"PLUSH"
11.07
Writers: Eric Charmelo & Nicole Snyder
Director: Tim Andrew
Director of Photography C.S.C: Serge Ladouceur
BY WEDNESDAY
Uncle Hoppity comes to life!
Disturbing direction, parallels, and questions keep us guessing.
What did I see?
SCRIPT
There could have been a whole lot more bunny jokes:
Harvey, Donnie Darko, Monty Python's killer bunny, etc. More KILLER BUNNY!!
Dialogue did not always ring true for some characters.
The script was more intent on drawing existing parallels and themes and raising some interesting questions.
Two initial questions were, "Why would Sam kneel at the foot of his bed to pray? What is he four?"
And another question, "Why did he leave the door open?"
The answers reveal the point of this episode. Sam confronted his fear of Clowns, a fear instilled in him at a young age.
The boy inside the man.
Dean's question in the Road So Far echoes eerily throughout this piece, "What in the world did they do to you?"
Another fear that becomes apparent in Sam is a fear of being closed in: Claustrophobia.
This probably has more to do with his experience in the CAGE.
This episode was about Sam confronting his fears.
The beginning scene no longer seems weird in retrospect, just a little contrived.
If the script's intent was to raise questions about the major arc of the season, it succeeded.
(See DISTURBING QUESTIONS further down.)
As interesting as Sam's character development was, Donna's floundered.
A theme explored was the cruel persecution that comes from pre judging someone.
But, Donna doesn't seem the type to be bitter or cruel to someone just for having the same name as her ex.
Donna was completely devastated by her ex's put downs, but here, she has become crueller than ex-Doug.
Not buying it.
Is this all a contrived way to show women, especially mistreated women, not to judge all men by the bad behaviour of
one man? As in #NotAllMen. Boo. Sure, we get it.
Although, there probably are women who become a little standoffish after a failed marriage,
Donna doesn't seem to be one of those.
She was downright cranky pants when Sam offered her some advice and she told him to mind his own bee's wax.
And, she did not apologize.
Then, there's the scene where she insists on lifting the rabbit by herself, "CrossFit" and all that.
But, of course she can't, proving once and for all that women are not as physically strong as men!?????
Boo and boo again.
The fat sucker jokes annoyed many people. This woman is gorgeous.
It's her mannerisms and acting that make her seem a little goofy.
That uniform is also not doing her any favors.
( And, is it just me, or does she look slimmer?)
Can we stop with the fat jokes and the diet obsession? It's not healthy.
I'm glad she's now a hunter. Hugs all around.
(However, you do realize, women hunters do NOT fare well on this show.)
It would have been nice to see Jody Mills, too. Donna and Jody are a great team.
I have a suspicion this episode will make more sense with hindsight.
Great moments were the passing of the clown photograph, the bunny jokes, and Dean's pissing contest with the
weightlifter. To see Dean lift, see here:
ALLUSIONS
For trailer and more info visit the site.
http://plushthemovie.com/
Listen to this Pearl Jam-ish song here:
COSTUMES
Kerry Weinrauch and the costume department stole the show with the creepy, gungy costumes.
How did Chester not terrify the children wearing these?
The Bunny:
The Jester:
The Deer:
There was also the clown costume, featured below.
(I'll pass on the Woodpecker costume.)
COLOUR
Various shades of Green provided an atmosphere of FEAR.
"Fear cripples you. Makes you do nothing, or worse, makes you do something you regret."
MOTIFS/SYMBOLS
The Cage
The Chair
SPECTACULAR SEQUENCES
There were some disturbing deaths by beer bottle, kettlebell and scalpel, and the Bridge drop.
The Clown killing the Coach with the high angle/low angle shots and the close-ups of red shoes, blood
spatter, and the interesting mirror shot was creepy.
This was all done to the accompaniment of freaky, carny music.
The simplicity of the Sam/Clown sequence and the reactions of Sam
make this scene a standout memorable SPN moment. Ironic "Elevator Music" plays throughout.
The doors slide open.
The doors slide close.
Sam confronts his fears.
The Bridge drop was also a brilliantly done scene, capturing the terror of Chester from his perspective,
high angle shots, and the assailants' perspective.
The drop is captured in a LONG SHOT.
The panic and guilt of the characters
is framed by a surrealistic scene of lush green cliffs and indifferent water.
FULL SHOT of Sam. Rare, perhaps because of his height, Sam is unbalanced and framed
by an open doorway with a dissipating plane of perspective behind him.
SUBFRAMING SHOTS
(Picture within a picture)
Ear Frame
Baby Frame
Interesting shots were framed with important elements of the mise en scene and made full use of the bottom foreground.
Disturbing Over The Shoulder Shot
DISSOLVE
DISTURBING QUESTIONS
1. Was Chester innocent or guilty of sexual abuse? Was young Sam molested by the Clowns?
2. What is going on with the pedophilia theme this season?
3. Was the plot parallel of Rita betraying her brother Chester, used to portray
Sam and Dean, or God and the Darkness?
4. Note the Coach and Stan Hinkle were described as being "like brothers." Did they kill Chester? Was it really an
accident? Are they supposed to parallel Sam and Dean: two brothers righteously trying to protect others?
5. So many uncles. Uncle Hoppity, Uncle Crowley, Lizzie Borden's uncle, and Uncle
Chester. (Chester the Molester, Really? Really?) Donna also mentions having an
Uncle Wally with a big head. If Dean is Amara's father, does that make Sam, Uncle Sam?
6. So much smashing glass. Dean goes through a mirror in "Our Little World." Sam
breaks through the china cabinet. Dean crashes through the French doors. Are they
in an alternate universe? Like Alice through the looking glass, or the French Mistake?
(Nice crashes BTW)
7. What about the "Magic," the "puppets," and the images of the earth?
All the Feels
From the Rear-view
THANKS TO:
Supernatural Wiki
Screencapped Net: Thanks Raina!
Forever Dreaming Transcript
IMDB: Cast List
Tumblr gifs:
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Already cited: Plush Movie offical site, Song Facts,
Google images: STP
Wed.gif from Giphy
