So do you want to get something to eat or what?Husbands and Wives · 1992 — Chapter 6 of 15 · 4'35" · B2
Gabe and Jack Fight Over Sam, Explained: out of left field
Gabe and his friends run into Jack, who is introducing his new girlfriend, Sam, an aerobics trainer. There is small talk about dinner and vegetarian food, but once Sam leaves, Gabe cannot hold back: "This is what you leave Sally for?" The rest is two friends arguing about a marriage.
What happens
Walking through the neighborhood, Gabe and his friends bump into Jack, who is with his new girlfriend, Sam, an aerobics trainer. Jack invites everyone to dinner and praises Sam, while Gabe grows uncomfortable. After Sam leaves, Gabe asks whether this is what Jack left Sally for, and the two friends argue.
Listen for
Don't get me wrongbeen meaning to callflip overout of left field
00:00 / 04:35Space play · ← → lines · R repeat
Now
Phrase of the scene
out of left field
unexpectedly and for no apparent reason
盖布质问杰克：你结婚多年、养大孩子，怎么突然莫名其妙就跟一个鸡尾酒女招待好上了。他用 out of left field 形容这个决定来得毫无征兆。谁对谁说：多年好友盖布对杰克说。
His resignation came out of left field; nobody saw it coming.
Also in this scene
- Don't get me wrong
don't misunderstand what I'm saying
- been meaning to call
have intended to call for a while but kept putting it off
- flip over
to be extremely enthusiastic about something
Everything marked in this scene
25 notes across 96 lines
- Oh, don't be silly. - No, I have an appointment. I really do.- Some coincidence, huh? - Oh, wha... I didn't get your name before.You want to come and have dinner at the house? She's an unbelievable cook.- You don't eat meat, do you? - No, no, I don't. She eats it a little.I used to eat red meat every day, and then I gave it up.Look, we can order out.Oh, yeah! I flip over couscous!You feel like cookin'? Let's do it. Come on.- We're gonna stay in, watch the Grammys. - I can't, you know, because...have intended to call for a while but kept putting it off
Well, you know, maybe later. I've been meaning to call.While we're down here, I'd like to pick up some decaf.- She's really into this, this fitness. - You're fucking nuts.I'm serious about her.I mean, we've been friends for years.It's like your IQ is suddenly in remission.- You're not my rabbi. Quit it. - I just can't believe it.- So she's a ball-breaker sometimes, but... - She's a ball-breaker.Don't you give me that bullshit. I lived with her. You didn't.Then suddenly out of left field, you take up with a cocktail waitress.I mean, there were kids, and we're all scared of being alone.don't misunderstand what I'm saying
Don't get me wrong. What's wrong with aerobics? What am I, a snob?I want to enjoy the rest of my life, okay?You don't know what goes on between two people.I'm tired of being corrected and criticized.Gabe and Jack Fight Over Sam, explained
What's really going on
The scene is built around a mismatch of moods. Jack is happy to show off Sam, describing her job and her psychology degree while Gabe quietly seethes. The argument that follows is less about Sam than about the story Jack tells himself: that he left a difficult marriage to finally breathe. "I can relax around her. I can breathe," he says, and then admits the honest version, "I mean, there were kids, and we're all scared of being alone." Gabe keeps insisting on the old marriage, and Jack's line about being corrected all the time — "I was always auditioning" — explains more than any defense could. The scene ends with Gabe caught in his own lie about his mother, which shows that everyone here is managing a story about their life.
Theme
MarriageJack defends leaving his wife and Gabe attacks the choice, and the fight is really about what a marriage is supposed to give.
FriendshipThe argument is also about friendship: Gabe says he loves Jack and still calls his new relationship foolish in almost the same breath.
What you'll learn
- 'out of left field' carries more than its dictionary gloss.
- 'get one's mind around' changes the pressure of the reply.
- The surrounding lines set the social temperature.
It's like your IQ is suddenly in remission.Gabe's insult: remission is when a disease fades, so he is saying Jack's intelligence has gone into retreat.
I mean, there were kids, and we're all scared of being alone.Jack's admission of why he stayed so long: not love, but fear of being on his own.
I can relax around her. I can breathe.His case for the new relationship: with Sam he is not performing or being judged, which is all he says he wants.
That's all I ever did with Sally. I was always auditioning.The clearest explanation of the marriage's end: he felt he had to earn approval constantly, as if every day were a test.
Questions about this scene
Why does Gabe get so angry at Jack?
He sees Jack replacing a long marriage with a woman he has just met, and he reads it as a betrayal of Sally. Jack's calm praise of Sam only makes it worse.
Why does Jack say he can breathe around Sam?
He says the marriage with Sally left him constantly corrected and judged. With Sam he claims he can relax, which is his main defense of the new relationship.
Why does Gabe tell Jack he is 'not my rabbi'?
He is telling Jack to stop preaching to him. A rabbi is a teacher and spiritual guide, so the line means Jack does not get to lecture him about his life.
Why does the scene end with Gabe's mother?
Jack says Gabe's mother is not in town but in Florida, exposing a lie Gabe has been telling. It shows that everyone in the group is managing their own story.
Why does Jack call Sam 'not a cocktail waitress'?
Gabe dismisses Sam by her job, and Jack corrects him: she is an educated trainer with a degree. The exchange is about class as much as about the relationship.
Husbands and Wives · 15 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 7touch a nerveFriends Discuss Divorce Over Lunch
Chapter 1grow apartJack and Sally Announce a Split
Chapter 2to the best of my knowledgeGabe and Judy's Late-Night Talk
Chapter 3a different ball gameSally Calls Jack During a Date
Chapter 4I meant it as a complimentGabe Praises a Student's Story
Chapter 5penchant forGabe's Kamikaze Women Theory
Watching · Chapter 6out of left fieldGabe and Jack Fight Over Sam
Chapter 7touch a nerveFriends Discuss Divorce Over Lunch
Chapter 8knocked out by itGabe and Rain Talk About Writing
Chapter 9Sooner or laterSally Stops Michael From Rushing
Chapter 10cleaned up my actGabe Meets Rain's Parents
Chapter 11out of lineJack and Sam Fight About Astrology
Chapter 12wipe outJack Comes Back to Sally Drunk
Chapter 13in your cornerRain Critiques Gabe's Novel
Chapter 14go sourJudy Tells Gabe It's Over
Chapter 15get the wrong ideaRain's Birthday Party in a BlackoutChapter 6 of 15 · about 33 min to go