WinkLingo
Log in

Uncle Frank · 2020 — Chapter 8 of 17 · 2'11" · B2

Beth Opens Up to Frank, Explained: worth the trouble

A drive home from a funeral turns into the most honest talk of the film: death, first love, and a boyfriend who made Beth feel small. On the surface it's small talk. Underneath, Frank is teaching her the sentence he lives by, that "Guys like Bruce always make you think it's your fault."

What happens

On the drive back from Daddy Mac's funeral, Beth and Frank trade stories. Beth recalls a classmate's death and admits she has never slept with anyone. Frank describes meeting Wally on the subway. When Beth blames herself over Bruce, Frank pushes back and gets her to finally call him what he is.

Goodbyes & funeralsComforting a friendComfortingConfessingFriendsB2fastamerican
IMDb ↗

Listen for

Saved my lifeworth the troublemess up somethinglet someone off easy

00:00 / 02:11
Space play · ← → lines · R repeat
Now
  4. ❝ MonologueThe fake-grief classmates5 linesPractice page ↗
  15. ❝ MonologueMeeting Wally on the subway6 linesPractice page ↗
Tap a line to replay it

Phrase of the scene

worth the trouble

valuable enough to justify the effort

贝丝说自己还是处女，不是因为不想，而是认识的男生 seemed worth the trouble，没有谁值得她费心。

The view is lovely, but the climb is not worth the trouble.

Also in this scene

  • Saved my life

    to rescue someone, literally or figuratively

  • mess up something

    to spoil or ruin something

  • let someone off easy

    to punish or criticize someone too lightly

Everything marked in this scene

32 notes across 44 lines

Phrase · B1it's so weirdIt's so weird.
Phrase · B1never see someone againI'll never see Daddy Mac again.
SoundDaddy Mac again

liaison

I'll never see Daddy Mac again.
Phrase · B2known anyone who ...You've never known anyone who died?
Phrase · B2get killed in an accidentThere was this one boy in high school who got killed in a car wreck.
Phrase · B2never even do somethingSome of the other kids who never even talked to him when he was alive
Grammar · B2who never even talked to him when he was alive

relative clause with when

Some of the other kids who never even talked to him when he was alive
Phrase · B2start acting like ...started acting like he was their best friend.
Soundsorry for 'em

liaison

So they could cry and people would feel sorry for 'em.
Phrase · B2people are idiotsPeople are idiots. [laughs]
Phrase · B1aren't theyI know. Aren't they? Yep.
Phrase · B1what does someone doWhat does Wally do?
Phrase · B2an aeronautics engineerOh, he's an aeronautics engineer.
Phrase · B2get to talkingI don't know, we got to talking.
Soundgot to talking

flap

I don't know, we got to talking.
Phrase · B2save someone's life

to rescue someone, literally or figuratively

Saved my life.
Phrase · B2still a virginNo, I'm still a virgin.
Phrase · B2be worth the troubleJust none of the boys I've known seemed worth the trouble.
Phrase · B2mess up something

to spoil or ruin something

Doesn't want to mess up your friendship?
Phrase · B2go ahead with somethingOh, I think 99% of straight boys would have gone ahead with it.
Grammar · C1would have gone ahead with it

would have done

Oh, I think 99% of straight boys would have gone ahead with it.
Phrase · B2think it's someone's faultI just thought it was my fault.
Grammar · B2make you think it's your fault

causative make

Guys like Bruce always make you think it's your fault.
Phrase · B2what a jerkWhat a jerk. [chuckles]
Slang · B2jerkWhat a jerk. [chuckles]
Phrase · B2let someone off easy

to punish or criticize someone too lightly

That's letting him off too easy.
Phrase · B2be an assholeHe's an asshole. [Beth laughs]
Slang · B2assholeHe's an asshole. [Beth laughs]
Phrase · B2call someone somethingYou can call him an asshole, can't you?
Phrase · B1there you goWhat an asshole. [Frank] There you go.
Phrase · C1what a fucking somethingWhat a fucking asshole.
Slang · C1fuckingWhat a fucking asshole.

Beth Opens Up to Frank, explained

What's really going on

The car ride is where the film lets Beth and Frank drop their manners. Beth starts with a safe topic, a classmate who died, and the story is really about her own loneliness. Frank answers with the shortest possible version of how Wally saved his life, saving the pain for another time. The scene turns when Beth confesses that she blamed herself for Bruce's rejection. Frank's reply is the film's thesis about shame: "Guys like Bruce always make you think it's your fault." He doesn't comfort her so much as hand her a way to see it, and when she finally curses Bruce, his "There you go" is a rare moment of open approval.

Theme

TrustA long drive lets Beth and Frank drop their guard and tell each other the truths they usually hide.
GuiltBeth blames herself for Bruce's rejection until Frank names the pattern and takes the shame off her.

What you'll learn

  • Use got to talking for a chance meeting
  • Hear letting him off as too mild
  • Catch There you go as coaching praise
  • Upgrade jerk to asshole when needed
  • Hear I'm from Arabia as a movie joke

Listen for

  • Daddy Mac again — liaison
  • sorry for 'em — liaison
  • got to talking — flap
Guys like Bruce always make you think it's your fault.

Frank's diagnosis of Beth's guilt, naming the type that shifts its own failure onto the other person.

Just none of the boys I've known seemed worth the trouble.

Beth's explanation for her inexperience, delivered as a judgment on the boys rather than on herself.

I just thought it was my fault.

Beth's quiet confession that she turned someone else's rejection into her own failure.

I'll never see Daddy Mac again.

Beth's plain statement of loss, the thought that opens the whole conversation about death.

Questions about this scene

Why does Frank say Wally saved his life?

They met on the subway when Wally asked about the book Frank was reading. Frank sums up how much that relationship meant to him in three words, without spelling out the details.

Why is Beth still a virgin?

She says it isn't by choice; the boys she has known simply didn't seem worth the trouble. The one time she almost went ahead, Bruce backed out, and she blamed herself.

Why is Frank so angry at Bruce?

Frank tells her that guys like Bruce always make a woman think it's her fault. He pushes her to stop letting him off easy and say what he really is.

What does Frank get Beth to do at the end?

He gets her to call Bruce an asshole out loud. When she finally says it, he answers "There you go," treating the outburst as a small victory.

Uncle Frank · 17 chapters

All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 9there for meWally Shows Up at Frank's Door
Chapter 1pick on someoneDaddy Mac Mocks Frank's GiftChapter 2get to chooseFrank Lets Beth Rename HerselfChapter 3slave awayCharlotte Meets Frank's FamilyChapter 4try meBruce and Beth Meet at CollegeChapter 5take no for an answerFrank Comes Out to BethChapter 6in my bloodWally Pushes Frank to Come OutChapter 7push someone awayFrank Pushes Wally Away After the CallWatching · Chapter 8worth the troubleBeth Opens Up to FrankChapter 9there for meWally Shows Up at Frank's DoorChapter 10Nice always hides somethingWally Asks Beth About FrankChapter 11kept in touchMike Apologizes to FrankChapter 12make up her own mindBeth Defends Staying at the MotelChapter 13turn his back on youMac Bledsoe's Eulogy and ThreatsChapter 14the female frontAunt Butch Grills Frank at the WakeChapter 15nothing but disgustThe Will Humiliates FrankChapter 16say it to my faceFrank Breaks Down at the GravesideChapter 17so much in commonFrank Introduces Wally to the Family
Chapter 8 of 17 · about 25 min to go