You Hurt My Feelings (2023): Movie Ending, Explained: You Hurt My Feelings is a 2023 comedy-drama film that’s thought-provoking and funny. It touches upon various aspects of relationships, like honesty, lies, and the power of effective communication. The film stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth, a novelist who hears something that isn’t for her to hear, breaking her confidence as an author. It’s about a therapist who feels useless but goes on an internal battle to be helpful to his patients. It’s about an actor who sees many failures before gaining popularity.
You Hurt My Feelings (2023) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
The movie opens with Don (Tobias Menzies), a therapist listening to his patients. The patients are a couple in a troubled marriage; the wife is complaining about her husband’s poor listening skills, and the husband is tired of listening to his wife’s accusatory tone. Don tries to help but has little to offer.
Beth (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), Don’s wife, visits her son Elliott’s (Owen Teague) Pot store, where he is the manager. Elliott asks his mother to buy pot from her instead of the guy she is buying from as he rips her off. Beth is uncomfortable with it and asks him to stop doing this job as he can do much better. Elliott is also working on a script for a play, and Beth encourages him to finish writing the play. Beth teaches a couple of students about writing as she is an author.
During a class, students suggest bizarre story ideas, which Beth supports despite her reservations. On their wedding anniversary, Beth asks Don about her book’s progress, concerned by the lack of response from her editor. Don reassures her, stating that the book is excellent and the editor likely needs to review it. Beth reflects on the underperformance of her memoir, but Don assures her of its quality and expresses confidence in her new book. They exchange anniversary gifts: Don presents Beth with beautiful leaf earrings, and Beth gives him a V-neck shirt.
Beth and her sister Sarah (Michaela Watkins) volunteer for the church and help homeless people by collecting and donating clothes. In his office, Don is having a therapy session with a young man with family issues; at the end of the session, before hanging up the video call, Don hears his patient call him an idiot. Sarah is an interior designer dealing with a demanding client. Don and his family are on a picnic, and Beth starts nagging him about his career. We also find out that Elliott has girl problems as his girlfriend distorts herself from him. Elliott is weirded out seeing their parents share food, including an ice cream cone.
Sarah’s husband, Mark (Arian Moayed), is an actor who has auditioned for a theatre play and is nervous. Don is dealing with another client who has slight issues with her husband, and Don has forgotten the patient’s history and gives suggestions while thinking of the embarrassment he encountered in front of the patient. Beth meets with her editor, and she indirectly asks Beth to rework the book. Subsequently, she heads home and shares her frustration with Don. Don tells her to send her work to a different publisher who was already after her and tells her that her current publisher did not have good taste. Don is concerned about his looks and thinks about getting a Botox.
Beth and Sarah dine with their disapproving mother, who disapproves of Beth’s publisher for her memoir. After Beth persuades her, their mother donates clothes to people in need. Don and Mark go sock shopping, and Mark’s previous work in a movie, known as the pumpkin movie, gets recognized by a customer who rejects Mark’s offer for a picture, causing embarrassment. Sarah informs Beth that Mark spends hours shopping for socks, prompting them to surprise them at the store. Beth overhears Don admitting he dislikes her current book and keeps it from her to avoid upsetting her.
Indeed, that’s what happens, but Beth does not let Don know that she has overheard him. Sarah tries to console the inconsolable Beth by saying that it is okay for couples to do that, and Don does not love her any less just because he does not like her book. But Beth feels otherwise. Sarah admits that she does not like all of Mark’s acting, but she likes him in some of them and encourages him even if she has to lie. Sarah tells Mark what happened and asks him not to tell Don.
Beth goes home late and is sleeping on the couch. Elliott comes to talk to her as his girlfriend has broken up and cheated on him. Don hears them and joins in. Unfortunately, they aren’t helping Elliott feel better. Don realizes Beth was being cold to him and asks her what had happened, and all she says is that she’s okay. Don shares the issue with Mark. In his office, Don is in session with a young man with family issues. At the end of the session, as he walks out, he calls the session pointless. While teaching her students, Beth realizes that none of them had read her memoir, but they recommend another author’s memoir. Beth is saddened.
Sarah and Beth go light shopping for the difficult client Sarah is dealing with. Sarah gets a call from Mark. Soon, she goes home to find out that he was fired from his acting job, and he has decided to quit acting. The next day was his birthday, and Don, Beth, Sarah, and Mark had dinner. At the dinner, the group encourages Mark not to give up as he is a good actor. Sarah is complaining about her job and thinking about quitting. Beth and Don start fighting about the book, and they take off. Beth finally reveals to Don that she had overheard him at the store that day. Don tries to reason with her, but Beth doesn’t want to hear it.
In Don’s office, a couple with marital problems demands a refund due to his unhelpful methods. Don loses his cool and advises them to get a divorce, angering them. Beth gets positive feedback from her editor, Sarah’s client approves the light, and Sarah cheers up Mark. Elliott confronts Beth, blaming her for ruining his life by not being honest about his abilities, causing him to question everything. He accuses them of neglecting him and wonders why he always felt like a third wheel between them.
Beth and Don reconcile and start being more open and using healthy communication to discuss their marital flaws. Don starts being useful by giving helpful advice to his patients, and he sees an attitude change in them. Beth comes around as she visits Elliott’s store and asks if she could buy pot from him, and just then, they are robbed.
One year later, we see Beth’s book displayed at the storefront. It’s Beth and Don’s anniversary, and they go out as a family. They gift each other the same things that they hate making them laugh. Mark does a fantastic job on a play, and fans want to click pictures with him making his co-worker jealous. Elliott finishes writing his play, gives the script to Beth, and asks her to read it and give a copy to his father as well. Don gets Botox. The movie ends with Beth and Don reading Elliott’s script.
You Hurt My Feelings (2023) Ending, Explained:
The movie ends with Beth and Don trying to be better parents, especially Beth. She takes her son’s constructive criticism to her parenting style and genuinely implements it. We also see all the characters wake up to their reality, understand their flaws, and make changes, and these changes give them the desired results. Beth’s book has been published, but she is also doing well after understanding her mistakes. Don learned to approach patients differently, with more understanding and help them. Mark came out as a great actor. Sarah learned to understand her client’s needs. Elliott’s one terrible experience helped him to take control of his life and go after his passion.
You Hurt My Feelings (2023) Themes Analyzed:
Honesty and white lies: This was one of the most critical themes in the movie. Throughout the movie, we see the complexity of honesty and white lies within relationships. Honesty is essential to building a solid relationship, but sometimes, it comes with a price. At the same time, saying a white lie is not acceptable. There is no correct answer to this problem. It’s about being honest yet mindful of the feelings of the partner.
Healthy Communication: Continuing from the previous concept, honesty can be done more mindfully by using effective communication. As we see, Beth and Don resolve their differences by communicating how they feel in many open and receptive frames of mind. Not being able to communicate leads to misunderstandings causing unhealthy relationships. Healthy communication also comes with conflict resolution and being a good listener.
Struggles with art: The movie expresses an artist’s struggle in two circumstances, one with Beth as an author and the second with Mark as an actor. Art means different things to different people, and each individual can view the same piece of art differently. It is challenging to please every individual, but an artist needs to find their inner strength, and they will find their audience, as we see with Beth and Mark.
Forgiveness: One of the movie’s more prominent themes is the ability to forgive, understand and change. We see Beth eventually coming around and forgiving Don as she understands his point of view. Moreover, we see Elliott showing forgiveness towards his parents, and he does that by letting them in on his first work of art. We see forgiveness and letting go from Don himself when he accepts his reality, forgives himself for not being there for his patients the way he needed to be, and finally makes the necessary changes.
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