Plot
The film centers around Sidney Hall, a young novelist whose life is depicted in a non-linear narrative through elliptical flashbacks and flash-forwards through three periods of his life.
At the age of eighteen, Sidney reads a story to his English class about masturbating in the sixth grade, to the chagrin of his teacher. He is spared from expulsion by a fellow English teacher, Duane Jones, who encourages him with his writing. Sidney is subsequently approached by a bully, Brett Newport, who requests assistance with digging up a package they buried when they were small children. Sidney declines and returns home to his abusive mother Velouria, his downtrodden disabled father Gerald, as well as a love letter from an unidentified "Melody". Duane encourages Sidney to use unorthodox, loud tactics to draw Melody out, which he attempts, to no avail.
He spots a girl from the Jameson family across the street and correctly deduces that she is Melody, though she is hesitant to directly interact with him. After seeing Brett bully a classmate, Sidney agrees to help him dig up the package, on the condition that he ceases bullying. The pair go and dig the package up, but as they are about to part ways, Brett's father, Judge George Newport, violently arrives on the scene and Brett is forced to hand the package off to Sidney. Sidney watches the tape, to discover that it is a recording of Judge Newport raping an adolescent girl. Sidney and Brett rendezvous and agree to go to the authorities with the tape.
Melody calls Sidney and arranges an impromptu date to the fair with him, in which she takes her family's car without permission. At the fair, they bond and Melody admires a small wooden statue at a booth. The carver at the booth, Johan Tidemand, gives Sidney the statue for free. Having watched Brett's tape and read Sidney's unflattering personal notebooks, Velouria confronts Sidney and throws them into the fireplace. Sidney informs Brett that the tape is destroyed, prompting Brett to commit suicide. This inspires Sidney to begin writing a controversial novel called "Suburban Tragedy", which Duane admires and sends to the publisher Harold, at Porter House, who inks a book deal, with Duane as Sidney's agent. Sidney confronts Velouria about him moving away. She attacks Sidney, who hits his head on a mantelpiece. Sidney and Melody subsequently move away together.
At the age of twenty-four, Sidney is a successful, albeit alcoholic, writer with two books - Suburban Tragedy and State of Execution - atop The New York Times Best Seller list and his name in contention for a Pulitzer Prize. He has hallucinations, as his head injury left scarring on the right side of his brain. At a book signing, Sidney meets an obsessed fan called Henry Crowe, who quotes Suburban Tragedy and speaks of knowing what must be done. Shortly after, Crowe attempts murder and commits suicide, casting the book in a negative light, leading to a competitor on the list, Francis Bishop, to win the Pulitzer. With his marriage to Melody failing, Sidney has a discreet, ongoing affair with Harold's daughter, Alexandra. Melody informs Sidney that she is pregnant, though she insists that he be honest if he is having an affair, which he denies. He reveals that he purchased their dream house in New Mexico. While Sidney and Melody are at a restaurant, Alexandra confronts them, revealing the affair. Sidney and Melody make their way to their apartment, and while Melody attempts to leave in the elevator, the power goes out, trapping them. Melody suffers an asthma attack and due to not having her inhaler, dies in Sidney's arms in the elevator. Sidney leaves his apartment with the keys inside.
At the age of thirty, Sidney has not been seen nor heard from in five years. Downtrodden, he spends his time going from library to library, burning copies of his books. An apparent detective, The Searcher, traces his steps and interviews those who have known him, including two librarians, Duane and Johan, who forged identities for him. After making his way to New Mexico and riding on trains with his dog, Sidney is arrested for having an open alcohol container in public. The Searcher bails Sidney out of jail and takes him for breakfast, where he reveals himself to be Francis Bishop, wishing to write a biography about Sidney. Francis takes Sidney to the house in New Mexico, where Francis reveals that the positive influence from Suburban Tragedy dissuaded his son from committing suicide. The writers part ways. Sidney's health takes a turn for the worse from the seizures and effects from alcoholism, putting him in a terminal state in the hospital. Sidney summons Francis, to whom he gives all his writings and reveals the secrets about the inspiration for Suburban Tragedy, as well as Judge Newport's perversion. Sidney goes silent and Francis departs from the hospital room. Sidney sees a vision of Melody and, taking the form of his eighteen-year-old self, holds her hand as he passes away.
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