Essay Questions

Why is Barry so angry and why does he explode so suddenly?

Barry is angry because he is lonely and emotionally empty, as well as both emotionally and physically frustrated. However, he is not a typical "angry guy" and this is why the anger is suppressed rather than on the surface all the time. He seems to be the type of person who can take so much, then so much, then so much more until the final straw that breaks the camel's back as far as his emotions go, and he erupts. He also has no outlet to get angry back at his sisters. He is constantly manipulated by them but has no way to manipulate back, or to stand up to them. He sees himself as a weak person because he allows them to treat him horribly and does not stand up to them. This makes him angry but it is not a violent anger, but a hurt and emotional angry. Once he is able to redress what is missing in his life he finds that his anger dissipates.

Is this a comedy or a romance movie at heart?

This movie is both off-beat comedy and off-beat romance, fitting neither "box" in the traditional way. An essentially sad story (lonely guy, bit of a nerd bullied by manipulative sisters, emotionally stunted and angry because of it) that involves an unfulfilled yet surprisingly successful marketer of stuff nobody actually needs being shaken down by a seedy telephone sex operation before finding love when he least expects it, there are elements within it that are comedic rather than laugh-out-loud funny. For example, the concept of anyone buying hundreds of Healthy Choice puddings just for the air miles is absurd and amusing, but not traditionally comic; similarly, the promise of using the air miles to follow his new love around the globe on business reminds us of the absurdity throughout the movie. It is also not a traditional love story - meeting someone new about whom one is serious is difficult enough but to do this successfully against a back-drop of being blackmailed by a sex-line worker is almost impossible. The seamless blend of the absurd and the romantically naive is what makes the movie both a comedy and a love story at the same time.