Voyeur in Cinema

As a writer and avid film enjoy-er, I find myself often opting for films that I can place myself in and as the egocentric writer that I am, I like to be the protagonist. They are often the best character to be, as the viewer, we are generally exposed to their lives the most and so we have the chance to learn and know more about them. I need to find something in a character before I can figure out who I am in a movie and it essentially changes my perception of a film, whether there is a character that I can relate to on some level or not.

Don't get me wrong, I am not always the leading lady (mostly because there aren't enough films with leading ladies ... but let's leave that for another time) in fact in some of my favourite films the character I choose to be really varies in gender, age, ability, drive, inspiration etc.

The amount of films I have watched about writers trying to overcome some form of writers block, struggling with everyday life and generally feeling isolated is beyond belief. There are so many of them out there, and I am not saying those stories are bad, I enjoy those stories, I relate to those stories, but sometimes it is nice to see a likeness with characters that don't literally look or sound like oneself.

I had a think about some of the movies I am rather fond of and which characters I relate to the most:

Juno (2007) - Juno McGuff - Juno is young and no matter what situation she get's herself into, she thinks she knows how to deal with it. A constant feeling of pride and a sense that no matter what advice your friends and family give you, there is only one person who will know what to do.

Natural Born Killers (1994) - Mickey Knox - Mickey has his own logic on the world and how it works, but he doesn't always have a grasp on his own life. He loves passionately and always tries to do what is best for himself and his loved ones, but sometimes that flies out of his own control and as soon as one domino falls it feels like they all come tumbling down after.

Scott Pilgrim Vs The World (2010) - Knives Chau - So young and excitable, Knives represents the excitement I often hide behind when I am trying to appear 'cool'. She jumps right into things and isn't afraid to say exactly what is on her mind, except from when it comes to jealousy - jealousy takes her in a different direction of over thinking and making somewhat a fool of herself.

500 Days of Summer (2009) - Tom - Tom is, for want of a better word, a little helpless. He really thinks he knows how someone else is feeling, especially how they feel about him and when it turns out he is wrong, he is kicked back pretty hard. His misunderstandings of others emotions and feelings is highly relatable.

Beauty and the Beast (1991) - Belle - Yes this extends to the animated characters too - there are so many animated characters that I take inspiration from. Belle is passionate about people and cares for others close by. She wants to see the world and have adventures, but always appears to have something holding her back and simply put, she loves a good book.

If you take a liking to the way I talk about film, characters and cinema then go and have a read of some of my lengthier rambles of films I enjoy and why over at Eyes on the Screen.