tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3982837118358902227.post829979141189536566..comments2023-07-14T06:17:49.677-04:00Comments on The Daring Novelist: Friday Favorites - Peter Lorre as Mr. MotoThe Daring Novelisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01676188266569869059noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3982837118358902227.post-47538197751382425032014-10-23T11:33:37.306-04:002014-10-23T11:33:37.306-04:00I'm hoping they'll come out in ebook somet...I'm hoping they'll come out in ebook sometime soon!The Daring Novelisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01676188266569869059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3982837118358902227.post-36792923465246655382014-10-21T11:38:07.880-04:002014-10-21T11:38:07.880-04:00Hey, thanks for your post on my favorite actor Pet...Hey, thanks for your post on my favorite actor Peter Lorre. As a writer myself, I also appreciate your idea that a novelist can watch actors to see how they develop their characters. None better for that than Peter Lorre! By the way, the "Mr. Moto" novels are available for purchase. You can buy them single as paperbacks or in hard-cover collections. I have read all of them.Cheryl Morrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06731086831421369044noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3982837118358902227.post-67481069830143233892012-10-20T11:08:38.470-04:002012-10-20T11:08:38.470-04:00Yes, if you try to capture an actor's techniqu...Yes, if you try to capture an actor's technique you will be frustrated, because acting and writing techniques are different -- and capturing something visual in words is no different with actors than with ordinary people.<br /><br />The thing that writers can learn from actors is their characterization. Unlike real life, it's the job of the actor to display what is going on inside, to betray motivations, and display emotions.<br /><br />So when an actor's eyes flick to the left, in a small but powerful and visceral commentary on his state of mind... our job is not to describe how his eyes move, how narrow they are, how fast they move and move back. Nor is our job to use that reaction as the same kind of "powerful moment" -- visual power and verbal power do not do the same thing, so we can't get the same effect via pure translation.<br /><br />Our job is to capture what the actor expressed with that move. It might be as simple as, "He glanced at Jim" or "He glanced away." Or even, "He twitched."<br /><br />I was going to do a post on this, I may pull out the notes and do it yet.<br /><br />As for Mr. Moto's political incorrectness -- the thing to remember about that time is that it wasn't a case of picking a convenient actor. Asian actors were not allowed to star in movies for white people. This was just a general Hollywood thing: movies had to play in the south, and you could get away with a meaty role for someone of color if you had a white person in black-face or brown-face playing the role.<br /><br />But people of color were kept out of such roles. The Daring Novelisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01676188266569869059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3982837118358902227.post-78852600884193115932012-10-20T08:01:27.723-04:002012-10-20T08:01:27.723-04:00I get so frustrated sometimes when I see a movie o...I get so frustrated sometimes when I see a movie or show with a charismatic leading man/lady and realize that I can't capture all of the same magic on paper. We can try--we can describe looks and mannerisms and voices--but there's a visceral, subconscious reaction to seeing and hearing charismatic people on screen or in real life that we just can't tap into. To get the audience on a hero's side, a filmmaker just has to dress him well, train the camera on his handsome face, and play certain music in the background. Writing down that a man is handsome and fashionable just doesn't do the same trick.<br /><br />Switching tracks: I haven't seen the Mr. Moto movies, but I don't think a German actor playing a Japanese spy is any worse than all of the Chinese actors playing Japanese people in modern television and movies. Pick a Japanese, Korean, or any other East Asian character, and I'll bet you ten bucks the actor is the second generation offspring of immigrants from Hong Kong :pT.K. Marnellhttp://blog.tkmarnell.comnoreply@blogger.com