STORY STUDY - MEDIUM: FILM/THEATER - “Some Girl(s)”
If you were told that someone wanted and went through making up for the mistakes he’s done to women, you’d probably think he’s changed for the better. But like with everything, this can be seen in two very opposite point of views: noble and pathetic.
Written by Neil Labute, Some Girl(s) is about an unnamed Man, a successful writer about to be married. Before he does so, he meets up with women from his past relationships in hotel rooms of various cities in an attempt to apologize for his mistreatment of them. However, how he views himself as doing the right thing, these women know and realize better.
The play is presented with four separate scenes with four different women. Through his conversations with each woman, we learn about his relationship to each woman, and as each scene progresses, we find out why this man is not someone to be liked or aspire to be. Peel back his “good guy” persona, and it reveals a well-intentioned, but selfish jerk who has hurt each of them.
I won't go into the specifics of how he has wronged each woman, but it always involved him abandoning them after making them feel loved.
I picked out this play not knowing very much of Labute’s work. A writer wanting to make amends with women in his past? Sure, that sounds like something I would like to read. I’ll admit, maybe because I wasn’t really processing the play as I was reading it, but I didn’t know what was going on outside of two people talking.
Years later in 2013 when the film version came out, everything started to become clearer and… yeah, that’s when I realize what kind of a character I was witnessing. Directed by Daisy von Scherler Mayer and written by Labute himself, the film follows his play faithfully.
In the film, there is one more scene with a girl named Reggie, whose scene is available to be read if you pick up the play. Reggie was intended to be in the play, but it ended up being a deleted scene, but it is reinserted for the film.
Today, I definitely see Some Girl(s) as a cautionary tale of anyone who wants to “right any wrongs,” especially if it’s for objectively the wrong reasons. It’s certainly an uncomfortable story to witness, but that’s typically what Labute’s work does. Despite the seemingly noble intentions, sometimes it's not about you, and that just because you are trying to get over it, doesn't mean the other person hasn't.
If you're up for this kind of story, then check into your hotel, and check it out.
