Is Eye Candy Really So Wrong?

On one of my many treks across the internet in search of Vincent D’Onofrio, I happened across a comment in which someone suggested that an interviewer ask Vincent what he thought of message boards and blogs that post pictures of him and discuss his “physical attributes” instead of his work, and it was written in such a way that it was apparent that the author had a low opinion of said boards and blogs. The comment initially made me feel shallow and embarrassed for liking Vincent’s appearance, but then I rethought it. Regardless of what VDO fans post day to day, whether it be a dissection of his characters, praise for his community efforts outside of film, or, yes, a collection of pictures shared for VDO private fantasy enhancement, I think I speak for the majority of fans when I say that first and foremost, we are all held together by his amazing ability to portray characters, and that his body (which, depending on the movie, he isn’t exactly shy about showing off) is a great bonus.

Personally, my addiction started with his talent first; my attraction to his appearance came as I discovered more and more of his work. I’ve always had a soft spot for characters that are not only mentally unbalanced but believable, and Vincent can play those roles with frightening realism. For the sake of continuity (because he’s in both of my previous posts), I’ll bring up Moriarty. Yes, he was theatrical, larger-than-life, diabolical in the over-the-top way that only archvillains can be (and even if critics didn’t like that, I did), but only Vincent could add that extra degree of subtly that made Moriarty more than the standard villain. What I’m referring to is Moriarty’s clinical curiosity. In the scenes where Moriarty uses Sherlock as a human guinea pig, he is being evil and sadistic, sure, but there are moments where you can see in his face and behavior that he sincerely hopes to get something legitimate out of what he is doing. Now, I may be reading too much into this, but here are three examples:

Moriarty dipping down to watch Sherlock’s face after giving him the first injection



Moriarty telling Sherlock that he would be grateful for street name suggestions for the drug



Moriarty looking between Sherlock and his pocket watch after injecting him the second time



These moments are brief, but they seem to be genuine breaks in Moriarty’s façade to something truly disturbing underneath. Yes, he is trying to kill his nemesis in an unnecessarily complicated way (like any good archvillain), but he actually plans to learn something from it! It’s delightful realizations like this that keep me coming back to Vincent’s roles for more and more. His broad 6’4” frame, his expressive hands, and his radiant smile just make it that much more enjoyable. Besides, when he has played characters who do things like this:



and this:



and even this:



. . . can the author of that comment blame people for looking at him sexually? Never mind his characters in “Hotel Paradise” and “Guy.” I have yet to see either of the films, but based off the screenshots I’ve seen, he undeniably spends time naked and “engaging” his co-stars on camera.

So just because Vincent’s fans post eye candy doesn’t mean that they don’t think beyond what’s under his clothing. The pics (and the reactions they provoke) are just part of the celebration for all things VDO. That being said, one last piece of eye candy:



So close you can taste him!