Movies - The Butterfly Effect

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	Movies - The Butterfly Effect

The Butterfly Effect is a 2004 American sci-fi/drama movie starring Ashton Kutcher, Amy Smart, Eric Stoltz, and others of New Line Cinema presents. The Butterfly Effect is directed and written by Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber.

The title most likely alludes to the butterfly in Ray Bradbury's short story "A Sound of Thunder", in which a small change triggers a large series of ripple effects. Ten years later, this concept was then coined "The Butterfly Effect" by Edward Lorenz; see Chaos theory and butterfly effect. The title is also metaphorical for the appearance of brain scans which resemble a butterfly.

The film's tagline is: Change one thing, change everything.

Plot summary

Evan Treborn (Ashton Kutcher) is a man who suffered traumas as a boy (John Patrick Amedori), but whose memory of events is obscured by blackouts. While searching for an answer to heal his emotional wounds, he finds that when he reads from his adolescent journals, he travels back in time, and is able to essentially "redo" parts of his past. There are consequences of his choices he then propagates back to the present. As he continues to do this, he realizes that even though his intentions are good, the actions he takes always have unintended consequences.

Plot

The age of seven

In his childhood, Evan Treborn begins to experience sudden memory blackouts. His mother, Andrea Treborn, fears that he might have inherited his father's mental disease. His father, Jason Treborn, is in an asylum. Medical testing shows that Evan is mentally normal. His doctor advises Evan to keep a daily journal to train his memory. Evan follows the advice.

A first blackout happens in the school while Evan is drawing a picture of his future profession. The very detailed picture shows a man with a knife, standing over several bodies covered in blood. Evan's teacher is rather worried and shows the picture to Andrea. Evan doesn't remember having drawn it.

Evan experiences a second blackout at home, when Andrea accidentally sees her son holding a knife. Evan has no recollection of picking up the knife.

Another day, Evan is at his neighbors. George Miller offers him to take part in making a movie about Robin Hood. Mr. Miller is seen holding an alcoholic drink in every scene. There is a third blackout - Evan finds himself standing in the cellar of Miller's house, naked. By his side stands Kayleigh Miller, similarly undressed. It is apparent that they were forced to participate in a child pornography video.

Evan's mother talks with a doctor about Evan's strange behavior, who convinces her that Evan may be suffering as a result of his father being absent. They arrange for Evan to visit his father as a remedy.

Evan experiences a fourth blackout when he comes to see his father at the clinic. The meeting starts as it should, but all of sudden there is a flash - and Evan finds himself on the floor with Jason trying to strangle him. The guards burst in and, while (violently) restraining Jason, kill him.

The age of thirteen

Kayleigh and Tommy's parents get divorced, their mother moving to her new family. The children are offered a choice of whom to stay with. Kayleigh chooses her father, in spite of his attitude, because she doesn't want to part with Evan. Tommy stays as well.

The fifth blackout happens when Evan spends his time with the Millers and Lenny Kagan, another childhood friend. While hanging out together one afternoon, they find a hidden dynamite stick and decide to blow it up. They plant it in a mailbox and wait. Again a flash - Evan and others are running through the forest, and Lenny is catatonic. Evidently something terrible happened, but Evan can't remember, and no one will tell him. Lenny is taken to the clinic in the state of deep shock.

Not long afterwards, Evan, Kayleigh and Tommy go to see the movie Se7en (this scene is set in the year of the movie's release, 1995). Kayleigh and Evan leave after being disturbed by an early scene. Evan offers to comfort Kayleigh, and as they lean in to kiss, Tommy walks in. In a fit of jealous anger, he threateningly approaches the couple, but gets tripped by an older boy, who he nearly beats to death for embarrassing him. He is subsequently taken away by police.

The sixth blackout happens when Evan and Kayleigh come to see Lenny. They convince him to go for a walk with them. Unfortunately, on the walk they meet Tommy, who has become partially mentally ill and has tied up Evan's dog in a burlap sack and is about to burn it alive. They try to stop Tommy, and then a flash - Evan finds himself on the ground, and the dog is dead. Lenny becomes completely catatonic.

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