Director
Marc Foster
Leading Actors/Actresses
Will Ferrell, Emma Thompson
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Maggie Gylenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, Queen Latifah
Genre
Fantasy, Comedy, Drama
Language
English
Awards
Date of Release
2006
Producer
Lindsay Doran
Setting and Context
Chicago, Illinois - 2006
Narrator and Point of View
Narrator is Karen Eiffel. Point of View is primarily Harold, but not always.
Tone and Mood
Dramatic, Comedic, Philosophical, Sentimental
Protagonist and Antagonist
Protagonist is Harold. Antagonist is Karen.
Major Conflict
Harold begins to hear a voice in his head that narrates his life. The narrator then says that his death is imminent. Harold must find out who the writer is before they kill him.
Climax
The climax occurs when Harold decides to accept his fate and tells Karen not to change his narrative.
Foreshadowing
Harold's watch foreshadows the relationship between him and Ana. Harold's death is foreshadowed by Karen's narration, but he doesn't end up dying after all.
Understatement
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
Allusions
The film makes allusions to various works of literature and various existential philosophy.
Paradox
Harold falls in love with the woman he is supposed to be auditing.
Karen has the power to kill one of her characters, who is a real person.
Parallelism
The apple falling in the street that Harold drops to save the little boy at the end of the film parallels the apple falling off the curb into the street that Karen sees, which sparks the idea for how to kill Harold.
