Also, before we go too far, I think that we should talk about MC Issue: Evidence.
Ghosts, including Dr. Crowe, see what they want to see. They eschew evidence. His problem, yes, is that he is dead (truth). But it’s also that he doesn’t see the things that would prove he was dead (evidence).
Oooh, interesting. OK, well let’s just stick with Approach first then. I’m all for Be-er, and I think MWollaeger is too. @JBarker?
I am for Be-er. One point in favor of that is that when he Changes he adopts the strategy of Doing – he lets go of his former life, he talks to his wife and he lets her go.
Ok, watched it again the other night. Here’s something to consider (or maybe I just drank way too much cold water way too fast…): couldn’t his investigation of what’s wrong with Cole be seen as chasing the symptom? Meaning, the problem - he doesn’t know he’s dead - doesn’t come to light until near the end when he’s able to finally resolve it and let go. From this angle, there’s what I would call “the apparent” goal, what we think the story is about: Cole - then there’s what’s REALLY going on and I can’t help but think yeah, Cole’s got a problem: he sees dead people, Malcolm in particular who won’t leave him alone. If we look at it from this perspective, we have to ask ourselves the question of whether Cole knows Malcolm is a ghost from the beginning or not. I kind of think he does.
This is why I’m looking at this less of being about solving Cole’s problem and more about it solving Malcolm’s failure: to me, Malcolm’s hanging around the afterlife refusing to believe he’s dead because he has unfinished business and needs redemption. Helping Cole and coming to THAT understanding feels like his methodology for restoring balance - yet it looks like solving Cole’s problem is the goal because that’s what we spend most of the time doing.
But of course this isn’t what everybody else is involved with, so… aaaaagh. Brain freeze!
Yes, be-er - which autocorrects to “beer”. Just noting that so I can get twenty words in!
Yes, I like situation - but I think that’s what the current analysis has it as, too, if I remember correctly.
Well we have to choose. Be-er means Mind, situation means do-er.
I think the solution is paying attention to the kid in the cough syrup commercial. He doesn’t know Malcolm exists, so Malcolm can’t be the center of the OS.
Cole most certainly knows Malcolm is dead right from the get-go. As far as we know, he tells Malcolm “you’re a ghost” right from the beginning, but Malcolm can’t hear it. That’s why we never see it, because we are only seeing what registers with Malcolm, and he only sees what he wants to see.
Of course, he’s not exactly out there trying to understand what is wrong with Cole, except when he’s standing at the top of the stairs listening to Cole get mauled and trying to understand what is going on…
The reasons that I think Cole is a Do-er:
Going to get the hidden video tape doesn’t really count because that (IMO) is part of the activity of the OS
But, trying to hide in the red tent is Doing
Going to talk to the dead girl feel like it’s part of both situations
When Malcolm wants to leave and recommend another psychiatrist, Cole fights to have him stay and finish the job he started
Reasons I think Malcolm is a Be-er:
I’m going to change and say do-er. It gets confusing the more I think about it, but let me try to rationalize the do-er aspect. Mike mentioned shattering the glass at the jewelry store as be-er, but I can’t see that being anything but a physical attempt to ward off his wife’s beau. Much of what Malcolm does appears to be thinking internally with regards to solving problems, but really he’s actively doing what amounts to field observation of Cole in his own environment as opposed to say a clinical observation. So in this sense, he’s making observations, collecting data and asking questions of Cole all before he makes any attempt to solve the problem with his mind. If anything, it’s his reluctance - as mentioned before - to see (interpret using his faculties) the issues before him that ultimately cause his problems. With his wife, he clearly believes his physical pursuit of resolving Cole’s problem - which leads to him spending so much time away from home - is what’s causing his marriage to falter. When he’s at the restaurant with his wife, he physically tries to reach for the bill but she snags it (obviously). When it comes to the resolution at the climax where he has his epiphany, he speaks to her - as Cole suggested - which allows them both to move on.
I remember in the original analysis that the glass shattering and the paying of the bill were used as examples of Do-ing. The thing is, was the glass shattering something he “did” or was it a manifestation of his anger?
Better yet, does he seem to be dealing with memories, desires, impulses and contemplations? Or is he dealing with the past, how things are changing, the present and the future? To me it feels like Malcom deals with the former and Cole deals with the latter.
Cole’s concern is the Past (all these dead people, the history of the school, the room where people would be locked up) whereas Malcom’s concern is Memory (can’t remember what happened that night, forgets why the door is always locked, forgets the anniversary, and so on)
I know I’ve said this a long time ago, but I think this is a film that really doesn’t hold up to scrutiny very well. It’s great when looking at all the stuff on the surface level, but when you start peeking underneath, it’s really got a lot of loose threads dangling that do nothing but beg for more questions without answers - essentially forcing one to either go along with everything on the surface (or not).
I think the glass shattering is something he did. The only thing I really gleamed as being a manifestation of the spirits was the cold temperatures.
As for Malcolm and what he’s dealing with, I can see it being the past (represented by Vincent Grey), how things are changing (his understanding changing due to Cole - not everything can be rationalized/answered via psychology), the present (ok, I believe in ghosts now and asking Cole what he thinks they want which involves the little girl’s death), and finally the future (accepting he’s a ghost and letting go, telling his wife that tomorrow things are going to be different.)
As for Cole, I can see memories (he talks about his father and his leaving), desires (can it be something I don’t want - I don’t want to be afraid - also doesn’t want his mother to see him as a freak, wants real friends, etc.), impulses (he IS afraid), contemplations (knowing the facts about the ghosts and why they’re haunting him, he’s better able to deal with them - as evident by the biker death he kind of shrugs off - and is able to communicate with his mother as a result, giving her the proof she needs to accept him as he is).
That being said, I agree with the concerns (memory/past).
OK. So if you like the Concerns - how would you describe Fate, Destiny, Prediction and Interdiction for Malcom? Likewise, how would you describe Truth, Falsehood, Evidence and Suspicion for Cole? It seems to be those are switched.
Fate - death, accidental or otherwise, Destiny – destined to do great things (King Arthur), Prediction – never know when those guys are going to show up, Interdiction – doing something to help ghosts finish unfinished business.
Truth – Malcom thinks he’s alive, Falsehood – wife lying to him, doesn’t deserve award, Evidence – everywhere, but he doesn’t see it, Suspicion – wife cheating
Something I’ve noticed about (some) better stories: they are harder to storyform. Things somehow are not quite as clear. That seems to be going on here.
Anyway, for me Malcolm is all about memories: he can’t remember the anniversary; when he’s home, half the time the video of their wedding is playing; he struggles to remember Vincent Grey even before he dies.
And evidence: he wants to know what he missed with Vincent Grey, he overlooks all the evidence that he is dead.
As for the window breaking – I think that’s anger. Reaching for the check… that’s the most minimal amount of doing. She takes it and leaves. He doesn’t fight for it, or for her. He folds into his seat, taking his punishment. That’s being.
Yes, he investigates Cole, but that’s the OS.
Cole looks for sanctuary in the church, steals things, builds a red tent, gets beaten up, demands that people “stop looking at me that way.”
For future posts, I think I’m also closing in on Driver: Action.
Going to try and answer this tonight - haven’t had a chance to think today!
Fate is death - as you mentioned. Destiny is… hmmm. I guess resolve the problem at hand dealing with Cole, which he does. I think it goes back to the opening scenes: he’s destined for success, regardless of encountering a fate of death - his or Vincent’s - along the way. Without those, he wouldn’t have success. Prediction is, for me, when he realizes there are ghosts and he asks Cole what it is they might want from him. He’s making a prediction as to why they’re there. Interdiction is, as you said, helping the ghosts with unfinished business - to accomplish something and move on.
Truth is Cole sees dead people and isn’t suffering from any particular psychological malady. Falsehood, as it pertains to Cole, is that all ghosts are scary/want to hurt him. Clearly some do with the scratching, but Malcolm doesn’t - nor does the little girl. Also he thinks everyone sees him as a freak. Evidence: Cole believes he sees dead people and the evidence is there with things like all the cupboards and drawers open, yet his mother overlooks these inexplicable events, along with the light arcs in the photos, trying to find some rational explanation. Suspicion: Cole suspects he’s not going to see Malcolm again, knowing fully that he’s a ghost and that he’s accomplished his task with regards to him - which is true as that’s where the story thread between them ends.
As for reversing them, I can see some of it, but from the Truth angle and Malcolm that doesn’t seem to jive (what he thinks vs. the reality/truth). Same with Falsehood - whether he believes he deserves the award or not doesn’t really translate to an objective truth (or falsehood) - it seems like it’s just something he believes, like having an opinion really can’t be construed as right or wrong regardless of whatever it’s about - it’s merely an opinion. Likewise, for Cole prediction/not knowing when they’re going to show up doesn’t seem to mesh. Rather, it seems it would manifest itself in terms of suspense for Cole believing there’s a ghost right around the corner. They seem unpredictable, which is more or less the same if we can look at both sides of the equation.
Isn’t that the core of his problem? He thinks he’s alive, but the reality is that he isn’t? I know Mike is angling for a Self-Aware Problem, Aware Solution with the Evidence Issue but there’s more conversation throughout about knowing yourself (through therapeutic exercises) which would lead those two elements to Symptom and Response.
I still feel pretty strongly that it’s a Perception problem for Malcom and an Actuality Solution for him (same in the OS). His Issue of Truth then would seem to fit better for that problem than Prediction (Chaos and Order never made sense to me for his Symptom and Response, whereas Knowledge and Thought seem really strong)
No, you’re right - it’s just the way you worded it that wasn’t jiving with me (“truth - Malcolm thinks he’s alive” is probably better stated as truth - Malcolm is dead, but thinks he’s alive). I kind of had to go back and re-read how you wrote some of those because I was having difficulty interpreting them. Just semantics :).
I would be more inclined to agree with the perception problem because it rings true for a lot of things throughout the story, starting from the opening where it’s evident it’s his perception that he’s not worthy of his accolades and his wife thinks he is. It’s a perception problem about his thinking he’s still alive… about his wife’s being withdrawn… about Cole’s issues. As Cole states: dead people don’t know they’re dead and see only what they want to see. That’s clearly a perception problem.
To be fair, I’m not really angling for anything. I’m not actually very clear on how Aware/Self-aware would work out… Nevertheless, “Evidence” fits so neatly with “ghosts only see what they want to see.”
You know what, I think I see my problem. I’m not looking at the movie fully objectively. Once I know that Malcolm is dead, and then look back on how he’s reacting to the new love-interest his wife has… I now see that as Falsehood. Malcolm is mistaken that his wife is cheating.
(Though I can still see the locked door as missed evidence.)
Then we have this:
Perception: the girl was sick for two years
Actuality: the mother was keeping her sick
Perception: Cole monkeyed with the cabinets
Actuality: there was a ghost
Perception: Cole is a freak
Actuality: Cole is a freak, but it’s because ghosts hunt him down
And not to get into word play, but “I don’t like it when people look at me that way” is Perception/Actuality summed up in a nutshell.
Or…
Perception: Cole is a freak.
Reality: Cole is freaked!