3 Nuts in Search of a Bolt

An out-of-work method actor, Noonan, is hired by a stripper, a male model, and a car salesman to listen to their problems and visit a psychiatrist on their behalf. He must pretend that he alone has all their troubles, playing the correspondent for their confessions. The job sets up a public-facade, private-therapy premise that drives the plot.

Dr. Von starts recording Noonan's sessions with the three clients. The act hints at a voyeuristic angle and foreshadows the broadcasts to come. Noonan reluctantly continues as part of the arrangement.

Robert L. Katz, a studio representative, arrives with his aide Lenny to propose a movie inspired by Noonan's case. They offer Noonan a cheque for 100,000, threatening fame if the project succeeds. Noonan immediately distributes the money among his housemates rather than keeping it.

The three clients begin questioning the morality of Noonan's role and the public spectacle against their real problems. They realize the ethical hazard of turning private pain into entertainment. Ms. Symbol grows jealous of Noonan's informal candor with Dr. Von.

Ms Symbol starts seeing Dr Salverson, another therapist. He and Noonan soon come clean with Dr Von about everything, testing loyalties and exposing the overlapping interests of the therapists. The dynamic among the four becomes increasingly tangled.

Dr Salverson conducts therapy and diagnoses the trio: Lynch should move into a sanitarium, Ms Symbol should pursue an unmanned occupation, and Bernard is a narcissist. Dr Von virtually endorses Salverson's diagnoses, admitting she might have prescribed differently for Noonan earlier. The diagnoses set the stage for a supposed cure.

Katz arrives to report that Noonan has confessed everything and has offered to return the cheque. This revelation upsets Lynch, who resents the publicity and the deception behind the deal. The moment heightens the tension between performance and truth.

Noonan visits a pub and gets caught in a violent robbery. He is knocked unconscious as patrons are stripped of clothes and valuables. When he regains consciousness, he pockets jewelry—including Mrs. Berkeley-Kent's—before escaping, unaware of the theft he's committed.

Dr Salverson formalizes the diagnoses in therapy: Lynch to sanitarium, Ms Symbol to pursue an unmanned occupation, Bernard as a narcissist. Dr Von endorses Salverson's conclusions, signaling a shared clinical path. The group dynamics deepen around these labels.

Noonan protests Salverson's conclusions, insisting that Ms Symbol's issue is virginity and that Bernard's is chasing a woman who will challenge him. He advocates for treating Ms Symbol as the cure, which unsettles the others. Ms Symbol takes offense and leaves the room in tears.

Repentant, Noonan challenges Bernard to pursue Dr Von and goes to console with Ms Symbol. The moment tests their relationship and blurs lines between therapist, patient, and lover. Identity and affection collide as they navigate their tangled feelings.

Noonan and Ms Symbol profess their love, but the declaration triggers another identity shift in Noonan, this time toward Bernard. Ms Symbol panics and pleads with the psychiatrists to treat him. Dr Von presses, and Noonan shifts again, even reproaching Ms Symbol for wearing 'his dress.'

The bar patrons arrive clothed in tablecloths, still missing their clothes, and chaos erupts. Mrs. Berkeley-Kent points a finger at Noonan, accusing him of stealing her jewelry, and a police presence adds tension to the chase. Katz and Lenny observe the spectacle as Ms Twitchell performs a showgirl flourish on the edge of the chaos.

The experience propels Ms Symbol to become a big-name showgirl, and the entire movie is revealed to be a flashback elaborated in her performance. The ending reflects on Noonan's experiments with identity and the price of living a lie. The film closes on a meta-note about therapy and spectacle.