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
