Annoying Scene


I love this movie must have seen it a million times but theres one scene that really winds me up everytime i see it. Its when the kids are having contact at Daniels flat and Miranda turns up early to collect them and says shes in a hurry as she has a load of errands to run. Why didn't she just leave the kids there while she went off and did these errands? She could have done them first then gone to get the kids. I'm sure they'd rather be spending time with their dad then be stuck in a car while she drives around doing boring errands. This scene always bugs me. i'd have loved it if the older two kids refused to go, they were old enough to be a bit defiant!!

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[deleted]

What I don't understand is that Miranda was saying she had to go to the market, the bank and to drop off the newspaper add but the whole scene took place at night?!

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CocoCherry that is a very good point! I had not observed that it was late - was it dark outside during that scene? I mean even if it was summer time (EDIT! Sorry, WINTER time lol), and the nights were drawing in, so to speak, most banks in the UK close at 17.30 hrs - not sure about the US of A though. Excellent observation. I'll pay more attention next time I am viewing to see if it is dark but it must be evening unless Miranda had a day off because she always seemed to work until beyond at least 19.00 hrs!

"Has anyone seen my wife?" - Columbo

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Some individual bank branches can close when they choose, but the US standard is 4:00 PM (16:00) Monday-Thursday, 6:00 PM (18:00) on Friday, and 1:00 PM (13:00) on Saturday.

I'm guessing the scene took place on a Friday evening.

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Well, the grocery store would still be open, she could probably use the ATM at the bank and maybe the newspaper has a Dropbox or something. Still, it's a good question why she didn't leave the kids with Daniel and come after her errands...

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to drop off the newspaper add


It's a huge plot device.

When she mentions the ad, Daniel asks about it (teasing her about a personal ad) and then demands to see it because she's looking for a housekeeper.

The scene accomplishes a lot.

1. Sets up Miranda's need for a housekeeper.
2. When she refuses to let Daniel do it, it gives him the idea to make himself over into a housekeeper, the entire premise of the film.
3. While he has the ad in hand, he messes with the phone number, insuring no legitimate housekeeper will ever contact her.

While I agree Miranda is behaving badly, arriving early and etc..without this scene there is no rest of the movie.

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Yes, I really felt for Daniel. She turns up early and before the children have finished their meal and then starts slating his apartment, therefore belittling him in front of the little ones.

I have never liked her character much - I certainly wouldn't rate Miranda over Daniel. Both were flawed in their own right but Daniel was a lot more liberal than the decidedly anally-retentive Miranda. She placed WAY too much importance on her career and plumping up her cushions whereas Daniel wanted a more relaxed approach - wanting their children to actually enjoy their childhoods.

Don't get me wrong, he was totally out of order to host his son's Birthday party in the house. It was unrealistic anyway - he maintained he had intended to clean the place up prior to her return from work when in fact it would have taken a month of Sundays given that he had animals wandering around on top of all the food mess.

Miranda showed some goodness when she was talking to "Mrs Doubtfire" in the kitchen and saying she didn't like whom she had become when in Daniels's company which was perhaps her one redeeming feature throughout the whole film.

"Has anyone seen my wife?" - Columbo

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so to speak, most banks in the UK close at 17.30 hrs - not sure about the US of A though. Excellent observation. I'll pay more attention next time I am viewing to see if it is dark but it must be evening unless Miranda had a day off because she always seemed to work until beyond at least 19.00 hrs!


In the US, it depends on the bank. Most banks close at either 5 or 6 PM (17 or 18 hrs in 24 Hour Time). Some (usually community or savings banks) close at 3 PM (15 hrs) while others stay open until 7 PM (19 hrs). The scene could very well have taken place during Fall or Winter hours where it gets dark after 5 PM.

The scene itself was kind of annoying. It wasn't fair that Miranda come an hour early after dropping them off an hour late. She could've done at least half of the errands before coming over to pick up the kids. It just shows the animosity between them and how she really didn't want her kids to be with Daniel.

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Well don't forget it was a Saturday. Saturday was Daniel's only day with the kids. I can't think of ANY bank that is open on a Saturday evening. Some are open only Saturday mornings, until 1PM at the latest.

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It was because she wanted the kids away from Daniel. Pure and simple.

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[deleted]

Not to mention it was a Saturday. The bank and the newspaper on a Saturday night? The newspaper MAYBE...but definitely not the bank.

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It's not that implausible. My stepmother does the same thing with my brothers and my dad.

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The only annoying scene to me was deleted. What gets to me is in the spelling bee deleted scene when they're fighting causing Lydia to screw up in a way which didn't seem particularly realistic with how she misspelled the word in my opinion, is that they're arguing about the seat and all this nonsense when all Daniel needed to do was pick up Natalie and put her on his lap. Not a big deal? Am I right? LOL

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I agree, I always thought Miranda was a huge b*tch in that scene, causing Daniel and the kids to lose TWO hours together. Especially since she could've easily done those run of the mill errands before picking them up. You just know she was doing it purely to spite Daniel and punish him as much as possible, who cares how the kids felt.

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I think you are actually missing the point of the scene, even as much as you say it annoys you. But if you remember it is very early in the divorce, and it is quite clear that Miranda is mad with Daniel Hillard, and it seems clear to me but not you, that she wants to make as little trips to his house as possible. So say if she showed up early and left the kids there for the hour, and then came back and get them, and say that she dropped them off, that would be 3 trips to his house that I am sure that there is no way that she would want to make. And also if I am remembering correctly, she even says something to the point of to her kids, "don't forget anything I don't want to come back". Does what I am saying make it more clearer to you, and I would also bet it would be out of the question, of Daniel driving the kids back to her house after the visit was over. So what do you want her to do, spend an hour at his house when I am sure that is something that she doesn't want to do. And I am also remembering correctly that Daniel also points out to Miranda that she was an hour late dropping them off, and of course she is an hour early picking them up. So I would think that she wants Daniel to spend lesser time with his kids then appointed. I don't know what the hours that was set, all I know it was scheduled for every Saturday, and I know that it would be for more then 2 hours. And for the kids, for the older ones I think that they were smart enough to argue with their mother about even more time with their dad, as they would have known that she was already angry with Daniel, and they didn't want to make her anymore angry even with them.

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'Does what I am saying make it more clearer to you'

not really, what you wrote is the biggest pile of crap i've ever read on here

also don't try and patronize me. i understand she's being a bitch perfectly well thank you. you seem to want to defend her when i am more inclined to defend daniel who was being denied time with his kids and the kids being denied time with their father because she was hellbent on being a childish spiteful bitch. DROP THE KIDS OFF AT CORRECT TIME, GO DO THE ERRANDS, GO FOR A COFFEE OR SOMETHING IF YOU HAVE TIME TO KILL COME BACK AND PICK THEM UP AT THE CORRECT TIME. HOW DIFFICULT IS THAT?

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@NobodymournstheWicked So say if she showed up early and left the kids there for the hour, and then came back and get them, and say that she dropped them off, that would be 3 trips to his house that I am sure that there is no way that she would want to make.
Why would she have to make three trips to his house?

1. Drop off kids at his house
2. Do errands
3. Pick up kids at his house

That's two trips to his house. Simple.

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