During his brief TED talk, actor-filmmaker Ethan Hawke spoke about the value of art in our lives. “Art is not a luxury; it is sustenance,” he said while talking about the relationship between creativity and the human mind. Alex Thompson & Kelly O’Sullivan’s “Ghostlight” (2024) explores a similar notion through its protagonist, who can process his emotions once he embraces the healing power of art. Simultaneously, it is a story about grief and unresolved trauma that haunts him after a familial tragedy. The script examines the intricacies in parent-children relationships as its characters navigate their way out of a generational gap.
Spoiler ahead.
Ghostlight (2024) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
Directed by Alex Thompson and Kelly O’Sullivan, “Ghostlight” follows a construction worker who gets roped into a local theatre group’s production of Romeo and Juliet. It helps him process some complicated emotions about a recent loss.
What is ‘Ghostlight’ about?
“Ghostlight” revolves around Dan (Keith Kupferer), a middle-aged construction worker married to Sharon (Tara Mallen). They have an angst-ridden teenage daughter, Daisy (Katherine Mallenz Kupferer), who is passionate about theatre. But she decides to leave it behind after a tragic incident. Her brother, Brian, recently died by suicide. After his death, Dan filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Brian’s then-girlfriend, Christine (Lia Cubilete), and her parents. Brian’s death has taken a toll on all his family. But they haven’t yet had a chance to grieve properly.
Daisy, who is barely 16, doesn’t get to express her emotions openly with her family since Dan is an old-school parent. This leads to her frequent emotional outbursts at school. After a potentially violent interaction, the school principal takes action against Daisy and puts her under a two-week suspension. Back home, Dan struggles to show his affection to Sharon, who understands he often buries his pain and sadness. As a theatre director at Daisy’s school, Sharon directs a play where kids learn healthier ways to deal with difficult emotions like anger.
How does Dan get into the theatre group?
During his job as a construction worker, Dan inadvertently distracts a theatre group with the noise. So, actor Rita (Dolly De Leon) asks him to keep it quiet. Dan reveals that he is helpless. Another day, he receives a call about the deposition. He can’t hear the caller due to some network issues. So, while trying to find the coverage, he gets in the middle of the road, in front of a car. The driver insults Dan. Dan gets furious. Moments later, Dan realizes it is misplaced anger. The driver threatens to make him lose his job. Rita sees this happen from a distance. She notices Dan’s intensity and how he processes his emotions. So, she invites him to a reading session of their recreation of Romeo & Juliet.
Dan sees the other actors’ preparation rituals and can’t fit in with them. Therefore, he reads his character lines in a monotone. Back home, he tells his family they should prepare for their deposition. After dinner, he asks Daisy about the Shakespeare play. She recites some lines verbatim and then shows him the 1996 film adaptation. He leaves it midway and realizes that it ends on a tragic note. According to the school’s instructions, Dan hires someone for Daisy’s counseling sessions. Later, at home, he sees Sharon planting a garden over the site of Brian’s suicide in their yard. He gets upset, but Daisy sees it as a way to process their emotions in a positive light. As Daisy walks over the site, Dan erupts at her.
How does Dan become the Romeo in the play?
Dan leaves his work early to attend the rehearsals. Unlike others, he struggles to articulate his emotions or be vulnerable about his fears and embarrassments. Rita helps him get in touch with his feelings. Later, the young actor playing Romeo calls Rita too old to play the part of Juliet and makes a scene. So, she punches him in the face. In between the rehearsals, Dan seeks Daisy’s advice for his performance. She says that learning the lines is easy, but finding their emotional truth is rather challenging. Eventually, Dan’s boss hears about his outburst since a video clip of his fight goes viral. So, Dan gets suspended from his duty.
After the young actor departs, Lucian (Tommy Rivera-Vega) replaces him as Romeo. Dan sees them perform the ending of Romeo & Juliet’s wilful death and objects to it. He demands they change the ending. It doesn’t make sense to him that someone would take such an intense step for their love. No one accepts his wishes, which makes him furious. Then, he opens up about Brian, who died when he was barely 17. Dan’s castmates realize that his anger comes from a deep emotional place. So, they gather around him to comfort him. Slowly, Dan begins to realize how the play helps him with his grieving process. He shows genuine interest in improving himself and seeks Rita’s help. Subsequently, Rita and director Lanora (Hanna Dworkin) cast him as Romeo.
How do Daisy & Sharon learn about Dan’s play?
While rehearsing for Romeo & Juliet, Dan attends deposition prep sessions with his family. They try to find an appropriate language to make a strong case for themselves. However, Daisy cannot be impersonal while speaking about her brother’s death. So, she bursts into anger. One day, she requests Dan to join her for her counseling session. There, she unburdens herself, confessing that he’s constructed an emotional cage around her. He gets upset and storms out. While that happens, he grows closer with his castmates and has long conversations with Rita. But he doesn’t tell his family about the play. One day, Daisy & Sharon notice him with Rita and suspect he is having an affair.
The next day, Daisy follows him to the theatre. As he rehearses an intimate scene as Romeo with Rita as Juliet, Daisy walks in and insults him, thinking he is cheating on her mother. Dan & Rita clear her doubts and take her to a karaoke bar. As Rita starts to perform, Daisy feels motivated to return to her passion. Lanora also offers her a role, any role she wants. Dan understands what it means to Daisy and allows her into his haven. Once they return home, Sharon bursts out at him. Soon, Dan’s colleague shows up at their doorstep and tells Sharon about Dan’s suspension. So, she thinks he is cheating on her, and he reveals the truth about the play.
Ghostlight (2024) Movie Ending Explained:
How do Dan & Sharon mourn Brian’s death?
The play brings Dan in touch with emotions and closer and more truthful with Sharon & Daisy. Sharon provides them with a bigger stage to perform their play. However, Dan still fails to understand why Romeo & Juliet sacrifice their lives for love. It reminds him of Brian’s death after a drug overdose with his teenage love, Christine. Daisy guides Dan to look at the play from Romeo’s eyes and not his. Before the final performance, the family enters the deposition. Dan speaks about the events that led to Brian’s death. At the time, Brian was insatiably in love with Christina. When her family decided to move away, he felt he should join them. But Dan disapproved of it since Brian was underage.
During Daisy’s old play, Brian and Christina overdosed themselves. While Christina survived, Brian died. So, initially, Dan blames Christina’s medical professional parents for letting her have access to prescription drugs. Eventually, he admits that Christina is not at fault in this matter. After the trial, Sharon and Daisy get angry at Dan. After spending so much money on the deposition, Dan flipped his argument and became a hero. So, they blame him for not letting them properly mourn to suit his emotional needs. Soon after, Dan and Daisy join other castmates to perform the play in a room filled with an audience.
While performing the final scene, Dan notices a silhouette that looks like Brian. Afterward, everyone praises Dan’s performance. Sharon gets emotional as she realizes Dan now understands Romeo from a teenage Brian’s perspective. It also allows her a chance to mourn Brian’s death.
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