#like he was intended to fit in as a forgotten realms character but not necessarily a game character iykwim

[scripttorture]

1/2 Hi. I've got an enemy group who kidnaps and imprisons a spec ops type main character because they desperately want confidential information out of them, but the MC refuses to talk. This group knows torture is not very effective. They want to get it right, get the truth, and are capable and willing to donate lots of resources and time to convincing the main character to spill the beans. They have time, and the person is also much too valuable to maim, so I was wondering what combination of

2/2 techniques they might use to try and get truthful information out of them? I was thinking alternating between police style interrogations, general abuse and positive reinforcements. They use enemy allied spies posing as neutral/friendly individuals to give the main character a sympathetic ear, intending for the main character to accidentally let slip something of use. Would this work? What other options are there?

Well I think ifpossible you should be clear that torture does not work at all. ‘Not veryeffective’ can be taken to imply something might work some of the time. Andgiven the issue at hand I think it’s really important be clear.

 I think the generalsituation you’ve outlined seems perfectly reasonable for this kind of story.It’s realistic. But I’m not sure itwould be the most effective possible strategy.

 One of the big caveatshere is that actual scientific research on interrogation is woefully lacking.As a result I can’t say with certainty that one particularly thing we know can work is better than any otherstrategy that can work. The way I approach these sorts of questions is tryingto get as many ‘positive’ factors into the situation as reasonably possiblewhile minimising any ‘negative’ factors.

 Any abuse is a negativefactor. It makes it less likely that they'll gain the character's trust in anyrespect. It serves as a reminder to the character that they are 'the enemy'. Itcould strengthen the character's resolve not to cooperate purely because theypissed them off.I'm also a little wary of the phrase 'police style interrogation', not becausethere's anything wrong with it or your suggestion necessarily but because mostpolice officers don't receive much training in interrogation. The reality inmost countries is that when it comes to interrogation police officers make itup as they go along. Sometimes they're lucky enough to have someone close tothem who knows how it works but often that isn't the case.That's a big part of why I think this blog is important: these guys are lookingto us to tell them what 'works' and unfortunately a lot of fiction tells themthat the answer is 'torture'.I think the idea of having a friendly/neutral person as a spy is a good one. Ifyou can I'd suggest having two or three. Most fiction tends to use another'prisoner' in this role and that's perfectly feasible. I'd suggest that adoctor might work as well. So- suggestions. Well to start with I'd have them look for forensic evidencecarefully even if the chances of finding something that will help are slim. If this character is wearing shoes, clothes etc when they catch the MC havethem take literally everything and clothe the character in a standard uniformof some kind. If there’s any possibility of evidence from that confirming orsupporting the information they get from the MC use that in the story. Types of soil, chemical residues, plantmatter, anything at all.

 I realise that mightnot fit your story, it won’t fit every story. Some information may literallyonly exist in the character’s head. But if there is any way to use physical evidence as well I’d say do it.

 Next I’d stronglysuggest having as few people as possible on the interrogation team in the roomwith the MC. Don’t have more than two people talking to the MC regularly, thepoint is that they’re building up a relationship with the MC. If there are toomany people that’ll make it more difficult to form a strong connection with anyone individual and it’ll reduce the amount of time he spends with eachindividual.

 These people are goingto be spending a lot of time with theMC. Like forget 9-5 hours and having a family life outside. They’re going tospend hours each day every day just talking to the MC. They probably won’t evenspend most of it asking about what they want to know. They’ll be encouragingthe MC to talk about their beliefs their preferences their personal life-anything.

 They probably won’talways go in together. And I think ‘sessions’ might be in the realm of 5 hoursdaily. It’s a lot of time and itprobably isn’t going to give obvious rewards or indeed anything quickly.

 The rest of the team-the real work is in monitoring,recording, filing and cross referencing everything the MC says. An organisationwith this many resources will begetting information from other sources as well, people volunteeringinformation, paid informants, possibly undercover agents in the MC’sorganisation as well and of course hard evidence and seized materials.

 Checking that what theMC says lines up with other things they know about this organisation is massively important and a lot of hardwork.

 It’s essentially theirfact checking exercise. And if they’re serious about getting accurateinformation a lot of resources need to be there.

 They need to have agood enough cross referencing system in place that they correctly identify whenthe MC has let something slip, asopposed to when they’re lying or deliberately trying to throw these people off.

 If the character knowswhat’s going on deliberately lying at points is extremely likely. But thecharacter probably won’t be able to keep those lies perfectly consistent overmonths. The ‘bad guys’ need to be investing enough time, effort and people toanalyse and recognise the difference between lies, truth that was revealedaccidentally and genuine mistakes on the MC’s part (ie inaccurate informationthat the MC doesn’t know is inaccurate).

 Depending on how youwant to write this I think making members of the analysis and monitoring teamcharacters could be a good idea. It could help show just how much time andeffort is going into every word the MC says. It’s a less overtly violent sideof the evil organisation but one that’s potentially just as creepy anddisturbing- these people are basically professional stalkers.

 I think you shoulddefinitely be prepared to make the interrogator/s fully fledged characters. They’regoing to be spending a lot of time with the MC and if you’re not intending toskip over those months they’re going to be the people the MC interacts withmost. They’ll be doing everything they can to strike up a friendly, respectfulrelationship with the MC.

 It sounds like a stupiddetail but many real life cases have missed this- the interrogators must speak the same language as the MC fluently.

 The interrogatorsshould also have invested time in understanding the MC’s politics, culture andreligion. If something is core to the MC and can be researched/read about theinterrogators should do the reading.

 The only other thing Ican think of is a memory-aid which may or may not be helpful in your story.

 The interrogators getthe MC to tell their story of events backwards. This is something that getsused on witnesses as well as suspects. Essentially it’s difficult to tell astory backwards and inconsistencies become more obvious when comparing theforward and backward versions.

 That doesn’tnecessarily mean it catches lies. The errors could be genuine mistakes. But itgives an idea of what is accurate and consistent in the person’s memory. Ifthey’ve made something up they’ll probably get a lot more details wrong.

 From the MC’s side Ithink it’s important to remember that vanishingly few people refuse to talk.The MC could refuse to say anything they judge as ‘useful’ but that’s not thesame thing. Most people can’t sit quiet during conversations for weeks on end.

 The chances are the MCis going to engage with these interrogatorsto some degree. They’re going to get sucked in to ‘harmless’ conversationsabout sports or art or tv shows. Those conversations help build a relationshipthe interrogator can later try to use to get information.

 The chances are that inthe long term the MC is also going to let someinformation slip out. It might not be valuable or what the bad guys wantthough. But it’s difficult to keep all genuine personal information under wrapsfor months on end when you talk to someone every day.

 Broad responses aregoing to depend a lot on your MC’s personality. I think frustration and boredomwill probably be major problems: you’ve taken someone used to being active andreduced their world to a box and their social circle to may be 4 people.

 It’s going to take anemotional toll, even if it isn’t nearly so high or damaging as if they were insolitary confinement. That can also be used to encourage a strongerrelationship with the interrogators or the spies.

 Interrogation isn’tvery effective and whether it ‘works’ or not is dependent on a lot ofvariables. Even with all that time and effort on the bad guys’ part you could still realistically have the characternot give them the information they really want.

 The longer he’s therethe more likely he is to want to givethem that information and the more likely he is to have forgotten it.

 A lot depends on thecharacters themselves and how you write this. If you want the MC to give themthe information then I’d suggest strong, positive relationships with theinterrogators and/or spies, having the MC held prisoner for longer than a year(anything up to 4 sounds reasonable) and an MC with fewer strong emotional tiesto the ‘cause’.

 If you want the MC notto give them the information then I’d suggest a shorter imprisonment, 2-6months perhaps, a distrustful relationship with the spies, interrogators thatmade mistakes (like shouting or verbally abusing the MC) and an MC with strongemotional ties to the cause, which can include friends/family in the cause.

 I hope that helps. :)

Disclaimer

[justanothercinemaniac]

Epic Movie (Re)Watch #126 - Darby O’Gill & The Little People

Spoilers below.

Have I seen it before: Yes

Did I like it then: Yes.

Do I remember it: Not perfectly.

Did I see it in theaters: No.

Format: DVD

1) Darby O’Gill is one of the most oft forgotten films in the Disney’s live action canon, which is too bad because it’s pretty entertaining. I was originally going to watch it closer to St. Patrick’s Day but I was in the mood for something lowkey and short and figure this was a good fit.

2) This opening quote is classic Walt Disney:

Disney did not credit the actor playing Brian or any of the leprechauns, as he wanted to create the feeling that they were real leprechauns. He even devoted an episode of his TV show “Disneyland” to playing out a bit where he and “Darby” went to go convince King Brian to be in this film.

3) Katie O’Gill.

The writing for Katie is about what you would expect from a live action movie from 1959, with her main conflict being her unwillingness to get married and how she “needs” to get married. (Ugh) BUT she still is given personality. She loves her family, she is able to hold her own against brutes like Pony, knows what she wants and goes for it. So the writing here still has some merit to it, and Janet Munro does an excellent job portraying Katie. Honestly when you watch Munro’s performance you don’t feel like you’re watching a woman written by men who think women should act a certain way, she becomes a real character. I greatly appreciate that and think the film would be worse off if it didn’t have Munro in the part.

4) Albert Sharpe as Darby O’Gill.

Albert Sharpe MAKES Darby O’Gill and Darby is a fantastic character to watch. He is able to convey Darby’s trickster nature (seen often in his ability to outsmart King Brian), self confidence, mixed in with the loving father and considerate neighbor which makes him so easy to root for. Sharpe IS Darby for all I’m concerned, I don’t think any other actor could have played the part as perfectly.

5) The friendly rivalry between King Brian and Darby is what makes their relationship so interesting AND one of the most compelling parts of the film. They’re obviously trying to undermine each other but the chemistry between actors Sharpe and Jimmy O’Dea (Brian) makes it so they’re never trying to do any real harm to each other. They’re just having a go at the other and it’s nice entertainment.

6) This film takes its place in cinematic history if for no other reason than it features a pre-007 Sean Connery as the romantic male lead.

It was this film which made producer Albert R. Broccoli consider Connery for the part of his most iconic character, and his Irish accent in this film is notably better than how it sounds in The Untouchables. Connery is nice in the role, if his character isn’t necessarily as full fleshed out in the writing as it could be. He has a genuine chemistry with Munro’s Katie and - instead of the brutish characters he would go on to play - is actually kind and gentle for most of the movie. That doesn’t mean he won’t defend himself though, as seen later. It’s a lot of fun seeing a fresh faced Connery in such a role, especially a role so early in his career.

7) Those 50s effects though...

8) Darby in the home of the little people.

A nice bit of fantasy and an entertaining scene as King Brian intends to KEEP Darby in his realm (to save him the heartache of losing his job), as well as a scene which truly fleshes out Darby’s wit. The entire time when he’s playing his fiddle you just KNOW he’s building up to some sort of trick to escape and you’re just waiting to see what it is. It’s a fun scene in the film, although it does raise an interesting question: why are all the leprechauns dudes?

9) The wishing song is pretty fun. It shows both the bromance and rivalry between Darby & Brian in an entertaining fashion.

10) Nothing may so perfectly represent Darby as a character and his relationship with King Brian as this line does:

Darby: “Well in five thousand years have you never met a more knowledgable adversary!”

11) Katie does have some fun bits of dialogue and play with Michael (Conner).

Katie [after Michael says she can call him by his first name, which is Michael]: “And so it is. But until I’ve known you for more than a day, it’s Mr. McBride...Mr. McBride.”

12) Sean Connery sings!

13) This film has some nice classic comedy gags, mainly at the bar. For example: Darby gives Brian a drink at the bar (while he has him captured in a bag) to prove that it’s him. He gives him the drink, it descends into the bag, and pops out totally empty leaving the bar folks STUNNED. It’s a nice little gag.

14) Pony - the film’s closest thing to a villain - want to marry Katie because of the stature it’ll bring him in town. Even by 1959 standards, he is a little to aggressive with her for comfort and I think that’s the point. It’s very strange seeing an early Connery movie where someone ELSE handles women in an uncomfortable way (I’m thinking mostly his 007 flicks here).

15) A good ten minutes of the film is devoted to Brian and Darby setting up Katie and Michael, mostly in the dated idea that she NEEDS a husband before she becomes an “old maid” (and forget that, honestly). But in a scene where the two of them are watching at a distance to see if they kiss, I couldn’t help but think that they’re major shippers of the pair. I like that.

16)

Michael: “I love you Katie!”

YOU JUST MET HER TWO WEEKS AGO!!!

17) The Banshee in this film is actually creepy as hell.

The special effects are creepy but also MAJOR credit to the sound designers for creating its haunting wail. Like seriously, it freaks me out more as an adult than it did as a kid. That’s saying something. The Banshee and her death carriage are what I remember most from this film.

18) The fact that Darby’s third wish is that the Banshee take him and not his daughter Katie is actually really sad. It speaks a lot to his love of his daughter, and we get to see Brian’s friendship with him again. Brian waits in the death carriage with Darby and tricks him into making a fourth wish (that he’d get to see Katie & Michael get married), since it was established earlier in the film that if you make four wishes all your wishes are undone. It is the heart of their relationship: they’ve got each other’s back through tricks and fun.

19) The final fight between Pony and Michael just sort of...happens. We get that Pony tried to run Michael out of town by framing him as a drunk, but Michael just waltzes into the bar after the movie has pretty much ended and fights Pony. I think it would have been better placed earlier in the movie as opposed to the very end, as it is a nice scene to watch it just feels like a weaker ending than the thing with the Banshee.

20) The reprise of “Pretty Irish Girl” is a nice note to end on for the film.

Okay, so Darby O’Gill and the Little People is no Mary Poppins or 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea but it still has that classic Disney fun to it. The cast is great even if the writing is a little dated 58 years later, there are some genuine laughs and freights, and it’s just a really sweet film. If you’re a die hard Disney fan definitely suggest it, but if you’re not and you’re looking for something off the beaten path to watch this St. Patrick’s Day put it in anyways.