MovieChat Forums > The Two Faces of January (2014) Discussion > Why was she married to the old man

Why was she married to the old man


It had been more realistic if he played her father.

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Why was she married to the old man

That's a very good question. The movie does not say anything about previous events except that he owe money. So everything about onward till the end and your question remains mystery (might even for the writers).

It had been more realistic if he played her father.

Stealing/fighting for a wife gives more fierce fight between two men than fighting for a daughter coz a father like Chester in such a position would give up for her good sake than drag her along everywhere with his crime.


You better know what you want to do before somebody knows it for you -The Astronaut Farmer

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Well, younger women marry older me all the time, for reasons other than money, even. And maybe (I've never seen statistics) back in the early 1960's when the film is set, more marriages had age disparities.

The question of why she married him isn't a good one unless it furthers the plot, and it doesn't. It certainly isn't strange in any way.

Besides, this "old man" is pretty hot. And you may not know it, but older guys are often better in bed than young ones. 

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That's a very good question. The movie does not say anything about previous events except that he owe money. So everything about onward till the end and your question remains mystery


There's a scene in the movie when she is telling Rydal that when she first met Chester, she was sharing an apartment on Hudson Street (which back then was low rent) and she went to one of his parties which was unlike anything she ever saw before. Clearly she was bedazzled by his charm, wit, sophistication, security and wealth. Some people like their spouse to take care of them (almost like a child) and she appeared to be one but was gradually changing and becoming more assertive and self-possessed.

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It's really not that unrealistic... Younger women marry older men all the time especially when they have $MONEY$.

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Viggo plays a 48 year old in the movie. Kirsten, the actress, is 31. I know a guy dating someone 25 yeara younger so the gap here isn't that outrageous.

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... the gap here isn't that outrageous.
Agreed, there's only 14 years between the 2 actors.🐭

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How do you know what age they were supposed to be in the movie? Can you read their fake passports, which may also have fake birthdays?

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It had been more realistic if he played her father.
Sigh! You really didn't understand the movie did you. The plot was dependent upon the fact that the wife was substantially younger than the husband.
... the old man ...
He may have been older than his wife and Rydal, but Chester was definitely not an old man. Note that he handed Rydal's ass back to him on more than one occasion, as well as successfully defending himself against the detective.🐭

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The "private detective" was more likely a mafia hitman or enforcer. Reputable private eyes don't pull a gun on someone and threaten to kill them to extort money for clients who made bad investments with shady people. Low-life gangsters and hoods do.

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[deleted]

She answered this in the movie. She crashed a party that he was throwing with a friend and was impressed with his lavish lifestyle. Also he was old enough to be her father, so maybe she wanted a father figure. Their relationship and her character were under developed.

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OP's question comes off as ignorant and insulting. Viggo is a very desirable actor. If he wasn't happily married, I am sure he could easily get women significantly younger than Kirsten Dunst. And it's clear that she was a gold digger when she met him. But it's not that big of an age gap anyway - I've dated men with a larger age gap and certainly not for their money.

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Well, he looks like Viggo Mortensen, so there's that. Also she thought he was rich and they do live well. Plus I think he genuinely cares for her. That's a lot of reason to overlook an age difference, for a young woman. I'm not finding the match even a little bit hard to believe, about a third of the way through the movie.

"I've only really liked a handful of people in my life, and you've been two of them."

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