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The Gift
David Kahn is a 42-year-old psychologist living with his wife, Karen, in a large New Jersey suburb. With his only son is away at college, David and his wife have settled into a routine. She stays at home, and he sees patients in a successful practice; however, only a thin veil masks David from his growing unhappiness. His fulfilled life is maintained by a carefully ordered web of self-lies and fallacies that keep him an almost insufferable optimist out of touch with his own reality.

All of this changes when 14-year-old Blake enters his office. Blake is an affluent student at a local private school, and is a near-genius at the top of his class. Despite being a self-described nerd, he is blessed with a small, but loyal group of friends – which he calls the "depressed crowd." Despite having a loving family and a bright future ahead, Blake is incapable of seeing this future without imagining darkness and misery. His seemingly perfect life is distorted by his no-nonsense, depressed outlook that alienates him from his upbeat family. Blake’s depression is all encompassing, and even as he starts a romantic relationship and aids in the issues of his friends, he remains convinced of his fate.

David and Blake’s therapy sessions quickly become intimate. Even as Blake explains all the pain that has scarred his life, he remains in a monotonous and detached tone, seemingly uncaring about his own life. Dr. Kahn, however, is haunted by Blake’s words. Unknowingly, the boy casually deconstructs every aspect of Kahn’s life, quickly exposing him to landslide of dammed-up emotions. Kahn becomes less and less capable of dealing with his patients, his wife, and his life as a whole.

One night, Kahn becomes overwhelmed, and he gets drunk to numb the pain. As David passes out, he hears his answering machine click on. That same night, Blake had returned home from a day in which the worst of all things happened – nothing. With no event, no intrigue, or anything else to hold on to, Blake decided to finally be done with his dark life. Unable to endure writing a note, Blake called Kahn with his final thoughts. Then, he reached for a knife. The next day, Kahn finds the near-hysterical message on his machine and learns that the Blake is dead. Overwhelmed with guilt, Kahn’s splintering life finally shatters.

His sessions with other patients become unbearable, and his shallow marriage disintegrates. Kahn must find a way not only to deal with his guilt, but also to reorder his entire life, which has so carefully concealed his unhappiness. From watching Blake’s favorite Buffy episode to treating Blake’s friends, Kahn slowly finds an outlet and a way to heal himself. David works to rebuild his life.

-- Script Pitch III Host Commentary --
by Lee Tistaert and Stephen Lucas

Lee's Analysis:

The reason this was the only C+/B- pitch that didn’t get the potential greenlit sign is that I don’t think the story works entirely, but there are little details that could prove to be minor attractions. I’m not sure what the audience can take away from this story, meaning wise, or in relation to their own lives, but I see there being acting opportunities within the therapy sessions.

This could be a movie with some fine acting moments, but the predicament being that the story isn’t engaging enough to wonder what will happen. If you end it on the downer of a climax as you have, the viewer can also walk out feeling cheated and think the movie was pointless.

The concept reminds me of Abandon, and though I didn’t think that movie was something you could really recommend in theaters (similarly to this), I felt Katie Holmes’ performance was good, and so was the tone at times.

Stephen's Analysis:

For some reason while I read this pitch, "The Sixth Sense" came to mind. Perhaps because in it, there is an intense and intimate connection between doctor and patient that isn’t often established. Likewise, I think "The Gift" sounds to be a good idea for a film, though I wish you would have given more detail about the end result of the movie. What effect will his patient’s suicide have on him? I bet it’s profound, but what does that lead to for the doctor? Although there are some gaps in your description of the story, I see promise.

Rating: B

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