A 2004 drama directed by Niels Mueller.
The year is 1974, and Samuel Bicke (Sean Penn) is a down-on-his-luck furniture salesman. He barely sells enough to keep him in his job, he's separated from his wife Marie (Naomi Watts) and facing divorce, which may in turn cause him to lose his job because his boss only believes in employing family men, and he's having trouble securing finance for the tyre sales business that he intends to set up with his friend Bonny (Don Cheadle). As he faces one setback after another, Sam becomes increasingly disillusioned at the fact that he cannot find success despite being an honest man, and soon focuses his anger on a person who has risen to the top despite being a dirty crook: President Richard Nixon. Before long, Sam hits rock-bottom, and conspires to assassinate Nixon by flying an airliner into the White House.
Based on the Real Life story of Samuel Byck, who had a slightly different surname, but had very much the same grudge against Nixon and planned to assassinate him in the manner depicted in the film.
This movie provides examples of:
- Adaptational Attractiveness: The real Sam was quite a bit heavier than Sean Penn.
- Adaptational Name Change: A very minor one, Sam Byck is changed to Sam Bicke.
- Artistic License – Economics: In-universe; during his pitch to the loan company, Sam claims that the biggest draw of his proposed business is that it's so honest that it won't make any profit.
- Artistic License – History:
- Just before his bungled hijacking attempt, Sam is shown posting the tape containing his Motive Rant to Leonard Bernstein. While the real Sam Byck did write numerous letters to Bernstein in the months leading up to the incident, he actually sent the tape detailing his full plan to journalist Jack Anderson.
- The ending card says that Sam's plot was doomed from the start because Nixon wasn't in the White House that day. Nixon actually was in the building that morning, although it's unclear whether he would have still been there at the time Sam would have crashed the plane into it.
- Better to Die than Be Killed: Despite getting shot so many times that he would probably have died anyway, Sam decides to commit suicide before the police can board the plane.
- Blatant Lies: For someone who rails against the dishonesty of others, Sam sure tells a lot of lies himself, most blatantly when he uses a fake bill of sale to steal tires from his brother. Some other obvious examples of Sam's lying include:
- Telling his ex-wife that he's "top of the charts" at the furniture store when he barely accounts for any of the sales at all.
- Telling Bonny that the loan officer was "very impressed" with his business proposal.
- Claiming to have extensive business management experience when applying for a startup loan.
- Claiming to be a happily married family man so that Jack would hire him.
- Butt-Monkey: Sam is a tragic version, almost bordering on a Deconstruction as we see the obvious serious effects his failures and bad luck have had on his mental and emotional stability.
- Comically Missing the Point: Sam does this with a great deal of things, though probably the biggest example is failing to realise that the Black Panthers are, in fact, dedicated to action on behalf of black people.
- Conspiracy Theorist: Played with by Sam, who's too skittish (and really not quite bright enough) to come up with any detailed ideas about huge conspiracies, but nonetheless thinks everyone's out to oppress the less rich citizens, and him in particular.
- Crazy Enough to Work: Zig-zagged. Sam's early efforts at the furniture store, as bizarre as they come across to both the customers and his co-workers, actually prove endearing enough to occasionally succeed. Longer-term, however, they result in him being by far the worst salesman at the store.
- Didn't Think This Through:
- Sam's attempted hijacking goes wrong very early on, when he realizes that he failed to account for the fact that he'd be patted down and have his bag checked before getting on the plane. As a result, he freaks out and shoots his way through the boarding gate, killing one of the guards in the process, and then kills the plane's co-pilot in a moment of panic, completely screwing up his plan even before a police officer mortally wounds him.
- Also Sam's mobile tire store business proposal. Not only was the business idea dubious to begin with, he didn't have the physical resources, the capital, and to top it off, he proposed essentially selling tires at cost.
- Even leaving aside the flaws in his business plan, Sam's attempt to get hold of the tires he needs by faking an order from his brother's company. Julius points out that, racist or not, anyone was going to immediately notice that something was shady when they tried delivering such a huge order to a small business that would clearly have no way of being able to pay for it.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: Sam's plan is to fly a plane into the White House, in a movie released only three years after September 11th. While the apparent target of the fourth plane that crashed in Pennsylvania was the Capitol Building, rather than the White House, it's still a little close to feel comfortable about.
- Downer Ending: Not only does Sam not assassinate Nixon, and ends up committing suicide after his failed hijacking attempt, but his story is shown being watched on the news by his ex-wife, his former boss, and Bonny, and none of them give a shit about it. Of course, it would probably have been a much bigger Downer Ending for the country as a whole if Sam had destroyed the White House...
- Epic Fail: Even leaving aside how badly wrong the attempted hijacking went, as an ending caption tells us, Sam's attempt wouldn't have succeeded even if everything did go right... because Nixon wasn't in the White House that day. And even if he somehow did kill Nixon, all that Bicke would have succeeded in doing was turning him into a martyr and preventing the Watergate scandal from reaching its conclusion. Lesser examples (suggesting failure as a way of life for Sam) include:
- Sam's awkward attempts to reconnect with his ex-wife, who clearly barely tolerates him and only does that much for the sake of their children.
- Sam's attempts at salesmanship usually just confused or alienated customers.
- Sam's ludicrous plans for starting his own business: there probably isn't much demand for a mobile tire store to begin with, and on top of that he basically proposed selling the tires at cost.
- Sam's awkward attempts to hit on an attractive female customer at the furniture store.
- Last but not least, Sam pitching his "Zebras" concept to a Black Panther, who could barely contain his derision and laughter. Though Sam does at least manage to salvage this one at the death by offering the Panthers a not-insignificant donation and making it clear that he wants them to accept it even if they disagree with his proposal, which the Panthers are genuinely grateful for.
- Foregone Conclusion: Anyone even vaguely familiar with history is probably going to remember that Richard Nixon was in fact not assassinated, and that the White House was not destroyed by having an airliner fly into it.
- From Bad to Worse: The entire movie is the story of Sam's downward spiral - in the beginning, neither his job performance nor his relationship with his ex-wife and children are that great, but at least he's trying to set things right in his own rather pathetic, bumbling way. As the story progresses and his behavior becomes more desperate and erratic, he quits his job, alienates his friends and family completely, until he snaps completely and attempts to carry out an attempted act of domestic terrorism.
- From Nobody to Nightmare: Downplayed. While this is indeed a story of a pathetic loser who goes on to plot a large-scale act of domestic terrorism, his terrorist plot fails (though Sam does murder an airport security agent and the co-pilot before he's taken down by police).
- Gory Discretion Shot: Sam's shooting of his former family dog happens off screen, as does his own suicide near the end of the film. Averted when he shoots the two pilots, one fatally, and when a police officer shoots Sam through the plane door.
- Heroic BSoD: The treble whammy of being divorced, getting his loan rejected and the discovery of the attempted tyre theft (which in turn leads to his brother disowning him) all in the space of a few days drives Sam over the edge and leads to his assassination attempt.
- High Hopes, Zero Talent:
- Sam Bicke has dreams of being a successful businessman, thinking all he needs is a loan to get started. Even if by some fluke he did get the loan, his business model was an absurdity destined for failure (i.e. the concept of a mobile tire store is of dubious value to begin with, and furthermore, Sam proposed to basically sell tires at cost, resulting in zero profit by definition). Last but not least, Sam's whiny, needy personality makes him repellant as a salesman to virtually everyone he interacts with.
- Sam tells the loan officer that his proposal will "revolutionize the way business is done in America." Neither the loan officer nor the committee reviewing his application thought the same.
- Hope Spot: While the outcome of the film is a Foregone Conclusion, the first few scenes of the movie after the time cut suggest that Sam was actually getting his life somewhat on track with his new job.
- How We Got Here: Most of the film's events are framed as being part of Sam's letter to Leonard Bernstein, which he posts shortly before his hijacking attempt near the end of the film.
- The Hypocrite: Sam constantly moralizes about the dishonesty of other people and "the system" while being quite a prolific liar in his own right. Sam's lies include telling his boss he's happily married to maintain a "family man" charade, telling his ex-wife he's top salesman when he's barely pulling his weight at the store, and ultimately stealing tires from his brother's store using a fake bill of sale.
- I Have No Brother: After being subjected to a paranoid rant about how the government is oppressing poor people, Sam's brother, Julius disowns him and threatens to have him prosecuted for the attempted tyre theft if he ever contacts Julius again.
- I Just Want to Be Special: Sam wants nothing more than to be a dynamic, successful businessman and family man like his boss, brother, and co-workers but his depression and paranoia make it nearly impossible. The film shows the desire for success, what happens to those who can't achieve it and how badly it can screw them up.
- Incredibly Lame Pun: When talking about his mobile tire store idea (a dubious prospect to begin with), Sam makes a bad situation worse by saying that "[he] really needs to get this thing rolling", much to loan officer Mr. Ford's disgust.
- Informed Judaism: We only find out that Sam is Jewish when we see his Orthodox Jewish brother Julius. Sam himself doesn't appear to be observant.
- Insane Troll Logic:
- Sam's incoherent rant as he attempts to justify stealing tires from his brother Julius. Somehow, he thinks that stealing goods from his brother's business is part of the fight against Richard Nixon and racism in America.
- Sam's business proposal at the loan office is one long train of insanity as well - Sam believes that his notion of basically selling tires at cost as will "revolutionize how business is done in America."
- Jerkass Has a Point: Although Jack (Sam's boss) comes across as a condescending bully, one could very well understand how Sam's behavior and job performance would frustrate even the most tolerant and well-intentioned boss.
- Just Plane Wrong: Most of the aircraft seen in the film are actually from the 1980s or later. This was unavoidable however, since the film's budget was far too small to allow contemporary planes to be CGIed in.
- Lame Pun Reaction: When Sam hassles Mr. Ford, the loan officer, to expedite the Federal loan application for Sam's hare-brained notion of turning an old school bus into a mobile tire store:Sam: I need to get this thing rolling, if you know what I mean.Mr. Ford: (shaking his head with contempt): No, I don't.
- Loser Protagonist: Sam Bicke is an extreme, non-comedic example of what happens to a man who fails miserably at every aspect of his life. Eventually, his sorry personal and psychological state drives him to become a Villain Protagonist.
- Misaimed Fandom: In-universe, Sam thinks for some bizarre reason that Leonard Bernstein will approve of his plan to assassinate Nixon.
- Mistaken for Racist: Sam claims that the employee of Julius who spotted the tyre theft that he and Bonny were trying to commit only suspected foul play because Bonny is black, though Julius points out that even if the employee is racist, it doesn't change the fact that Sam was trying to steal his tyres. Likewise, he tries to blame the bank's denying his loan on racism against Bonny, rather than considering that his business plan was one long train of Insane Troll Logic.
- Never My Fault: Sam believes that all of his failures - from losing his jobs to the bank denying his loan, are due to other people's dishonesty and/or racism. In reality, Sam's own inept job performance, his strange behavior, and his emotional instability are the main reasons for most if not all of his troubles.
- Nice Guy:
- Played with in the case of Sam. He certainly seems like one on the surface, at the start of film until a series of failures send him into a downward spiral, socially, financially, and psychologically. Whether this is the tragic plight of an idealist or the inevitable outcome of a naive, inept, and shady man who is the author of his own misfortunes is up to the viewer.
- A less ambiguous example is Bonny, a genuinely honest, hard-working, and kind man whose patience is repeatedly tested by the needy and emotionally unstable Sam.
- Noodle Incident: We never find out what happened between Sam and Julius while Sam worked at his brother's tire store. We hear Sam rant to the loan officer about how Julius was "dishonest" for his markup on price (which was really just standard retail practice), and we see Sam returning some money owed to Julius (via a mutual friend) at the beginning of the film, but we never get any further details.
- Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping: Jack Thompson (as Jack Jones, Sam's boss at the furniture store) does a very good American accent overall, but there are a few moments where his Aussie accent comes through.
- Pet the Dog: During his hijacking attempt, Sam takes a female passenger hostage and threatens to shoot her unless she helps him fly the plane. She begs for mercy, and after a few minutes, Sam lets her go. In doing so he gives the police officer who (unbeknownst to Sam) followed him down the passenger walkway a clear shot, and the officer wastes no time emptying his gun into Sam through the plane's door.
- Psycho Ex-Girlfriend: Inverted; Sam is the psychotic one (at least, he is by the end of the film), while Marie is very much the sane one.
- Shoot the Dog: Just before driving to the airport to carry out his intended hijacking, Sam stops by his former family home and kills the dog that he shared with his ex-wife, in the misguided belief that he's giving it a Mercy Kill.
- Stalker with a Crush: Sam towards his ex-wife Marie. He repeatedly shows up at her house uninvited, watches her comings and goings at night, and calls her at her boyfriend's house at 3 AM.
- Stalker without a Crush:
- Sam (and in real life, Sam Byck) to Leonard Bernstein. He writes to Bernstein under the delusional assumption that the famous musician would sympathize with and approve of his actions.
- Bicke's pursuit of Mr. Ford at the loan office comes close to stalking behavior.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome:
- The entire hijacking attempt ends up being one long case of this trope. Sam tries to smuggle a bomb and gun on the plane, but finds that either of them would be easily discovered. He then manages to get onto the plane, but finds that the pilots can just delay him until help arrives, resulting in him freaking out and shooting one dead, further wrecking his plans. Finally, it turns out that airport police actually are equipped with weapons capable of penetrating the hull of an aircraft, and an officer shoots Sam, mortally wounding him, before Sam turns his gun on himself.
- Sam's application for a startup business loan is rejected. Inevitable given the dubious nature of mobile tire store notion itself, his lack of resources and relevant experience, and an absurd business model that involved selling tires at cost.
- Very Loosely Based on a True Story: Actually more like 50% based on a true story. Much of Sam's backstory is tweaked and altered in often minor ways from that of the real Samuel Byck — Byck had four children while Sam only has three in the film; Sam's loan fiasco is implied to happen only a few weeks before the assassination attempt, while Byck's failure to secure a loan happened in 1972, two years beforehand; he threatened to assassinate Nixon shortly after his re-election, but didn't actually go through with it until much later — but the overall storyline is much the same as the real-life events, and everything that happens at the airport in the last 15 minutes or so is entirely the same as what happened in reality.
- Villain Has a Point: Though obviously he's completely off his rocker by this point, it's hard to disagree with the points that Sam makes about how Nixon succeeded despite clearly being a crook and not delivering on his promises (bear in mind that the Watergate scandal was only in its infancy during the film), and how it often just doesn't pay to be an average, honest person.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: Despite the mass death his plan would cause if successfully executed, Sam genuinely believes that his plan will make America a better place for those nearer the poverty line.
- Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: Sam feels so utterly betrayed by his country and its broken promises and institutions that he wants to tear it all down.
