Character Relationship Map: Déjà Vu

Characters

• Brooke / Maggie (played by Jaclyn Smith) — protagonist

  Brooke is a dancer from the past who died in 1935 at age twenty-seven, just as she seemed destined for greatness. In the present, Maggie is Michael / Greg’s partner and resembles Brooke; she leaves hi...

• Michael / Greg (played by Nigel Terry) — supporting

  Michael / Greg is a writer who becomes fascinated by Brooke after watching an old film of her, then delays traveling with his partner to research the dancer’s life and develop a screenplay. His invest...

• Olga Nabokova (played by Shelley Winters) — supporting

  Olga Nabokova knew Brooke intimately and tells Michael / Greg about Brooke’s spiritual interests, vivid dreams, forebodings, and attempts to contact her father through séances. She helps his investiga...

• Eleanor Harvey (played by Claire Bloom) — supporting

  Eleanor Harvey is associated with the threatening force that Olga believes has carried over from the past. Olga describes her as jealous and hateful, warns that she is close, and says that both Michae...

• William Tanner (1935) (played by Richard Kay) — supporting

  William Tanner is a former ballet artistic director who knew Brooke. Olga arranges for Michael / Greg to meet him as part of the writer’s investigation into Brooke’s life. The excerpt establishes his...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Michael / Greg → Brooke / Maggie (Romantic Connection Across Lives) — Michael / Greg investigates Brooke after recognizing her resemblance to Maggie, while the account links his love for Maggie with Brooke’s past romance with Michael.

  The story connects Brooke’s life with Michael / Greg’s, and a remembered scene shows Brooke and Michael in love. In the present, Michael / Greg is inv...

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Michael / Greg → Eleanor Harvey (Conflict Threatened By) — Michael / Greg becomes a target of the danger Olga attributes to Eleanor, though the excerpt ends before their confrontation or its outcome.

  Olga warns Michael / Greg that Eleanor is close and that both he and Maggie are in grave danger. He also experiences threats and a cat attack that mak...

• William Tanner (1935) → Brooke / Maggie (Social Former Associate) — William Tanner (1935) is a source of information about Brooke’s past because he knew her and had been a ballet artistic director.

  Olga arranges for Michael / Greg to meet William Tanner (1935), described as a former ballet artistic director who knew Brooke.

• Eleanor Harvey → Brooke / Maggie (Conflict Jealous Antagonist) — Olga identifies Eleanor as a threatening presence whose past jealousy and hatred may endanger Maggie in the present.

  Olga says Eleanor’s jealousy and hatred may have carried over into the present and warns that Eleanor is close while Michael / Greg and Maggie are in...

• Olga Nabokova → Michael / Greg (Alliance Spiritual Guide) — Olga helps Michael / Greg investigate Brooke’s past and prepares him to resist the threatening presence she believes is connected to it.

  Olga guides Michael / Greg through a trance, urges him to find Brooke, and tells him to recognize and resist a threatening presence.

• Olga Nabokova → Brooke / Maggie (Social Intimate Acquaintance) — Olga provides Michael / Greg with personal accounts of Brooke’s beliefs, dreams, forebodings, and interest in séances.

  Michael / Greg interviews Olga Nabokova, who is described as someone who knew Brooke intimately.

Story Analysis

An investigation into a dead dancer’s past links an old romance to present-day danger and leaves the central threat unresolved.

Plot Progression

1. The Film Rekindles the Past — Michael / Greg watches an old film of Brooke and learns of her early death. His fascination leads him to delay travel plans and investigate her life.
2. Witnesses and Memories — Olga recounts Brooke’s spiritual interests and arranges a meeting with William Tanner (1935). A remembered scene presents Brooke and Michael’s love and her fear of her mother’s disapproval.
3. Warnings in the Present — Maggie leaves messages while Michael / Greg is away, and a strange voice warns him to leave her alone. Further threats and a cat attack make him question whether the events are imaginary.
4. The Threat Draws Near — Olga connects the danger to Brooke’s past and guides Michael / Greg through a trance. After telling him to resist a threatening presence, she warns that Eleanor is close and that he and Maggie are in...