‘Out Of My Mind’ Movie Ending Explained & Recap: Did Melody Confront Her Teacher?

Lately, there are many movies and TV shows being made that discuss differently abled children and how including them in the school curriculum should be normalized. Only two weeks ago, Netflix Poland released The Mothers of Penguins, a miniseries about mothers dealing with their children who are differently abled. It has to be one of the most realistic portrayals of what the parents go through while raising children with special needs. Keeping that in mind, Amber Sealy’s film, Out of My Mind, is also about a young girl named Melody who has cerebral palsy and how her parents want a normal life for her by giving her a proper education. 

Spoilers Ahead

What was Melody’s condition?

Melody was a 12-year-old girl who’d suffered from cerebral palsy from birth. She was unable to communicate verbally and had visual cues on her wheelchair that helped her communicate with her parents, Diane and Chuck, and sister Penny. Since Melody never had a physical voice, in the movie the voiceover that spoke for her mind was Jennifer Aniston, her favorite actor from Friends, the popular TV show. Melody had a lot to convey about the things she sees around her. She was unable to convey everything because of no voice, and it usually just stayed in her mind. 

Who recommended Melody to take up regular classes?

Melody wanted a normal life like any other girl, but sadly, her condition and lack of proper schooling constrained her life to special education classes, and she wasn’t growing intellectually much. This was a concern for Melody’s father, as he wanted her to have a normal life as well. Melody’s mother had given up on any hope of her ever stepping inside a normal school and having friends who were not like her. Dr. Ray, who’d recently earned her doctorate, visited the school from the department of education; she recommended Melody to attend normal sixth grade classes. Dr. Ray volunteered to accompany Melody so that she wouldn’t feel left out. Diane was not in favor of this move as she feared Melody would be bullied, but Chuck wanted to give it a try. As a father, he wanted to find out if this would work out for his daughter or not. 

Who was Melody’s friend in the sixth grade?

Melody along with Dr. Ray, attended the sixth grade history classes. Initially, the children and the teacher, Mr. Dimmings were not comfortable with Melody conversing through the cues placed on her wheelchair. Melody, however, found a friend in Rose who, initially, just like the other children, was clueless about her condition and had no knowledge of how to converse with her. Rose tried her level best, but at times she was admonished by Melody’s father for abandoning his daughter to converse with her other friends.

Why did Melody want a Medi-Talker?

Melody was embarrassed by her father’s behavior towards Rose and hoped to have a voice to protect her friend from being attacked by her overprotective parents. Melody happened to see a documentary on Stephen Hawking, and she decided she wanted one of the devices that helped him talk. Diane and Chuck were keen on getting her a Medi-Talker, an augmented automotive communication device, but it was very expensive. They hoped an insurance company would pay for the device, but they wanted a full report from an authority on the subject who had a doctorate. The parents and Dr. Ray found a loophole, and the latter signed a report that stated that Melody required a Medi-Talker for her daily use and assistance.

Did Rose and Melody become friends?

Rose and Melody were informed in the class by Mr. Dimmings about the Whiz-Kid competition, and how four children would be selected for it from the school. As Melody received her Medi-Talker, she was able to communicate with Rose, and she helped her prepare for the quiz. Rose and Melody were becoming friends, and the former was getting used to being around someone who was in a wheelchair and spoke through a machine. 

Why was Melody chosen for the Whiz-kid competition?

Once the Whiz-Kid tryout exams were over, Melody was sad about the fact that she was not one of the four students that would be representing the school. Her parents and Dr. Ray was also furious to know how Melody missed out on being a part of the Whiz-kid final four. Dr. Ray, Diane, and Chuck confronted Mr. Dimmings, who under pressure revealed that he did not grade Melody’s answers as he was not sure if taking her along for the quiz would be economically viable for the school. He also revealed he had no training on how to deal with students like her. The teaching board, along with Dr. Ray and Melody’s parents, were shocked at the turn of events. Since Melody scored the highest amongst all the students from her class, she was put on the team, and the school had to remove Rose from it as she had the lowest score. Rose was angry at Melody for obvious reasons. Melody was not sure how to deal with this situation as her parents and guide had gotten involved in it.

Who won the Whiz-Kid competition?

As the children were sent off for the Whiz-Kid regional competition, Rose was still bitter at Melody for how she got a spot on the team. Melody, however, was thankful to her mother for helping her so far with everything and believing in her. To everyone’s surprise, Melody was the reason her school won the regional Whiz-Kid competition, after which they headed to Washington for the finals. 

Why couldn’t Melody go to Washington?

Melody was excited about heading to Washington for the finals. Her grandmother gifted her cool sparkly shoes because Melody had always wanted to seem normal and cool like other girls in the class. Melody had hoped the machine would allow her to communicate what’s on her mind with the people she liked being around. The sparkly shoes also meant a great deal to her, as she was enamored by the kind of footwear worn by girls in her class. Her grandmother treated her like a normal person right from the start, and she was glad Melody’s parents also got that. However, the rest of the quiz team and Mr. Dimmings were having breakfast at a restaurant just before their flight, and Melody was at home getting ready for the airport.

Mr. Dimmings learned the flight was preponed and the team reached the airport quickly. However, Mr. Dimmings informed Diane and Chuck about the same, but since they were coming from home, the three of them could not board the flight and had to face a lot of trouble as the airport was not equipped for wheelchair-bound passengers. Melody was left behind since the boarding was complete and the teacher and the students did not wait for her to reach the airport. This dejected Melody and her parents, as they felt betrayed by the teacher and the students as they did not prepare anyone for these circumstances. 

Diane and Chuck felt the school was ungrateful to them even though Melody was the reason the school was in the finals, and that they could not wait to abandon her and bask on the glory by excluding Melody. Melody, in a fit of rage, poured chocolate milk over her Medi-Talker screen. She did this because the whole point of getting this device was to be able to speak to her classmates. Since they weren’t willing to include her, there was no technology that could help her feel included. It was a social problem as the classmates and teachers of the school were uncooperative and did not make her feel included. 

Did Melody confront her teacher and class?

In the wake of Melody ruining the screen of her Medi-Talker, there was tension brimming in her household as Diane and Chuck were not able to figure out how to sort out the matters concerning the school and the device. What the parents were going through was overwhelming, as all they ever wanted was a normal life for Melody. It turns out the school was having a tough time doing that, and so they wanted to separate Melody from other students and put her back in special education class. 

Back home, as Melody was struggling to speak without the machine, she was unable to warn her mother when her sister was behind the car as Diane was reversing her vehicle. Her sister was not hurt, but Diane realized her daughter deserves a voice and needs to be heard. This was a cathartic moment for Diane as well, because she was initially not keen on admitting Melody to a public school and getting the device. After the Penny incident, Diane was quick to understand that her daughter deserved to be treated like others and not a special child.

Melody the next day attended her sixth grade class with her parents in the only hope of wanting to speak to them. Melody wanted to do this because she wanted to let them know how she felt about being excluded from the quiz competition. Mr. Dimmings tried to be defensive, but Melody asked him to stop talking and let her talk. Her asking him to stop talking was a sign of her newfound confidence. This was her way to shut Mr Dimmings down who discriminated against Melody because of her machine and the fact she was a child with special needs. This time she did not let Mr. Dimmings take control of the conversation. She spoke out about being excluded purposely from the beginning of her time in the school. She wanted to prove that even though she was on a machine, she was aware she was intellectually as gifted as the rest of the children in the class. 

Melody, for the first time, spoke her heart out and did not let Dr. Ray or her parents do the bidding on her behalf. This was her way of asserting confidence other children of her age had. The movie ended with Melody letting the class know that she was not planning to go anywhere as the class had to deal with it instead of complaining about her condition and the way she lived and moved. This was Melody’s way of letting the school know that she would be adamant about being treated as any other preteen girl who wanted to study and educate herself. It was good messaging and was positive reinforcement for herself as she finally took control of her life. Rose was also happy for Melody, and so were Diane and Chuck. Melody was here to stay.