Dark Horse 2012

Abe awaits his first date outside Miranda's house

Abe stands outside Miranda's house, hoping for a hopeful first date. Marie, his skeptical secretary, runs up and tells him to give up on pursuing the girl because he has no shot. Abe clings to a fragile optimism despite the warning.

The dream twist reveals it was all a dream

After waking, it becomes clear that the whole waiting-for-a-date moment was just a dream. The revelation reframes the opening sequence as Abe's anxious fantasy. The real emotional stakes begin to unfold from that moment.

Marie confronts Abe in the parking lot after the bar incident

In the parking lot outside the bar, Abe has just hit Mahmoud, and Marie appears to discourage him from pursuing Miranda. She tells him to walk away from the obsession, undermining his confidence. The encounter underscores the film's theme of self-delusion.

Marie visits Abe in his bedroom, urging him to bail

In Abe's bedroom, Marie again appears to steer him away from Miranda. She frames his pursuit as a futile gamble and a distraction from reality. Abe remains entangled in his dreams, though the night provides clues about what is to come.

Street corner after argument with mother and brother

Following a heated argument in his car with his mother and brother, Abe ends up on a street corner, trying to gather his thoughts. The confrontation exposes family tensions and sets the emotional tone for his fragile self-image. The moment underscores Abe's sense of isolation.

Miranda initially declines the date

Miranda refuses to go on the planned date, resisting Abe's advances. The rejection fuels Abe's lingering belief that he may have a chance, but it also signals underlying ambivalence. The scene marks a turning point in their fragile connection.

A few days later, Miranda changes her mind about marriage

After talking with her ex, Mahmoud, Miranda unexpectedly changes course and tells Abe she does want to marry him. This reversal pushes Abe into a hopeful, though precarious, dream of a future together. The moment hints at the volatility of their relationship.

Abe confronts Mahmoud at a bar and suspects hepatitis

Abe meets Miranda and Mahmoud at a bar and grows suspicious that Mahmoud is the one who infected Miranda with hepatitis. In a fit of rage, he attacks Mahmoud, breaking his jaw. The confrontation deepens the film's conflict and deepens Abe's alienation.

Abe is fired; family reveals past judgments

Back at home, Abe is fired by his father and eyed by his cousin Justin as a replacement. His mother coldly reveals they had long ago decided Abe was a failure. The shift intensifies Abe's sense of failure and displacement.

Rain-soaked trip to the toy store; Mahmoud as manager and the receipt speech

In the rain, Abe rushes to the same toy store where he had failed before, insisting he is there to pick up his fiancée. Mahmoud now works the counter with a severe jaw injury and delivers a speech about how Abe is a loser and how Miranda would have been better off with his brother. The speech expands into a larger metaphor about life and receipts that are abruptly cut off.

Hospital coma following a car accident; Miranda's visit

The scene cuts to Abe in the hospital, in a two-month coma after being hit in the office parking lot. Miranda visits him and says she did not know him and was never attracted to him, but that she cares; she declines to specify what. She also adds that she is not pregnant, defying Abe's mother's belief.

Recovery, hepatitis, and a contaminating kiss

Abe recovers from the coma but develops hepatitis and jaundice. He talks with Marie and forcefully kisses her, thereby contaminating her, and then flatlines again. The sequence underscores the consequences of his obsessive pursuit and fragility of life.

Back at the parents' house, an empty home and a childhood truth

He walks into his parents' house, now empty of people. He tears off a small section of wallpaper to reveal his childhood height recorded on the wall by his father with the label Abe, Dad's 'Dark Horse'. The reveal hints at decades of parental expectations shaping his self-image.

The headstone unveiling and a final candlelit dance

At the uncovering of Abe's headstone, his family is gathered with Marie, a young workmate, and Miranda holding a baby. Richard points out the death date is wrong, but Abe's father silences him. Marie slow-dances with Abe by candlelight to a saxophone version of 'When I Fall in Love' as the moment lingers