The Station Agent

In the film, The Station Agent, Fin McBride, the main character, moved to the train depot after inheriting it from his co-worker and only friend. Before Fin moved, and even when he first arrived in New Jersey, he didn’t like to be bothered and chose to spend his time alone. Due to inheriting the depot, Fin also inherited a “neighbor,” Joe Oramas, the hot dog vendor. Unlike Fin, Joe likes to socialize with the people from the small town in the middle of nowhere. When he first arrived in new Jersey, Fin kept conversations with Joe short and also tried to avoid conversing with the artistic Olivia, who just so happened to run Fin off the road twice. It is obvious that Fin is lonely, but for some reason does not want to open up to the people who are new in his life. Before he moved to New Jersey, it is hard to say what home to Fin was, but after getting to know the people who used to annoy him with curiosity and friendliness, it is obvious that Fin’s home is now in New Jersey. When we are first introduced to Fin, he is quiet and keeps to his own business. We know that he is often judged by his height, being that he is a dwarf at the height of four feet and five inches, just simply from watching how others attempt to interact with him. After refusing to give up, Joe and Olivia prove to Fin that not everyone is interested in judging him. When Fin begins to accept them into his life is when we start to see that he feels a sense of belonging to his new home. To Fin, I believe that it wasn’t so much the depot that felt like home, but the people who surrounded it.