Who Wants the MacGuffin?

If you want to fit in with film geeks, this is the only word you need to know. Well, maybe ‘mise en scene’ as well, but let’s start with the MacGuffin. I don’t have a good sense of what percentage of the population understands this term. If you already know it, move along.

From the Wikipedia entry:

A MacGuffin (sometimes McGuffin) is a plot device that motivates the characters and advance the story, particularly one whose importance is accepted completely by the story’s characters, yet from the audience’s perspective it might be minimally explained or may test their suspension of disbelief if it is scrutinized. The device, usually an object, is common in films, especially thrillers.

The classic example is the Maltese falcon statue in the movie of the same name. A good modern example is in the under-appreciated Mamet film The Spanish Prisoner, where-in everybody wants “the process”.

The MacGuffin came to mind because one of the businesses we share our office with is a jewelry maker. Lorena was working on a big pendant, and I remarked that it looked like a MacGuffin (either it contained microfilm, or it was a key to some ancient gateway, I figured). As you might imagine, an explanation ensued.

Here’s a photo of Lorena and Taren amongst their jewelry. They’ve got a stand-in web page here, and you can buy their cool stuff at Beauty Mark, among other stores.