The girl who killed herself... - Up in the Air (2009) Discussion

[–] Banaga 9 years ago

I think the point of him not remembering her was to show how detached he was. He was just doing his job and the fact that he didn't remember her shows that he really didn't care about the people he was firing (using standard lines etc). He also talks in very generic terms when asked about her ('you never expect them to'), what leads me to believe he really didn't remember this specific woman. That would be my interpretation.

Could be that he did remember her, but I would expect them to make that more obvious.

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[–] eddieinportland 9 years ago

Ryan didn't remember her. To him she was just another faceless person that he just fired that he'll never see again.

Ryan never cared or wondered about the people he fired. All he cared about was going to the next city for another round of firings. And going pass the 10 million mile mark on his frequent flyer miles card.

Ryan loved his job. He loved being on the road for most of the year. He loved the fact he never had to pay for his flights, hotels, meals, or his rental cars. So if he had to fire a bunch of people to keep his life going. So much the better.

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[–] PopperTheKungFu-Dragon 9 years ago

I thought they were asking about other women in general when they asked that question. I thought it was pretty obvious that Ryan remembered her since Natalie and he actually had a conversation about it after her bridge comment.

Very good. But brick not hit back!

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[–] TheCinemator 9 years ago

Of coarse he remembered her. He just denied it so that the young girl wouldn't have gotten in legal trouble. He was covering for her.

It was a turning point, just after giving up precious frequent flyer miles for sister, he covers for the young girl. The first time he was thinking of other people rather than himself.

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[–] Burningfire78 9 years ago

I was about to disagree with everyone then read your post Cinemator. You got it right.

Of coarse he remembered her. He just denied it so that the young girl wouldn't have gotten in legal trouble. He was covering for her.

It was pretty obvious when right away he asked how Natalie was doing.

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[–] fritterz15 9 years ago

This is exactly right. I don't think he remembered the lady at first, but when the boss mentioned she jumped off a bridge, he probably remembered then. But he had to stay "confused."

She could have gotten in trouble... it was her first time firing someone, and Karen Barnes gave off so many signs of a suicidal person... Natalie definitely recognized signals and communicated it to Ryan ("She was really calm.") They should have done something, but they didn't.

Ryan was just covering her butt.

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[–] gmoxie 9 years ago

Yes. Ryan had heard lots of instances where people blurt out that they are going to jump out the window, off a bridge, etc, but don't do it. But he definitely remembered this specific instance because of the conversation he had with Natalie after she heard those words for the first time. When his boss asked him if he remembered, he immediately knew he had to deny it because of the legal implications. However, it's likely that Natalie, right before she resigned, admitted that she remembered the woman said she would jump off a bridge. So the question to Ryan was asking for a confirmation. Without his confirmation, the boss might think that Natalie was having an emotional reaction to the news and didn't remember correctly -- hence no legal action.

Also I agree that this was a turning point for Ryan.

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[–] mikebos 9 years ago

In the movie, you only see a few. They show that one in order to do the "one of your firings killed themselves" later, and you'd remember it. If you were sitting through literally dozens of firings every single day, with so many of them doing that exact thing (but never following through), you wouldn't remember anything out of the ordinary, either.

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[–] Thornspike 9 years ago

I did not believe he didn't remember her. He did. He just had to say that to avoid blowback, he wasn't under oath.

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[–] dschico 9 years ago

He absolutely remembered her.

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[–] wasvsdal 9 years ago

Definitely remembered her. It was Natalie's first firing too. Probably just covered their butt.

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[–] Digital_Data 8 years ago

I am sure, he remembered, look at his reaction, when he was told. And no, he is not lying. He was sure, what she said doesn't mean anything and he is at least sure in this moment. And for me as viewer, yes I thought she would jump, but only because it is a movie and everything in a movie has it 's reason, even it's such a good movie like this. Based on the way she expressed it, I also wouldn't have believed it. And that makes it great. That's the small path between the things.

Digital_Data
http://www.youtube.com/LiebensteinMovies

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[–] mimosa_mirabella 8 years ago

It was obvious to me that Ryan -after a second- recalled the WOMAN who said after the final termination she would jump off a particular bridge.

May I add that a 40 yr old woman (iirc the character looked age 40 or older) is well beyond the ages properly described as a 'girl'. I'm not being pedantic here. Maybe it's because that heartbreaking 'interview' scene has stayed in my mind long after seeing Up In The Air.

Often employees of a company which is downsizing anticipate the firings and contemplate their own future options. We can't know exactly why the character in the scene (this wonderful! actress whose name I'm going to search for)despaired so deeply, but I imagine she had worked hard to get a good job. Many people lose their homes when they lose jobs.

http://vincentandmorticiasspeakeasy14846.yuku.com/directory

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[–] jamesdean-13 7 years ago

I thought he was lying about not remembering her but it makes a lot more sense that he genuinely doesn't remember because he doesn't care - everyone becomes a nameless faceless person to be fired

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