Movie Movie Podcast

Guess who started sending themselves Google alerts that it is Friday? That’s right, it’s me. Read my lips, no more Saturday movies! Title from Tigs, the great and powerful.

End of the Line

We open with a sweeping shot of a train running along a river. There is dense forest on either side. The camera pans down to a window, where we see a young boy named Robbie sleeping against the window. His mother stirs him. She says their stop is coming up and that he shouldn’t sleep or be stuck at the end of the line. He asks her about the end of the line and she starts telling him a story of a magical land that can be found deep in the forest.

Robbie, now older and Bob, wakes up on the same train at the sound of another train passing. A coworker, Jones, jokes with him about the long day and how he can’t imagine Bob getting that much sleep at home. Bob smirks a bit and doesn’t seem to be excited to be headed home. The camera pans out of the train, which doesn’t look as nice anymore, and the forest seems smaller with more buildings and such.

Bob walks in the door of his home and hears the frustrated sounds of his wife and their crying baby. She seems tired of her long day with the child and passes their daughter, Abigail, off to him. He heads to a rocking chair and starts telling her a similar story as the one his mom told him. He tells her of the magical land with fairies, elves, and strange beasts. There a young warrior named Abby fights for the people against an evil warlock trying to take over. For the first time we’ve seen him he seems pretty happy.

He wakes up several times that night to look after his daughter telling her more parts of the stories. He complains about his job to his wife but she only reminds him why he is doing it. He awakens early that morning and seems pretty week. He heads to the train into the city for work. His boss, Mr. Flanagan, is a bit of a hard ass, big cigar in his mouth as he smokes out the window. He rides Bob for being tired and about some big account.

Bob is back on the train home. Jones tells him that he’s getting off early for a dinner out with a lady and that he shouldn’t fall asleep. He tries his best but falls asleep. A strange animal then wakes him up, licking his face. It’s a big buffalo dog or something; I’ll let the art department figure this one out.

He flees from the beast, which gives chase. He’s running through a dense, strange forest with all sorts of weird plants. As he runs we see him start to de-age. He hears a cry as a female elf drops down in between him and the beast. The creature stops and she calms it down and says, “Robbie, he’s just trying to play. No need to act so scared.” He looks confused as he also realizes what he looks like. He faints.

He awakens in a tree house and the female elf stands above him. He learns her name is Abby and he seems confused, even more so when he learns that the buffalo dog has the same name as a stuffed animal in his daughter’s room. Some soldiers attack the tree house and they are forced to flee, after some cool fighting and effects from her and the dog.

She brings Robbie to a settlement where all sorts of creatures live. They are a bit in awe of Robbie. He meets up with a gnome named Jonesy who seems to flirt with Abby and Robbie gets a bit protective. Jonesy has some info for them about a way in to assassinate the warlock, Flantagon.

They travel together and he tries to be protective of her and Abby opens up a bit. They start to have fun but he notices that Abby’s health is declining. They can’t figure out why. They meet a wise old witch doctor who looks like his wife. She tells them that they are linked. That Abby’s health depends on Robbie, she’ll need him to be strong. He asks the witch to take care of her, but she says she is doing all she can. What Abby needs is more complicated than just a caretaker. He thinks this means fighting but the witch doctor shakes her head before disappearing.

They end up storming the castle and fighting off a great deal of soldiers together but upon entering the Flantagon’s chambers Abby falls sick and tired. Flantagon, looking like his boss, offers him a deal. Stay with him, and let Abby go back home, and she will get better. Abby protests that she doesn’t want him to leave and that they should be together.

Robbie seems torn and approaches Flantagon. As he does he begins to age back to his true age. Flantagon boasts that this is for the best and that Abby needs him here. Abby looks up feeling better and says that she wants him to stay and adventure with her. Robbie looks at them both and says there has to be a better way.

He awakens in the train by a conductor, telling him that this is the last stop. He asks about the next train back. He sits on the platform and takes out his computer and starts writing. We cut to him on the train home again, this time looking tired but less sad. He heads home to find his wife watching Abby sleep in her crib. They both look happy. She asks if he got the call. He says he hasn’t listen to the message yet.

They sit in what appears like a new office for him and he plays a voicemail on speaker “Robbie, my man. They loved it. They want to buy it. You can quit that job of yours. They are crazy about this world you created. They are going to want more. They want a series. I hope you have ideas!”

As the voicemail plays out the camera had panned out of the room (while they kiss) back to the crib. On the table next to it is a manuscript, entitled ‘Abby at the End of the Line.’ A faerie flies around the crib and lands in huge pile of stuffed animals. It sits upon the nose of a strange looking dog toy, which suddenly shakes it off coming alive.