In the realm of 1980s romantic comedies, “The Sure Thing,” starring John Cusack, holds a special place. This excerpt from the film provides a glimpse into a pivotal moment, revealing the internal monologue of Professor Taub, played with a blend of awkwardness and yearning. We find him at a party, a setting ripe with the promise of connection, yet fraught with his own idealized expectations.
Taub’s internal description of the woman is immediately striking. His focus is intensely physical – “5’6, silky hair, trim, nubile body.” The archaic and somewhat clinical term “nubile,” which he even pauses to define, underscores his objectification of women, at least initially. He continues, “Trim, nubile body that really knew how to move. And soft, deeply tanned skin.” This detailed physical appraisal highlights a fantasy constructed in his mind, far removed from genuine human connection. He even dictates the necessary personality trait: “she needed only one. She had to love sex and all the time.” This starkly emphasizes his shallow desires at the outset.
His journey to this moment, as he perceives it, has been one of “vast distances enduring many hardships. Abject poverty, starvation, show tunes, you name it.” This hyperbolic statement, dripping with irony, injects humor and reveals Taub’s self-pitying nature. It’s a comedic exaggeration of the lengths he believes he’s gone to for this idealized romantic encounter. When he finally sees her across the room, she is, in his eyes, “perfect.” This perfection is based on fleeting observation and projection, not on any real understanding of her as an individual.
The scene shifts to a more intimate setting – his room, with “soft lights,” the classic romantic setup. However, the anticipated romantic climax is disrupted by a simple question: “Do you love me?” This question, seemingly straightforward, throws Taub into an internal crisis. His thoughts spiral – “Did she really want him? What had he done to deserve this bounty? Does God exist? Who invented liquid soap and why?” This rapid-fire, absurd internal monologue is a hallmark of John Cusack’s characters in many of his films, blending humor with genuine introspection.
The question forces Taub to confront the reality of his desires versus genuine emotion. He realizes, “for the first time in his life, he knew these were no longer just words and if he said it, it would be a lie.” This is the turning point. Despite all his fantasizing and objectification, he finds himself incapable of uttering a hollow “I love you.” The repetition of “Do you love me?” emphasizes the woman’s need for emotional validation, and Taub’s ultimate inability to meet that need, at least not in a dishonest way. The final line, “It would not be tonight. The answer was no,” is delivered with a sense of anticlimactic truth. It’s a moment of unexpected honesty in a scenario built on superficiality, a hallmark of “The Sure Thing” and its exploration of genuine connection amidst romantic comedy tropes.
