Douchebag

A seemingly environmentally-conscious vegetarian living in Los Angeles, Sam is engaged to Steph but carries a long memory of his strained relationship with his younger brother Tom. He masks his flaws with bravado, yet the trip reveals his capacity for selfish choices and sharp self-justification. By the end, he acknowledges he needs to improve and expresses a willingness to repair the relationship and lifestyle changes.

Tom is an aspiring artist living largely off his parents’ support and navigating the weight of family baggage. He harbors resentment toward Sam but opens up to vulnerability during the journey, especially about love and loyalty. The road trip becomes a space for him to assert his own voice and seek genuine connection.

Steph is Sam’s fiancée who tries to manage the wedding and the couples’ future. She’s principled and tired of the instability she perceives, ultimately deciding not to marry. Her presence anchors the social stakes of the film and frames the emotional cost of the brothers’ chaos.

Tom’s childhood sweetheart, the Mary Barger who appears along the road trip in Palm Springs. She represents a past option that complicates Tom’s present plans, offering a flirtatious test that never fully seals a future together.

A teahouse patron who catches Sam’s interest on the road. She becomes involved in a casual encounter that underscores Sam’s flaws and the fragile moral line he crosses during the trip.