James Spader

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
He was the essence of youth which makes it so powerful to see it destroyed
yeah I was going to say that young Spader puts me in mind of the Greek ephebos, the idyllic golden youth

even young beautiful Spader is a bit too old (mid 20s), but he still seems to convey that essence

not something that has to be sexualized, but often has been - the twink archetype in gay culture is a modern iteration

as I said his sexuality is more a suggested ambiguous element, but it's interesting also how it relates to his prep school vibe

homosexuality at elite boarding schools isn't the national institution it seems to be in England

but it still exists as a cultural trope, or that ambiguity does - A Separate Peace is a famous (disputed) example

I think someone mentioned young Cary Elwes as a contemporary comparison

didn't he literally star in a movie about homosexuality at Eton? tho I can't remember the title
 

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
it's a non-threatening kind of sexuality, either way, one that can appeal to anyone and works well to counteract his bugeyed creepiness

whereas with say Willem Dafoe it's 100% bugeyed creepiness - which is interesting in its own way, but very different
 

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
but that undercurrent was so strong that I have it in my head that Dafoe's character was actually gay
pansexual, I think, is more the implication

like he has a hot gf but also he's a salacious art weirdo so probably he'll bang whoever is the vibe

Petersen is professionally corrupted by pursuing him and you could also look it at as a metaphor

but I like that it doesn't really make Dafoe's sexual ambiguity part of his villainy, he's just this weird counterfeiter dude

actually he's kind of an existential villain - he seems to not really care about the money and to be doing it mainly for the sake of doing it

it's an interesting movie, very Friedkin - like an L.A. sequel to The French Connection crossed with Cruising but less overtly gay

except the first 5 minutes, which are a terrible cold open with the world's most stereotypical 80s Arab terrorist
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
yeah I was going to say that young Spader puts me in mind of the Greek ephebos, the idyllic golden youth

even young beautiful Spader is a bit too old (mid 20s), but he still seems to convey that essence

not something that has to be sexualized, but often has been - the twink archetype in gay culture is a modern iteration

as I said his sexuality is more a suggested ambiguous element, but it's interesting also how it relates to his prep school vibe

homosexuality at elite boarding schools isn't the national institution it seems to be in England

but it still exists as a cultural trope, or that ambiguity does - A Separate Peace is a famous (disputed) example

I think someone mentioned young Cary Elwes as a contemporary comparison

didn't he literally star in a movie about homosexuality at Eton? tho I can't remember the title
I dunno that film. I did mention him in the context of the Princess Bride.
 

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
yeah I could see that too, tho he has that Douglas Fairbanks mustache in Princess Bride

sharper chin too, not quite as Botticelli. he's aged better tho, Elwes.

tho's it kind of refreshing to see an actor who seems to be as unconcerned with losing his youthful beauty as Spader.

usually people cling to it so desperately and he at least seems perfectly happy to just be who it is.

reassuring, in that that existential sense @craner was talking about it - we accept that glory is fleeting and make our peace with it.
 

Leo

Well-known member
Will you be Spader or Clooney? Is it fate, or can you do something about it?

from his next film...

The-Midnight-Sky-First-Look-Lede.jpg
 

craner

Beast of Burden
45 now and presumably right on the cusp of sudden physical decline as discussed earlier in the thread.
 
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