Not Another Happy Ending

Scottish writer Jane Lockhart has weathered a long string of rejection letters before Tom Duval, the Franco-Scottish editor at a struggling publishing house, tells her he will publish her debut novel. Overcome with joy, she breaks into tears, and they establish a positive editing partnership that helps shape her work. Yet she insists she won’t continue working with him after she completes a contracted second book, because he altered the debut’s title without her consent. The first book becomes a sensation, marking Tom’s first big hit, and Jane earns an award for best new writer. Onstage, Willie Scott presents the award and flirts with her, and the pair eventually become a couple.

As she nears the end of her second book, writer’s block takes hold. She procrastinates, and the imagined presence of the book’s protagonist begins to pop up at awkward moments. Tom, convinced that happiness is crippling her creativity and inspired by a roommate’s theory that great art comes from misery, tries to prod her into writing by making her feel unsettled. Yet this effort gradually reveals a deeper truth: he is actually falling in love with her.

After he finally reads what she has written so far, Tom is elated, and the moment between them nearly becomes a kiss. Their tension is interrupted when Willie calls with a confession of love and a proposal, introducing a new complication to their already fragile balance. When Willie returns, the romance in their triangle appears to wane as Tom and Jane drift into a more ordinary, forgettable routine. Tom completes a screenplay adaptation of her debut but changes the ending to a happy one; he asks her to revert to the original ending, yet Willie refuses to back down.

Seeing the creative friction and personal strain, Jane leaves to finish the book alone in the countryside. Tom follows, offering an apology and a proposal to rewrite the ending together. He begs her to let him stay, even making her keep him outside in the cold until nightfall before she finally lets him back in. After she snaps at him, the couple share a kiss, and a fresh surge of inspiration washes over her.

In the film’s closing moments, Jane stands in a cemetery, speaking a few words over a casket. Tom interrupts with the announcement that she will be signing copies of her new book, which they lift from the casket together. He then pulls her aside with a new book contract in hand, and the two share a final kiss, signaling a renewed partnership both personally and professionally while the stalled creative flame has been rekindled.

Last Updated: October 03, 2025 at 10:35