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He never really stopped looking like a child, did he?
(Im fairly certain Kubrick himself wondered this halfway through production.)
(Another reason, of course, was that Kubricks daughters adored him.)
This wasnt just a fortuitous conjunction of facial features.
It was also an onscreen attitude a certain puppy-dog lostness that was ever-present in ONeals performances.
Enough ink has been spilled over the years about ONeals behavior and his many addictions.
But it was also nice to see father and daughter reconcile in later years.
Any rudimentary screenwriting class will teach you that passive protagonists are a no-no.
This is what gives usdrama.
When he tries to seize control, hes beaten down all over again.
A generation was tumbling out of the 60s and swirling through the chaos of the 70s.
(Maybe thats why these movies still resonate.
We are all passive protagonists in the universe more Redmond Barrys than Michael Corleones.)
Nor would we want to.
Great actors use their skill; great stars use their limitations.
