MOVIE LONERS
Only the lonely: A movie loners list.
(Definition from Wikipedia): A loner is a person who avoids or does not actively seek human interaction or prefers to be alone. There are many reasons for solitude, intentional or otherwise, and 'Loner' does not imply a specific cause. Intentional reasons include spiritual and religious considerations or personal philosophies. Unintentional reasons involve temperament, being highly sensitive, having more extreme forms of shyness, deep seated guilt, or various mental disorders.
There are different types of loner, including individuals that prefer solitude and are content to have very limited social interaction. The second type includes individuals that are forced to be isolated because they are rejected by society (or, by circumstances beyond their control). This individual typically experiences loneliness. The first type does not feel lonely even when they are alone, at least, not in the same way as would a social person who found themselves isolated. However, these are very broad generalizations and it is not uncommon for loners to experience both of these dimensions at some point.
The concept of a lonely hero (or antihero) is a recurring theme in film and is often the subject in popular culture.
Listed below are a number of films, supported by quotes, with special emphasis on specific characters that I feel encompass, reflect, and explore characteristics of the loner's condition.
(Definition from Wikipedia): A loner is a person who avoids or does not actively seek human interaction or prefers to be alone. There are many reasons for solitude, intentional or otherwise, and 'Loner' does not imply a specific cause. Intentional reasons include spiritual and religious considerations or personal philosophies. Unintentional reasons involve temperament, being highly sensitive, having more extreme forms of shyness, deep seated guilt, or various mental disorders.
There are different types of loner, including individuals that prefer solitude and are content to have very limited social interaction. The second type includes individuals that are forced to be isolated because they are rejected by society (or, by circumstances beyond their control). This individual typically experiences loneliness. The first type does not feel lonely even when they are alone, at least, not in the same way as would a social person who found themselves isolated. However, these are very broad generalizations and it is not uncommon for loners to experience both of these dimensions at some point.
The concept of a lonely hero (or antihero) is a recurring theme in film and is often the subject in popular culture.
Listed below are a number of films, supported by quotes, with special emphasis on specific characters that I feel encompass, reflect, and explore characteristics of the loner's condition.
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- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsRobert De NiroJodie FosterCybill ShepherdA mentally unstable veteran works as a nighttime taxi driver in New York City, where the perceived decadence and sleaze fuels his urge for violent action.Robert De Niro as Travis Bickle:
"Loneliness has followed me my whole life. Everywhere. In bars, in cars, sidewalks, stores, everywhere. There's no escape. I'm God's lonely man..." - DirectorSydney PollackStarsRobert RedfordWill GeerDelle BoltonA mountain man who wishes to live the life of a hermit becomes the unwilling object of a long vendetta by the Crow tribe and proves to be a match for their warriors in single combat on the early frontier.Robert Redford as Jeremiah Johnson.
Jeremiah Johnson lyrics by John Rubenstein and Tim McIntire:
"Jeremiah Johnson made his way into the mountains, bettin' on forgettin' all the troubles that he knew.
The trail was wide and narrow, the eagle or the sparrow
showed the path he was to follow, as it flew.
A mountain man is a lonely man and he leaves a lot behind.
It ought to have been different, but you often times will find, that the story doesn't always go the way you had in mind.
Jeremiah's story was that kind
Jeremiah's story was that kind... " - DirectorDavid FincherStarsBrad PittEdward NortonMeat LoafAn insomniac office worker and a devil-may-care soap maker form an underground fight club that evolves into much more.Edward Norton as The Narrator:
"Everywhere I travel, tiny life. Single-serving sugar, single-serving cream, single pat of butter. The microwave Cordon Bleu hobby kit. Shampoo-conditioner combos, sample-packaged mouthwash, tiny bars of soap. The people I meet on each flight? They're single-serving friends." - DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsGene HackmanJohn CazaleAllen GarfieldA paranoid, secretive surveillance expert has a crisis of conscience when he suspects that the couple he is spying on will be murdered.Gene Hackman as Harry Caul.
[Harry Caul listening to a couple's conversation about a bum on a park bench]
Ann: "Every time I see one of those guys, I always think the same thing."
Mark: "What do you think?"
Ann: "I always think that he was once somebody's baby boy. Really, I do. I think he was once somebody's baby boy, and he had a mother and a father who loved him, and now there he is, half dead on a park bench, and where are his mother or his father, all his uncles now?" - DirectorVittorio De SicaStarsCarlo BattistiMaria Pia CasilioLina GennariAn elderly man and his dog struggle to survive on his government pension in Rome.Carlo Battisti as Umberto Domenico Ferrari:
"I have no one, no son or brother, to help me out. I'm just a good for nothing old man. Who can live on 18,000 lire these days? My landlady charges me 10,000. She even raised my rent, that old... " - DirectorMark RomanekStarsRobin WilliamsConnie NielsenMichael VartanA mentally unstable photo developer targets an upper middle-class family after his obsession with them becomes more sick and disturbing than any of them could imagine.Robin Williams as Seymour Parrish:
"And if these pictures have anything important to say to future generations, it's this: I was here. I existed. I was young, I was happy, and someone cared enough about me in this world to take my picture." - DirectorJoel CoenStarsBilly Bob ThorntonFrances McDormandMichael BadaluccoA laconic, chain-smoking barber blackmails his wife's boss and lover for money to invest in dry cleaning, but his plan goes terribly wrong.Billy Bob Thornton as Ed Crane:
"I was a ghost. I didn't see anyone. No one saw me. I was the barber." - DirectorJessica SharzerStarsKristen StewartElizabeth PerkinsRichard HagermanAfter a blurred trauma over the summer, Melinda enters high school a selective mute. Struggling with school, friends, and family, she tells the dark tale of her experiences, and why she has chosen not to speak.Kristen Stewart as Melinda Sordino:
"There is no point talking to my ex-friends. Our clan the plain Janes has been absorbed by rival groups. Nicole hangs out with the jocks. Rachel went all Euro. Ivy straddles two crowds: the Goths and the Marthas. And then there's me. I'm clanless." - DirectorMichael AptedStarsJodie FosterLiam NeesonNatasha RichardsonIn a remote woodland cabin, a small-town doctor discovers Nell - a beautiful young hermit-woman with many secrets.Jodie Foster as Nell.
Jerry: "It's like... there's no one else in the world. Like she doesn't need anybody. Can you live your whole life that way, or does it drive you crazy in the end?" - DirectorSean PennStarsEmile HirschVince VaughnCatherine KeenerAfter graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandons his possessions, gives his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhikes to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters that shape his life.Emile Hirsch as Chris McCandless:
"Some people feel like they don't deserve love. They walk away quietly into empty spaces, trying to close the gaps of the past." - DirectorTom McCarthyStarsPeter DinklagePatricia ClarksonBobby CannavaleWhen his only friend dies, a man born with dwarfism moves to rural New Jersey to live a life of solitude, only to meet a chatty hot dog vendor and a woman dealing with her own personal loss.Peter Dinklage as Finbar McBride:
"It's funny how people see me and treat me, since I'm really just a simple, boring person." - DirectorRian JohnsonStarsJoseph Gordon-LevittLukas HaasEmilie de RavinA teenage loner pushes his way into the underworld of a high school crime ring to investigate the disappearance of his ex-girlfriend.Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Brendan Frye:
[in flashback] "You're the only thing I love! You're the only thing I love." - DirectorJim JarmuschStarsBill MurrayJessica LangeSharon StoneAs the extremely withdrawn Don Johnston is dumped by his latest woman, he receives an anonymous letter from a former lover informing him that he has a son who may be looking for him. A freelance sleuth neighbor moves Don to embark on a cross-country search for his old flames in search of answers.Bill Murray as Don Johnston.
The Kid: "So, as just a guy who gave another guy a sandwich, you have, like, any philosophical tips or anything, for a guy on a-kind-of road trip?"
Don Johnston: "You asking me?"
The Kid: "Yeah."
Don Johnston: "Well, the past is gone, I know that. The future, isn't here yet, whatever it's going to be. So, all there is, is, is this. The present. That's it."
The Kid: "Are you a Buddhist?" - DirectorSpike JonzeStarsJoaquin PhoenixAmy AdamsScarlett JohanssonIn a near future, a lonely writer develops an unlikely relationship with an operating system designed to meet his every need.Joaquin Phoenix as Theodore.
Samantha: "You know, I can feel the fear that you carry around and I wish there was... something I could do to help you let go of it because if you could, I don't think you'd feel so alone anymore."
Theodore: "You're beautiful."
Samantha: "Thank you, Theodore." - DirectorCraig GillespieStarsRyan GoslingEmily MortimerPaul SchneiderA delusional young man strikes up an unconventional relationship with a doll he finds on the Internet.Ryan Gosling as Lars Lindstrom:
[to Bianca, after she is given flowers]
"Those are nice, huh? And they're not real, so they'll last forever." - DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsTom HanksHelen HuntPaul SanchezA FedEx executive undergoes a physical and emotional transformation after crash landing on a deserted island.Tom Hanks as Chuck Noland:
"We live and die by time. And we must not commit the sin of losing our track of time." - DirectorMichael MannStarsAl PacinoRobert De NiroVal KilmerA group of high-end professional thieves start to feel the heat from the LAPD when they unknowingly leave a verbal clue at their latest heist.Robert De Niro as Neil McCauley:
"I don't even know what I'm doing anymore. I know life is short, whatever time you get is luck. You want to walk? You walk right now. Or on your own... on your own you choose to come with me. And all I know is... all I know is there's no point in me going anywhere anymore if it's going to be alone... without you." - DirectorJeremy SimsStarsMichael CatonNingali LawfordMark Coles SmithWhen Rex, a Broken Hill cab driver, is told he doesn't have long to live, he sets out on an epic journey to Darwin in a bid to die on his own terms.Michael Caton as Rex.
"To live your life, you've got to learn to share it first..." - DirectorPaul SchraderStarsRichard GereLauren HuttonHector ElizondoA Los Angeles escort is accused of a murder which he did not commit.Richard Gere as Julian Kaye.
"I don't like playing the same numbers too often. They get possessive. I can't be possessed."
______________
Michelle Stratton: "Where are you from?"
Julian Kaye: I don't know. I'm not from anywhere. I'm from this bed. Anything worth knowing about me you can learn from letting me make love to you.
Michelle Stratton: "That's not true." - DirectorRobert BressonStarsMartin LaSalleMarika GreenJean PélégriMichel passes the time by picking pockets, careful to never be caught despite being watched by the police. His friend Jacques may suspect, while both men may have their eyes on Jeanne, the pretty neighbor of Michel's ailing mother.Martin LaSalle as Michel:
"Oh, Jeanne, to reach you at last, what a strange path I had to take." - DirectorRon HowardStarsRussell CroweEd HarrisJennifer ConnellyA mathematical genius, John Nash made an astonishing discovery early in his career and stood on the brink of international acclaim. But the handsome and arrogant Nash soon found himself on a harrowing journey of self-discovery.Russell Crowe as John Nash:
"I've made the most important discovery of my life. It's only in the mysterious equation of love that any logic or reasons can be found. I'm only here tonight because of you. You are the only reason I am... you are all my reasons." - DirectorNicolas Winding RefnStarsRyan GoslingCarey MulliganBryan CranstonA mysterious Hollywood action film stuntman gets in trouble with gangsters when he tries to help his neighbor's husband rob a pawn shop while serving as his getaway driver.Ryan Gosling as Driver:
[On the phone with Irene] "Can I talk to you? I won't keep you long. I have to go somewhere and I don't think I can come back. But I just wanted you to know. Getting to be around you and Benicio was the best thing that ever happened to me." - DirectorWalter HillStarsRyan O'NealBruce DernIsabelle AdjaniA getaway driver becomes the latest assignment for a tenacious detective.Ryan O'Neal as 'The Driver'.
The Detective: "A friend of yours told me where to find you in the middle of the day."
The Driver: "I don't have any friends."
The Detective: "That's right. No friends. No steady job. No girlfriend. You live real cheap, you never ask any questions... boy, you got it down real tight. So tight that there's no room for anything else. And that's a real sad song. Only trouble is, eh, sad songs ain't sellin' this year. Maybe I'm your friend." - DirectorMichael MannStarsJames CaanTuesday WeldWillie NelsonAn ace safe cracker wants to do one last big heist for the mob before going straight.James Caan as Frank.
Joe Gags: "Look, uh, these people wanna meet you."
Frank: "What?"
Joe Gags: "They're stand-up guys."
Frank: "If I wanna meet people, I'll go to a f*ckin' country club." - DirectorMichael CurtizStarsHumphrey BogartIngrid BergmanPaul HenreidA cynical expatriate American cafe owner struggles to decide whether or not to help his former lover and her fugitive husband escape the Nazis in French Morocco.Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine:
"Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine."