MovieChat Forums > About Schmidt (2003) Discussion > Should I be insulted?

Should I be insulted?

posted 12 years ago by IMDB_Vits
4 replies | jump to latest

At the beginning, JEANNIE accusses WARREN of being cheap. Throughout the movie, we see him using public payphones a couple of times, and everytime the call ends, he searches for change in that part (I don't know what it's called) where you get your money back if the other person doesn't pick up. Because of the kind of movie this is (and the kind of director Alexander Payne is), I'm sure that's included on purpose.

I do that all the time. Not because I'm desperate to get my money back. I do it mostly as a reflex, in case the machine makes a mistake and drops the money.

[–] Theodor_Birch 12 years ago

Of course. Like Roland Barthes said, art is a medium with no white noise. Nothing is insignificant in a story. From the food they eat to the shirt they wear, it all adds up to the story.
Him checking the slots is a sign that he is worried about money, always concerned and looking for more security. That's his generation.
The movies is about people like him, people who live their entire lives looking for money, always thinking in financial terms.

[–] Stirchley 11 years ago

I do that all the time. Not because I'm desperate to get my money back. I do it mostly as a reflex, in case the machine makes a mistake and drops the money.

Where do you live that in 2013 there are still payphones?

[–] IMDB_Vits 11 years ago

I meant to say that I used to do it all the time.

[–] 11 years ago

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