MovieChat Forums > Rectify (2013) Discussion > Which is your favorite Daniel?

Which is your favorite Daniel?


Daniel's a multi-faceted character. You never quite know which "one" you're going to get. Let's see... there's:

1) Introverted, socially awkward Daniel (c.f. most of his scenes; but a memorable one comes in S3 when he tries to make small talk with a young mother with her daughter at a playground. Daniel's genuine wonderment about the beauty of reading a book out under the "big blue sky" is moving -- but sadly, if understandably, the woman thinks he's a pervert or a freak and he hastily exits).
2) Eccentric, childlike, happy Daniel (c.f. his good mood-induced dinner for Amantha in "Thrill Ride" or his yarn comment to Janet in "Plato's Cave")
3) Sarcastic, wisecracking Daniel (c.f. Daniel's digs at Daggett in S3: "Are you on probation, too, Sheriff?" or "I took the midnight train.")
4) Philosophical Daniel (c.f. his talks with Tawney, most of his scenes)
5) Angry Daniel (c.f. his attack on Teddy, his outburst against Manny in group, his fight with Trey in "Weird As You")
6) Self-Destructive Daniel (c.f. his kitchen "remodel," his kicking over the paint in the pool, or even how he seems to undermine himself when he takes the plea deal)
7) Dissociated Daniel (c.f. most of his scenes, a notable one being his breakdown in the art warehouse in "A House Divided")
8) Uncool/Stuck-in-1994 Daniel (There's a lot of great scenes where Daniel's lack of knowledge about the world between ages 18 and 37 or so, the last two decades, is highlighted tragically or comically. One such tragic example is the Atlanta museum scene in "Donald the Normal," when after a fruitful, if somewhat awkward, conversation with that table of upper-class women, Daniel fatally reveals his ignorance by calling attention to the exotic deliciousness of the stock-standard panini bread, or "palini" as he calls it. He's thus immediately, unwittingly "outed" as a fraud, a lower-class person, and his "Donald" facade crumbles. How I long, each time I watch that scene, for Daniel to just tell that woman the truth about his identity; but I understand why he can't).

...and probably many more.

Which is your favorite? I have to say I'm partial to Sarcastic Daniel. I love those scenes where he jokes around with others who are less than amused with his snark -- as with Daggett in "Sown With Salt," or some of his remarks to Trey in "Weird As You."

But Childlike, Happy Daniel melts my heart. It's so rare that we get to see him happy, and it's so moving every time.

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Angry Daniel is fun to watch but number 1 is my favorite. The actor plays awkward very well like in that reading in the park scene.

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What's remarkable about his brand of awkwardness is that it's life-like awkward, not TV-awkward.

I love Charming Daniel, which we saw in Chloe's last scene.

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Very true, Eva. There are awkward introverts and awkward extroverts - or at least introverts trying to be social.

ANNIE
Hi! Well... Bye.

ALVIE
You play very well.

ANNIE
Oh, yeah? So do you. Oh, God.
What a dumb thing to say, right?
You say, ''You play well'' and then
right away I have to say, ''You play
well.'' Oh! God, Annie. Well...
Oh, well.

ALVIE
You want a lift?

ANNIE
Oh, why? You got a car?

ALVIE
Me? No. I was gonna take
a cab.

ANNIE
Oh, no. I have a car.

ALVIE
You have a car? I don't understand.
If you have a car, so then why did
you say, ''Do you have a car?' like
you wanted a lift?

ANNIE
I don't... I don't... Jeez, I don't know.
I wasn't... It's... I've got this VW out
there. What a jerk! Yeah. Would you
like a lift?

ALVIE
Sure. Which way are you
going?

ANNIE
Me? Downtown.

ALVIE
I'm going uptown.

ANNIE
Well, you know, I'm going uptown
too.

ALVIE
You just said you were going
downtown.

ANNIE
Sorry. I can go uptown too. I live
uptown, but what the hell! It'll be
nice having company. I hate
driving alone.
I also liked the kind of movie-awkwardness of Greta Gerwig's character in Francis Ha, because it seemed to me self-conscious on Francis' part. Like she hadn't figured out her grown-up, authentic, confident self yet, so she extended and emphasized this naturally goofy side of herself. It just went too far, so the performance of it became who she was, limiting her options. A similar development to Annie's, where in the end she's not klutzy and insecure but knows what she wants, or at least what she doesn't want.


"You must not judge what I know by what I find words for." - Marilynne Robinson

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I also like the "happy" Daniel (tugs at the ol' heartstrings). After all, how many times has this man been happy in his life? And I like "honest" Daniel, like in drip, drip episode when Teddy is talking with him. Teddy is telling him to stay the hell away from his wife and Daniel says "I shouldn't be around her." And then Teddy is going on about the story Daniel told him about the shower......"why the hell would you even tell me that story?", without missing a beat Daniel answered in a monotone voice...."you asked."
There are other honest scenes and maybe that one sticks out to me because I thought the way he said "you asked" was almost comical. That, plus the fact that the conversation didn't end well.

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[deleted]

[deleted]

You forgot the Drinking & Drugging Daniel, OP, which we got more than enough in S2.

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I like the wise-cracking one. I don't know how I feel about the one we've seen this season. He seems bitter and more selfish. I get that this is a necessary phase for his ultimate liberation but it has been challenging to like him through it.

"If it doesn't make sense, it's not true." -- Judge Judy

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i like my Daniel like my anusol, extra strength with numbing, and powerful on the hole, or in whole.. or in hole....

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I like the Daniel who got into deep conversations with Tawny. They had the best chemistry on the show, especially compared to his weird "girlfriend" which seems just thrown in for no reason.

The angry Daniel I like since, in my mind, I have always thought he was guilty of murder or rape and that was a huge window into what he was capable of.

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His new girlfriend was obviously thrown in for a reason, namely to be an ally in his healing process. The problem with her is 1) casting, and 2) the execution of her influence, which made her too much an ally, thereby minimizing potential conflict and tension.

Does anyone feel really keenly Chloe's impending departure? Rhetorical question. Compare to losing Tawney. Daniel certainly feels it strongly, but I don't think it's possible for viewers to vicariously share that intensity to a significant degree. The gap between what we're supposed to feel and what is possible to feel is large. Aden Young does his best, but as always a great actor can't compensate for the double-whammy of weaknesses in both script and casting.

Yet it's totally possible to imagine a new girlfriend's impending departure being nail-biting for an audience. Characters who give another a hard time, even if unintentional - i.e., Tawney - will always claim far more attention and emotional investment from viewers than those who are perfectly helpful allies. We talk about "chemistry" between Tawney and Daniel, but it's not just the positive kind that made them so compelling, it was also the negative. Those characters tortured each other as much as they gratified. Yin / yang is seriously lacking with Chloe / Daniel.

Put another way, without risk and sacrifice in drama, as often in life, there is little value. Daniel is not required to risk much with Chloe, or she with him. So how can we care very much?

Chloe / Daniel also have little chemistry even as a platonic couple, again because she is a blatant counselor-character. It's a literary trope, the quirky woman helping the depressed man feel alive ("real") again. Change the race, you have the "Magic Negro" selflessly helping the screwed-up white man. And so on.

Here's the thing: if Daniel needed to learn to trust in an intimate relationship, then for Pete's sake don't give him a nicely trustworthy gal. The closest Chloe came to challenging that trust was taking advantage of the country singer's amenities and lingering too long, which was turned into a beautiful life lesson for Daniel.


"You must not judge what I know by what I find words for." - Marilynne Robinson

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[deleted]

Yeah, I think that makes sense. We're talking the same thing: deus ex machina characters or events are conveniences. By design, they have little or no complexity. Different dimensions imply contradictions, which are what viewers want but not necessarily what writers want. I've found a valid rule of thumb is that whatever is convenient to a writer is a letdown for the audience. Not always applicable, but often enough.


"You must not judge what I know by what I find words for." - Marilynne Robinson

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The “sense of wonder” Daniel from season one is especially captivating. While he has horrific memories of his lengthy incarceration, he is also child-like: seeing the world with new eyes after so much time in a cell. Wide open spaces, the sunrise, the down from the pillow all reveal Daniel’s sense of wonder at simple pleasures. Seeing Daniel’s sense of wonder reminds us of our own often jaded vision. The longer Daniel is out of prison the more this fades, while never disappearing entirely. In Treme, the further we move away from Katrina, the more the drama shifts from extraordinary to simply very good.

I agree that the casting of Chloe compounds the problem of her existing to help Daniel pick up the pace of his healing. At the close of season three, Tawney’s dream and Daniel’s submersion in the ocean overlap for one of the most powerful scenes in the show. Chloe and Daniel can never capture such intensity. While helping Chloe with the care of her baby would obviously be a way for him to get out of his head, the “Magic Baby” is too easy and obvious, especially when McKinnon has set the bar so very high.

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[deleted]

Simply put, I like the Daniel of intelligence and thinking power with a hefty side of sexy sarcasm. Okay, throw in some of his sensitive consideration for others too.



~That which didn't kill me made me... STRANGER.~

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