preview

Conformity In Stranger Than Fiction

Decent Essays

Marc Forster’s film Stranger Than Fiction creates the story of Harold Crick’s mundane journey through life and his obsessive-compulsive disorder habits. In order to portray his message, Forster needs Harold to go against what he believes in and how his life has functioned since he was born. Through Crick’s wristwatch and his orderly life contrasts with him being simple, Forster challenges conformity and advocates individuality through life changing times. In the opening scene, Forster draws attention to the wristwatch that seems to control Harold’s life. Marc creates a rather quick sense of what kind of person Harold Crick is, the calculated IRS agent that has nothing exciting besides numbers in his life. Harold is has everything in his …show more content…

The parallel lines in the office the squared shapes in his apartment. Unlike like Ms. Pascal’s curvy, colorful lifestyle, Harold and the rest of the world is living in a tidy and formal world. Ana is the definition of individuality. She shows us that people are more interested in someone when they are themselves and living life in the best way they can, and not in a cubicle crunching numbers. Harold’s first sign of actual life within himself is when he meets Ana Pascal but the first time he breaks his patterns is when he hears Karen Eiffel. This shows that sometimes people just need an obstacle in their life, for Harold the voice in his head, to make you aware of your outside surroundings. While Karen initially planned to finish this as a tragedy she gave a comedy to Harold’s life by introducing him to the baker. While it is expected to follow the rules and pay all your taxes, life was not meant to be in a cubicle from nine to five. Breaking rules to do what you want sometimes is worth it, especially if you found something that you have never experienced before. From what the audience could tell Harold Crick was obviously so driven towards work and his schedule that he has never stepped back and enjoyed the little things. For example, instead of him going through the aligned boxes in the file room, he started to appreciate the time with Ana Pascal and having cookies and milk with her. The dynamic

Get Access