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Post by AvistheCrow on Feb 18, 2005 12:01:37 GMT -5
So maybe you don't have a problem with people asking you why you're fond of an imaginary character. I'm still curious as a fellow fan. ^_^ What was it that made Randall stick out for you? You know, expressive eyes, surly expression, tough breaks, etc. For me, it's the motion.
The first time I saw Randall I wasn't exactly hitched. I thought his Let's Scare The Living Bajeebers Out Of Wazowski Again trip amusing, but nothing really clicked. I think what hooked me was his poses after that: a line of psuedo kung-fu slick-trick moves. For some reason while I burst out laughing---it was funny!---at the same time I instantly felt a deep attraction to the character.
For some reason it made him feel more young and human; like a kid who's still naive and not quite got a handle on actual maturity yet. And as I watched him more I began to truly appreciate how he moved, and how the animators had put him together; the balance between his multitude of limbs, and how they all works in sync without at all being caged to moving in pairs. It was a bit like Otto Octavius's tentacles, but with more connection to the body, and more emotion. Randall can practically take any pose known to man or monster and he still feels natural. What's more, he doesn't just hold odd poses. He's constantly moving. It fits him and adds to his personality; he's always changing and shifting his weight, not bound to any one possibility but pretty much as weightless as a flesh-and-blood creature can be. Something about his constant motion adds a whole new facet to his personality for me.
I suppose I could compare the 'no boundaries' feel to who he is, or at least what I see most in it, though that might be reading more then was intended...still, that's what being a fan's all about. ^_^ So, what was it that caught you?
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Post by RandallBoggs on Feb 18, 2005 12:18:59 GMT -5
I guess it's mystic.
By looking at Randall, I can....see a person that's had a tough life and who never seems to get a break. But he pushes on with this tough exterior and hides his emotions within him.
I guess I want to see what's inside him, what he's hiding and won't share. No, I don't like pushing answers out of him, but I want to see.
I guess it's that thought that he has had a tough life that is the key. I can see Randall as if I've known him all my life, someone who knows what I've been through.
I don't know exactly why.
Maybe it's because he seems to have nearly everyone against him. Like you said, he's young. And he is. 25 in human terms isn't that old.
He was alone with the world against him. His boss forced him into a situation he didn't want. His co-workers MUST talk behind his back. His "rivals" have constantly bugged him about the Scare Record (yes, even Sullivan), even his "friend" Fungus.
I could imagine Randall sitting in the corner of his appartment and looking out the window at everyone else passing by. Feeling almost empty.
Perhaps it's because I owe him and he owes me.
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Post by Light Rises on Feb 18, 2005 14:12:13 GMT -5
Y'know, it's funny, because for me it was sort of a "delayed reaction." When I saw M.I. for the first time, I was just soaking everything in -- watching it for pure entertainment, and not really letting anything come across my thoughts until the credits started rolling. Once my folks and I left the theater, though, and we were walking back to our hotel (we were out of town that weekend), my mind kept on backtracking the most -- out of all the characters -- to Randall. Something just...well, something just didn't feel completely RIGHT to me about him being the "villain." I'm usually a big "hero" supporter, so this was definitely away from the norm for me. But as I thought more about it, I grew more and more convinced that Randall wasn't evil at all -- more like a regular guy who'd made some huge mistakes, and had probably gone through some really rough times in the past. Now here's the striking part: Randall was the first antagonist from ANY story I'd seen or read whom I thought was truly deserving of a second chance, and this was WAY before I joined the original Boggs' Board or even knew there was such a fandom following for him. My only other guess as to why I was so drawn to him at first is my longtime affinity for reptilian characters (sentient or not). But that's about it, in terms of any specifics. Not that I'm complaining.  ~Light Rises |
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Post by Mirage on Feb 18, 2005 16:35:02 GMT -5
Mine was a delayed reaction too. Though...so many times it's like that for me. Rarely do I experience the 'love at first sight' with characters because I'm not really watching the movie looking for that. (Snape from the Harry Potter movie is the only one I can think of whom I instantly fell for when I saw him and became a fan of the whole thing based mainly on him).
When I first saw M.I. in theaters, I came away with a lot of laughs and a fondness for Randall but not much more. I had to see it again on DVD and pay more attention to really pick up on everything and realize that my initial fondness for him was right on and was meant to grow. For me, it's his whole package that is the attraction factor. Yes, the way he moves...the the smooth, oily-slick, serpentine motions of his perfectly synchronized legs & his magnificent color-blending ability...is part of it. His physical apperance--the eyes, the fronds, the whole body--is part of it. Yet of course, mostly, it's that personality and the general 'Randall'-ness about him. I thought, "Here's a guy who has it rough...much rougher than he deserves. He's ambitious and hardworking but always outshined, he's abused by his employer....etc etc etc..." His actions make it easy to label him 'villain,' but do they really correspond to how he truly feels? Essentially, he seemed like he just needed a hug. And that always gets me. I wanted to make him feel understood and appreciated. I thought, there must be so many real people just like him. No, he's not perfect, but he's no bad guy either. And he certainly didn't deserve what he got in the end.
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Post by Light Rises on Feb 18, 2005 16:52:34 GMT -5
I thought, "Here's a guy who has it rough...much rougher than he deserves. He's ambitious and hardworking but always outshined, he's abused by his employer....etc etc etc..." His actions make it easy to label him 'villain,' but do they really correspond to how he truly feels? Essentially, he seemed like he just needed a hug. And that always gets me. I wanted to make him feel understood and appreciated. I thought, there must be so many real people just like him. No, he's not perfect, but he's no bad guy either. And he certainly didn't deserve what he got in the end. *applaudes* ~Light Rises |
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Post by AvistheCrow on Feb 18, 2005 17:48:58 GMT -5
*cheer and whistle*
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Post by pitbulllady on Feb 18, 2005 19:56:48 GMT -5
I am perhaps one of the few who never saw "Monsters, Inc." in theaters, but saw it first on the DVD, which I only bought to check out my new DVD player before I got my much-anticipated "Lilo and Stitch" DVD. I HAD been reading of this "Randall Boggs" character on FF.net, mainly in some reviews of L&S fics, and a writer called "TookBaggins" had actually started a pretty good crossover fic featuring Randall and Experiment 625(the aquamarine version of 625 from the "Disney Adventures" comics, WAY before the series came out), which she never completed. When I got the DVD, I was on the alert for him to see what all the fuss was about, LOL!
Randall immediately connected with me on so many levels, on levels which would come to be even deeper than what I'd felt with Stitch. I really got the impression of someone who was very alienated from his world, an outcast, who was trying to prove that he was just as good as anyone else. He came off as someone who was extremely lonely, angry, hurt, insecure and desparate, as well as quite immature(NOT untypical for twenty-something males). I also found him to be a creature of great physical beauty, with his lovely patterns and colors(in his "default" color mode), and having this almost feline, predatory grace about him. And then there were those eyes...I have seen very few characters, and that includes live-action ones, whose eyes have such depth of emotion! Randall's eyes are the most realistic of any character in the movie, and there are emotions revealed in those emerald depths that convey great inner turmoil and conflict with his actions, making me realize that Randall was NOT doing all these bad things on his own free will. When Mr. Waternoose's involvement was finally revealed, it all made sense. Randall was in the same boat I'd found myself in many years ago, only HIS boat was really going down like the "Titanic". He was being forced to do this, to keep his job, or even more seriously than that, his LIFE, and he had no one to turn to. I could totally relate to his feelings of helplessness at having to do something like this, for a boss who hated him, of having to bite back on his anger and put up with it, of feeling USED and being unable to do anything about it, while watching his own success being stripped from him, being unable to get a break no matter how hard he worked. All of his anger and hostility suddenly made sense. He was someone who desparately needed help, a willing pair of understanding ears to listen, an understanding voice of compassion of someone who'd Been There, Done That, who could show him that there IS something better in store for him, but instead he ended up receiving this horrible abuse, being tossed away like a piece of garbage, while the one responsible is made a hero! That was just soooo screwed up, and sent such a wrong message! If I HAD seen this in theaters, I would have left angry and bitter just because of that one scene.
pitbulllady
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Post by AvistheCrow on Feb 18, 2005 22:10:50 GMT -5
I only saw the lovely Boggs in VHS as well, Pitbullady; a few months ago when a friend insisted I watch it. I'd kept up with Pixar until MI came out, and for some reason I just never went to see it...man, I regret that now, because I think seeing Randall on a huge screen would have been worth the anger at his treatment... But yeah. What you've written just above strikes a deep chord, and one that I've known too...beautiful. You have a wonderful way of expressing both yourself and our Randall. And yo, amen to the feline grace.  EDIT: Whoa, sudden dark thought. Maybe it's 'Pyreland'. XD Direland! Fireland! I'm shutting up now! |
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Post by lizardgirl on Feb 25, 2005 11:42:37 GMT -5
Once again, for me it was a delayed reaction. I saw it in the cinema, didn't enjoy the film as much as I thought I would, and walked out feeling half-empty. But, the more I thought about what happened, the more I saw Mike and Sulley as the bad guys and Randall as someone who got stuck in a situation that provided an outcome that he just didn't deserve. I've always loved anything with scales, so Randall's outward appearance appealed to me immediately, and Randall's general personality has the same sort of basic elements that I seem to go for in anyone else- quick-thinking, sly, a little sarcastic, yet covering up some very deep hurts. I soon found Randall to be another 'favourite', but one that I considered more sentimental than any others. What I saw in him was someone that could do so much with his life but just hadn't been given the oppurtunity. Then came a near two-year wait before I saw the film again. I actually ended up literally forgetting what Randall looked like, but that didn't stop me thinking about him whenever I had a moment alone. Then came the miraculous day when I found his picture on a cardboard thing for a cereal promotion, and there he was- in a cool, calm pose, smiling away. And although this picture was just a picture of the free toy you could get in the packet (and that I didn't get, instead recieiving crappy laugh canister after crappy laugh canister) it is still the one with the most sentimental value for me. And then, about six months later, I got the film, and seeing him on screen again, satisfying the want that I had had for SO long, was certainly one of the greatest experiances of my life. And I know this all sounds a little nuts, but it's true! ;D There's something so appealing about him, something so different that I think I'll probably never be able to understand. That doesn't stop me from trying, though!
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Post by RandallBoggs on Feb 25, 2005 11:52:10 GMT -5
*looks around*
Psst....your surrounded by people who understand remember?
*Gives thumbs up* ;D
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Post by lizardgirl on Feb 28, 2005 11:09:55 GMT -5
Oh...YAY!!! ;D
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linnellisgod
Randall's Skivvy (0-299)
Has become an enourmous Hunchback Fan
Posts: 86
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Post by linnellisgod on Dec 17, 2006 22:42:07 GMT -5
I completely, utterly agree. I have this strange thing: I watch a movie, enjoy it for the things everybody enjoys it for, and then when I go back and see it again, I realise: 'Oh, lord, that character is so beautiful! So much pain, so many wounds, all hidden away behind a hostile mask and nobody else seems to see it!" (I am of course referring to average people my own age, who say 'Oh. he's evil. I like Sulley.' not you guys, who see deeper and truly UNDERSTAND)
it happened to me with Snape, and with Gill from finding nemo (well, not evil, but still largely unappreciated), and with Jason Stryker from the movie 'X2', and now with Ran!
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tmazanec1
Randall's Head Servant (300-799)
Posts: 463
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Post by tmazanec1 on Dec 18, 2006 11:33:40 GMT -5
In a matter of months the final Harry Potter book will come out and we will learn Snapes' true nature.
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Bampot
Randall's Friend (800-1999)
<3
Posts: 1,204
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Post by Bampot on Dec 18, 2006 20:05:22 GMT -5
Snape is playing on the right side. i don't care what everyone else says, i know he did what he did for a good reason and that Dumbledore and him had a plan. i trust Severus Snape!
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linnellisgod
Randall's Skivvy (0-299)
Has become an enourmous Hunchback Fan
Posts: 86
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Post by linnellisgod on Dec 19, 2006 18:08:56 GMT -5
Well YEAH!
It's my current theory that he was in love with Harry's mom. Think about it. His worst memory is being humiliated in front of her and insulting her, he hates Harry (who is partially, from a twisted point of view, responsable for her death), and it's been said that Harry's eyes are going to be important in book seven. He has his Mother's eyes!
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