[limitless]

Doc,

I never thought about Groundhog Day in the terms of MLC...but you are so correct!

Destined to repeat the same day over and over and over and over...until he grew up.

Love that film!

L

[Anjae]

Think in Breaking Bad the motive, at least the initial one, is not to abandon the family but make sure when he dies the family will be all right money wise. He was diagnosed with cancer, he does not have a good job. Cooking meth will give loads of money.

Of course he lies, he become a drug dealer. He is going to die and wants to keep is image clean as far as his family is concerned. I get him. Some people don’t like to tell they have a terminal illness, not event to the spouse. And of course he lies about his disappearances.

In Breaking Bad I only see a guy that was caught by surprise with bad news and is trying to leave is family well off when he dies and sees no point in tell them what he has choose to do. Given what he has choose to do of course he lies. It is understandable. It may bother you Limitless, but I think it makes sense that he lies and behaves the way he does.

Never seen Groundhog Day.

[kikki]

I don't know if anyone has ever mentioned it, but "Breaking Bad" is as MLC as you can get (without the affair - at least as far as I have seen).

I must talk to my S18 about this.  According to my H, S18 recommended that he watch it, and my H has since said to me that it has helped him make sense of things with the boys. Something about the lack of trust between the protagonist and his son?  The son is willing to have a relationship, but the trust isn't there?

I haven't seen it myself, just passing on what my MLCer 'saw'.  I find it amazing that my H has these insights, but just carries right on as before. 

[NewAttitude]

I didn't see About Schmidt mentioned.  I am not sure it's about MLC or depression so much as a man having to work through his long-term alianation from his wife and his estrangement from his daughter for her wedding.  During the film, his wife dies of a brain clot and his daughter reprimands him for how he treated her mom/his wife.  This sets the pattern for self reflection and I would say running away from his life as he prepares for his daughter's wedding.

As far as the movie industry, in general, and movies like Eat, pray, Love, I have always hated movies where selfishness is encouraged and rewarded as some sort of romantic or 'strong' thing to do.  I also hate movies with double standards like those where you reward a female for doing something that you would totally be disgusted if a guy did it.
 

[calamity]

My h was watching a movie last year, on the french channel but I don't know if it was french.  The wife is wearing a red coat or jacket [a recurring image].  Anyway the man has an affair...can't remember how that comes out.  Subsequently his wife dies & I don't know if he realizes that she was always the one or something like that.

Anyway my h remarked, with one foot out the door at the time, that the h still loves his wife.  Typically weird mlc observation.
 
Does anyone know what this movie was called?  Could be french or not.  I think the wife was blonde & looked like Miranda Richardson...or not--my memory is shot.  With all that happened after, him leaving etc., I would be interested to see it.

[theheartknows]

CJ, is there a French movie that doesn't involve the angst of an affair? I remember the last French film my sister and I watched, the man was in a lounge chair dying with his mistress on one side and his wife on he other. Talk about a MLC fantasy!!! I do not know the movie you are talking about but will check w my son who sees just about any foreign or offbeat film that comes out.

[Standing in Patience]

This is not a movie:

Family Guy - Lois has a midlife crisis and Peter and the children react to her "transformed" self and persona.

House - husband leaves wife and has a girlfriend. He goes to the hospital. Original wife and children rally to his side. He believes he is dying.
Patient learns that he is going to live and returns to the girlfriend. Not sure if it is MLC, but wife is wonderful when you really need support but girlfriend is the partner of choice when you think you are going to survive and lives more years. Hmmmm.

[limitless]

House - husband leaves wife and has a girlfriend. He goes to the hospital. Original wife and children rally to his side. He believes he is dying.
Patient learns that he is going to live and returns to the girlfriend. Not sure if it is MLC, but wife is wonderful when you really need support but girlfriend is the partner of choice when you think you are going to survive and lives more years. Hmmmm.

I remember that episode!  Isn't that the one where they patient was a "friend" of Wilson's?  And, duped Wilson into donating an organ, too?

I don't think it was so much of a MLC - as the patient was extremely Narcissistic.  It made complete "sense" to him to go back to his wife and child, if he were going to die.  The wife was so nurturing.  It was what HE needed.  But, once he was going to survive...the new young love interest was more fitting to his needs.

What a jerk that guy was! 

L

[Wed2Him?Whatever.]

Recently I re-watched the movie The Family Man, starring Nicolas Cage.  I heard a ton of "script" in the dialogue.  For anybody who hasn't seen it he's a financial guy living it up as a carefree bachelor.  He ends up being "magically transformed" into this middle-class married father of two so he can "learn a lesson."  His best friend sympathizes and says something like "All of a sudden every lingerie ad shows you the life you'll never have."  His little girl thinks he's an alien ("He's still learning our ways.").  He goes around saying things like how he's not this person and this isn't his life or the life he wanted, lamenting the fact his former life was wiped out, so it means things like his trip to Europe never happened.  If nothing else I recommend it as a Christmas movie because it has the "It's a Wonderful Life" feel, and it takes place at Christmastime.  You may hear B.S. in it you've heard from your own MLCer.

[Alwaysthere]

Watching "The Women" on E.  Meg Ryan plays a woman who's husband leaves her for an OW.  She asks herself the question we all ask here, "what do I want?".  She finds herself and as a result is able to repair many of her relationships. At the end her H indicates he wants her back.