Max Dugan returns is a story about a man who went to prison and seemingly after prison abandoned his wife and young 9 year old daughter Nora. Twenty-six years later a terminally ill Max Duggan visits his now grown daughter who is a Highschool English teacher with a 15 year old son played by Mathew Brodderick. Life for Nora and her son is difficult after the passing of her husband. They live in a run down house and Nora struggles to make ends meat on a teacher's salary trying to raise her son alone. Max returns to his daughter one night carry a briefcase containing $687,000. Max tells Nora about how we assume its the mafia stole property belonging to Max in Las Vegas and Max embezzled the money back over a period of seven years. Because he stole the money the police and the mafia are looking for him. Nora and Max decide to keep his identity a secret from her son. Max pretends to be renting a room from Nora yet he starts lavishing his daughter and grandson with expensive gifts in an effort to make life easier for them. To make matters worse for Max Nora has started dating a police detective whom she met after her rundown car was stolen. The story really starts taking off with a cat and mouse game between Max, the authorities, and getting Nora caught in the middle. The lavish gifts including the house being remodeled starts to bring attention to Nora in particular from a very nosy neighbor, which starts drawling the suspicions of the detective she is dating. Eventually Nora tells the truth to her son about this mystrerious man who is renting the room from them and where the money that bought all these lavish bequests came from. Eventually the detective pieces the true identy of Max Duggan but Nora is able to convince him to stop pursuing Max given the fact he is dying. Max not wanting to get his daughter or grandson involved in his predicaments he decides to leave town in the car he bought Nora to flee south towards Brazil. Before he leaves he leaves a video detaling his actions and how grateful he was for the time he spent with them and deposits a large sum of the $687,000 in the bank in Nora's name. Nora and her son are leaving her son's baseball game where Michael (The name of her son) hit a game winning home run after Max had hired a major league baseball batting coach to help his struggling grandson's problem with his hitting. They witness Max Dugan honking the horn of their car, which he stole from them, as he drives away from the ball field heading to Brazil. They both waive goodbye to him as they know they most likely will never see him again. He leaves but with the knowledge he left his daughter and grandson with financial security and their love. Thus with the remaining money he has he will live his life to the fullist in South America with whatever time he has remaining, yet we are left with a looming question will Max Duggan return again someday.
Review of Max Dugan Returns
Max Dugan Returns
(1983)
A heartwarming under rated classic 80's movie.
24 September 2023
Warning: Spoilers