 forget me not, a wonderful movie that George Casey and I are going to review here today on the movie show in Think Decoy. So I'm looking forward to this discussion because I think this movie is really special. Not everybody feels that way. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a lousy rating. Maybe they just don't know how to review a movie anymore. But George and I both like this one and I'm going to let him start off by describing it. It's Forget Me Not. It's an English movie in recent years and it stars, what was her name? Genevieve O'Reilly as Eve Fisher and Tobias Menzies, both English actors, as Will Fletcher. And you get to know them down to their boots in this movie. But George, what is the movie about? It's basically a 24-hour time frame with these two, Eve and Will, their interaction, getting to know each other. And it starts off, she's working as a barmaid in a bar and he's like an occasional musician that plays there. And you can see initially she sort of likes, you know, his music, it likes his looks. So just like usually women were the ones who made the decision not to bet who they want, you know. So she, you know, and then he inadvertently leaves his guitar there, you know, his side tracks. So she calls him, you know, that you left your thing here and I'm going to keep it safe, keep it free. So meantime they segue in, he's back home and starts off really interesting. He's there in his bathroom sink, he's got a razor blade and a pills, you know. So you're wondering, what is this guy going to commit suicide? You know, that's basically what they're that, you know, but they don't fill in everything initially. So then he's looking out his window, you know, in the bathroom, except the window. And he sees Eve walking with his guitar, right, in front of the street. And this drunk in the bar that had been harassing Eve is jumping her, trying to rape her or whatever, you know. So he runs outside and punches the drunk, right, and saves her, right. And then he says, you know, it's not safe on these streets, because the drunk runs away. So I want to accompany you home. And she said, no, no, at first he said, no, I think it better be safe. So eventually, you know, they get, they start walking around London, you know, that that's what happens for like 24 hours overnight. And they start to get to know each other a little better, right. And it's like, like I was telling my, it's a cat and mouse, just like most relationships that it women, it's like the birds, you know, when there is a mating dance, right. He says something she says, she doesn't understand where he's coming from. He doesn't stare what she's coming from initially. And then little by little, like you like, if pieces start to fall into place, she tells him a little bit about her background, her parents, he tells her eventually about his parents. But the punchline is not until the end. Don't tell it yet. We have to set the stage before you do that. And the next morning he goes with Eve to visit her grandmother, raised her, right. And her mother, it seems extensively had left her father and married this prominent wealthy man, you know, so, and then sort of abandoned Eve, right. So she was raised by her grandmother, you know, alone, right, her mother's mother, right. And then you hear about Will's thing. Will's father was in Iraq somewhere, you know, in the war that Gulf War and he died, he got ambushed by ISIS, right, or something. And then he eventually lets her know that his mother, first he tells her that his mother died of a broken heart. But that was what he told her initially. Later he tells her that his mother committed suicide as a person. So then they go back, they get, they're walking around, she was to be going to be going to a party. So, you know, he accompanies her because her own safety. Later he tells her if he didn't really, they want to go with her. He really didn't want to be with her. So her feminine feeling is like, what do you mean you don't want to be with, she didn't understand him. I mean, unless you understand what's happened at the end, he will not understand his actions. He will understand more her actions because she's reacting like a typical female, you know, but she does something she thinks she's being rejected. But you don't understand who... I don't think she's a typical female. Well, you know, for me... Go ahead, we can discuss this. His reaction, the way she reacted to what he was doing was she thought she was being rejected. That's what I, you know, there was a time when they were making love, you know, they're going to be having sexual relations. And she went for his belt, you know, to take off his pants and put his hand there. He didn't want to have sex with her. So she reacted very angrily. I mean, you know, Gary's like she's coming onto her, right? And then he's, you know, playing hard to get and then not doing it. That's what I mean, typical female, she was, you know, she felt hurt. Okay, so at the end, I'm going to let you segue into, oh, they go to a home where her grandmother is. And there's a doctor there, African-American, very smart. Asking the grandmother questions to determine the level of her Alzheimer's, right? But this, you don't understand the whole thing about how that plays in. And then there's things here that one of them, if you sit there, the two of them, Eve and Will are in a restaurant, and they've got two men in front of them playing chess, right? You don't really understand how that plays into it. I don't, maybe you understand that. So I'll let you segue into the punchline. Well, let me begin and sort of take another look at the, you know, the storyline as you described it. You knew from the outset that he was a little old to be playing guitar and gigs in bars. There was something funny about it, you know? And he was, he had a nice look about him, but you can't say he was handsome. And he, you know, he didn't dress or behave himself in a, in an ordinary way for a man of what, 35 or 40. And she was, she was a pretty woman. But what was she doing with the bar? And what was he, you know, why was she attracted to this, this gig worker guitar player who really didn't seem to have any substance? And it's just, he brought them together, as you said, on the street with the drunk, and he saved her at some risk to himself. Runk was going to attack him. So they begin walking and then it spits and starts, you know, I'll walk you this far, and then I'll walk you that far. And then they ran into all these London nightlife street scenes. And each one of these things, you know, taught them about each other, which was very interesting. And so the conversation is brilliant. I mean, the screenplay is very good. And they, it's not a lot of words, but it's carefully chosen words. And he's kind of quiet. And she is interested in him. But he is, he is giving her these monosyllabic answers and dropping little breadcrumbs about who he really is. And you have to listen to it carefully to see who he really is and who she really is and why she's interested in this fellow is so vague and hard to find. And it's like you have to see the movie twice. You do. You have to see the movie twice to watch the breadcrumbs. Because as we have already mentioned, you know, the end of the story is a kind of a mindblower. And you never expect it coming at you. But if you watched it a second time, you would, you would see it coming at you. You would see all those breadcrumbs and many little hints that come out, which you don't catch the first time. I thought we learned a lot about London, what it's like to walk around London in the middle of the night. Nobody was there in those streets. They didn't feel threatened except by that drunk, but he was somebody that she knew and who know her. Otherwise, there was nobody who threatened them in any way. In fact, people were pretty friendly. And there was a lot of, what do you want to say, joy in engaging with people. London is in the middle of the night a happy place and a place where people can talk to each other, chat each other up. You know, in Hawaii, we don't really have that experience, do we? We have, you know, in big cities and particularly in Europe, you can talk to a stranger and there's some gratification in that. And that's what was happening because he had his guitar with him the whole time. He would play songs. At first, I didn't realize how important the songs were in this movie. But apparently, George, he had the ability, although he had limitations, which we will find out about, he had this ability to make up a song on the fly, you know, to make the words of the song and the music of the song on the fly. I mean, instantly. And it wasn't bad. And she had a voice too. And he sang with him once or twice in the movie. And he said to her, you got a pretty good voice too. And it just brought them together. His music, his music brought them together. So as they walk, and it's slowly, it's in these, you know, these interesting places along the river, if you will, in the Thames, I guess, in London, they begin to know each other, learn each other. And the viewer is so interested in seeing, well, are they going to, you know, find each other? Are they going to have a romantic? Because it's not, it's not sure that they are. But as they reveal themselves, it's terribly, the dialogue, terribly honest, terribly, terribly honest, except he keeps throwing bread crumbs as to a problem that he has. I had two, you know, two particular moments that I really liked in the movie. One is when he sang a song as the sun came up at the top of a ferris wheel affair. And it was really interesting that he could, he said, make me a song about the morning light. And he immediately made her a song about the morning light. And it was, it was good. It was perfect. It was poetic. All the songs he sang were poetic. He had a talent in that regard. And the other thing that I thought was very interesting was the dance hall. I don't know if you remember, I was really wondering why there was no soundtrack on the dance hall. You realize what was going on, George? They were, all these people in the dance hall were dancing to cell phone music. Each one had his or her own music with it with a headset from their cell phone. So everybody would be dancing to a different tune. Is that symbolic? We all dance to a different tune. I thought, you know, maybe they actually do this in Europe or in London. That's a great idea. You go to a dance hall and there's not a sound except your feet. Okay. And you and your partner in the dance, you share a headset, you know, one earplug to me and one earplug to her. And we dance. And all these people, I mean, there was really what's going on here. That was so interesting. And it's a statement, I suppose, of it's an allegorical statement about dancing to your own tune. But it's also a look into the London nightlife. And this was at a ridiculous hour, you know, like, what, two, three in the morning. As you said, it's a 24 hour thing. It's actually, it's not even 24 hours because it, oh, I guess it is. It's from the evening time when the bar is closing until what late in the day, the next day. And, okay, little by little, you like them more. Little by little, you realize that they're both flawed, they're both needy. And he's got some kind of major problem that would motivate him to commit suicide at the outset, which he never reveals to her. And then there's the, the scene where it is all revealed. So carefully, George, carefully tell us about that scene. He reveals to her that, and there's all on his wall in his house, he's got all these little stickers, right? To remind himself of things just like I have in my notebook, remind myself so I don't remember what to buy at the grocery. She's got all these little stickers that she sees that doesn't quite understand. He has a rare disease where early in life, frontal something, I forgot the medical term, right? Where you lose, it's like Alzheimer's, just like her grandmother is, it's got early Alzheimer's. He's got early Alzheimer's, right? And he's only in his 30s. And all he can, it's going to get worse where he's going to be mindless, you know, at a very young age. And he doesn't want to live like that. So that's why he sees no future for himself on this earth. So he's very philosophical about where we go, you know, of course, both his parents are gone, passed away. So he's very, you know, realistic from his own perspective, it's, he's got to do something he doesn't want to get to that point. And there's no cure for this disease just progresses. So that's, that's when I think she starts to understand. I mean, I may be forgetting some of the particulars, but that's when she starts to understand why he acted the way he did when she was very upset, right? Because he's a very honorable guy. He doesn't want to get her emotionally tied with those. He's either going to commit suicide or it dies. And doesn't want to have sex with her, because maybe she can pray and then, and then the kid has no father, or she'll get more emotionally connected with him and doesn't want. So that's basically what she understands about really honorable guy. Does it not selfish, totally concerned about her needs as opposed to his own feelings? Yeah, if you, if you watch the dialogue as, as they continue walking and exchanging, you know, statements of, you know, love and commitment, which happens, it's very subtle, but it happens. The dialogue is really well written. You realize that they, they are ready to commit to each other, both of them. And I mean, she's ready to spend her life with him in less than 24 hours. And so is he. She's, he's very, what's the word I'm looking for, understanding and emotive. She's very, she cares about people, people person. And he, as you say, he's an honorable, caring person also, but he's got this problem. And I would go a step further. I would say he's already got the frontal, the frontal deterioration problem, low, low-bectomy or low lobotomy, something word like that. And he's, he's got it already. He knows about it while he has all these hundreds, hundreds of stickers around his house. He said, you know, he forgets facts. He can't hold back to his mind. And one great line in the movie is something like, what are we but our memories? We have to remember all these things that he's losing, these things. He's already in the disease process. He's already in the, the degradation. And so then when you realize that you look back and you see, gee, I mean, he's a nice person. He's capable of music and poetic songs. He's capable of caring, but he's losing it right now. And he knows he's losing it. And that, you know, that's the saddest part. And she doesn't know she likes him for what he presents to be. But when he tells her this, she's got to make a choice as to whether she will commit to him or not. And she's inclined to do that. So she's really touched. She's really, it's, it's a hard moment for her because she realized he's telling her the truth. They will never have a long-term relationship, not possible. He says to him, for example, what can they do for you? And he doesn't answer because they can't do anything for him. There is no medical science that can help him. And so at the end, you have this kind of un- spoken agreement that we will stay together, care for each other as long as we can. That's our commitment. It's not like an ordinary romantic relationship at all. It's beyond that, beyond that. It's not till death do we part. It's till dementia do we part. And she's willing. She understands and she's willing. And he can give her everything that he has, but he's already declined. It's just, I mean usually it's death the hardest part, but he's going to be, even if he lives, he's going to be in this mindless state. And one of the interesting, when they have that doctor talking to the grandmother, it's interesting that that scene is really tied to his condition. So there's a play in there. And when you said about his music, when he met those bunch of women in those costumes, he was really good about, as you said, bringing up the lyrics to the music right on the spot. So, you know, he's good at this. Parts of his brain are deteriorated, but parts are still good. So just like any kind of brain injury or brain disease, it impacts one part of the brain. So there's still enough emotion for him to be, you know, there with her. But he didn't want to tell them what she was studying for, until way, way into the movie. And I recall that what she was studying for, she wanted to be a nurse, wasn't it? And there's a kind of, you know, a magic about that, because he was going to need a nurse. She was so tolerant, so understanding, so caring, you knew that that was the perfect choice of occupation for her. But it goes beyond that, because she could help him as he further declined. You know, the other thing you wondered about is he had a pretty nice apartment. He was trying so hard to keep everything organized and do the right thing. You know, you mentioned the stickies on the wall. There were hundreds of them. He was trying to build a life for himself, knowing that he couldn't remember things. And so the whole wall was pasted with these, you know, yellow stickies from an office. And the apartment was impressive. I mean, it was a nice apartment. And you wondered how he could live economically. But I guess his parents left him some money. He was obviously not earning a lot of money from playing guitar in a bar. But it was enough to allow him to, you know, organize himself. And even his attempt at suicide in the first five minutes of the movie was very systematic. Let me think. I do this. I do that because I, you know, I can't do this anymore. I know what's going to happen to me and I don't want to be a burden on anyone. So I'll just cut it right here. And it was suicide with a plan. It was a suicide where he systematically went through the options and set himself up. And it wasn't the ordinary attempt at suicide Luckily, the call that she made to him about the guitar he had left behind interrupted him. And all of that flowed into this relationship they had walking streets of London. So why does this fit, you know, George, in your view of moviedom these days, this was a movie I made a few years ago within what five years or so maybe before COVID. And what is this fit in your appreciation of, you know, European movies, English movies, movies about illness, movies about romance, movies about personal, personal evolution, personal dynamics of people who are thrown into a situation that changes their lives. Both of them, their lives changed. And he failed the need. He really, really loved him in that one day period. And he was completely committed and they were both willing to say it to each other. Now that is, you know, they both surrendered to each other in less than 24 hours. But where does it fit, George, in your view, your taste for movies of that nature? These movies are the other type of movies you mentioned. It makes you think. It makes you think about your own life issues. It's not one of these action movies with a lot of violence and, you know, cutting up and shooting and stuff. I think these type of movies would be much better for the young people of today, Generation X and whatever the language. Because for my generation, this is a really profound, these movies are, this movie was very profound. The subtle issues that were in play, right? So I like this movie. I like this movie for the lesson it gives us, right? As opposed to all these other movies that I don't want to see, I don't want to see violence and stuff, you know, shooting and killing and all that. So the movies you did pretty much, you've been picking, are very good movies about issues, you know, in our society, whether it's personal issues, world issues. I mean, in 2014, Ukraine, the Armenian genocide, how it plays into this Ukrainian situation. And then all the ones that the two lovers, what was that? We watched the two movies that Julia Roberts' movie and the other one with Shaleen Woodley or whatever, you know, played it. So I mean, all of this, I like all these, you know, as I'm glad, except for a few that had some violence, you're not choosing those kind of movies. I mean, these action movies to me is just like fluff, you know, there's nothing to them, you know, it just, and I think those movies are what's causing all these shooting, all these young kids, impressionable kids, you know, that they don't understand, they see this, they think it's real life, right? And then they go out and shooting people, you know, soldiers, young kids, soldiers, they go to war, they don't understand, think you're invincible. And then everything's emotional at that age. So I like this. I like this movie. I like these other movies. I hope that answers your question. Well, in part, because I want to ask you to compare this movie. I don't know if you saw the Anthony Hopkins movie was also about Alzheimer's. It was a real winner. It played maybe a year ago, a year or so ago. That was the father. The father, yeah. Do you remember that movie? It's worth mentioning that movie in this context. That movie was not a happy movie. That the relationships were deteriorated. He was getting worse every time you look. It was a tragic movie. And there wasn't really, I must say, not a lot of caring. It was also an English movie. So how do you compare that? A, which one do you like better? And why? Well, you know, as much as I like this one, I like the other one better because it actually showed his inner, you know, the protagonist's inner view of what you see. You didn't really see Will Fletcher, you know, except those stickers, you know, you didn't see that. I don't think his disease had got to the point yet, where it was really, it was getting more serious. But, you know, it went with down from there. So I like the father better, sort of for the realism. And even though this plus is on this one too, the plus is here on the relationship that he had with Eve. But I like that other one. But there were more players involved in one of the things. And the whole family, it wasn't just two people. This was a, you know, sort of microscopic look at two people and their relationship. And, you know, it was at the end, it was a statement of, it was a statement of love, not deterioration. I mean, although deterioration was involved. But I want to dwell on one of the points you made a minute ago. Movies are more than these days, the art, because movies have an effect on you, just like the violence, vengeance, and hate movies that we don't like too much. You know, because they had, we know they have an effect on us. And probably the effect on a national, global basis, because everybody watches these violence and vengeance movies around the world. The effect is a bad effect. The effect makes you think that violence is okay. And it justifies then, you know, if you hate and you need vengeance, then the violence is justified. This is a terrible message. And this is what we're getting. Every movie has a lesson. Every movie has a takeaway. All of art has a movie and a takeaway. Okay. And we always compare it with our own lives. We always learn whether we realize it or not from the movie. So if I compare these to the father, okay, and forget me not, I come out ahead on forget me not. And I'll tell you why, because of that effect, the learning effect. You learn from forget me not that you can love somebody, really love them, at least for a while, even while they're degenerating. And it touches you. It enriches your life. Eve's life was enriched by riding it down with will. In the case of the Anthony Hopkins, the father movie, you learned a lot about Alzheimer's. You learned about the dark side of Alzheimer's. You learned about the ship is shoving off. And he's going into oblivion. But that's not a happy lesson. And there's not too much positive to learn from that movie. You'll learn that it's a really bad experience, which it is. But if I'm talking to 300 million Americans, I'd rather tell them about the love part. I'd rather leave them with that takeaway than the takeaway is that people with Alzheimer's are a real problem. Yeah, I understand your point too. Anyway, so what rating, I don't remember what we rated the father at, but what rating would you give forget me not? Pretty high. I have a few issues, so give it a nine. Some of the reviewers also, self-division issues, but I'll give it a nine. I mean, you see London only smogging, London, some of those scenes just depressed me, but that Ferris wheel thing, that scene was really nice, that he sings the song to. I'll give it a nine. You're probably going to give it a 10, but I'll give it a nine. I will give it a 10. I'll give it a 10 because I think it's a movie that you learn from, a movie that touches you, it certainly touched me, and a movie that is filled with the symbolism and breadcrumbs about what's really going on here, a movie that you have to watch twice to pick up on to get the whole message. I realize now that, as is the case in so many good movies, that the filmmaker is trying to tell you stuff in subtle fashion. There's another dimension to it. I like movies with more than one dimension. This movie had more than one dimension. So, George, I'm really enjoying this movie review process with you. We'll do another one in a couple of weeks. We'll try to avoid any mentions of violence, if you don't mind, and as I will suggest the movies to you in the next few days. Thank you so much for watching Think Tech Hawaii. If you like what we do, please like us and click the subscribe button on YouTube and the follow button on Vimeo. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and donate to us at ThinkTechHawaii.com. Mahalo.