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1989 Movie
- Just what is Nathan's problem, anyway? I get that he's trying to raise a Child Prodigy, but why would he ignore Susan's needs while doing so? Either way, I refuse to see him as a "bad guy" because he isn't.
- It's not so much that he's ignoring her needs; he seems more like he's completely unaware of her. Basically, his interest in making Patty a prodigy has completely taken over his life, to the point where he fails to notice anything else around him. And as Susan tells Karen, when they were first dating/married, she liked the idea of him "reining her in" due to her own wild side. The problem is that now Susan doesn't need that any more, but she can't communicate that to Nathan because he's stopped listening to her altogether—not maliciously, more Innocently Insensitive. Plus Nathan's also doing Patty a disservice by refusing to let her play with other children all for the sake of developing her brain (social intelligence is just as important as IQ). Again, Nathan isn't a bad guy—just someone who's controlling and, more importantly, a terrible listener.
- He was very pompous in his views of child rearing, to the point where he started preaching it down others' throats (as he does with Gil during the family get-together). Plus he was very domineering towards Susan, and would trample over what she had to say (i.e. having their daughter go to preschool), and hardly gave her anything she yearned for (i.e. having more kids, going on a trip to Mexico just the two of them). This was what motivated her to leave him temporarily.
- What made Julie and Tod think that taking pictures of themselves having sex was a good idea? Yes, they are a couple, but that was totally brainless.
- Well, they are kids, despite their claim that they're mature. Horny teenagers tend to do stupid things.
