MovieChat Forums > Scrooged (1988) Discussion > Why did Frank Cross deserve a second cha...

Why did Frank Cross deserve a second chance.

posted 11 years ago by h-oates
16 replies | jump to latest

I have always wondered why Frank was given a second chance by some higher power, because to me he didn't seem to be a sympathetic character. I understand why Scrooge from A Christmas Carol was given another chance, he had no mother or father, and the only person who really loved him (his sister) died.. This left him all alone.. Frank Cross did have a mother, who loved him. He also had a brother who he pushed away from him.. I just don't understand why Frank was given a second chance. Why did he deserve it, that's my question.

[–] novastar_6 11 years ago

Why does anybody deserve a second chance? The fact remains that they do and some of them get it.

[–] sfien 11 years ago

It's just a movie.

[–] jimmycurry01 11 years ago

Agreed, sometimes, it's just not that deep.

[–] flameman3 11 years ago

Just so you know, Scrooge did have a father. In most movies we don't see very much of that character, but its implied that Scrooge's father is mean and strict, much like Frank's father.
As to the question, why does Frank deserve a second chance? Why did Scrooge deserve a second chance too? It doesn't matter, and they most certainly deserved another chance. Its not like they were evil or killed people or anything, they were just mean people. And people such as themselves can change if given the chance. So why not show them the error of their ways and give them a second chance? Many people if given that same chance can turn their lives around drastically.

[–] mugojoe 11 years ago

The question shouldn't be so much "Why does Cross (or Scrooge) get a second chance?" but "Why do I?"

You don't need to traverse the selfish depths of these characters to realize that you can make a difference -- at least in Dickens'/Donner's mind.

[–] mcfly-31 11 years ago

I never viewed Frank as "mean," just a little bit bitter. He's shown in his earlier scenes as a sensitive child and then a go-getter in his 20s. Being entrusted with so much responsibility at IBC certainly resulted in him being more stressed and reactionary, causing him to lash out at those around him. Known a number of people like that in life, who are basically good guys, but have a habit of being moody. What saved it was Frank's (really Bill's) dark sense of humor, which made the character bearable.

"If I had ya where I wanted ya, they'd be pumpin your ass full of formaldehyde!"

[–] the_bigguy_15 9 years ago

"The question shouldn't be so much "Why does Cross (or Scrooge) get a second chance?" but "Why do I?"

You don't need to traverse the selfish depths of these characters to realize that you can make a difference -- at least in Dickens'/Donner's mind."

I think this is the main point. It isn't about 'why' he did or didn't deserve a second chance. The point of the movie is that someone as selfish and uncaring as Scrooge (or in this case, Cross) can change and become a person who cares more about others and will use his money/standing in life to make these changes.

If people that are this selfish can become caring, then everyone can become more caring.

[–] Neoblackdragon 10 years ago

Well keep in mind that in both stories, it was the man who essentially created Frank and Scrooge that brought the ghosts long. Lew through his own behavior and mentoring pushed Frank to become a damned man. So Lew is trying to fix his mistakes from the afterlife.

Also it's worth noting that by saving Frank, Frank in turns helps others around him. And those people will go on to help those around them. Frank may be a focal point that tips the scales.

[–] MadSimian 10 years ago

Another thing to consider is that Frank, Scrooge or whomever can be given all the second chances in the world but, in the end, THEY have to make the choice to better themselves. No one else can make it for them or magically snap their fingers and fix their life.

Sometimes it's a good day to die and sometimes it's a good day to have breakfast.

[–] rizdek 10 years ago

I think we aren't supposed to wonder that...NOT that you can't nor that it isn't a good question, but the story is a fantasy with a lesson...almost like a parable or a fable. The creator(s) of stories like that didn't want to try to explain the power behind the unusual happenings. For example, did you ever wonder why animals could talk in Aesop's Fable about the Hare and the Tortoise? Did you even wonder WHY the magic of a true loves kiss could save Snow White...or Fiona? Or WHY Santa's reindeer can fly, how he visits every house in one night and how he knows if children are good or bad? Well, I think it's like that. We aren't really supposed to...we're supposed to enjoy the story and maybe learn a lesson.

I think the lesson is that we are all to examine our lives to see where we might be like Frank/Scrooge and how we might change. The ghosts are presented to Frank to show him his past/present/future and I guess we are to imagine those ghosts showing us OUR past/present/future so that we give ourselves a second chance. IMHO Dicken's Christmas Carol, Scrooge (based loosely on it) and other movies...like Groundhog Day or...12 Dates of Christmas...bring the message that while we are still living, we CAN change. The goal, I think, is NOT to try to explain the power behind it NOR why it happened, but how might it help us.

[–] Splarne 10 years ago

answer to your question, by leading another question:

by what rules are we judging who gets a second chance? no one deserves a second chance. everyone gets one though.... except for those aborted by Donner and his pro-choice cronies. oh wait... different thread.

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Thread ender.

[–] rizdek 10 years ago

But those people...fetuses...aborted before they make any mistakes don't need a second chance, do they? Aren't they escorted unscathed directly into heaven to sit on Jesus' knee chant choruses for eternity?

But of course, I am being aggressively naive!

[–] hawkychico-1 9 years ago

Both Scrooge and Frank got second chances because they had someone that cares enough to give it to them. Scrooge had Marley, Marley didn't get a second chance but Scrooge did because of Marley. Same thing with Frank.

[–] TVholic 8 years ago

It was never about giving Scrooge or Cross a second chance to save themselves. These were guys who were making everybody else miserable. They needed to be shown the error of their ways so they could help others.

Here's a question: How much of a story would it have been if instead of visiting Frank, the ghosts had visited Herman (Michael J. Pollard's character who froze to death)? Instead of Frank seeing a future selfish, old Claire, why didn't the ghosts just visit her in that time period and save her then? Or if you want to talk "all alone," what about Eliot Loudermilk, who had misfortune heaped upon him all through the movie (fired on Christmas Eve, his wife left him and took their daughter with her, he got splashed by a car and the bottle of whiskey he tried to drink fell and broke, he passed out after giving blood and got robbed by a homeless person).

[–] AmyJolamb 7 years ago

Because no one is perfect and everyone deserves a second chance.