Analysis of the Characterization of Rain Man and Dominick and Eugene. The films Rain Man and Dominick and Eugene actively portray men with a

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1 --name name-- Paul Marchbanks English 12 --date-- Analysis of the Characterization of Rain Man and Dominick and Eugene The films Rain Man and Dominick and Eugene actively portray men with a developmental disability and their affiliations with their family, in particular their younger brothers. Mutually, both films are fairly cautious in dynamically portraying their focal characters as unique, denoting possessing special behavioral traits, and not to such extremities as stupid, retarded, or dumb. In the creation of a strong screenplay a director will have to incisively portray the character with the disability, and in doing so not exhibiting any societal biases in regards to the disability being depicted. Such is the case with the directors of the movies Rain Man (1988) and Dominick and Eugene (1988). Through the prolific usage of the following technical elements-- camera work, script, plot, and the intimacy evoked through the characters performances express a quite rational portrayal of two disparate disabilities, slight mental retardation and autism. The characterization of Raymond and Dominick added a perturbed but sympathetic tone to both of these movies. Through thus characterization the audience is able to induce whether or not the director of a particular theatrical production made an accurate connection to the characters the have created. In the movie, Rain Man numerous mechanical elements attributed to the effectiveness of the disabled character, Raymond. Whether through the usage of camera work, lighting, and sound, the tone was set. In many scenes, the director used close up shots on the character of Raymond. It can therefore be inferred that this cinematic technique is used to put the audience at

2 --name-- 2 a simplistic viewpoint of the character. Through the explicit usage of camera angles the director developed a type of emotional inclination and bond with Raymond. Likewise the director in Dominick and Eugene, usage of camera angles developed an emotional tie to the character, Dominick. In this film particularly the camera shots work to make a connection to the audience. The audience is allowed to identify with Dominick. For instance, in the scene on the porch where Dominick is physically lower than everyone else, the audience is able to experience the dominance of other characters, developing a feeling of compassion, through the sympathetic tone evoked through the scene. Due to overt technical elements used in these films it can be said that the directors usage of them were to cause the audience to identify with the characters Raymond and Dominick. At the same time, these directors used elements such as sound and other characters to push the disassociation between Raymond and Dominick, and the other characters. For instance, when Raymond begins a conversation with another character, his voice in louder than others and there is virtually no musical score in the background. This allows the audience to solely focus on Raymond, similarly with Dominick in Dominick and Eugene. Another technique is conveyed through the usage of character action. Throughout the movie, Raymond has habitual and uncontrollable gestures that are very much different from that of most persons in the film. These techniques show a distinguishable difference amongst the characters. Although Dominick doesn t display any autistic symptoms due to the fact that he suffers from a mental handicap from his earlier inflicted injury, this handicap is vividly expressed. The directors use both this technique and sound, showing characteristics that are sometimes associated with forms of mental disability. This thereby connects the directors attempt to display the characters of Raymond and Dominick with real autistic people and others suffering from mental disabilities.(ds)

3 --name-- 3 Another element that the directors vigorously push is the use of other character relationship with Raymond and Dominick. Both films represent the relationship between disabled and non-disable male siblings. It is indeed the relationships of Raymond and Dominick that further the plot. The movies display the complexity of developing a relationship with a family member suffering from a disability. In both films the strain between affection and the aggravation of dealing with someone with special needs. In the film Rain Man, Raymond expresses a difficulty with love, although he has compassion for his brother. Through the plot development of the film the complexity of the relationship is not believable. The relationship between Dominick and Eugene is much more believable as well as stronger. Throughout the movie, Eugene is there to direct Dominick s actions and keep him out of trouble. Although his role is to keep him out of trouble he is however completely able to function on his own, as he lives by himself when his brother is gone to school. Charlie also serves as the guidance for his brother Raymond. However he has no real mental hold on his brother. Raymond is not independent of his brother as Dominick is due to the fact that he s in fact an autistic savant. The legitimacy of the scenes in regards to family and persons with disability were fairly accurate in accordance to information of persons who are autistic or suffer from other mental disabilities. In conclusion, the directors used the technical elements apparent in the films in order to accomplish their agenda for Raymond and Dominick s characterization. From the assessment of all of these techniques, it can be contingent that the directors used various elements to manipulate the audience s perception of the characters of Raymond and Dominick. The directors were able to allow the audience to identify with and understand the disabled characters in these films. Through these techniques and their respective outcomes that in turn show the fact that

4 --name-- 4 Raymond and Dominick are not as different from persons around themselves. These individuals are unique, but are still people, and deserve to be treated accordingly. Works Cited

5 --name-- 5 Dominick and Eugene Dir. Robert M. Young. Perf. Ray Liotta, Tom Hulce, and Jamie Lee Curtis. VHS. Orion Pictures, Rain Man Dir. Barry Levinson. Perf. Dustin Hoffman, Tom Cruise, and Valeria Golino. VHS. United International Pictures, 1989.

Two Portrayals of Developmental Disability. The films Rain Man (1988) and Dominick and Eugene (1988) both depict the life of a

--name-- June 19, 2003 English 12 P. Marchbanks Unit Project 3 Two Portrayals of Developmental Disability The films Rain Man (1988) and Dominick and Eugene (1988) both depict the life of a man with a developmental