Weak Layers starts by explaining what weak layers mean—a layer of snow in a snowpack prone to causing an avalanche. It features an average girl who is passionate about skiing and filmmaking. It is her journey where she finds love, the meaning of friendship, and the beauty of being a nobody.
Spoilers Ahead
Who Is Cleo Brown, And What Is She Good At?
Weak Layers begins with Cleo Brown cribbing about her boyfriend Ross to a drunk tourist guy. She cannot believe that she made love to a gay man. Cleo is an outdoor adventure filmmaker. She is playing it cool, but she is struggling in her career. Cleo does not want to feel bad, so she decides to take the drunk guy to take some shots. Cleo tells him about this competition called Hot Lapse, where people make the best ski movies in 72 hours.
Cleo’s roommate, Lucy, is in the same bar as her date. Lucy is an Asian who hates patriarchy and is very good at skiing. Meanwhile, Lucy’s other roommate, Tina, is an Olympian who is making out with a stranger in the same bar. Cleo and her roommates’ lives seem like a dream for every Gen Z. The drunk guy inspires Cleo to film her own life and be like her role model, Gaffney. Cleo decides to start filming and gets her camera. The morning after a party is extremely painful. Not just in the head but also in every part of our body. Cleo ends up banging the drunk guy. Cleo and her roommates are asked to move out of the house because of their reckless behavior. They have no money left, and they are very close to being homeless. Lucy is very happy and is not affected by this situation. It sounds like she has met the man of her dreams.
Cleo and her roommates live in a place that is fully covered by snow. Skiing is their daily activity. Cleo goes and sees Ross. It sounds like closure talk, but she needs his help. Since she has no place to live, she asks for his van. Ross suggests that she should get a hotel or sell her sleds. Cleo tells him that the way he has used her feelings is not right, and in return, she at least deserves the van for a week. They have converted the van into their new house. The three seem to be obsessed with skiing. The video Cleo recorded and uploaded last night went viral, and this has brought her confidence back. Her roommates suggest she should enter Hot Lapse. Cleo has a lot of self-doubt, but she would prefer stripping over entering Hot Lapse.
Will Cleo Go To Hot Lapse?
While they are skiing, they meet Gabe Paul and Dane Blake. They decide to go help Gabe and Dane. Dane sounds like a sexist, but Cleo insists on helping them. Tina and Cleo have managed to get the sled out of the snow. Gabe looks quite impressed by both of them. All three of them have exhausted their money, and now the only hope left is the Hot Lapse competition. Tina and Lucy are motivating the hell out of Cleo. They know that she has passion, but they also need the money. They have successfully pissed off and convinced Cleo to enter the competition.
Cleo is not able to focus on her job. She seems to be distracted by the competition. Cleo got fired from her job. It is a fine morning because Cleo has heard from Greg that she got into the competition. I mean, she heard it from Lucy, who spoke to Greg, but Cleo is thinking, How is it possible when she did not even submit the video? Cleo, Tina, and Lucy have reached the location for Hot Lapse. She goes to ask about her entry when she is approached by Gabe. It turns out that Gabe and Dane have also participated in the competition. Cleo has made it to the Hot Lapse. The girls cannot believe that they are getting a white room and everything for free—I mean, the hotel, the food, and the people around. But immediately, they were shifted to a cheaper room due to a VIP situation. Cleo is making sure that her roommates stay clean for the next two days. She means no boys and no alcohol. She needs them to focus and help her with the moviemaking. Her roommates look like a spoiled bunch of people. They let Cleo sleep and sneak away for the party.
Will Lucy And Tina Support Cleo?
Cleo is mad at both of her roommates, but she gets more mad when Gabe tells her that she should just quit. Lucy and Tina are giving their best shots to Cleo. Cleo thinks that they have some good shots, so they should stick to the schedule tomorrow and attend the sessions. Lucy tells Cleo that she cannot go because she has accidentally signed up for a competition because of the boy she likes. Lucy and Tina are taking this very lightly because, of course, this is Cleo’s dream, not theirs. They just need to relax, drink, and fool around with guys. On the other hand, Gabe is mad at Dane for using his grief as a pity party for the Hot Lapse competition. Gabe does not want to do this anymore with Dane. Meanwhile, Cleo is asking the kitchen for some food because she is starving. She overhears Dane and Gabe’s conversation and asks Gabe if she could lend her some of his food. Cleo and Gabe seem to have a good conversation with each other. Cleo is quite impressed when Gabe mentions that therapy is his sexy little necessity. They are bonding over alcohol, and we all know this is going to be a huge regret for both of them. They are both tipsy, and she ends up sleeping in his room.
The next morning, Cleo manages to get out of Gabe’s room. She enjoyed last night, but she needs to focus. She calls Lucy because they need to reach the competition in 45 minutes. They have managed to pick up Lucy, and it looks like she is going to be participating. Cleo tells Tina that she was with Gabe last night, but nothing happened between them. She is also contemplating whether her movie should have a purpose or meaning.
Will Gabe And Cleo Meet Again?
Lucy goes to the competition but gets cold feet when she is up in the air. Lucy had to get an IV drip due to dehydration because she had a panic attack. Cleo gets mad at Lucy and Tina for being so irresponsible and not caring enough for the movie. They are all coming back from skiing late in the night, but the conversations are pretty normal now.
Cleo is still in doubt and asks Pete if her movies should have a purpose. They all reach the party for the free food. While Cleo is getting all the food in her stomach, she meets Scott Gaffney. She is completely star-stuck and has nothing to say. She could not explain the purpose of her movie to her role model, which made her upset. She finds Gabe in a hot tub. Gabe is very hot, and it is hard for Cleo to resist. They are developing a bond where they roast each other in a way that would convey the message, ‘Hey, I am interested in you’. But then Gabe is trying to tell Cleo that she should not care about his opinions. There is strong eye contact followed by passionate love-making. It is morning, and everything feels like love. Gabe tries to bribe Cleo with some more lovemaking, but Cleo knows how much she needs the money. Cleo gets upset because Gabe feels she is not strong enough to win the competition. Lucy bails on Cleo because she feels that teaching some nerdy boys is more important than Hot Lapse. Tina has bailed on Cleo too. Cleo is alone for her Skii movie.
Will Cleo Record The Movie?
Cleo decides to record the bits and pieces of the Hot Lapse. She runs and submits her clip; of course, I mean Team Afterparty. She crosses paths with Dane and tells him that he is an arrogant patriarchal man in his own language. Cleo finds Tina and gets mad at her for not prioritizing the film. While Cleo is shouting at Tina, she tells her that she pulled a string for Cleo. Cleo feels worthless and as if she is not worth anything. Everybody is at the movie screening except Cleo. Tina feels bad that she went a little hard on her, but Lucy thinks she will be fine. Cleo is backstage, stuck with Dane lecturing her. Dane is next, and he gives this speech about Gabe. He clearly uses Gabe and his pity party to win the competition. It turns out the team afterparty withdrew the video. She runs back to Ross for a little comfort. The next morning, she asks Ross what is happening.
Will Cleo Find Her Purpose?
He tells her that Lucy and Tina dropped the van this morning. It was clean, and they had also found a house. Ross takes Cleo to the house they found. Cleo thanks Ross for everything he has ever done for her. Remember those nerdy guys Lucy was teaching skiing? They allowed the three girls to stay at their place until May. Cloe feels like her friends have learned nothing, and they have not changed at all. She decides to leave them and go back to her job. She lets her anger and thoughts out on stage. This is great because she is also entertaining people now. She decides to screenplay her movie in front of her workplace buddies. She titles her movie ‘Nobody because she remembers Dane telling her that even if she does win, she is a nobody. She films random people and records them while they say, Why are you filming me? I am a nobody. She beautifully records how people are nobodies, but when it comes to skiing, they are over everybody. She tells us how everything around us changes, but spirit and adventure never do. She says that they are the heroes of this community. The movie ends with Cloe having a conversation with a random lady when she realizes she is sitting right next to Gabe. Gabe and Cleo are both bummed out by the fact that nobody texted each other.
Is Cleo And Gabe The Endgame?
It turns out that Gabe was sticking around, talking to people, and finding out more about Cloe. He manages to get Cloe’s attention and make it up to her. The end is just a bunch of two unemployed ski bums kissing and skiing around.
