I hear directors alking about a characters motivation, whats Dirk's motivation? Is it to become a famous porn star, or is to become something after he had the fight with his mom?
I think it was to keep on rockin' and rollin' and making better films...
its been a few months since i last seen anything from that film, but yeah thats kinda ture, but that comes when hes already famous. he needed some kind of motivation to get there.
A, to Dirk, known filmmaker tells him he's special. He's curious and get's into Jacks world. He realizes it's something he's good at and that he can actually become a star.
it seemed like at first he didnt care about becoming a star, that happened after he wanted to prove his mom wrong, almost like jack was a last resort.
Quote from: prophetit seemed like at first he didnt care about becoming a star, that happened after he wanted to prove his mom wrong, almost like jack was a last resort.
But you're forgetting about the Sheryl Lynn scene:
18 INT. SHERYL LYNN'S BEDROOM - DAY - LATER
Dirk is in bed with a young neighborhood girl, SHERYL LYNN PARTRIDGE. Her room is decorated in pastels with equestrian things all around. Horse models, trophies from riding, blue ribbons, etc.
DIRK
I have to get back.
SHERYL LYNN
Once more.
DIRK
I have to get back to work.
SHERYL LYNN
Give it to me, Eddie.
DIRK
Don't make me pounce you, Sheryl Lynn.
SHERYL LYNN
Ohhhh-baby, baby, baby.
DIRK
I'll do it --
SHERYL LYNN
Promise?
DIRK
That's it.
Dirk jumps up and starts bouncing up and down on the bed, naked and flapping. She stares at his crotch, shakes her head;
DIRK (OC)
What?
SHERYL LYNN
You're so beautiful.
DIRK (OC)
Yeah . . .
SHERYL LYNN
Do you know how good you are at doing this, Eddie? Having sex . . . fucking me . . .
making love to me?
Dirk looks down. BEAT.
DIRK
Everyone has one thing, y'think? I mean:
Everyone is given one special thing . . . . right?
SHERYL LYNN
That's right.
DIRK
Everyone is blessed with One Special Thing.
Dirk kneels down to her;
DIRK
I want you to know: I plan on being a star.
A big, bright shining star. That's what
I want and it's what I'm gonna get. SHERYL LYNN
I know.
DIRK
And once I get it: I'm never gonna stop
and I'll never, ever make a mistake.
They Kiss.
i think that what ignites his rock and rollin adventure is the confrontation with his mum. how horrible are those words that she starts yelling at him? i am afraid of growing up and treat my kids that way.
Quote from: chuckhimselfoi think what makes Dirk ignite his rock and rollin adventure is the confrontation with his mum.
No, it began earlier. Something that belongs in the backstory. It's obvious.
Quote from: chuckhimselfohow horrible are those words that she starts yelling at him? i am afraid of growing up and treat my kids that way.
Just don't. It's a conscious choice.
/Dr. Phil
EDIT: Spelling errors. Hate them.
well, thanks for ruining my first serious post.
how? by replying to it? quoting it?
just by not praising it. it deserved to be praised.
but let's not get off the subject, this thread looks interesting.
i think that PTA is putting some of his mom experainces on film. he onlny talks about his dad.
you got it so right on that one, prophet.
Quote from: propheti think that PTA is putting some of his mom experainces on film. he onlny talks about his dad.
Who knows. As you said, he never talks about her. It could be that it's a situation he wanted to put his character in.
Dirk's mother was right to be concerned about her son, but her reaction was wrong. And Dirk's reaction to his mother's reaction was wrong. I think (maybe) PTA was just describing the usual chain of events that lead teenagers to leave home and become easy prey for all kinds of pimps.
QuoteDirk's mother was right to be concerned about her son, but her reaction was wrong. And Dirk's reaction to his mother's reaction was wrong.
darling, us teenagers are never wrong. no matter how hard he fucked up , the problem , i think , layed on the parents.
it's wonderful how a scene like that is able to spawn all this inferences . thanks , Paul T.
Quote from: mollyDirk's mother was right to be concerned about her son, but her reaction was wrong. And Dirk's reaction to his mother's reaction was wrong. I think (maybe) PTA was just describing the usual chain of events that lead teenagers to leave home and become easy prey for all kinds of pimps.
Dirk's reaction was, to me, correct. If you don't count the pornstar career as a reaction. His mother's a bitch. There's nothing more to it, Sure, she's concerned but it doesn't justify her reaction. She's a bitter bitch. C'mon, look at her reaction to her husbands kiss. Normal? For a bitter bitch it is.
I'm sorry for my harsh language, that scene is great but makes me agro.
EDIT: Crap, I'm tired
i can just see PTA coming home late and his mom giving him pep talks and shit.
Quote from: kotteQuote from: mollyDirk's mother was right to be concerned about her son, but her reaction was wrong. And Dirk's reaction to his mother's reaction was wrong. I think (maybe) PTA was just describing the usual chain of events that lead teenagers to leave home and become easy prey for all kinds of pimps.
Dirk's reaction was, to me, correct. If you don't count the pornstar career as a reaction. His mother's a bitch. There's nothing more to it, Sure, she's concerned but it doesn't justify her reaction. She's a bitter bitch. C'mon, look at her reaction to her husbands kiss. Normal? For a bitter bitch it is.
I'm sorry for my harsh language but that scene is great but makes agro.
He left home never to come back, and went to that porn-director. If you ask me that's a reaction, and it's a bad one.
Now, he should have known that his parents are not perfect people, that they are sometimes even wrong. He should have been smarter than they are and calm down the situation. There are those kids who repeat their parents' mistakes and those who are aware of them and act differently. His mother isn't the only bitch in this world, and even if she is, it doesn't mean that he has to become a porn actor because of that. He could have stayed in school, found a decent job, anything except going to that porn-director. Not everything is perfect in your life, sometimes you have to be smarter and let go. If Dirk's mother is an idiot, he should have been smarter and try to stay out of her way at least till end of the school.
If you look at statictics about porn industry, you'll find Dirk's family situation there - bad communication among family members, mother probably has some sort of personality disorder, low education, neglected children...
Quote from: propheti can just see PTA coming home late and his mom giving him pep talks and shit.
We were all given pep talks and shit.
Quote from: chuckhimselfodarling, us teenagers are never wrong. no matter how hard he fucked up , the problem , i think , layed on the parents.
The parent are wrong, but it's not so simple. Many people don't have perfect parents and yet they don't end up making porn movies. Also, some children have OK parents and still screw up their lives. It's not so simple. Dirk is a guy with problematic parents, who's not too bright and thinks that his only talent is his looks and his penis. He also doesn't think in advance, instant tiny reward is more important than greater one in future(or rather he doesn't even think about future) and has little selfesteem. Rollergirl is his female equivalent. In many police movies and TV-series you have these stories, PTA just focused on that group of people and showed their lives - they are main characters if the film.
I'm surprised it didn't fall on your mind that TJ Mackey is in fact PTA because his father died of cancer. :roll:
Every experinced writer will tell you: write what you know. It doesn't mean every sentence is biographical, it just means that you have to think and remember some situations you were in, and combine that with data from other sources. How else would there be a charcter like Hanibal the Cannibal?
'Write what you know'. Doesn't have to have anything to do with what has happened in the writers life.
Well, Dirks an idiot. He's dropped out of school to work at this nightclub. I don't think it's his mother's last outburst that drives him to porn. It's a product of many things: low selfesteem, insane mother, no-spine father.
Even PTA thinks her reaction is a bit over the top
Quote from: kotte
I'm surprised it didn't fall on your mind that TJ Mackey is in fact PTA because his father died of cancer. :roll:
Every experinced writer will tell you: write what you know. It doesn't mean every sentence is biographical, it just means that you have to think and remember some situations you were in, and combine that with data from other sources. How else would there be a charcter like Hanibal the Cannibal?
I've also considered the possibility of Frank TJ Mackey representing PTA. A character so concerned with their own business and starting to get praises for it, inhibiting them from caring to give time to another person in need. Also, there's a picture of JCR, PTA and PBH at the Sundance Lab somewhere on Cigarettes & Coffee that shows a PTA looking quite like TJ Mackey Hairwise. And the whole initial things about the character REALLY gives it away.
Consider my patented AntiDumbFrogQuestion character analysis:
Eddie/Dirk- When things went sour with the folks, he ignores them and pretends they don't exist. Confrontation is not his "style".
Frank TJ Mackey- Wants to ignore his fathers' existence, but ends up prying his ass over to Earl's place because he is confronted with the actuality that his only father is about to pass on.
Barry Egan- Barry gets angry at his own lack of initiative and is motivated to make his moves, to go to Hawaii to see Lena and also to apologize to her at the end.
So it moves from someone who doesn't care, to someone who finds it hard to care, to another person who is really starting to care. Who knows what's next for PTA characters?
I like Paul Thomas Anderson characters. They are neat.
THE END
misquoting bastard.
Quote from: SoNowThenI think it was to keep on rockin' and rollin' and making better films...
Amen!
Quote from: kottemisquoting bastard.
Fuck. That's the last time that happens. apologies to kotte and molly