I've seen neither movie, but I believe you. Still not convinced the two are so tightly related though. Ah, watching some dancing can be fun if it's done well. My husband's always wishing I enjoyed dancing more. Amongst the Czechs, it's the norm to know how to dance - and I mean stuff like ballroom dancing. Teenagers take lessons to learn, in fact, and it's traditional to do ballroom dancing with your parents on your high school graduation ball and it's a huge deal. But yeah, I have little interest... Something like salsa maybe. But ballroom? Nah. Besides, the cutest little dance I ever had was before I married my husband. Back then he was still just my boyfriend, and it was a fairly new relationship. We were at my sister's wedding and a slow song came up. I'd never had a slow dance with anyone in my life, never been asked. (and yeah secretly always wanted to be asked, but no such luck) Then he took me to the dance floor towards the end of the song and just swayed slowly with me. But the dance floor was clearing out and we were one of very few people left and I felt like the whole room was watching. And I looked up at him and he was gazing down smiling and he said, "Don't worry about them. Just look at me. It's just you and me."
@spklvr - Am I picking you up correctly, that your character's main problem is he's not sure if people like/love him for himself, or because of his looks? Or conversely, hate him because he's so good looking and they see him as a threat or as competition? I think it's quite normal to wonder why somebody likes you, actually. Not so much omigod how on earth can they be attracted to me, I'm so ugly but just a normal 'why me?' Of course there's 'why not me?' as well, but that's a different outlook from what your character seems to be experiencing. Just asking and thinking about the issue is not a bad idea when sizing up an important person in your life. What does he see in me? That doesn't have to be an insecure question, just a curious one. I think @daemon hit the nail on the head here. Your character's personality will be the key to whether or not your readers like him and feel empathy for him. Readers can't 'see' him so won't automatically feel the pull of attraction to his looks. He needs to DO something to grab their attention and gain their affection. You don't say whether your story is first person from his POV, or whether he's seen from a third person perspective. That will make some difference. If we can get directly inside his head via first person, that gives you a lot of scope to let us know how he's thinking and feeling. However, it can also be incredibly interesting if he is watched and written about from somebody else's POV. However, be aware that if the only thing he cares about is himself, and all his thoughts/worries and angst are about what's happening to him, then he won't be a very attractive character. He'll make us want to say 'get a life,' if all he's doing is wimping around feeling sorry for himself and allowing his fears and insecurities to rule him—and we have to watch him do it. At some point he's got to put himself out there and become aware of and engaged with other people and their situations more vigorously than his own. Perhaps you can create another character who brings the best out in him. This doesn't have to be a lover, by the way. It can be anyone. But there is nothing more attractive in characters (as far as readers go) than making them care deeply for something or someone outside themselves.
You do realize he stole that line from Chris de Burgh, right? Also, you're doing yourself a disservice by having not seen The Graduate or Rainman.
Another POV is one way to achieve success with this story. Malena (a movie) is about a phenomenally gorgeous Italian women, and how her looks basically destroy her life. It's really more or less exactly what the OP is talking about. Except, the main character of the story isn't Malena, it's a little cute Italian boy. I think making him, rather than her, the lens of the film, was a very move.
Who's Chris de Burgh? And what are those other films about? I'm now thinking of the film The Education. That was pretty good, but less moving than I thought it would be.
Lady in Red? It's like the most Romantic dance song, ever. "The lady in red is dancing with me cheek to cheek There's nobody here, it's just you and me, it's where I wanna be Well I hardly know this beauty by my side I'll never forget the way you look tonight" The Graduate is an essential film and a classic. It's also basically a visual aid for a Simon and Garfunkle sound track. As for Rainman, you're a Tom Cruise fan right? He basically plays a jerk who finds out he has an autistic brother. Very heart warming. Also a classic.
Aww those are such cute lyrics. Incidentally, I was actually wearing red on that night when my husband used that line. I feel like the lyrics you quoted fit perfectly with how I felt that night hehe. And as for Tom Cruise - I wouldn't say I'm a fan but I don't mind watching his stuff lol.
Actually, Tom Cruise is a better actor than people give him credit for. Certainly his earlier work was worth watching. I think he gets typecast now. But he's tackled some fairly interesting material during his career. I mean ...Rain Man, Born on the Fourth of July, Interview With A Vampire. None of these were the 'usual' Tom Cruise fare, and he did a superb job in all three films. Even the 'usual' stuff from earlier times was excellent. Risky Business, A Few Good Men, The Firm, etc. Of course he's done his share of clangers as well, and now he seems to be typecast into either the thriller hero or the sci-fi thriller hero. Pity. I think there's a lot more potential in him as an actor. I'd like to see him tackle some more difficult material again.
@jannert You serious? Almost any Tom Cruise film(maybe even all), is a film worth watching. People are put off by his good looks, and assume he's just another pretty face type casted in typical Hollywood cheese (Patrick Dempsey comes to mind.) This couldn't be further from the truth. I think all of Tom Cruises roles are unique and so are his films. Think about the unique spin of his first big movie, risky business. He's not just a cute suburban kid sliding around in his underwear, he's a cute suburban kid who turned his parents house into a brothel. Maybe you haven't seen Hot Shots. It starts out regular Cruise fare. He's a smooth talking bar tender trying to make a buck. Well, by the end of movie, people are shooting themselves in the head and screaming at each other. Or even Jerry Macguire, which I had assumed all my life, until watching it, was proof that Cruise was all smiles. Not true. Even Mr. McGuire winds up being quite an interesting and unusual fellow . That's basically all Cruise films, deeper than first meets the eye. Yes, he has a couple of action flicks, including Mission Inpossible, but even those are interesting, and I'm no longer big on action flicks. vanilla sky, eyes wide shut, magnolia, Rainman are just a few Cruise films that are very, very unique. And I can't think of any other actor who has as many good films as him Is Cruise a good actor? Well, he's not Daniel Day Lewis and he's not Robby D, either . But Tom Cruise has something only matched maybe by Will Smith, and that's his insane amount of charm and charisma. It's off the charts(another reason I think people assume he gets type casted). Any character Cruise plays will in essence be cruise, because his charisma (and this includes his looks) is just far too distinctive . Whereas the best actors become the character , the charcter becomes Cruise, but in Cruises case, that never seems to be a bad thing. Despite his bad publicity due to Scientology , Cruise has always been a sure thing when it comes to generating revenue, more so than any other actor. He is iconic and one of a kind, and while I do think he only chooses interesting films, any movie he touches basically becomes gold.
Yes, I'm serious. In fact, I more or less agree with you. Good looks can be a burden to an actor at times. I always felt that way about Robert Redford. In his day, Redford was considered to be almost supernaturally handsome, but I think he tried very hard to play 'ordinary' in his films. He had to play against his image a lot. Interesting that so many of his great roles had him playing a person with large character flaws. He was almost never the smarmy nice guy he could so easily have been. I think Tom Cruise is at his best when he plays against his looks as well. In fact, I think his best roles are the ones where he is NOT a particularly 'nice' person. He does this kind of thing really well, and I wish he'd do more of it. I particularly liked Risky Business, which was his first film, wasn't it? He portrayed a kid whose fantasies led to an out-of-control situation so well that I had my jaw hanging open at times. I remember thinking THIS guy is a great actor, and he's so young! I don't bother with his offscreen persona at all, no more than I do John Travolta who is also a Scientologist. What they 'believe' is their own business. As long as we concentrate on their roles in films and don't see any actor as a role model for life, we're fine, hey?
Far from it. Have you seen All The President's Men? Or even The Great Gatsby? There was always an undercurrent of resentment, even grumpiness, in the way he took on his characters. He definitely played against his looks.
Yeah, I've seen Great Gatsby and you're rigjt. The guy from Twilight I think is facing this same problem. He's actually a very good actor .
Getting the train back on the track . . . I guess you, O @spklvr, have to make sure he has something to do besides being a cute-and-adorable sex object. Because that's the impression I got of him on first description, and it made me go "Yuck." If he really is attractive in any way that matters, all this sexual static would be something that makes his life more complicated as he's trying to do what he really wants to do. So, he's got this super part in the ballet. Are there parts of the choreography that seem at first to be beyond his ability and he fears he won't be able to pull off the moves? Or conversely, what if the choreographer who fancies him makes his part flashy but unchallenging in an attempt to get him to like him, which is an insult to the MC, but he can't let on because of the choreographer's power and influence? The old saying is "Handsome is as handsome does." If you want your readers to believe this guy is that attractive, show him doing attractive-- that is, interesting and appealing-- things.
