"I don't know that Alan knew at this point, but I believe it is a
>fair interpretation that he is terribly distracted by all the disturbing
>events, the weird phone call, and his own conflicts about being a
>Sandbagger that he was distracted."
I'm not sure I can buy into all the conjecture about Alan. In the end, you
have to stick to what's on the screen. I don't think there's anything to
suggest Alan suspected what Neil was up to. He wasn't aware of Sally's
suicide because it hadn't happened yet. (As soon as she hung up on him, he
started out the door and was hit by the taxi. He just knew she was
distraught.) Yes, he was distracted (Willie's great line, upon hearing the
news: "Too many other things on his mind!")
As a footnote to my earlier posting about Alan's "sensitivity" compared to
the "insensitivity" of the other Sandbaggers. On various occasions, Neil and
Willie are shown to be callous and sensitive so I would hate to label them.
Think of Willie's reaction to Tom's death versus his reaction to Edward's
death (where he wants to go swimming); or the way Neil dumps Tom's body on
the ground to remove the watch versus his tears at Edward's death. What's
interesting to me is the love-hate relationship Neil has with his job and
himself. ("You won't leave Willie. Nor will I. As much as I want to.")
>
>