Comprehensive information and links about The Door in the Floor

The Door in the Floor

The movie is set in 1980s or 1990s in the exclusive beach community of East Hampton, New York, where famous children's book author Ted Cole (played by Jeff Bridges), his beautiful wife Marion (Kim Basinger) and their young daughter Ruth (Elle Fanning) live. Years ago their two teenage sons died in a car accident. Particularly traumatic for Marion was seeing a leg of her son, cut off, lying on the ground. They made a new start by having Ruth, but Marion is still despondent, and Ted makes love with other women. Many photographs of the two dead boys are on the walls.

Ted and Marion separate temporarily, each alternatingly living in the main and a second house. Ted hires the young man Eddie O'Hare (Jon Foster), to work as his summer assistant and driver: Ted has had his driving licence revoked for drunk driving. As Ted later explains to Eddie, he is also hired to cheer up Marion, since he looks like one of their dead sons. Eddie is the couple's unwitting yet willing pawn. Eddie and Marion have an affair, which starts after Marion walks in when Eddie masturbates with Marion's underwear. The affair does not bother Ted. However, when Ruth walks into the room where Eddie and Marion are making love, Ted, after hearing about this, is upset that Marion did not prevent that from happening. Ted tells Eddie that in a possible future custody battle about Ruth, Eddie may have to testify about this incident, illustrating her being less suitable to have Ruth. Later Marion leaves Ted, but does not want custody of Ruth, which Ted finds amazing. Marion takes all photographs and negatives of the two dead boys with her. Fortunately for Ted and Ruth, they still have one, that happened to be in the photo shop for repair of the frame.

Ted is also a drawing artist, and hires Evelyn Vaughn (Mimi Rogers) as nude model. In a slapstick scene Evelyn tries to kill Ted.

Eddie develops from shy and adoring Ted, to the point where he, as instructed by Marion, slaps Ted in the face.

Ted sometimes walks around the house naked, in front of Eddie and Ruth (not shown full-frontal).

Several shots feature Basinger nude while with her young lover. 48-year-old supporting actress Mimi Rogers is shown in full frontal nudity.