[HPFGU-Movie]Lupin casting

[artsylynda at aol.com]

GulPlum:

> >James: I picture James to be the tallest, around 6'2..with dark brown
> >hair and blue eyes...wonderful smile..glasses...nice, lean, athletic
> >build..
> 
> I don't buy tall!James. I see him as being of below-average or at best 
> average height (I'm unwilling to put a numerical value to it), much like 
> Harry. I appreciate that Harry's limited height is more likely due to 
> underfeeding and spending his childhood in a cupboard, but even so I don't 
> see James as being particularly tall. Sleek and athletic, yes, but tall - 
> no.
> 

But Harry sees him as tall -- and in his pictures, I don't remember him 
appearing undersized.  Our son was the shrimp of the world until he hit 15 -- 
now he's 6'2"!  He was always the smallest boy his age, short and skinny and 
fine-boned, almost delicate looking.  He was at least a full head shorter 
than most of his classmates for most of his life.  When he was 15 he started 
shooting up and grew 8 inches in one summer!  We were so glad it was summer 
so he was in shorts -- trying to keep him in long pants that *fit* would've 
been very expensive!  Now (at 24) he's tall and thin, broadshouldered but 
still has those long, fine bones.  So I have no problem with James being tall 
-- my son could've been Harry (except he was blond and no glasses and no 
wizardry either) -- but as shrimpy as Harry, until he hit 15, at which point 
I HOPE JKR will allow poor Harry to grow!

BTW, about Harry's size.  Unless he was stunted at birth, and we have no 
indications he was, not being as well-fed as he should have been during his 
young childhood doesn't necessarily mean he won't reach his full growth 
potential.  We've been into horses for many, many years and have seen cases 
where a normal-size foal was starved (because idiots owned it who should've 
been arrested) and when it was taken to a better home and was well fed (like 
Harry at Hogwart's), it did grow to a normal size.  We've had a foal that was 
stunted at birth, (preemie sized, but due to a pregnancy problem), who was 
well-fed and cared for all the time we had her (until she was five) and she 
grew into a perfectly proportioned miniature Quarter Horse (a 14.1 hand pony, 
when she should've been 15 hands at least given the size of her parents).  I 
sold her last year because she just wasn't big enough for me, but her maximum 
potential size was determined by her placenta not being attached right in the 
womb, so she was tiny when born.  So Harry doesn't have to expect to always 
be "a midget in glasses" -- genetically, he can be as tall as his dad or 
taller (our son is 2 inches taller than anyone in the family has ever been, 
as far back as we can find out, and he was a true shrimp until he was 15).  

Amy wrote: 
 > Why, she muses sociologically, do so many of us imagine every 
> character we like as handsome?

And Quiddichmom replied:
 >>if someone's personality is strong or pleasing to me or 
even if it's just their mannerisms that are attractive, I will see 
that person as "handsome" or "cute" or something like that 
(especially men *ahem*!).  

As far as Lupin, James and Sirius go, they all come across to me as 
people whom I would like to meet.  This is just going by 
how their personalities are described.  Maybe I can see some of my 
old friends in them or maybe some of myself?  James especially seems 
to remind me a lot of an old boyfriend of mine!  Sirius reminds me a 
bit of myself (mischevious, hothead?).  Lupin is kind and gentle, 
which I greatly admire.  <<

Me:  I think Quiddichmom has hit the nail on the head -- if we like people 
quite well, we usually find them attractive in some way -- we see their good 
points, overlook their flaws.  Sirius was described as "handsome" in canon (I 
remember reading it somewhere).  Harry's not "ugly" in any way (no matter 
what the Dursleys think) ust small (partly genetics, partly mistreatment) and 
he looks just like his father (except he has his mother's eyes).  I think 
Lupin should have a lot of *character* in his face -- he's suffered greatly 
-- and that, and his kind nature will make him attractive to those of us who 
are old enough to appreciate such qualities (that is, those of us who don't 
pay a lot of attention to who People magazine *tells* us is sexy -- we can 
tell for ourselves, thank you very much, and good character is much sexier 
than washboard abs, IMHO).  

Ah, so the casting list is official -- well, I hope they do use some of the 
"size comparision" tricks in future Potter movies that they did in LOTR -- 
Harry can stay smaller (and stay Dan!!) as long as they want, and Oldman can 
stand on a box or something (Elijah Wood said in some scenes making him small 
was as simple as him kneeling on a box -- and in the '30's stars like Alan 
Ladd stood on boxes to be taller, since they were the "handsome leading man" 
types and their "love interests" were often taller than them!  ;->)

Lynda 
* * *
"Don't let  the Muggles get you down." Ron Weasley PoA


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