Yesterday I was looking at the way that the story of BARRY 302 develops from Barry's clear desire to get Mr. Couisneau a job. The pattern being,
Desire-leads to->A Choice, which faces/inspires a-->Complication, which leads to a-->New Choice
Today, I want to look at that same pattern from the perspective of one great scene in the episode, Barry's move to get Sally to hire Mr. C. Scenes are really just smaller version episodes; they have the same set of steps at work.
While the conversation has a lot of back and forth, it has really four main beats.
1) You have a show, you hire him: This is cheerful Barry, trying to get his mission accomplished, who comes to Sally first because she's the most obvious choice for him. They're dating, she has a show, she knows Mr. Cousineau and what he's going through. It's simple.
The complication he faces is that in fact she did feel this way and tried to hire Mr. C, and was told no, absolutely not. So Barry's strategy isn't going to work. He tries to push back: who cares what Hollywood says, she's the boss. But in fact listening to her people is what being boss is all about, and Cousineau has really made his bed. So, no, she can't do it.
Before Barry can pivot, Sally tries to end the conversation. "I'm real busy right now, can we do this later." She'll do something before step three. I think of this as sort of writing marker, telling us, one beat is over and we're onto the next, deeper one.
(Even the way those moments are performed, it's like just for an instant, instead of the rat-a-tat of the dialogue there's space, and silence, and Sally takes her time.)
2) He's in a lot of pain: Barry moves to a more personal appeal. Mr. C isn't just some guy; he's her teacher. And he's in pain. Implicitly he's questioning her here. She knows him. She should care. And when she says she's sorry to hear that, he makes that question clear. She's not sorry or she would do something.
Which leads to our second breather/marker/descent beat: Quietly she asks, "Are you okay?"
3) I need this to live: When Barry says he's worried about Mr. C, Sally once again tries to defuse/complicate through agreement; me, too, i.e. we're not having a conflict, we can't be, we're on the same page. Here we get Sally at her most stripped away, just as we're about to with Barry. Her constant need is not to be rejected, to not be the disappointment. She'll do anything to avoid that.
And here she's right. She does feel bad like he does, and there's nothing she can do either.
But that agreement ends his quest, so he's got to try another tactic, and it amounts to getting a lot more personal, both about her and himself.
For the first time he raises his voice and attacks her. They are not on the same page.
Then he takes it farther--This isn't about Mr. C at all. Barry needs this himself. "I HAVE TO DO THIS TO FUCKING LIVE," he shouts at her.
It's like we've been peeling an onion this scene, and at this point we get to what's at the very center--just as Sally needs everyone to be okay with her, Barry needs to do this or die.
And Sally's response is writing genius: She laughs. It's not mockery; she's completely overwhelmed by what is happening here, she can't handle the reality of it, so she tries to play it off as some kind of joke they're having, mostly to try and salvage herself in front of her staff but also for Barry. Her laughter is a sort of rejection of the whole idea that they're having a fight.
4) RAGE: Sally's reaction in a sense also gets mirrored in Barry. Up to this point, even if he's been getting more and more bullying, he's still kept up a semblance of rationality. But when her reaction is outright laughter, what can he do? All he's got left is screaming demands in her face. It's a terrifying moment in the scene, and one that is meant to silence any kind of further conversation.
But Sally still has enough strength to say no. She says it in a soft Sally doesn't want to fight way: "I'm sorry, I can't." But still, that's it. The battle is over. Barry lost. (As much as Sally seems codependent in this scene, that moment is really telling. She still has the courage to say no.)
Look at the steps Barry took: First, a sort of math common sense; you've got a show, he needs a job, let's do it. Second, a plea to Sally's heart. He's hurting, you can help him. Why don't you care? Third, a reckoning on their relationship--we are dating and I fucking need this, so fucking do it. Finally, straight up crazy town aggression. DO IT DO IT DO IT.
It tells us so much about who he is (and Sally, too).
