Thirteen Conversations About One Thing (2002)

Synopsis: A man approaching middle age decides to change his life. A rising young attorney's plans are thrown into disarray as the result of a single act. A woman faces her husband's infidelity. An envious businessman seeks revenge on a cheerful coworker and an optimistic young cleaning woman awaits a... A man approaching middle age decides to change his life. A rising young attorney's plans are thrown into disarray as the result of a single act. A woman faces her husband's infidelity. An envious businessman seeks revenge on a cheerful coworker and an optimistic young cleaning woman awaits a miracle. Just the ebb and flow of daily New York life: chaotic, isolated, diffuse. Or is it? How can we know what effect we have on a passing stranger? What if the smallest gesture can change the course of someone's life? Perhaps fate is in fact a product of the choices we make -- how we choose to accept seemingly random events, whether or not we opt to see the interconnectedness of things. Perhaps, too, there really is a light at the end of the tunnel, even if we can't see it yet. Thirteen Conversations About One Thing weaves five contemporary stories together into a single tale that examines the dramatic impact people have on one another. With a carefully constructed narrative that crisscrosses in time and doubles back on itself, the film offers an unusual glimpse into each character's past, present and future in ways that are both playful and poignant. The ideas it explores -- the meaning of true happiness, the notion of karma, the eternal power of hope -- strike with particular relevance in our increasingly frenetic, disjointed world. -- © 2002 Sony Pictures Classics [More]