Things I Never Told You 1996

The film opens with a voice-over by Don, Andrew McCarthy, who states that in life and relationships, “anything can happen.” This sets a tone of quiet reflection that threads through the entire story. The narrative then follows Ann, Lili Taylor, a woman who works at a camera shop in a small town tucked away in the Pacific Northwest. Her world feels intimate and routine until a sudden phone call from Prague reveals a rupture in her personal life: her boyfriend has dumped her, leaving her to grapple with a deep sense of abandonment.

In the immediate aftermath, Ann slips into a desperate moment, attempting to end her pain with a half-hearted act, and ends up in a hospital. After she recovers, she is connected with a crisis helpline by her psychiatrist, Dr. Lewis Kathleen Edwards, who provides the number and a gentle, professional touchstone for Ann’s fragile state. The crisis line becomes a lifeline, and in one fateful call, Ann reaches out to Don and forms an unexpected emotional connection. Yet the bond is fragile and unsettled: she hangs up when Don confesses that he isn’t certain what love truly is, a moment that leaves both of them unsettled but curious about what might come next.

Back in her world, Ann begins making a series of emotionally charged video diaries addressed to her ex, a raw attempt to articulate loneliness, despair, and longing. She entrusts these tapes to a neighbor who works for a package delivery service, hoping they will reach Prague, but the neighbor’s curiosity turns intrusive: he opens the packages, watches the tapes, and develops a troubling fixation with Ann. This intrusion adds a tension that lingers beyond the emotional drama between Ann and Don, underscoring how vulnerability can invite unwanted attention.

A turn of chance brings Don back into Ann’s orbit when he walks into the camera shop to buy a camera for his work as a real estate agent. Ann recognizes him, though she keeps the moment serviceable and polite, discussing happiness as something that feels “unfair,” a sentiment she once voiced to him on the crisis line. Don is clearly drawn to her, and he waits for her to finish work, ultimately inviting her to join him for a shared chore—washing clothes at a local laundromat. The invitation becomes a pretext for a deeper connection, and they agree to meet again at Ann’s house. When Don visits, the two share a private and intimate encounter that Ann secretly tapes, intending to send the footage to her ex, though the neighbor again seizes the moment, delaying or complicating Ann’s plan with his own curiosity.

After this encounter, Ann withdraws from Don’s calls, creating space and distance in the budding relationship. Meanwhile, Don’s professional life takes a dramatic detour: he is called to assist after a crisis at a hotel, where a man with a gun has become despondent. Don persuades the man to come out and seek help, but the act of intervening leaves Don badly injured as the gun goes off, injuring both participants. News of the incident reaches Ann, and she rushes to the hospital, remaining by Don’s side until he is out of danger. The dramatic turn deepens the emotional stakes for both of them and marks a turning point in how they view each other and their own capacity to connect meaningfully.

Soon after, Ann’s ex calls again, signaling a possible reconciliation, and she responds by packing up and leaving town without leaving a note for Don. This departure underscores the thematic thread of impermanence and the unpredictable nature of human connection that frames the entire story. Don returns home from the hospital and pivots his career toward corporate real estate, a shift that takes him away from the intimate, small-town rhythms that once defined his life and his relationship with Ann. He becomes a man of travel and distance, a contrast to the closeness he once sought with Ann.

The film closes on a note of quiet hope and lingering uncertainty. Don sits on a park bench, musing about what he might say to Ann if their paths crossed again. A woman passes by, regards him, sits down, and smiles—revealing that it is Ann. The moment suggests that life remains unpredictable and that love, even when paused or complicated, can reappear in surprising ways. As the final credits roll, Don’s voice returns with a final, unresolved meditation on possibility: “Anything can happen.”

Anything can happen.