Monday, September 29, 2014

Case Study No. 1605: Frank Barraclough

Miranda - John Simm
5:12
(2002) Frank (John Simm) is a librarian with a deep romantic streak and struck with love for a beautiful stranger named Miranda (Christina Ricci).

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Tags: Miranda John Simm Actor Christina Ricci Julian Rhind-Tutt
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[scene opens inside the "Central Library", as the young male librarian (short brown hair, brown jacket, white undershirt) is sitting at the front desk, swiveling in his chair while listening to music on his headphones and eating peanuts]
FRANK: [in voice over] Frank ... Barraclough. Rock star. Astronaut. Secret agent. Sex god. That was me.
[cut to a closeup of Frank's face]
FRANK: [in voice over] Wishing my life away. Listening to Elvis. Munching on nuts.
[camera pans down to reveal that he's created the image of a face out of peanut shells on the desk]
FRANK: [in voice over] But now I know, you've gotta be careful what you wish for.
[cut to Miranda standing outside of the library, smoking a cigarette]
FRANK: [in voice over] It might come true. Because at One-oh-Five PM, on the Twenty Fifth of February, my life changed. Forever.
[she puts out her cigarette and walks toward's the library's entrance, as "Monday" appears on screen]
[cut to Miranda walking into the library as dramatic music plays (causing a gust of fresh air from the outside to blow Frank's peanut shells off the desk)]
[cut to Frank slowly getting up from his desk, watching her as she walks by in slow motion]
FRANK: [in voice over] There she was. She looked like a hair advert.
[he takes off his headphones, as she walks right past him (crushing the peanut shells on the floor under her feet along the way)]
FRANK: [in voice over] She hit me like a truck, but with a bit more grace. And a lot more force.
["Tuesday" appears on screen, then cut to Frank reshelving books as he stares at Miranda]
FRANK: [in voice over] She was everything you could ever want.
[cut to Miranda sitting in the library, eating an apple]
FRANK: [in voice over] All wrapped up in this linen dress ... Size six, it was.
[Frank drops a book, then bends down to pick it up (as the camera zooms in on Miranda's mouth as she eats the apple)]
FRANK: [in voice over] She would chew things for a long time.
[cut back to Frank, as he stands up (still staring at her) and places the book back on the cart]
FRANK: [in voice over] Women 'round here, they never chew ... Just shovel it in.
[cut to another closeup of Miranda's mouth]
FRANK: [in voice over] Goes down their neck like a bobsleigh ... She was a tourist.
[she tosses the half-eaten apple into a wastebasket from a great distance]
FRANK: [in voice over] Definitely a tourist.
["Wednesday" appears on screen, then cut to Frank and a male patron staring at Miranda as she stands outside the library]
FRANK: You think she's outta my league?
ROD: [pause] "He who desires, but does not act, is prone to dream. He who acts, but does not dream, is lost."
[Frank thinks this over, when they notice Miranda picking her nose]
ROD: I'll bet she eats it ...
[she takes out a handkerchief and wipes it off her finger]
ROD: Mmm, well posh.
["Thursday" appears on screen, then cut to Miranda sitting outside of the library and eating sushi]
FRANK: [in voice over] Everyday, she would sit there, gorging on uncooked flesh. Like a vampire.
[cut to a closeup of Miranda's mouth as she eats the sushi]
FRANK: [in voice over] If those lips were to talk to me, I would die.
[cut to Frank nervously rearranging the items on his desk]
FRANK: [in voice over] A happy man.
[cut to Rod watching him]
ROD: She is gonna love that desk ...
[Frank gives him a dirty look]
ROD: No, she will. Really. I'm telling you. No ... One look at that desk, and she will be absolutely gagging for it.
[Frank slightly moves a plastic bookstand on the desk]
FRANK: This here?
ROD: Oooh ...
[Frank folds his arms and smiles with satisfaction ... then (not quite satisfied) decides to slightly move the bell on his desk]
["Friday" appears on screen, then cut to Miranda outside of the library, lighting a cigarette and staring at a flyer on the community bulletin board]
FRANK: [in voice over] Who was she, this creature? This mystery? This ... girl?
[a limousine pulls up across the street, and when Miranda sees it she drops the cigarette, as the camera pans up to reveal that the flyer reads "Library Closing Down for Demolition"]
[cut to two Japanese businessmen exiting the limousine and crossing the street, then back to Miranda as she takes out her lighter and sets the flyer ablaze]
[cut to Miranda entering the library (nervously looking behind her towards the two men)]
FRANK: [in voice over] She wore a mac, like those old detective movies where the women used to kiss and chew gum at the same time.
[cut to Frank looking over a book at the front desk, as he briefly glances up to look at her]
FRANK: [in voice over] I loved her. I didn't know anything about her, but I loved her.
[cut to Miranda pretending to browse the shelves, when she sees the two men approaching ... so she suddenly appears in front of Frank's desk]
MIRANDA: I'd like to see the lecture theater, please.
[Frank looks up from his book in shock (not having noticed that Miranda had approached him)]
FRANK: [pause] Are you from New York?
[she gives him a confused look]
MIRANDA: No.
FRANK: [pause] Neither am I.
[she turns and sees the two men inspecting the front of the library, and turns back to Frank]
MIRANDA: Can I see it now?
[he looks over at the room marked "Theatre" and gets a confused look on his face]
FRANK: They're knocking it down.
[she laughs]
MIRANDA: Then I guess you'd better hurry.
FRANK: Yeah. Yeah.

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From wikipedia.org:

Miranda is a 2002 British comedy film starring Christina Ricci, Kyle MacLachlan, John Simm, John Hurt, Tamsin Greig and Julian Rhind-Tutt. The film is classified as a Romance/Thriller by IMDb.

Plot
Frank (Simm), a librarian in the United Kingdom, falls in love with a mysterious American dancer named Miranda (Ricci). Frank is complex and appears naive. However, his character is a complex as Miranda. There are graphic scenes of sex and seduction, which is not gratuitous, but depicts Frank's fantasy and unrealistic love for Miranda. She suddenly disappears, and he tracks her down in London, finding out that she is actually a con artist. He leaves her, returning to Northern England.

Miranda and her boss (Hurt), who not so secretly "loves" her, are in business selling buildings that they don't own to unwitting customers. These buildings are really being prepared for demolition. In one scene in which Miranda was negotiating the sale of a warehouse with Nailor (MacLachlan), Nailor saw men putting down cable around the building. He asked Miranda what were they doing and she replied that they were putting in cable TV when,in fact, they were preparing the warehouse for demolition. After making a big score, by successfully conning Nailor to buy the warehouse, her boss leaves her, and Nailor seeks revenge against Miranda.

Frank realizes that he should not have left her, and returns to London, with a very quirky friend who was instrumental in saving Miranda from a knife wielding Nailor. While Frank’s friend distracted Nailor with fancy jiu jitsu manoeuvres, Frank slams a table over Nailor’s head. The film ends in comic relief with Frank and Miranda living the good life off Miranda's ill begotten funds.

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From byui.edu:

MIRANDA (2002). A lonely and somewhat nerdy librarian (John Simm) meets the beautiful and mysterious Miranda when she walks into the library. He immediately falls in love with her and they begin a passionate affair. Then she suddenly disappears. He follows her to London where he discovers that she has three identities – a dancer, a dominatrix and a con-woman.

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From close-upfilm.com:

Frank Barraclough (John Simm) is a bored and somewhat nerdy librarian in an unnamed northern British town ... bored that is, until a mysterious young American woman named Miranda (Christina Ricci) starts hanging around at the library for no apparent reason. When Miranda asks to view the library's lecture theatre, Frank takes a chance and asks her out. Despite an initial reserve Miranda succumbs to Frank's honesty and kindness, and soon moves in with him. Frank is smitten but Miranda is preoccupied by her mysterious job and by whispered phone calls with her shady employer Christian (John Hurt). Without warning she packs and leaves - as Frank narrates "Boy meets girl, boy loses girl, girl fucks off in a Taxi." Following her to London, Frank begins to fear that Miranda isn't what she seems and that she may be involved in some decidedly dodgy business. But then wasn't it her air of Mystery that attracted him in the first place?

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