The Man Who Wasn't There is a great movie and I really like it. The directing, the cinematography, the characters and the acting were all awesome.
Everything fits together except one thing. The blowjob scene... I mean really, this felt totally out of place, like it was completely forced just to cause the crash. Thoughts?
To me it showed how clueless Ed was about people. He seemed to be truly shocked that Birdie would react in that way. Just about everything Ed did in this story didn't turn out the way he thought it would.
shareIt was exaggerated but it wasn't out of place because everything about the film is that way.
The main character was too apathetic, he was smoking too much etc.
The barber was talking too much and he was too dumb.
The main character's relationship with the wife was too shallow.
Gandolfini's affair was too obvious.
The dry cleaning con was too obvious.
I could go on indefinitely. Literally everything was that way on purpose. It's a core aspect of the film (and Coen). That's what makes the film interesting and it provides black humour. If you separate all that and look at them individually, they are unrealistic/not interesting/not funny etc. All of that mixed together though makes it unique.
I had the same reaction when I first watched it. But later as I watched it again the scene is all set up by Ed being very generous to the girl, taking an interest in her music, trying to get her with a great teacher. Plus his wife was then dead. The girl was grateful and wanted to do something nice for him in return and I suppose that is the only way she could think about repaying him. They both did a lousy job of reading the other.
..*.. TxMike ..*..
Take a risk, Take a chance, Make a change. Kelly Clarkson - Breakaway
What everyone else said...
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It could very well have been made up, as the film implies he's making up at least some stuff. So maybe he just wanted to spice things up or work out a fantasy or maybe he makes something up about how and why the crash really happened etc.
I agree, it was a excessive amateur way to rush the plot; after all the girl didn't earn anything from the piano courses, so why be so thankful to Ed?
shareI would say it's because he was so completely selflessly trying to help her and be a mentor/father (uncle) figure. He saw something in her that he believed was true talent and wanted to help her with no strings attached. No manipulation or self interest, other than enjoying listening to her. I even think he is asexual. She had no interest in pursuing it, but she wanted to show her gratitude...or maybe she was expecting he had some ulterior motive and grew to like him in a way.
You could argue it was over the top, but there's a whole karmic payback thing going on in the movie.
In NO WAY did I feel that it was out of place. Everything in the relationship between those two led up to that point (only he didn't know it, poor guy). I wasn't surprised at all.