MovieChat Forums > Don Juan DeMarco (1995) Discussion > Confidence

Confidence

posted 20 years ago by jen_05
4 replies | jump to latest

**spoilers**

did anyone else notice how much more confident and comfortable Johnny's character looked as Don Juan as opposed to who he supposedly was when he was trying to convince the doctors he was normal? I think it was quite relevent, cos it mean that even if he wasn't really the actual Don Juan, that was who he was comfortable as and he accepted himself as Don Juan, not as the 'normal' person he pretended to be.... Ok, just my two cents worth....

Johnny is God

[–] still_dreaming 20 years ago

I think that was the point of him being more confident. also i thought the point was that as long as he was happy and not hurting anyone else he should "live" in whatever world he wants to - real or imaginary. he identified with don juan and had created a world that he felt safe in. we can learn alot from this but also i do think that it is not healthy to do this to the extreme that he has.
one thing i wasn't sure about was he just pretending to be "normal" and just saying what they wanted to hear in order to get out. just cuz earlier when he was asked by Brando if he knew where he was he said his villa but then said he knew he was in a hospital but that wasn't as much fun or something like that. so was he faking it?

[–] janimetso 19 years ago

I think many people in real life are like this. They're hiding behind some invented mask and feel happy (or so they think according to what they think happiness means), but when someone shows them even one iota of truth and lifts their mask a little so that the rays of truthful sun could enliven their pale existence, their whole life crumbles to pieces because they have to face the reality and truth as it really is. And that's a hard thing for most of the people. Many people feel more comfortable behind the veil and wall of lies and ego, and simply can't stand the realizations and findings that the true truth offers for them.

[–] rhymeswithfish 19 years ago

***SPOILERS***

I think you have a point, of course. But I think there is another truth going on in this story, something the doctor was grasping for, and that we began to see the effects of in his life. Sometimes, when you call to something greater in someone, it shows up. "Speaking those things which are not as though they were..." We can look at a person and "call it for what it is..." - tell that person they're weak, undisciplined and self-absorbed, and what do you have? That's what the grandmother did, she called out everything terrible and sordid and saw nothing of value in the boy. But the doctor saw something else, something of value, and honored what was good and fine and even allowed it to spill into his own life, perhaps the ultimate message of acceptance: That life isn't about dotting all the i's and crossing all the t's; without love it's all institutions and prescription medicine, and no dancing.

Yeah, the film was tongue-in-cheek and had a lot of fun, but it also had this thrumming of truth in it that all the engaging movies have.

[–] aviane 11 years ago

8 years late, but well said. It's not always about facing the truth or some sordid reality. Sometimes, it's our fantasies which keep us sane. Sometimes, the mind needs a little relief from the harsh realities of this world. Why do you think fantasy and sci-fi films are such hits? They offer us an escape from our everyday lives. They allow us to stretch our imaginations and live in someone else's albeit made up world for a while, maybe even inspiring us to enjoy life in a different way than we normally do.