good idea or not belongs in the Community forum, but I wouldn't call it a plot problem per se. I never really liked the central message of Family Man anyways.

 

[ultimatefan]

A woman in her late 30s and early 40s can still have children though, through normal means. Menopause happens differently with different people.

In fact, a lot of professional women these days are having children later. The debate on whether that's a good idea or not belongs in the Community forum, but I wouldn't call it a plot problem per se. I never really liked the central message of Family Man anyways.

I know that, but the fact is a lot of women delayed their motherhood to invest in their careers based on overblown promises and misinformation of what the modern medicine can actually do, and then, by the time they decide to do it, they find out it´s a helluva lot harder than they were led to believe. It´s not impossible for a woman in her late thirties/early fourties get pregnant, but it´s not quite reccommended to wait that long either.

 

[블라스]

Good for you you felt this way. I wish I did.

Thanks