I have a small issue with the scene in who Larry leaves to go to chile after his father agreed to help him out with debts. Here's what irks me: if Larry's father knew his own son was going to die/never come back, why does he just let him leave? I feel like I would have yelled "DONT GO!" But instead he just let's his own son walk out.
Can someone rationalize this for me?
In my opinion, his Father had finally come to the realization that there was no helping Larry. He had tried and tried and Larry always took and never learned to stop screwing up. His Father came to understand the best he could do was to concentrate on "Cool", take care of him and try to raise him better rather than constantly fixing Larry's mistakes to the point that he never took ownership and "grew up". That was my take on it.
"You met me at a very strange time in my life"
What was the father supposed to do, barricade the door? He didn't "let" Larry leave, he simply recognized Larry was going to do what Larry was going to do. You really think yelling "DON'T GO" would have made Larry stop and realize, "you're right, I won't go" ? The father had just made a very fair, non-enabling offer to Larry, but Larry turned it down because he would have to (gasp) work. The father knew there was nothing he could do to change Larry. The best the dad could do was save Cool from an irresponsible parent.
You must be the change you seek in the world. -- Gandhi
Poor Frank though! 64 (and an old tired looking one at that) and starting back at square one raising a little kid. He'd be in his early 80s by the time Cool got out of high school circa 2004 at 18, if he even was still alive.
shareFrank told Gil that you are never done being a parent. That's true but it doesn't always apply. Larry was a grown adult. He wasn't a kid who still had some growing up to do. This was Larry grown up, A selfish, irresponsible, immature screw up. If he hadn't gotten it together by that point he was never going to no matter what Frank did. He did the best thing he could by washing his hands of the hassle of just knowing Larry and saving Cool from having to deal with it at all.
Bucka bucka, Enzo wife yucka.
In theory everyone's right about Larry being a loser and Frank's offer being more than fair and reasonable...BUT... knowing what kind of hardcore bad guys these bookies chasing after Larry were, do you really think they'd accept the installment payments Frank was proposing? More than likely they'd want all their money now, and I honestly wouldn't put it past them to even roughhouse Frank to get it if they couldn't find Larry.
In a weird way, Larry's taking off may have even protected Frank and his wife, and Cool, from any danger if they were focused on finding Larry instead? I don't think Frank understood HOW dangerous these guys actually were.
"do you really think they'd accept the installment payments Frank was proposing?"
Gangsters were (apparently) more restrained back in those days (unlike now where most criminal rings are also into drugs and thus don't give a rat's butt about landing in jail), especially the ones running book (where you need brains and low key to pass undetected). Plus if they were Italians, chances are (back then) they wanted to keep up a pretence of being part of the community (like John Gotti with his Robin Hood antics) and thus would avoid going after innocent people whom also happen to be elder citizens (the cops usually don't turn a blind eye to such things).
Like loan sharks: back then they would break your thumb or an arm if you fell behind but leave you alive so you could keep paying (you know, not kill the golden goose). Today they just kill you outright (since people today are much more likely to snitch and most criminals no longer care about long game).
The fact that they dropped off Larry unharmed (even if they bounced him off the car while in motion) indicates they are not that really hardcore. Otherwise Larry would already be missing fingers or something (like Sean Penn in U-Turn, now THOSE were hardcore gangsters).
So in that time and setting, it made perfect sense.
His dad finally realised whatever he did, Larry would leave. Had he agreed to stay he would have left within a couple of months. Also, for me, the father is so disappointed in his son, who doesn't even consider Cool when moving to chili. He realises his loss.
Jason Robard should have gotten an oscar for that scene, somehow without talking much he makes it such an emotional scene. Gives me chills everytime I see it.
I agree with everyone else. The father saw you cant help someone who doesn't want to be helped.
shareEither that, or just say "No. You are a grown man who made bad choices and got yourself in a load of trouble. You either accept my plan, or you take your chances with the bookies/gangsters/loan sharks."
Doing what he did just enabled him to keep on making poor decisions, then running home/or to someone else to bail him out when he did it again.
And remember, didn't Frank tell Gill he was going to retire soon, but he couldn't because cleaning up Larry's mess set him back years, not to mention taking care of a little kid now? You think Larry appreciated or even cared about that?? Pfft.
I can see where you're coming from, because for most of the movie the father is defending Larry, telling the mother "Quick is the best way to get rich!" etc. He's practically cheering his son on and definitely enabling him to make poor decisions.
I think it was the scene with his classic car that finally made him wake up to the fact his son was a liar and a loser, but by that point he had already spent so much time encouraging his son. Maybe part of the reason he's so quiet and resolved in this scene is because he realizes his son's behaviour is partially his own fault.
I think Frank was giving Larry a "take it or leave it" thing. If Larry left, Frank was certainly not going to help him and worry about him anymore. It is like taking the chick, bringing him to the edge of the nest, kicking him over, and letting him fly away or crash to his death in the ground. He realized that Larry really didn't want help, but the freedom to keep on losing. Well, Frank no longer wanted to be a part of that and decided that if Larry was going to leave, leave, but not to come crawling back to him again.
shareThis doesn't really have anything to do with Larry, but wasn't Larry's debt around $25,000 that his dad agreed to pay? He then told Gil, "I have the money but it's gonna hurt." How much do you think he actually saved for retirement if $25,000 would hurt him so much? You would think he would have A LOT more than that saved up if he was going to retire, right? Otherwise, how would he be planning to retire?
shareTo top it all off, after Larry told his dad he was leaving, his dad still gave Larry $2,000. After finally realizing his son is a liar and leaving a kid behind, he still gave Larry 2 grand!!!
shareI see that as a mercy to Cool. Separating Cool from Larry is the best thing that family could legally do for the kid. Larry is a lost cause. The money was a buy out for the kid.
shareSpot on.
That's what makes the scene so powerful. Frank has to finally cut Larry loose in order to save Cool, because as much as Frank loves his youngest son, he knows he's a lost cause.