was it revealed why daniel was in montreal in the beginning? or why he was at that reenactment? and then in the same aisle as margot on the flight back?
was it all coincidence or did he plan it that way? or was margot just fantasizing about him after she saw him around the neighborhood?
My interpretation is that I don't think Daniel was real.
The coincidences are too perfect: that in a country as vast as Canada, that two neighbors would happen to be on the same vacation, at the same tourist trap, and have adjacent seats on an airplane? What was Daniel even doing there? He's a starving artist who can barely pay his rent - what was he doing on some trip to a 19th century reenactment site all by himself?
That was a big "tell" that the entire persona of Daniel was just in Margot's head.
It didn't make sense to me that when Daniel moved away, he left Margot a postcard that said "Let's meet in the year 2040" (or something like that), with no forwarding/contact information - but then you see them reuniting a minute later. How did they find each other? Again, it all had the tinge of fantasy, not reality.
And at the end, when Margot is riding the roller coaster by herself, I thought that it was a "reveal" that her previous scene with Daniel in the roller coaster had never happened (sort of like at the end of "Sixth Sense") - it was just Margot by herself, all along.
My interpretation of the film is that Margot built an elaborate fantasy in her head of the perfect man and the perfect life, and left her husband when she realized he'd never match that fantasy.
My interpretation of the film is that Margot built an elaborate fantasy in her head of the perfect man and the perfect life, and left her husband when she realized he'd never match that fantasy.
Interesting comments, leychica. As my wife and I watched the movie, and Margot heard a voice when she was at the lake, I thought that was Lou. And then when the sequence started where she and Daniel got together, had passionate sex, and all that followed I told my wife "That is all in her imagination." But then as the movie progressed and it was clear that Margot and Lou had been apart for some time, I just accepted that Daniel was real and they really DID get together.
So, in your version, if there was no Daniel, did Margot just move away from Lou for a time, then come back later when she came to her senses?
Or what?
TxMike
Make a choice, to take a chance, to make a difference.
That's a really interesting take on this, but Daniel and Lou interacted with eachother without Margot being there. So isn't that proof he's real?
Gatorade me, bitch.
I went back and watched the last few scenes, now I am convinced Daniel was real. For the reason you mentioned, and a couple of others.
TxMike
Make a choice, to take a chance, to make a difference.
The coincidences are too perfect: that in a country as vast as Canada, that two neighbors would happen to be on the same vacation
Daniel and Margot had previously discussed setting a date to meet and kiss, where they first met, which is how Margot would know the location. She was just fantasizing while laying in bed with her husband, and moments later she told him about the affair. Not to mention that the post card revealed the location if she, for some ridiculous reason, forgot about their previous meeting and conversation.
Margot rode the ride by herself to try and revive that feeling of adventure, and fun and the butterflies when she first met Daniel and started to like him. She was trying to re-live the way she felt when she rode it with him, and the ride is symbolic of the part of the relationship(s) she enjoys and can't get enough of, but eventually the ride ends. This is why over and over there are symbols in the movie and even talk about new things becoming old and Sarah Silverman's character says that she'd rather stay with somebody she at least likes than leave for somebody new who she might not like later, but Margot did the opposite and she made a mistake.
Well said, leychica. I agree, there's no way he was real. He's too good to be true! The whole time I was watching I was thinking he's like the male version of the "Manic Pixie Dream Girl" who basically exists to serve as a muse to the male lead without having any real story of their own.
I realized he was a figment of Margot's imagination when he kept appearing at the perfect time where ever she was. Also, if you really think about it, all of his lines and actions were just Margot's thoughts or what she envisioned her dream guy would do or say. His whole interaction with her husband is how Margot imagined they would interact with each other. I think Daniel meeting the husband was a good way to throw off people who suspected he wasn't real but also Margot felt so guilty for having thoughts about someone else, that the two eventually cross paths in her mind. When Margot gives the big speel about not knowing why the baby was crying and Daniel says "or maybe you just didn't figure out what it was," it was just Margot second guessing herself in her own head. Even though he wasn't real, the idea of Daniel helped her realize that she wanted more for herself than what her husband could give so in a way he is a good thing.
And let's not forget the scene where he tells her exactly what he would "do to her". Come on, nobody could say all of that with a straight face in a restaurant. Finally after she leaves her husband she lives with Daniel and this huge, perfect loft apartment where they have threesomes and lay all over each other all day. That was a dead giveaway for me!
I really like that they never reveal whether he was real or not and leave it up to the viewer to interpret, but it was fairly obvious to me. The last scene where she's alone on the rollercoaster was a really good ending because it kind of cemented that she had imagined him all along (at least for me.)
seemingly you are writing this as if you think we are forced to one answer or the other, "I really like that they never reveal whether he was real or not and leave it up to the viewer to interpret, but it was fairly obvious to me. ".
Better than "obvious", that is what you prefer to interpret. I re-watched the critical scenes again looking for "proof" that he was imaginary and found none. I.e. viewing him as real works as well as viewing him as a creation of her imagination. Maybe the writer/director was just very clever to tell the story in such a way that both possibilities are equally likely. As viewers we can go with the one that makes most sense to us individually!
TxMike
Make a choice, to take a chance, to make a difference.
I also had the thought he was a fantasy, but in the end believe him to be real. I think it was intentional on the part of the filmmakers to drive home the point that Daniel was NOT perfect and NOT the fantasy that Margot was living in her mind, which is also why we stay in her point of view exclusively.
Laissez les bons temps rouler!
I actually agree and think the whole movie could be viewed as Daniel NOT being real. Makes it quite interesting indeed if you think of it that way.
We all know that Margot has doubts, guilt through the scenes that are portrayed. She has two sides of her brain. The side that wants Daniel, and the side that knows it's wrong and is causing her guilt and doubt because she is married and also loves her husband. If she was dreaming or envisioning this entire affair happening, it would be natural for someone who worries about guilt to even dream of that aspect as well.
If it was indeed a dream, then even the scenes where people are able to see Daniel, or are aware of it, could be her "guilty conscience" in the dream telling her the other side of the story. So she is dreaming she is at the pool, and all of a sudden Daniel is there watching her (creepy in real life, makes sense in a dream). But in her dream she is there with her friend, who sees her seeing Daniel, and thus her guilty side of her brain in the dream has her friends telling her stuff her subconscious already knows (like new will just become old).
I would think that people fantasizing about cheating, leaving a marriage for a new lover would have a) guilt b) fears of their husband finding out c) fears that it wouldn't be the right choice d) fear it might fizzle out and so all of this could get imagined during dreaming. It also makes Daniel way less of a creepy stalker (as in a dream, all of these things where he/she conveniently connect now make perfect sense). I.e. the moment she leaves her husband and goes to the water, he is just there waiting for her?
It also answers the question about the loft, i.e. in her dreams they would run away together and get a fancy loft, which again, in reality isn't possible.
In fact, it seems that Margot is enacting this entire plot in her head, almost like a Romance novel. It's likely that Daniel IS indeed the neighbor across the street, as that lays credence to her actually feeling guilty about doing it. I think the final scene of her on the amusement ride is when we the audience finally see her "out" of the dream and both happy at the thought of what would be if she did cheat and go with Daniel, but also sad at the thought of what she would lose with Lou.