Last night, I watched Oxygen, a seven year-old thriller about kidnapping, murder and uncontrollable base desires. I’ve seen it before and since I’ve gone over and over a story this week until I can no longer read it objectively, I thought it would make a good break. While there are some plot holes that bothered me a little and the dialogue could have used some work in places, it’s not a bad flick.
But I found myself watching the character, Madeline, played by Maura Tierney. Madeline is a police detective with a secret problem that’s tearing her life to shreds. She’s married to her captain (a character that could have used a bit more umph, IMO) and she has this intriguing internal battle happening between her need for rough, submissive sex and her kick-ass police detective side. I would have liked to see this battle handled with a little more depth, but there is a scene in the police station bathroom that was good.
Madeline was, as the saying goes, a wonderfully flawed character.
So, what is it about the flawed character that draws us in? Besides it giving us a heavier than usual dose of reality, is it just that we really want to see that person conquer what’s holding them back and succeed?
These characters draw us in, make us root for them, make us love them. When done with a bit of skill, a good writer can take an extremely difficult subject like a cop’s desire for rough sex and alcoholic oblivion and turn it into a compelling and heart-wrenching twist that keeps you glued to the edge of your seat.
There are quite a few of these flawed cop heroine movies floating about.
Twisted with Ashley Judd—a movie I couldn’t wait to see but ended up thinking “okay.” For someone as sharp as the character, Tess, was supposed to be, I kept wondering why she didn’t question the constant passing out, but the movie itself wasn’t too bad.
Taking Lives with Angelina Jolie which I didn’t really enjoy at all even though I loved the beginning when her character is introduced. Unfortunately, I don’t remember much of the movie past that. For some reason, I had a hard time swallowing the villain.
Murder by Numbers with Sandra Bullock. Again, I found the movie just okay… a bit ridiculous in places and a bit déjà vu in others, but I did enjoy Bullock’s character quite a bit.
Blue Steel with Jamie Lee Curtis. Uh, I’d have to watch this one again or else I need more coffee this morning, because I’m hitting a blank. (g)
Can you think of any others?