Plot
Returning to his Bronx home following World War II, Timmy Cleary discovers his middle class parents have drifted apart and constantly quarrel at the least provocation. Once closer to his mother Nettie, the young veteran finds himself bonding with his salesman father John, but he tries to remain neutral when intervening in their disputes.
En route home after a day trip to the family's summer cottage with his father, Timmy purchases a bouquet of roses and suggests John present them to his wife. Nettie is thrilled by his apparent thoughtfulness, and the three spend the evening nightclubbing in Manhattan. When an inebriated John (whose infidelities have by now been referenced in the film) attempts to make love to his wife later that night, Nettie rejects his advances, suggesting he go to "one of his whores", and breaks the vase of flowers, prompting her husband to reveal it really was Timmy who bought them.
The following morning, while John is at Sunday Mass, Timmy accuses his mother of trying to make him choose between his parents, and she goes out to allow both of them time to calm down. When she returns, she finds John arguing with their half-drunk son. Realizing the domestic situation is not likely to improve, Timmy announces he is leaving home, a decision his parents grudgingly accept. When he changes his mind, his father insists he stick to his plan, and the three eat breakfast together before he departs.
Read more about this topic: The Subject Was Roses (film)
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