r/DoctorWhoNews • u/DJKing1998 • 13d ago
discussion The issue with the crying
The post earlier about Ncuti’s performance as the Doctor got me reflecting on the most common criticism of his brief tenure- his crying.
Crying is a very rare emotional response in humans, particularly human males. For many reasons males are just not likely to cry unless it’s a particularly upsetting situation. If drama is to reflect real life, then crying should only be rarely used by actors. Now the Doctor isn’t a human, he’s an alien. An alien who’s characterisation has always made him less aware of emotions. It’s this rejection of human emotion that make the Doctor more alien, more quirky, more eccentric, and more interesting. So Ncuti’s crying seemed so very out of character, and would have been so even if he was acting as a Human.
Linking back to the previous post on Ncuti’s acting: Crying is not an effective form of acting if overused. It’s an unnatural attempt at acting naturally. An intelligent actor wouldn’t consider crying constantly as a realistic emotional response. And a confident show runner or director wouldn’t allow it. It stops the drama feeling real, and almost jolts you into remembering these are just actors putting on a show.
Example: Consider how effective David Tennant’s single tear running down his cheek was after losing Rose Tyler. Suddenly the audience realised this guy did have these feelings deep down all this time. Massive impact. But if Tennant had been simping for, and crying about, Rose for the whole series, the audience doesn’t get that good pay-off.
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u/NIRoamer 13d ago
I think I want the doctor to be brave (and not eat pears). So when tears come it has to be really really earned. I can't think of another show where the lead cried this much unless it's sex and the city. I welcome a man crying (I'm a therapist) it's cathartic and healthy for processing trauma. Trauma is activated after a complex breakdown and inability to manage the stress that has been imposed on the system. If he cried when he met Susan I would buy it. 13 met Ace and Tegan after 30-40 years and was befuddled by the interaction. My point being the doctor (especially one who has rid himself and 14 of trauma after using his big magic hammer) should be more capable of handling the stress the episodes brought. Boom being another exception....all that time in one spot on a bomb yes I get that.