Word: portrayal
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...celebrity (or divinity, for that matter), and it's clear that this whole Jesus thing has not gone to his head. Getting into the character of Jesus has been the most difficult acting job Fowler has ever undertaken. "What bigger challenge is there," he says, "than to portray a character I think no one can really hope to understand...
...faith is affronted by the questioning, human Jesus of the show (two other students chose not to be involved in the production for religious reasons). "As a believer I can believe what I want onstage, but as an actor I have a goal and obligation--and desire--to portray him as a character [just as I would any other character]...as a man who has this amazing secret that he wants to tell everybody. It's good news, but it's like Cassandra the prophet [whose predictions of defeat for the Trojans in the Trojan War went unheeded...
...Syria's long-term stability by achieving a "cold peace" with Israel. His hope is to go down in history both as a peacemaker and as the Arab struggler who remained steadfast long after the Sadats, the Husseins and the Arafats did separate deals behind his back. He can portray the return of the Golan as a victory to Syrians who have known it as occupied land for most or all of their lives, since Israeli troops seized it during the Six-Day War of 1967. "He is a wise leader. We are all behind him," says Halima Khalid...
...flaw in the current manifestation of Coming Out Day is that we are putting words in closeted students' mouths. Ironically, though, these students haven't even spoken, yet. They may not yet be ready to speak, yet we attempt to lure them out of the closet with posters that portray lesbian sex and read: "We don't enjoy cock at all." And then, to make matters worse, we claim to be speaking for them, to be representing those who cannot represent themselves. Such paternalism is, again, harmful; speaking for closeted students who are not yet prepared to speak is just...
...throughout the film, director/screenwriter Hampton Fancher has our gentle killer relate a favorite anecdote in which a spider climbs into his ear only to climb back out. "Nobody home" is the punch line he delivers, flashing his trademark smile. These scenes are so important because the filmmakers want to portray Vann as a "zero," a nothing--a "nobody home" type of guy. He is merely a reflection of whatever others want him to be: a son to an unhappy old couple; a buddy to a high school football star; Mr. Right to an unmarried postal worker. Yet Fancher also wants...