Make it Up: The Jerk

The Jerk is a hilarious movie filmed in 1979. The film is a comedy recounting on the life of Navin Johnson. It is a dramatic personal tale of Navin from his childhood to his adulthood. This paper outlines the possessions and behavior of Navin as exhibited in the film and how they reflect his class status before and after becoming rich.

Navin is a white man adopted by an African American family. He race is a white, but due to his environment in which he had grown up, he viewed himself as an Africa America. His adopted mother reveals his race to him and this triggers him to make a decision to begin his own life and set himself a name. He therefore decides to move away from his home to St. Louis, where he finds a job at the gas station. At this time, Navin did not have any possession. He belonged to the low class since he was not financially stable. He lives a hard life. In the film, Navin shows different behaviors in various situations. For instance, when his adopted family plays a spirited blue music, he does not follow the rhythm and looks out of place. He is also eager to learn and this is exhibited with his decision to move to St. Louis after listening to an orchestra on radio that inspired him to dance.

Navin’s name had never been printed in any local phone book. When he gets a job at a gas station, his name is printed for the first time. He becomes excited and this shows that indeed Navin was lacking in exposure. When his name is picked by a lunatic as the next victim to be killed, Navin escapes and finds a new job as a weight guesser at the SJM Fiesta shows.

His star begins to shine when he is offered by Fox, with a promise of 50/50 profit split on his inventions. The inventions were the fixing of slippery glasses of customers. While working at the SJM Fiesta, Navin meets Patty and engages in sexual relationship with her. Moreover, he meets another woman Maries, who he falls in love with. At this moment, Navin’s life is good as he is able to earn good salary. He now belongs to an upper class, which is shown by the lavish lifestyle such as visiting beaches. The behaviors of Navin exposed here are immoral. He sleeps with a number of women because of his financial status. Navin is also portrayed as a careless spender, especially when his love Marie decides to leave him because of his financial insecurity. Navin goes through many difficulties in his life.

Navin’s star begins to shine again when undergoing emotional and financial problems after he is contacted by Stan and informed that his glass invention, which was now being referred to as Opti-Grab, was selling well and therefore was entitled to half profit. These news changes the life of Navin from rags to riches, as he becomes a millionaire. Again, his financial status is boosted making him to move to a yet again an upper class. Because of money, Navin marries his love Marie and buys extravagant mansions. He owns many possessions and lives lavishly, partying often. This was a fortune that changed his life for the better. His status changed drastically from poverty to riches since the profits were enormous.

Navin again moves from riches to rags. He lives a miserable and a homeless life after a law suit is filed by Carla motion picture director, who accused him that the Opti-Grab he invented was defective as they caused his eyes to be crossed and caused the death of his driver. This lawsuit saw Navin charged 10 million US dollars in damages. Navin is abandoned by his wife making him live miserable life on streets after becoming bankrupt. Nevertheless, he is rescued again by his family members who had invested the little sums of money at home. He is reunited again by his wife and other family members.

In the story, there are various stereotypes and presumptions about class categories that are being exaggerated for laughs. One of these stereotypes is the nationality of Navin. Navin is white but he did not seem to understand that he was indeed white as he thought that he was an African-American. This kind of stereotype comes from Navin himself. Another example of stereotype and presumptions in the film that is based on class is the behavior and experiences that Navin goes through with his wife Marie. Their relationship is exaggerated as they fall in and out every moment there is a financial problem.

In conclusion, the film is a comedy that shows the experiences of how people live their lives. In the film, Navin narrates his story on how he moved from rags to riches to rags. The story though a comedy, behaviors and possessions of the major actors are the central themes.

Work Cited

Carl Reiner, Director. The Jerk. December 14, 1979.