Diksha Sundriyal
Paramount+’s ‘The Madison’ opens with two brothers, Paul and Preston Clyburn, fishing in the picturesque environs of Montana’s countryside, where Paul lives on a ranch. Preston lives with his family in New York, but he prefers his time on the ranch, which is why, when Paul tells him that, as a special birthday gift, he has secured permission to fly into an otherwise restricted area for fishing, Preston cannot miss the opportunity. He was supposed to go back to New York, but the extension means he will have to be around for another week.
He relays this information to his wife, Stacy, and then the next day, they fly off to their new fishing spot. The landing is safe, and the spot turns out to be exactly what they had expected, but then, the storm clouds start to gather. Initially, it seems that the clouds are moving in a different direction, but things change pretty quickly. They get back on the plane, and Paul tries to fly them out of the turbulence, but the storm is too strong, and it brings down their plane. This marks the beginning of the story for the rest of the Clyburns, who must now deal with the aftermath. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Stacy Makes a Life-Changing Decision After Preston’s Death
While Preston is in Montana with his brother, his family is in New York, under the watchful eye of Stacy, his beloved wife, whom he has been with since they were 19. They have two daughters: Abby, who is divorced and has two daughters, and Paige, who is married to Russell and has a successful career in the city. Despite having grown up in wealth, Paige doesn’t like to flaunt it, which is why she refuses to take the car. This decision turns out to be bad when she is mugged in the middle of the street in broad daylight. The man punches her and runs away with her bags. When she reports this to two police officers, she is irked by the fact that they want to know about the race of the attacker.
In any case, this is just another instance that proves to Preston that they should not be living in the city. He had been trying to get his family down to the ranch for a long time, but Stacy said she is a city mouse, and with no proper bathroom, she will not step inside the cabin. This, however, changes when Preston dies in the plane crash. The whole family comes down to Montana to identify Preston and Paul’s remains and then set up at the cabin. Being at the place reminds Stacy of all the things her husband used to tell her about when he came on his trips. Like how he would make coffee with the water from the river, and how a certain patch of land with the yellow grass reminded him of her hair, so he named it Stacy’s Valley.
The place unravels a different side of Preston, one that Stacy kept herself away from despite his best efforts and desire, and she blames herself for not allowing her husband to share this part of his world with them. This is why she becomes even more adamant about staying in the place permanently. Through Preston’s journals, she finds Stacy’s Valley and decides that Paul and Preston will be buried there. And when the time comes, she will be buried right next to her husband. However, several people, including a lawyer, point out that someday in the future, the land will be sold, and once someone else takes possession of it, the new owners will be under no obligation to let the family visit the graves.
In fact, they will be at liberty to relocate the graves if they so wish. This makes Stacy think a lot, but it doesn’t deter her from her plan. She becomes adamant about saving the place, even after she is gone. So, she decides to sell her apartment and other properties in New York. Since she plans to move to Montana permanently, those places won’t matter anymore. The money from the sales will be used to set up a trust, which will ensure that the land remains within the family rather than being sold. While she has made up her mind about the decision, her family members are not too happy with the idea of not only having their mother relocate to a ranch in the middle of nowhere, but they are also not comfortable with the idea of losing all the money that has afforded them their lifestyles.
Stacy’s Family Struggles to Find Their Footing in Montana
While Stacy starts familiarising herself with the ranch in the hopes of staying in touch with Preston, her children find it difficult to adjust. No phone connection, no running water, no amenities: this is not something they are used to. The toilet is outside the house, and even that has a hornet’s nest that flies out when Paige uses it. They bite her all over her butt, which leads her to lash out on her husband, Russell, who himself is bitten in the eye when he tries to chase away the creatures using a pest spray. Later, when they sit down to eat, they are repelled by the idea of eating elk meat, so Stacy lies to them and says it’s beef.
Her family is also used to a different kind of crowd. When a man named Cade shows up at their door, they are extra vigilant because they have no idea who this man is. It turns out that Cade lives on the farm next door. When he and the townsfolk found out about Paul and Preston’s death, they decided to help out the Clyburns by making some food for them. The family, especially Abby’s daughters, cannot fathom why someone would just bring them food like this. When Cade leaves, Stacy chides them for being rude to the person who is simply trying to help them and is being kind to them. This is just the beginning of the conflict that escalates with each passing day, as Stacy realises how out of touch her kids are with the world.
She blames herself for pampering them like this, and wishes she’d listened to Preston and brought the kids to the ranch so they could see a world different than their privileged upbringing in New York. She is also hurt after she overhears a conversation between Abby and Paige. For her part, Abby is very understanding of her mother’s pain and tries to support her however she can. Paige, on the other hand, wonders why Stacy thinks she is the only one who has lost Preston. Abby tells her that Preston meant much more to Stacy, given they’d known each other all their lives and were each other’s best friends. For them, however, Preston was only present for certain things. When Stacy hears about how her daughters view their father, she is brokenhearted.
Abby and Stacy Have an Argument About the Future
While it is difficult at first, the family starts to find their footing. Abby’s daughters make a thank-you card for Cade and his wife, which is appreciated. Paige’s anger towards her husband subsides, and they end up making peace. The children start enjoying the outside more and even play in the river. Abby and Paige have a minor quarrel, which leads to a physical altercation, but the fallout leads them to work together, making Stacy wonder if they should have fought each other sooner. After a time, Stacy starts to wonder what life would be like for her children if she moved out of New York.
She knows that Paige and Russell would be okay, but Abby is the one she is worried about. Flashbacks reveal that Stacy and Preston had had a conversation about their daughter while she was going through the divorce. At the time, Stacy wanted Abby to go out on her own and learn to live in the world by herself. Preston, however, couldn’t let go of his daughter so easily. After they pick up Paul’s truck from the police station, they drive back home, guided by Cade. In the car, Stacy makes it clear that Abby has two choices. Either she moves to Montana with her, or she stays in New York and works things out on her own.
This prospect makes Stacy so angry that she asks to be let out of the car in the middle of nowhere. Fortunately, Cade sees this and calls his friend Van, who is a cop, to pick her up. The fight takes a toll on Stacy, who has already been struggling. She stops the car and looks at the gun that was already in the car. Cade arrives right on time and tells her that this is not the way to make things any easier. His words, especially the part about how he waded through the grief of losing his father, help her in the moment, and they drive back home. Meanwhile, Stacy is picked up by Van. She doesn’t want to go back home and face her mother just yet, so he takes her to Van’s farm. After a bit, it becomes clear that they have chemistry.
When Cade and his wife see this, they find an excuse to leave them alone. Van reveals that he was married, but his wife died in an ATV accident. He has two children whom he raises by himself. Abby reveals that she has two daughters with her ex-husband, who is so out of the picture that she doesn’t even know if he can be called a bad dad. By the time Cade drives her back home, the feelings between them have become clear. They end up kissing each other, and Abby gives him her number. Their interaction is noted by the rest of the family, who are happy for her, including Stacy, who becomes even more convinced that coming to Montana was the right decision.
Read More: Where is The Madison Filmed? All Shooting Locations
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