MovieChat Forums > Match Point (2006) Discussion > I Felt Bad for Nola

I Felt Bad for Nola

posted 9 years ago by TooPrettyInPink
24 replies | jump to latest

Thinking back on the movie, did anyone else feel bad for Nola's life in London, especially after Tom broke up with her? Her character seemed exciting, gorgeous, and living a great life at first glance, but if you think about it, it was kind of sad, empty, and going nowhere. She was a grown woman who was barely making any money (struggling actress working at a boutique shop, which couldn't have paid much) and living alone in a foreign country without any friends or family (from what the film showed us). She didn't seem to have any substantial hobbies or social life, and her job was boring/menial. She had her looks going for her, but in the grand scheme of things those can only take you so far; other than that her life prospects were super bleak. And living by herself must have been lonely as hell, too. Lonely, aimless, lower class, with little hope for upward mobility... that's a pretty sad life to lead as an adult, to be honest.

In this context, I'm not surprised she went off the deep end when Chris started lying to her. She was probably desperate and didn't want to lose him, since he was basically all she had going for her. It's kind of weird that her character seemed to exist in a vacuum... this was probably done intentionally to emphasize her constant objectification at the hands of other characters, but did anyone else just really pity her? I can't shake the feeling that despite her fiery demeanor, Nola was probably actually super aimless and downtrodden, and that's why she went crazy.

[–] Sibyla01 7 years ago

She was born loser. Other girl with her looks would achieve wonders, but she was defaitistic (mark her dialog with Chris in the cafe - the style of speaking, body language: great work, Scarlett and the scenarist!) Her whole backgroud was trashy: father left, mother drank, sister was in drugs - there must be somenthing wrong with the whole set. Tom´s mother hated her not without reason - she liked pennyless Chris, money wasn´t the matter.

[–] Daisy (3022) 7 years ago

These could be factors as to why she went off the deep end, maybe a history of mental illness. This is not a reason to feel no pity for her though.

[–] ExTechOp (2755) 9 months ago

History of mental illness is MORE reason to feel pity for her, in my opinion.

I’d had this on my watch-list for years and finally just bought the damn flick already. So glad I did; it’s a worthy companion to “Crimes & Misdemeanors” (albeit without any of the LOL moments).

My first viewing, I felt for Chris and, while I didn’t hate Nola, really resented her pushing him. I also suspect she was lying about the pregnancy.

But NONE of that matters as “Daisy,” posting from the old IMDB, lays it out pretty convincingly in this thread.

Sure, they shared a near-instant attraction and had their fling in the rain. But Nola was willing to let Chris go for everyone’s good.

Chris was the one who pursued her and lied to her about leaving Chloe (which he was NEVER going to do, as he all but admitted to his tennis friend).

Yes, Nola went nuts, may have lied about the pregnancy, and backed Chris into a corner. That was dumb but it’s her ONLY real “sin” in this flick. Everything else she did was fairly reasonable given Chris’s lies to her.

DEFINITELY feel sorry for her.

I also wonder whether, if Chris just fessed up about lying to her for sex, she might’ve actually dropped the whole thing. She went crazy, but as Daisy pointed out, Chris was her lifeline. She was in a dead-end job, pursuing a pipe dream in acting, had no other family and what looked like very few friends. She was clinging to Chris as her literal last hope. Maybe, if he’d pulled away definitively, like a real man, she’d have dropped it.

Unlike Dolores (Anjelica Houston’s character in “Crimes & Misdemeanors”), Nola didn’t seem vengeful so much as protective over what little life had given her.

Just a stellar performance from Scarlett. I’ll have to see more of Rhys Meyers’s work, though, before I can decide whether he was a great actor or just effectively used by Allen in this movie.

EDIT: Went back and watched Rhys Meyers in "Mission: Impossible III," where he's the literal opposite of Chris in this film (enthusiastic, excitable, openly sentimental). Even his eyes look different.

[–] Daisy (3022) 9 months ago

I’m still here 😊

[–] Daisy (3022) 7 years ago

I felt sorry for her. Of course she would be vunerable after Tom making her get an abortion and then breaking it off with her. Her career was going no where and I think she saw the baby and Chris as a way to start a new life. I think she would have left acting behind and raised the baby. He could have left his job to be with her. He was clearly greedy and this is why he would not leave his wife. I think it could have been perceived that Nola was in the wrong, but Chris intentionally looked for her (at her old apartment), and then begged for her number at the gallery. He also told her all sorts of lies to make her fall in love with him.

[–] lemonhead1 (410) 2 years ago

No, the one I felt bad for was Chloe!