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We're the Millers · 2013 — Chapter 14 of 21 · 3'31" · B2

The Couple Walks In on Them, Explained: spice things up

Two would-be thieves are caught inside an RV, but the returning couple reads the situation as an invitation. "We're no squares," they insist, and the burglars have to keep smiling and play along rather than explain the truth.

What happens

After breaking into an RV, the pair is caught by the couple who own it. Instead of calling the police, the owners assume the visitors are proposing a partner swap, and the intruders go along with it to avoid exposure.

Small talkTeasingExplainingTeasingStrangersB2slowamerican
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Listen for

keep a lookoutspice things upon the same pagegive away the farm

00:00 / 03:31
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Now
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Phrase of the scene

spice things up

给生活加点料、增加情趣

菲茨杰拉德夫妇解释，结婚太久就要找点新花样给生活加点料，才提出荒唐的请求。

They took a dance class to spice things up.

Also in this scene

  • keep a lookout

    放风、望风

  • on the same page

    想法一致、同一频道

  • give away the farm

    把家底全送出去；一下子全让出去

  • take a baby step

    迈一小步；先试一点点

Everything marked in this scene

28 notes across 66 lines

Phrase · B1keep a lookoutWait. You go in. I'll keep a lookout, okay? Good.
Soundkeep a lookout

liaison

Wait. You go in. I'll keep a lookout, okay? Good.
Soundgoing the

elision

Fuck you. This was your idea. You're going the fuck in there.
Phrase · B2be completely explainableThis is completely explainable.
Grammar · B2We have never done anything like this with another couple before

present perfect with never before

We have never done anything like this with another couple before.
Phrase · B2no judgment on someoneThat's no judgment on you. We're no squares.
Phrase · B2be no squaresThat's no judgment on you. We're no squares.
Slang · B2a vibrator- I own a vibrator. - That's right, she does.
Phrase · B2for cripes' sakeThe darn thing's made in China, for cripes' sake...
Phrase · B2spice something up...but when you've been married this long you look for anything to spice things up.
Grammar · B2when you've been married this long

when clause

...but when you've been married this long you look for anything to spice things up.
Soundspice things up

liaison

...but when you've been married this long you look for anything to spice things up.
Phrase · B1bring something upYes. And tonight when you brought up that big black "babymaker"...
Slang · C1babymakerYes. And tonight when you brought up that big black "babymaker"...
Phrase · C1pick up what someone puts downWe were picking up what you were putting down.
Grammar · B2what you were putting down

noun clause with what

We were picking up what you were putting down.
Phrase · B2be on the same pageSame page. - interesting.
Phrase · B1not a problemGot it. Totally understood. Not a problem.
Phrase · B2take a baby stepOkay. Maybe I could take a baby step tonight.
Grammar · B2Maybe I could take a baby step tonight

could for a soft proposal

Okay. Maybe I could take a baby step tonight.
Phrase · B1be okay with somethingI would be okay with that. Yeah.
Phrase · B1one's heart is poundingMy heart's pounding so fast in my chest.
Phrase · B1take so longSorry that I'm taking so long.
Slang · B1Okey-doke- This is a miracle. - Okey-doke.
Phrase · C1give away the farm- You're right. - Don't give away the farm.
Soundgive away

liaison

- You're right. - Don't give away the farm.
Slang · B2roughhouse- A little roughhouse? - We should wait.
Phrase · B2what now, geniusGreat. What now, genius?

The Couple Walks In on Them, explained

What's really going on

The comedy runs on a giant misunderstanding that no one dares correct. Two people break into an RV — one goes in, the other keeps watch — and the owners arrive before they can slip out. The owners then supply the reading that saves everyone embarrassment: "That's no judgment on you. We're no squares." From there the burglars can only nod. Every line that should defuse the situation makes it worse, as when the couple explains that after years of marriage "you look for anything to spice things up." The scene ends with the intruders agreeing to something absurd rather than confess why they were really there, which is the joke: politeness and panic keep pushing them further in.

Theme

AbsurdityA burglary gets mistaken for a swinging invitation, and the burglars agree to it rather than explain themselves.
DeceptionThey keep the lie alive because telling the truth about the break-in would expose them.

Listen for

  • keep a lookout — liaison
  • going the — elision
  • spice things up — liaison
  • give away — liaison
...but when you've been married this long you look for anything to spice things up.

A line about keeping a long marriage interesting, dropped here as the couple explains why a midnight visit seemed welcome.

We were picking up what you were putting down.

An idiom for understanding someone's hint, used to claim they read the visitors' intentions correctly.

I mean, my mouth is for my marriage.

A nervous attempt to set a boundary while still playing along with the misunderstanding.

That's no judgment on you. We're no squares.

A reassurance meant to sound open-minded, declaring the couple is not prudish about the situation.

Questions about this scene

Why do the burglars go along with the misunderstanding?

Because explaining the truth would reveal the break-in. Playing along is the safer option, so they smile and agree instead of admitting why they were in the RV.

Who are Don and Edith?

The couple who own the RV the group breaks into. They return early, misread the situation, and turn an attempted robbery into an awkward social encounter.

What does "We're no squares" mean here?

It means the couple wants to sound open-minded and not old-fashioned. They are pre-empting any worry that they would judge a proposal they think is being made.

Why does the scene get funnier as it goes on?

Every polite line makes the misunderstanding worse. The more the owners explain, the deeper the burglars dig themselves by agreeing to things they would never do.

We're the Millers · 21 chapters

All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 15Mum's the wordCasey Teaches Kenny to Kiss
Chapter 1what I wouldn't giveDavid Runs Into Little RickyChapter 2a real Sophie's choiceDavid Fights for CaseyChapter 3out of my leagueBrad Offers David a JobChapter 4a huge red flagDavid Recruits Rose for the TripChapter 5in my sleepThe Millers Fly to MexicoChapter 6blend inThe Millers Cross into MexicoChapter 7as we speakDavid Picks Up the Wrong LoadChapter 8be a team playerA Cop Demands a BribeChapter 9look the partFake Family at the Border CheckpointChapter 10save your baconThe RV Breaks Down in the DesertChapter 11a bit of a hiatusHow David and Rose MetChapter 12pass the batonThe Millers Perform at the JamboreeChapter 13the birds and the beesKenny's Bad DrawingWatching · Chapter 14spice things upThe Couple Walks In on ThemChapter 15Mum's the wordCasey Teaches Kenny to KissChapter 16worth way more alive than I am deadPablo Chacon Confronts the MillersChapter 17make a good caseKenny Gets Bitten by a SpiderChapter 18a cheap shotInterrogating Casey's BoyfriendChapter 19dead in a ditchThe Fake Family Falls ApartChapter 20get one's hands off someoneCasey Punches Scottie P.Chapter 21a huge paydayDavid Begs the Group to Come Back
Chapter 14 of 21 · about 34 min to go