The Black Curtain story
A former amnesiac discovers that he is an accused killer and that he is being pursued by both the police and a hired goon. Directed by: Sydney Pollack. Story by: Cornell Woolrich (novel).
22 total · 1 choice · 5 major · 16 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| what if I had amnesia | choice | The story concerns the amnesiac man Phil Townsend as he tries to piece his life together. The circumstances surrounding his amnesia are unusual: After losing his memory, he led a new life for three years, but a bonk on the head resulted in him getting his original memories back, but losing his memories form those three years. |
| boyfriend and girlfriend | major | Phil and Ruth had been in a relationship for three years and then he got amnesia. |
| helping a stranger in need | major | The taxi driver went above and beyond to help Phil, even though Phil was a total stranger to him. |
| murder | major | The plot turned on the amnesiac Phil trying to figure out whether he'd slain Janice Burke in a love killing of some sort. |
| what if I were being framed for a crime | major | Through a convoluted series of plot twists it was eventually revealed that Phil had been framed as the killer of his former employer's wife. |
| what if someone couldn't remember me anymore | major | Ruth coped with her amnesiac lover of the past three years, Phil, not remembering her anymore. |
| American football | minor | Phil strayed by a pee wee football practice. |
| being on the run from the law | minor | Phil discovered that he was being chased by the police. |
| caring for a baby | minor | Phil walked in on Julia while she was preparing a bottle of warm milk for her baby. |
| controlling partner | minor | Phil's ex-fiancée more or less explained how she couldn't leave the house because her husband's irrational jealousy toward other men. |