MovieChat Forums > The Gift (2015) Discussion > Three things not mentioned on the board....

Three things not mentioned on the board...SPOILER

posted 9 years ago by JayCeezy
40 replies | jump to latest

1) the koi fish are a symbol of love, friendship, and prosperity. They were a gift made in that generous spirit. When Simon (unknowingly being recorded) behaved like his old cruel bullying self, and cut the evening short with Gordo by telling him to stay away (after making sure his wife didn't hear the reason why), Gordo killed the fish. They were a gift. And the gift was rescinded. Amazing symbolism, I had to look up 'koi fish' because I knew it had meaning and I just didn't know what.

2) Gordo was discharged from the military (where Gordo got his surveillance training) for "Conduct Unbecoming." That is code for 'gay', and the earring on a grown man in his 40s in Los Angeles is pretty gay. That is why Robyn, upon meeting him without knowing any of his history, called Gordo 'socially awkward' and knew Gordo wasn't trying to bang her (despite what Simon claimed). The gay thing is also why Gordo's father set him on fire, and Gordo was an easy and believable target for claiming he was being molested by an upper-classman. Gordo did not rape Robyn (shown in the DVD Extras), and as a straight guy I can say with great authority that the ONLY reason not to take advantage of an unconscious Rebecca Hall is because you are gay.

3) Simon was 'gaslighting' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaslighting his wife Robin, by trying to persuade her that Simon wanted to bang her when he knew full-well Gordo was gay. He was trying to turn her opinion, just like he did to the kids in high-school 25 years earlier with his bullying and lying. Marking 'Weirdo' over the 'Gordo' phone number, mocking Gordo with the silly voice and his finger through his zipper when Gordo left the house, and telling a false story about Gordo's intentions, which Robin intuitively knew that Gordo wasn't after that. Robin had suspicions all along, hiding around the corner to hear what Simon was going to say to Gordo when Simon told Gordo to stay away, looking into Simon's desk drawer to find those private investigator profiles on Simon's "victims", etc. Ugh! Total sociopath!

Amazing script by Joel Edgerton. If you liked it, you will also like "The Rover" starring Guy Pearce which Edgerton also wrote.

[–] l032177 9 years ago

Just finished watching the film and I've gotta say,your assessments sound spot on and a revelation for this amazing film,kudos!

[–] Mehki_Girl 9 years ago

Gordo did not rape Robyn (shown in the DVD Extras), and as a straight guy I can say with great authority that the ONLY reason not to take advantage of an unconscious Rebecca Hall is because you are gay.

Ah, not all (straight) guys are rapists.

http://www.auplod.com/u/dalpuo430da.png
(\ v /)
(='.'=)

[–] midsouthmouth 8 years ago

Yeah gross. The cavalier idea that people are objects fits right in with Simon's manipulative view of the world.

[–] nicportier 9 years ago

Wow. The only reason to not rape an attractive woman is because you are gay? Disgusting.

[–] shes_hollywood 9 years ago

"Straight guy I can say with great authority that the ONLY reason not to take advantage of an unconscious Rebecca Hall is because you are gay."

THANK GOD, for noticing that the OP believes that most men are rapists. This comment almost made me throw up. I'm glad someone else noticed. I couldn't even read on after that sentence. Utterly disgusting!

I've known too many women who have been sexully assaulted while either incapacitated or while concious. Attitudes like this are why the world is still a dangerous place for a woman.

[–] canadianpuppy 9 years ago

Jay, I agree 100% with everything you wrote! Just minutes ago in another reply I also mentioned Simon's "gaslighting" of his wife, so I'm thrilled that you also mentioned it too, haha.

Simon was most definitely a narcissist, and unless you have had experience with these types of people a lot of the subtleties of the movie will be lost on you. For example- the reason that Gordo invited them to the huge house for his dinner party was because he KNEW it would enrage Simon if he thought Gordo had done well for himself. He wanted to set Simon off so that when he left the room Simon would not be able to control himself and he would be able to record Simon mocking him. If Gordo had invited them to some dumpy apartment Simon would have been happy to see that Gordo was just some loser and he wouldn't have said the negative things he did.

The minute that Gordo saw the "weirdo" written on the fridge he knew he had Simon and he put his plan into place. I think until that point he was feeling him out to see if he had honestly changed or not.

I also agree with everything you said about Simon's wife. I think she knew that Gordo wasn't a threat to her, but her paranoia was brought on by Simon's manipulation of her, he was putting the paranoia in her head. You could see it at the end when she awoke in the hospital, she was initially startled but then immediately showed concern for Gordo's injuries.

This movie was amazingly written and perfectly portrayed by the actors.

~Oh look... a room full of men that have NO idea how to satisfy a woman.~

[–] JayCeezy 9 years ago

Thanks! I'll look for your reply elsewhere on the board.

One thing you mentioned, that I didn't pick up on, was that Gordo invited them to the beautiful mansion because he knew it would enrage Simon. I didn't think of that (because I didn't think of the 'competitive' side to Simon's narcissism and desire to 'be the best' and 'be the center of attention') and LOVE that aspect! Simon really did turn into a jealous little hater, waiting at the gate to get in, driving up the beautifully landscaped drive, looking around the house (when Gordo was 'gone for just a minute') where he shouldn't have, etc.

One thing that stayed with me, was Gordo's look at Simon when Simon asked with that fake Jason Bateman smirk, "so, Gordo, what did you do to get all this?" That Gordo stare was so cold and piercing, and the camera held, I was SURE Gordo knew Simon had been talking smack and walking around the house without permission. And Gordo continued the game, "I'm afraid you've caught me in a lie" while staring directly at Simon. Only on second viewing did I realize that Gordo was referencing Simon's lie about Gordo being molested, the lie that caused Gordo to have to leave the school and one of many Simon told just to be cruel. Simon didn't pick up on it (and neither did I at first viewing). Anyway, the physically aggressive way that Simon got out of his car when he was frustrated at trying to leave and the gate was not opening, was a shock to me; the character of Simon was supposed to be this up-and-coming executive with social skills and some poise, and here he was losing his cool and about to thug out...until Gordo stood at the window and 'let Simon out of the trap'...for the time being. Great symbolism and metaphor for what was to come.

Also, regarding Simon's 'narcissim'. All humans are narcissists until age 2 (at least). We simply don't know that we aren't the center of the universe, and the only way we can get food, get our diaper changed, and get attention, is to manipulate others around us with crying, cooing, giggling, being cute, etc. There are plenty of 'narcissists', which aren't necessarily harmful to us (at the gym, at work, handsome guys and pretty girls in school, etc.). The problem is 'Malignant Narcissists', the ones who enjoy hurting, manipulating, destroying others and do so without conscience (Sociopaths and Psycopaths are terms used interchangeably by professionals). Here's a little more, if you are interested. http://www.decision-making-confidence.com/malignant-narcissism.html The only solution when faced with one is 'detachment', whether in a work environment, personal relationship, etc. They won't learn a lesson, they don't care about your feelings, and no matter what they say they won't change their ways.

Thanks for your comment, I really loved this movie and love to talk about it and am so happy someone else enjoyed it as much as I did! Cheers!

[–] shes_hollywood 9 years ago

WOW 😨😱😣😈... You're a brute, to put it politely. I'm not easily offended or faint hearted (this is the interwebz after all), but this is hands down the most vile thing I've read on an internet forum. I hope women in your life are cautious around you, because they may just end up brutalized. The idea of Gordo possibly assaulting Simon's wife in the film is supposed to be horrifying to the civilized viewer.

And before you unabashedly post about how you would RAPE and VIOLATE an unconscious woman, please add a trigger warning. Some people would like to keep their faith in the human race and "straight men" intact.

[–] Ro-bust 9 years ago

Get over yourselves, op was clearly joking about how attractive the actress is and not actually condoning rape. I'm sure the only reason he even said that, was because it is assumed she WAS raped, id this wasn't already in the conversation I doubt he would have made the same joke.

[–] theCurlyone 9 years ago

There's usually at least a little truth in a joke

"somebody used to live here"

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] theCurlyone 8 years ago

I agree with the latter, but, that's not the truth I was referring to as that wasn't the punchline of the joke.

"somebody used to live here"

[–] JayCeezy 8 years ago

Actually, it is the punchline.

[–] theCurlyone 8 years ago

The punchline was, that she is so attractive, raping her unconscious body is appropriate behaviour

"somebody used to live here"

[–] JayCeezy 8 years ago

And the truth is that she is so incredibly attractive, the part that comes after is outrageous.

[–] theCurlyone 8 years ago

There in lies the 'truth' in the joke

"somebody used to live here"

[–] JayCeezy 8 years ago

Glad you finally got it!;-)

[–] theCurlyone 8 years ago

...I never didn't...

"somebody used to live here"

[–] JayCeezy 8 years ago

There's more than one...

[–] hannahrose313 9 years ago

While this post may be a bit of an overreaction, there's nothing funny about rape, nor should it be something to be joked about. Most men, upon, seeing an unconscious woman would most likely look the other way, neither help or hurt the woman...
Second, symbols are just that, symbols. The earring could be an indication that he's gay, but I just saw it as a sign that he is a "thug" or rough. My uncle and boyfriends dad both got earrings around the age of 40 as some sort of mid life crisis. The fact that he got in trouble for being gay whilst in the military just asserts the characters motto of the "past keeping up" with people.

[–] novimovieman 9 years ago

1) I thought that Simon killed the fish to break the connection to Gordo and sever the connection to the past. Would anyone consider Simon not capable of doing this?

2) I though that Simon's high school friend Greg confirmed at the 1:10:00 mark that Gordo was not being molested in a car and that Gordo was not gay. The entire thing was made up. Wearing an earring doesn't make you gay as my friend who lives in San Diego can confirm since he wears an earring in his left ear and is as straight as an arrow and I sometimes wear a left earring as well because my wife thinks it's cool for an aging rocker to do (we got them in the early 1970's before we knew about the earring identifying thing). Gordo's father assaulted Gordo based on a lie that Simon and Greg made up. Conduct unbecoming an officer can include over 100 typical actions that soldiers commit. A high school friend of mine was discharged for behavior unbecoming an officer (Sargent) because he beat a fellow officer into unconsciousness. Gordo might not take advantage of Robyn because she didn't do anything bad to him ever, he didn't want to spend twenty years in prison for rape and his revenge on Simon did not wholly depend on it. Your no rape because he is gay is a weak argument since you don't know that a gay guy can have sex with a woman and perhaps Gordo was in reality bisexual. There are possibilities to which we just don't have answers.

3) If Simon knew Gordo was not gay then your motivation rationale falls apart. It still could have been gaslighting on Simon's part but for the simple reason that Simon had control issues as well as being a bully. I thought the movie should have had a scene where Robyn expresses her worry that Simon was in reality a controlling husband and consequently may not be a good father.

You don't have to know someone to know someone.

[–] JayCeezy 9 years ago

1) you may have me confused with another poster, if you look at my OP I note that Gordo killed the fish. The fish was a gift, symbolizing friendship; Gordo rescinded the gift.
2) Greg confirmed that Gordo was not molested. Not that Gordo wasn't gay. There is a vibe that kids can pick up on, other kids that are 'different' and the 'gay' ones are sometimes (not always) easy to pick out and victimize. My last sentence in #2 was a joke, that only a gay man wouldn't rape an unconscious Rebecca Hall. Sorry for not making that clear. Gordo didn't rape her because he was gay, he didn't rape her because he isn't a rapist. Gordo isn't a bad person at all, and neither is Robin; the bad person here is Simon, who truly is a horribly controlling and gaslighting husband, will most likely repeat the mistakes his own father made with him, and hasn't learned or changed from high-school because he is still sociopathically lying and bullying and manipulating in order to get a job while destroying the life of his competitor.
3) Doesn't matter if Gordo is gay or not. It is a subtext, not a plot driver. Lots of hints and coloring, but Gordo is 'different' and 'awkward' no matter his sexuality.

[–] surajkrstha 8 years ago

U mean to say all straight guys who r not gay will take advantage of unconscious woman. That's disgusting stereotype and u dont have authority, u cant say that for all peoples just because u would take advantage given the oppertunity as u r a st. guy.

[–] 8 years ago

[deleted]

[–] surajkrstha 8 years ago

I was saying u cannot say for all man in the world and i was refering to all woman not just specifically Rebecca Hall. I dont know where u were going with 3rd paragraph though.

[–] JayCeezy 8 years ago

Guessing English is not your first language, so this reply. I do not want to leave you with the wrong impression of the OP and follow-up. In an extreme way, I am raving about the amazingly great-looking and effortlessly wholesome sexiness of Rebecca Hall. To clarify, 1) rape is horrible; 2) Rebecca Hall is one-in-a-million amazing sex appeal, so much so that; 3) in an attempt to make my point, I said I would do something unspeakably horrible and defy every decent moral and conscious thought in myself and the larger civilized Western society, in order to enjoy the pleasures of Rebecca Hall.

Hope that clarifies. Sorry if you didn't find the joke funny, not everyone finds every joke funny, and not every joke is funny. But that's all the OP and follow-up are, is an attempt at a joke. Cheers!

[–] slidell333 8 years ago

Great post OP. I finally got around to watching this and I was more than impressed. I figured it would be your regular "Revenge by stalking/Killing a pet/Screwing with their job" film but it wasn't. I actually started to sympathize with the "antagonist." The more we found out about the Simon he was and still is a major A-hole. I even found him to act immature. He is basically a sociopath. Everything he says is a lie or a manipulation of people with zero feelings. Sociopathic behavior. If I were a woman I'd divorce him ASAP, also. He isn't capable of telling the truth. It's literally not in his DNA.

I don't think he raped her, either. Just as Simon alleged Gordo was raped it was merely that, something that never happened. Furthermore, I believe his original intentions were good-hearted.

What an amazing script! I have to check out "The Rover." Thanks for the heads-up.

Three things not mentioned on the board...*SPOILER*

Three things not mentioned on the board...SPOILER