Lawrence Kasdan The Accidental Tourist (1988)

Lawrence Kasdan

The Accidental Tourist (1988)

• William Hurt (Macon Leary)

• Kathleen Turner (Sarah Leary)

• Geena Davis (Muriel Pritchett)

Macon Leary

Sarah Leary

Muriel Pritchett

Melodrama (Lopez)

• Sides are clearly divided and defined.

• Heroes and villains are clearly divided and defined.

• The struggle between good and evil ends with the victory of good.

• Human psychology and motivation are presented in a simple way.

• Plots are often artificial and perhaps even clearly impossible.

• The purpose of the film is to arouse an emotional response.

AT as Melodrama

• How does the film differ from other melodramas you have seen?

• How might the film age?

• For instance, what elements of The Accidental Tourist might become ridiculous in the future?

• What seems implausible in The Accidental Tourist?

Opening Segment

• The credits are run with a voice over and scenes of a man packing.

• How does this segment function as a metaphor?

• What different (metaphorical) directions does it take?

• Note how it is juxtaposed with humor.

• segment: 0.40-2.40/2.40-4.30

Macon and Sarah

• How do Hurt’s and Turner’s characters differ?

• How is the idea of travel employed as escape, and again, as metaphor for the divisions between characters (or more generally, people)?

• segment: 4.30-8.30

“Travel” Segments

• London segment: 14.50-16.40 What do we learn from this?

• Origins: 30.30-31.10

• The unexpected: 40.10-40.40

• Baggage: 1:13.20-1:14.15

Muriel’s Role

• What does Muriel’s role represent? Why is she interested in an asshole like Macon?

• segment: 54.10-1:00

Challenges to Roles?

• In some respects stereotypes seem to be reversed—for instance, women are more assertive in some ways:

• Turner demands a divorce and Davis pursues Hurt, and Hurt’s character is emotional and dependent.

Conventional Roles

• A lot of conventional gender roles are shown:

• Davis’ “mothering” of Hurt, the situation in Hurt’s family between his brothers and sister, Julian’s courtship of Rose.

• Are the traditional roles being criticized or satirized?

• segment: 1:50.45-1:54.00

Comic Elements

• Why does Kasdan put comic elements in?

• How do they function in the overall development of the film?

• segment: 30.10-, 41,50-

Edward

• The dog, Edward, is an important though complex character in this film.

• What symbolic meanings might he bear?

• What explains his violence? And towards whom?

Overview of Course

• Firth, travel guides, guiding questions

• Venice: Goethe, Dickens, James

• South America: Darwin, Guevara

• Emic/Etic: Geertz, Harris

• Africa: Kinglake, Haggard

• China: Maugham, Hilton

• Fantasy/Imagination: Wells, Kasdan

Travel Problem

• We are now in a position to revisit the questions that we began with to see whether new answers have appeared.