If you haven’t seen the movie, Steven (Matthew Broderick) is moving into a new place because his girlfriend, Robin (Leslie Mann), kicked him out of their apartment when he proposed. In the first scene, the cable guy (Jim Carrey) arrives at Steven’s apartment to install his cable. After the two start hanging out a lot, Steven’s friend (Jack Black), who is slightly jealous, learns and tells Steven that the cable company fired the cable guy a long time ago for stalking customers. In the final scene, Steven tries to stop the cable guy from committing suicide. He jumps anyway, but sustains no serious injuries. In the end, it appears that Steven and Robin are getting back together and that the cable guy has agreed to leave them alone. Throughout the movie, there is news coverage of Hollywood actor Sam Sweet (Ben Stiller), who is on trial for murdering his twin brother.
So here's the theory: Steven previously sold his soul to the devil in exchange for being allowed to marry Robin. (Leslie Mann is way out of Matthew Broderick’s league, right?) But they never married because they were both murdered by Sam Sweet after witnessing the actor murder his brother. Steven’s new apartment is limbo, and the cable guy is actually the devil. Steven spends most of the movie trying to reunite with Robin, who is in heaven. Eventually Steven remembers who the cable guy really is and tells him he doesn’t want him around anymore. The devil then tries to bring Robin down to hell, which Steven tries to prevent. In the end, Steven tries to stop the cable guy from committing suicide. For that, the devil tells Steven, “he’s good people” and allows him to join Robin in heaven.
Steven’s new apartment building does not exist on earth. It’s actually limbo, and he is the only one that lives there.
1. There are several shots of the hallway on Steven’s floor when his front door is open. No other residents are ever shown in the hallway or walking in or out of the building. Nor are there any muffled sounds of neighbors.
2. No one complains about the excessive noise from Steven’s apartment when cable guy hosts a really loud karaoke party there.
3. There is a shot of the outside of Steven’s apartment building. It has four floors, but Steven’s window is the only one that has a light suggesting that someone lives there.
4. Most of the people at the karaoke party are old and appear to be from different time periods. There is a small group of young people there as well. Obviously most people die at an old age. When you take into account the prostitute who’s there, it seems like the right mix of people who might have died and didn’t make it directly into heaven.
5. Like you might imagine limbo, the apartment is really bland. Everything seems to be grey and there are almost no decorations.
The cable guy has textbook devil tendencies because he’s the devil.
6. When Steven tries to refuse his new friend’s gift of the entertainment system, the cable guy says, “You’ve given me something so much more valuable - friendship.” Friendship? Don’t you mean “your soul”?
7. The cable guy bribes a restaurant bathroom attendant to take a break so he can take over his job and beat up the guy who’s on a date with Robin. This may be to fulfill his bargain and get Steven’s soul.
8. Devil in Disguise 101: Lay low and conceal your identity. We never learn the cable guy’s real name. Also, cable guy and bathroom attendant are both pretty low profile jobs.
9. At the karaoke party, the cable guy slays “Somebody to Love” like only the devil himself truly could.
10. Before he starts singing “Somebody to Love”, he references the Rolling Stones concert at Altamont. He says, “That night the Oakland chapter of the Hell’s Angels had their way. Tonight it’s my turn.” Um. Creepy.
11. After Steven finds out that a girl he slept with is a prostitute, the cable guy advises Steven not to tell his girlfriend. Classic devil on the shoulder move.
6. When Steven tries to refuse his new friend’s gift of the entertainment system, the cable guy says, “You’ve given me something so much more valuable - friendship.” Friendship? Don’t you mean “your soul”?
7. The cable guy bribes a restaurant bathroom attendant to take a break so he can take over his job and beat up the guy who’s on a date with Robin. This may be to fulfill his bargain and get Steven’s soul.
8. Devil in Disguise 101: Lay low and conceal your identity. We never learn the cable guy’s real name. Also, cable guy and bathroom attendant are both pretty low profile jobs.
9. At the karaoke party, the cable guy slays “Somebody to Love” like only the devil himself truly could.
10. Before he starts singing “Somebody to Love”, he references the Rolling Stones concert at Altamont. He says, “That night the Oakland chapter of the Hell’s Angels had their way. Tonight it’s my turn.” Um. Creepy.
11. After Steven finds out that a girl he slept with is a prostitute, the cable guy advises Steven not to tell his girlfriend. Classic devil on the shoulder move.
The cable guy has special abilities and knowledge that no actual human could have.
12. Steven calls the cable guy when his cable is out. About a second after Steven finishes dialing, the cable guy is already knocking on Steven’s door.
13. He just happens to know when Steven and his friends are playing basketball, and shows up right when one of the guys gets hurt and they need another player. Suspicious. After they ask the cable guy to fill in, he climbs up another player’s back with his feet to propel himself to a backboard-shattering slam dunk. Who else but the devil.
14. Near the end of the movie, the cable guy somehow breaks into Steven’s office, changes his screen saver, and gets a video of Steven trashing his boss to play on every computer in the office. How though?
15. After Steven gets fired from his job, he’s in the parking garage. The cable guy somehow gets every car in the parking garage to sound its alarm at once. Then he makes every car to stop at once, and Steven hears the cable guy’s voice. How is this happening?
16. In the restaurant bathroom, the cable guy, disguised as a bathroom attendant, takes almost no time to silently sneak under the stall and surprise the guy on a date with Robin. When we get another look at the bathroom stall doors, they come within a foot or less of the ground.
17. Before the karaoke party, the cable guy somehow sneaks a huge entertainment system into Steven’s apartment. This includes a big screen TV, speakers, and of course a deluxe karaoke machine. Steven questions how the cable guy got all that in the apartment without his knowing.
18. In one scene, the cable guy appears from absolutely nowhere. Steven is shown going up the steps to his building, and the only thing off to the side is a light post and some grass. The camera angle changes, and the cable guy instantly appears.
19. The cable guy survives a very high fall and seems to be just fine. How?
12. Steven calls the cable guy when his cable is out. About a second after Steven finishes dialing, the cable guy is already knocking on Steven’s door.
13. He just happens to know when Steven and his friends are playing basketball, and shows up right when one of the guys gets hurt and they need another player. Suspicious. After they ask the cable guy to fill in, he climbs up another player’s back with his feet to propel himself to a backboard-shattering slam dunk. Who else but the devil.
14. Near the end of the movie, the cable guy somehow breaks into Steven’s office, changes his screen saver, and gets a video of Steven trashing his boss to play on every computer in the office. How though?
15. After Steven gets fired from his job, he’s in the parking garage. The cable guy somehow gets every car in the parking garage to sound its alarm at once. Then he makes every car to stop at once, and Steven hears the cable guy’s voice. How is this happening?
16. In the restaurant bathroom, the cable guy, disguised as a bathroom attendant, takes almost no time to silently sneak under the stall and surprise the guy on a date with Robin. When we get another look at the bathroom stall doors, they come within a foot or less of the ground.
17. Before the karaoke party, the cable guy somehow sneaks a huge entertainment system into Steven’s apartment. This includes a big screen TV, speakers, and of course a deluxe karaoke machine. Steven questions how the cable guy got all that in the apartment without his knowing.
18. In one scene, the cable guy appears from absolutely nowhere. Steven is shown going up the steps to his building, and the only thing off to the side is a light post and some grass. The camera angle changes, and the cable guy instantly appears.
19. The cable guy survives a very high fall and seems to be just fine. How?
This devil imagery and symbolism.
20. The name of the town is Centerville. Sounds a lot like Sinnerville, right?
21. There is a shot of the cable guy standing in front of the big screen TV with a fireplace playing, which you might say looks like the fires of hell.
22. At one point, the cable guy is talking to Steven on the phone when a spider crawls across his face. The cable guy does not react whatsoever. Honestly, who other than the devil wouldn’t react to a spider crawling across their face?
23. After Steven’s friend tells him that his new friend isn’t really a cable guy, it triggers a nightmare where the cable guy has a very demonic voice and eyes. Perhaps Steven is finally remembering who the cable guy really is here.
24. The cable guy seems to really like candles (candles as in fire, and fire as in hell). There are very, very few decorations in Steven’s bland apartment. There are, however, a lot of candles, and it’s not totally clear if they belong to Steven or the cable guy. They are used almost exclusively during the cable guy’s karaoke jam. The cable guy also sniffs one pretty intensely at Robin’s apartment.
20. The name of the town is Centerville. Sounds a lot like Sinnerville, right?
21. There is a shot of the cable guy standing in front of the big screen TV with a fireplace playing, which you might say looks like the fires of hell.
22. At one point, the cable guy is talking to Steven on the phone when a spider crawls across his face. The cable guy does not react whatsoever. Honestly, who other than the devil wouldn’t react to a spider crawling across their face?
23. After Steven’s friend tells him that his new friend isn’t really a cable guy, it triggers a nightmare where the cable guy has a very demonic voice and eyes. Perhaps Steven is finally remembering who the cable guy really is here.
24. The cable guy seems to really like candles (candles as in fire, and fire as in hell). There are very, very few decorations in Steven’s bland apartment. There are, however, a lot of candles, and it’s not totally clear if they belong to Steven or the cable guy. They are used almost exclusively during the cable guy’s karaoke jam. The cable guy also sniffs one pretty intensely at Robin’s apartment.
There is a separation between Steven and Robin because she’s in heaven.
25. There is something physically separating Steven and Robin. Until the very end, when perhaps the devil allows Steven to join Robin in heaven, Steven is never shown making any sort of physical contact with his girlfriend at all.
26. When they’re on Steven’s couch watching a movie, they do not touch at all. Is this how you sit and watch “Sleepless in Seattle” with someone you’ve been having sex with?
27. At Steven’s parents’ house, Steven is on one couch with his mom, and the cable guy is with Robin on another when they play porno password (guess whose game). During this dinner party, Robin hugs the cable guy multiple times, but never even touches Steven.
28. Robin’s apartment just looks like a much happier place than Steven’s place. It has a lot of flowery decorations and colors. Maybe it’s because she’s in heaven instead of limbo.
25. There is something physically separating Steven and Robin. Until the very end, when perhaps the devil allows Steven to join Robin in heaven, Steven is never shown making any sort of physical contact with his girlfriend at all.
26. When they’re on Steven’s couch watching a movie, they do not touch at all. Is this how you sit and watch “Sleepless in Seattle” with someone you’ve been having sex with?
27. At Steven’s parents’ house, Steven is on one couch with his mom, and the cable guy is with Robin on another when they play porno password (guess whose game). During this dinner party, Robin hugs the cable guy multiple times, but never even touches Steven.
28. Robin’s apartment just looks like a much happier place than Steven’s place. It has a lot of flowery decorations and colors. Maybe it’s because she’s in heaven instead of limbo.
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