Revolutionary Road follows the breakdown of a marriage between a seemingly perfect
suburban couple in the 1950s. In 1948, at a party in New York City, Frank
Wheeler sees April across the room. The two immediately hit off from their mutual ambition
to have a fulfilling life. At the time, Frank is a longshoreman and jokes that he hopes
to be a cashier, while April wants to be an actress. The two dance and are taken with
one another. Years later Frank watches April in a community
play. As the curtain closes, Frank hears insulting whispers around him in regard to the cast,
including his wife’s performance. In the dressing room April cries, upset over performing
in such a bad play. Frank nervously enters her dressing room, not sure what to say as
it was too bad to not say anything at all. April asks him to go tell their friends, Milly
and Shep, that they can’t go out to grab drinks anymore. Frank protests since he’d
just confirmed with them, but April insists she doesn’t want to go, not in the mood
to socialize. Frank reluctantly agrees to go and tell them.
There’s a clear physical and emotional division between them as they leave the school theater
and drive home. Frank tries to comfort April by saying that she was the best in the play
and she shouldn’t have even been performing with such amateurs, which irritates April
who asks him to stop talking. Frank pulls the car over and tries to make her feel better,
but ultimately just upsets her more. She yells at him not to touch her, which in turn makes
him irate and defensive, annoyed that she’s mad at him. Frank yells that it wasn’t his
fault that she didn’t turn out to be an actress, triggering her to exit the car. Frank
follows her out and demands that she get back in the car so they can yell in private, but
April refuses. Their fight escalates and Frank almost hits April when she questions his manhood.
Instead, he angrily hits the car repeatedly. They get back in the car and can't stand to
look at one another, still in shock from the incident.
The next day, rather depressingly, Frank goes to work at Knox Machines where he writes brochures.
He takes the train like the rest of the commuters all dressed in the same suits, ties, and hats.
In the elevator he notices a secretary looking at him and enjoys the attention. Frank's coworker,
Jack, is just as miserable as he is at their cubicle job. Back at home, April cleans up
the house and does her various housewife duties. As she takes out the trash, April remembers
when she first saw the house with Frank and their realtor, Helen Givings. Back then, the
two were excited to see a simple and clean looking home, imagining their perfect suburban
life. Back at work, Frank is yelled at by his boss
for the lack of quality in a brochure he’s made. He complains to his coworker Jack, and
the two commiserate over the stupidity of their job. Frank notices the secretary from
the elevator, Maureen, and takes a special interest in her, asking her to lunch where
he impresses her with his confidence and promises to help her with her career at the company.
Then he calls Maureen’s boss using the restaurant's phone, and tells her that Maureen will be
needed with him in a made-up department, so she can really just stay with him at lunch.
At home Helen comes over just as April is cleaning up the sheets from the couch, where
Frank slept the night before after their fight. Helen has brought over a plant and the two
have tea. Helen tells April about her son John, who is in a psychiatric hospital, but
plays it off as not serious. Helen says that John doesn’t have many people to see at
the moment and is uninterested in her own friends since he is an intellectual who has
traveled and has a PhD in mathematics. Therefore, Helen is hoping that April and Frank will
befriend John and pay him a visit at the hospital. When April agrees, Helen is incredibly grateful
and tells her that she always knew April was special.
At lunch, Frank and Maureen get drunk. Frank tells Maureen that today is his 30th birthday,
and they celebrate by drinking more martinis. Feeling melancholy about getting older, Frank
reminisces, telling Maureen that his dad also worked at the Knox Machines but up in Yonkers.
He tells her a story of his dad taking him to lunch to give him career advice, but the
whole time, Frank was secretly thinking that he never wanted to end up like his father.
Frank ponders that now he is a 30 year old employee of the Knox Machines… just like
his father. Maureen is polite, but too drunk to really pay attention, so Frank suggests
they get some air. At home, April opens a box of keepsakes, remembering
her and Frank’s life and their happier years. She focuses on an image of Frank with a war
buddy in front of the Eiffel Tower when he was in the army. April remembers Frank telling
her about Paris and how he longs to go back there, because people are really living there,
unlike America, where life is empty. Frank tells April that his ultimate ambition in
life is to feel things deeply, really feel things. April is deeply moved by his words
and replies by saying that he’s the most interesting person she’s ever met.
Back in the present, Frank and Maureen go back to Maureen’s place and get intimate.
Frank acts nonchalant to Maureen who tries to act the same, but is clearly more innocent
about their encounter. When Frank arrives home, he hesitantly gets
out of the car and finds April at the door, dressed up. April apologizes to Frank for
the way she acted and has planned a surprise to make it up to him. Frank enters the house
to find his wife and children singing happy birthday, and he’s brought to tears, secretly
ashamed of his affair. Later, April proposes that the couple use their savings to sell
the house and move to Paris. She reminds Frank that Paris was the only place he said he’d
want to return to out of all the places he’s been. April says that she’ll support the
family while he finds his passion, explaining that she could get a job as a secretary as
the positions in government agencies abroad pay really well. She goes on to say that they’re
miserable in this suburban lifestyle and reminds him of how he used to speak poorly of the
type of life they’ve found themselves leading. Frank protests, saying that when they were
young and he spoke of living life, he was simply a little wise guy. He goes on to say
that in reality, he doesn’t believe that he deserves any more than what they have,
but April disagrees, telling him that this life is stifling him, and that he’s the
most beautiful and wonderful thing in the world. Unlike their fight when April called
him a disgrace of a man, she now calls him a man, which fills him with pride and validation.
He then agrees and the two are ecstatic with their new plan.
Frank has a new appreciation in life with Paris on the horizon. He walks in to work,
whistling and telling his coworkers that he’s moving to Paris while they joke and laugh.
He remains relaxed and unbuttons his tie, as he gets to work with clearly more interest
than before. Meanwhile,, April interviews for a government
agency job. At lunch, Frank’s coworkers ask why it’s
more likely for him to find his true vocation in Paris then where he is now and he tells
the men that it’s impossible to discover yourself in the life they’re leading at
Knox Machines. Both Frank and April have a new pep in their
step. Each afternoon April greets Frank lovingly as he arrives home from work. Together, the
couple tells their children about their plan to go to France, and while they’re hesitant,
they find a way to make it exciting rather than scary.
Frank and April go to dinner at their neighbors Shep and Milly’s house, and tell them their
news of moving to Paris. The couple is shocked, and Shep insinuates peculiarity in April being
the one to provide for the family, but Milly recovers quickly and toasts to Paris. Later
that night, Milly and Shep agree that the Wheelers plan to move to France is poorly
thought out. Milly cries from relief by Shep’s reaction, having been worried that it would
make him think his own life as in need of change too. Meanwhile, at the Wheeler household,
Frank and April laugh over seeing Shep and Milly’s reaction. Frank compares their situation
to how he felt when he was first in the war, saying it felt like the truth, and he felt
viscerally alive. April replies that she felt that way once too. When he asks when, she
slyly replies that it was when they first got intimate. They kiss and get intimate in
the kitchen. Due to Frank’s newfound joy in working,
he gets the attention of a higher up, Bart, who praises his recent work, which is surprising,
considering Frank's immediate boss recently scolded Frank for poor quality work. Frank
tells April this news, and the two laugh off the insignificance of being rewarded in such
a meaningless job, but when April says she wishes she saw the look on Franks bosses face
when he told them he was quitting, he doesn’t clarify that he actually hasn’t told his
bosses yet about their plan to move to France. The Givings couple and their son John come
over for lunch. While Helen tries to keep the conversation light, John starts telling
the couple about the incident that led to him being committed. However, Frank is able
to keep the mood light and tells John about his job and is honest about his job being
terrible. When John replies by saying that Frank has a terrible job because he wants
to reside in suburbia, Frank agrees with him and says they’re actually moving to Paris,
which makes John laugh. The couple suggest they get some air, and so Frank, April, and
John go on a walk in the woods. John tells them that he’s lost his intellect because
of electroshock therapy. April expresses sympathy, but John dismisses her concerns. John asks
why they’re going to Paris, and the couple replies they want to leave the hopeless emptiness
of suburban life. John is impressed, saying that plenty of people can acknowledge suburbia's
hopelessness, but it’s impressive that they can see its emptiness too.
Later, the couple joke about how John is the first person to really understand their decision
to move to Paris. Frank replies that maybe they’re crazy like him, and April replies
that she doesn’t care if she’s crazy, if it means she can have a different life.
Frank is taken out to lunch by Bart, who offers him a promotion, telling him that Knox will
be purchasing a super computer, and they need people like him to usher in the new wave of
technology. Frank asks Bart if he remembers his dad, Earl Wheeler, who worked in the Yonkers
location. Bart says he’s sure he was a good man but doesn’t remember him. The fact that
Bart didn’t know him proves Frank's point that he needs to leave. Frank tells Bart that
he is going to be leaving the firm in the fall for personal reasons, and Bart replies
by telling him that his father told him that a person only gets a few chances in life,
then tells him to sleep on it. Bart tells Frank that getting this promotion would be
a fine memorial to his father and tells him he won’t regret it.
Suddenly, Frank is unsure of their decision to leave for France. He’s conflicted about
whether it’s the right decision since he’s excited about getting recognition at work.
Maureen approaches Frank working late and congratulates him for his promotion, saying
that his father would be proud of him, which gives him pause. She offers to take him for
a drink to celebrate, and he accepts. The next day, April snaps at their daughter
when she interrupts her packing. Frank asks what’s wrong and she admits, breaking down
crying, that she’s pregnant. Frank is shocked. April is insistent that they still go to France
and she has an abortion. He stays calm and reassures her, saying they still have two
weeks to decide since she’s ten weeks along, and they have until twelve weeks to perform
the vacuum abortion. The Wheeler family visits the beach with Shep
and Milly’s family. Frank tells Shep about the job promotion offer, upsetting April who’s
still set on leaving. She walks away from the group and Frank follows. He tries to calm
her down by telling her that he hasn’t turned the promotion down yet, since the job could
make their life different because they could have a better house and travel. April asks
if he’s made up his mind and Frank reassures her that the promotion is just an option.
April asks if he really wants to toil away at a job that he finds stupid, causing Frank
to walk away from her. Later when they return home, April tells Frank
she knows the reason he doesn’t want to go to Paris anymore. It’s because he doesn’t
want to try at anything, so he won’t have to fail at anything. Frank denies this and
tells her that he’s the one providing for the family, but April replies he doesn’t
have to, since if they went to Paris she could provide for the family, then she states that
it takes real backbone to lead the life you want, rather than the one that’s easier.
When Frank starts to leave the room, April asks where he’s going and he asks, sarcastically,
if he is allowed to go to the bathroom. In the bathroom, Frank finds a home abortion
device and freaks out. April tries to dismiss his concerns, saying he’s being melodramatic,
and as long as the abortion is done within the first 12 weeks, she’ll be fine. Frank
asks if he gets a say, but April replies, the abortion would be for him, because then
they could leave. April asks if they can have the baby in Paris, but pleads with him to
not make her stay. He definitively states that they can’t have the baby in Paris.
April states that they only moved out to suburbia because of their first child, and then had
another child to prove that the first child was a mistake. She asks Frank if he even wants
another kid and demands he tell her the truth. He replies that all he knows is what he feels,
and anyone else in their right mind would feel the same way that having an abortion
is wrong. Then Frank accuses April of not loving their children, sending her into a
panic, then asks whether she tried to abort their previous children. She denies this,
but he tells her that he can’t ever know for sure. Frank says that a normal sane mother
wouldn’t try to abort a child so she can have some fairytale in Paris, causing April
to cry. Frank says they should find someone to make sense of her life, implying she needs
a shrink. April stoically replies that there isn’t much more to say, then goes on to
say Paris was a childish idea. Frank softens, saying that they’ve had a great couple of
months and it doesn’t need to end. He says he can make April happy, promising her that
they’re going to be okay. The next morning, April tells the children
they won’t be moving, and Frank accepts the promotion, trying to come to terms with
his life. His coworkers tell him that the plan always seemed unrealistic, which makes
Frank defensive. His coworkers then joke that the secretaries will be celebrating to hear
he’s not going, since he’s been having an affair with Maureen.
That night, Frank and April go out with Milly and Shep, who are happy that they aren’t
leaving, and Shep assures them that Europe isn’t going anywhere. Frank asks April to
dance, but she declines, and so Frank and Milly dance, leaving April and Shep alone
at the table. Milly becomes sick, so Frank takes her home so he then can relieve their
sitter, while Shep agrees to take April home, but the two decide to stay out longer. Back
in the bar, Shep tells April he’s sorry she’s not going away anymore, because he
knew it was important to her, but states that he’s been to Paris, and it’s not anything
special. April explains that it didn’t have to be Paris in particular, she just wanted
a different life, a life where she was actually living. April tells Shep that she had always
thought she and Frank were going to have an extraordinary life together, and she feels
silly for resting her hopes for a promise that was never made. She realizes that Frank
knows what he wants and that he’s OK with just being married and being a dad, but it’s
not enough for her. When she tells Shep that Frank was right, they aren’t special and
aren’t destined for anything, he disagrees with her, telling her that they are special
and are a terrific couple. April tells him that now she can’t stop seeing the other
version of her future. Since she can’t leave and she can’t stay, meaning she’s no use
to anyone. April asks Shep to dance and he follows her onto the dance floor. While April
dances, trying to forget her troubles, Shep is clearly transfixed by her insinuating his
unspoken feelings for her. The two end up getting intimate in his car, and he professes
his long-held love for her. She rebuffs him, asking him, rather politely, to be quiet and
then take her home. The following day, Frank tells April that
it’s been 12 weeks. She replies, sing-song, that that’s right, as if she’s come to
accept the baby. April tries her hardest to go along with the happy family charade, but
when he tries to comfort her, saying they’ve simply been having a tough time, she snaps,
saying that she knows he’s really just asking why she doesn’t want to get intimate with
him, and she doesn’t want to talk about it. When Frank pushes her, she states evenly
that they should just take each day as it comes. Frank confesses to having had an affair,
hoping to reconcile and promises that the affair is over. To his surprise, April is
apathetic. She asks why - and while he thinks that she’s asking why he had the affair,
she clarifies that she’s asking what the point in telling her about it is, and wonders
whether it’s to make her jealous. April says she doesn’t care what he does, and
that she doesn’t love him anymore, which he says he doesn’t believe. Just then, the
Givings arrive for dinner, and Frank announces to the guests that their plans to move to
Paris have changed because April is pregnant. While Helen and Howard congratulate them,
John sees through the charade and chastises Frank for crushing April's hope, as well as
his sudden acceptance of the life he once deemed empty. Frank loses it and screams at
John, telling him to go back to the psychiatric hospital. As they leave, John tells April
that this is her fault as well, since her husband is clearly insecure about his manhood.
Frank nearly attacks John, causing Helen to stand in between the two of them and plead
for Frank to stop. Helen apologizes to a stoic April, and the Givings leave.
After the Givings leave, Frank and April continue to fight, where April pleads for him to finally
stop talking, while Frank tells her he wishes she had performed the abortion. The fight
escalates to Frank becoming aggressive. April tells Frank if he touches her she’ll scream.
He grabs her arms, and she screams at the top of her lungs, sending Frank into a rage.
Frank breaks a chair, and April flees the house to the woods nearby. Frank chases after
her, and when he catches up to her, he apologizes and pleads for her to come back, but April
says if he keeps talking, she’ll scream, Frank looks around at the houses surrounding
them and gives in, leaving her. Finally alone, April breaks down crying.
Frank is restless all night, drinking and watching out the window for any sign of April
while she spends the night in the woods by the house, contemplating her life.
The next morning, Frank is shocked to find April in the kitchen. Calm and cheerful, she
asks Frank what he wants for breakfast. Hesitant, he says eggs. He apprehensively watches her
cook, then the pair eat scrambled eggs together. April says that today is a big deal because
of his conference at work, which he confirms, still hesitant of her behavior. She asks him
about his new job. Frank says that the company is getting ready to buy a computer, and April
feigns interest as Frank explains the details of the computer, even sketching out how it
looks. April tells Frank to value what he does, especially since he’s good at it,
and he smiles, moved by her commitment to staying in their current life. Frank thanks
April for breakfast and April replies that she enjoyed it too. Frank asks if she hates
him, but she reassures him that she doesn’t. Smiling, she tells him to have a good day.
The two kiss and he leaves for work. April watches him leave and the smile fades
from her face. She cries as she does the dishes. Then she calls Milly, who is watching her
children, and asks her to give them each a kiss for her, but she can’t bring herself
to tell her to tell them she loves them. Then she goes to the bathroom where she performs
a vacuum aspiration abortion on herself. Afterwards, she notices blood on the carpet and realizes
that she’s bleeding. Calmly, she calls an ambulance to 115 Revolutionary Road.
Milly notices the ambulance arrive across the street as she folds laundry.
Shep arrives at the hospital and finds a distraught Frank, who explains that April’s losing
blood and is unconscious, then repeatedly states that she did this to herself. Shep
goes to get them coffee, and when he returns, he finds Frank devastated, having learned
that April has passed away. Years later, a new couple, the Braces, buy
115 Revolutionary Road. Milly and Shep have them over for tea and Milly tells the story
of the Wheelers to them. She says that Frank moved to the city and sells computers, stating
that now he spends all his spare time with his children. Shep stands up and walks out
of the house, crying; he tells Milly to never talk about the Wheelers ever again. Milly
agrees and the couple hug. In the city, Frank watches his kids play on
the playground. He starts drifting off in thought until his son calls out to him, bringing
him back to the present. At the Givings house, Helen talks to her husband
about how the Braces seem to be the best-suited couple for the Wheelers' old house, saying
they’re nice congenial people. When Howard corrects her, reminding her about the Wheelers,
Helen replies that they were too whimsical and difficult for her, and since they let
the house depreciate, it was harder to sell. As she continues to elaborate, her husband
turns off his hearing aid.