Danger in Disguise

I'm sure you've all heard the term "Tom Foolery", but did you know that Tom Fool was a real person? Thomas Skelton (known as Tom Fool) was not only a court jester in the late 1500s, but also a murderer. He used to sit and relax by a tree and wait for passersby to ask him for directions. If he didn't like someone, he'd give them directions to the nearby quicksand.

Thomas Skelton was also Sir William Pennington's personal hit man. When Sir William was angered by his daughter's choice in men, he hired Tom Fool to kill her boyfriend. Despite decapitating the young man with an axe, Tom managed to keep his wicked sense of humor and entertain Sir William. This portion of Castle Ghosts of England will give you more of the gory details. Just skip to the 5:50 mark on the video to see Tom Fool. If you'd like to learn about Muncaster Castle (where this all took place) start from the beginning:



The story continues in this video...



I've really been enjoying the Castle Ghosts shows on YouTube! In addition to Castle Ghosts of England, I've watched Castle Ghosts of Scotland, Castle Ghosts of  Wales, and Castle Ghosts of Ireland. If you know of any Castle Ghosts I've missed, please let me know! The stories are narrated really well, and the shows teach history in the process of telling ghosts stories.

Sir William could always rely on Tom Fool to do his bidding. I think Tom was completely detached from other people and their emotions. Directing strangers to the quicksand was probably just another game for him. This must be my week to think about sociopaths! Not long after learning of Tom Fool, I watched a movie about a sociopath. The movie was Bad Influence, starring Rob Lowe and James Spader.

Before watching the movie, I read a little about the plot online. According to IMDb, the plot involved a "wimpy young executive" and "a dangerous sociopath". I automatically assumed that Rob Lowe would play the role of the executive, and James Spader would play the role of the sociopath. After all, I've watched James Spader play a convincing sociopath many times in the past. His role as Stewart Swinton in Wolf and his role as Robert California in The Office come to mind. If you don't believe me...



It's called personal space, Stewart!



James Spader can have a cold, almost reptilian look to his eyes, and I feel truly shaken while watching him. He's usually portraying a highly manipulative, intelligent character who puts himself first. He even fit that description somewhat in Boston Legal! What I am not used to seeing is the timid James Spader I watched in Bad Influence. That's right, James Spader plays the nice, ordinary man caught in Rob Lowe's sociopathic web. As surprised as I was, I ended up finding them both convincing in their roles. This movie is truly frightening, because it's so real. I did not question the reality of the movie's plot at any point.

The trouble starts with the simple question:

"What do you want, and what do you fear?"

Rob Lowe's character, Alex could help you get what you want and get rid of what you fear, but it would all happen in a Monkey's Paw sort of way. Bad Influence is a true portrait of a sociopath. Rob Lowe did his homework and watched hours of Ted Bundy footage. At times he actually looks Bundy-like! The scary reality is that I couldn't believe someone who looked like Rob Lowe could be a bad guy. Ted Bundy also didn't look like a bad guy, and I've read that he was charming. That's where sociopaths have an advantage, they can sneak up on you.

At first James Spader's character, Michael, is so timid and taken for granted that it's refreshing to see him under Alex's influence. Suddenly Michael is standing up for himself and displaying a little confidence. Gradually Michael turns from being a sweet, fearful man into something almost like Alex. Sometimes learning to defend yourself can turn you into the kind of person you always hated. Although, as Alex says:

"I didn't make you do anything that wasn't in you already."

Alex seems to feel that we all have evil inside us, and that we'll let it out if the right opportunity arises. Like any good sociopath, Alex is not following the normal rules of society. The Michael character is sort of like Sir William Pennington. He has the potential to be a good man, but having his own version of Tom Fool around, gives him the opportunity to be a very bad man. Alex and Tom Fool are far scarier than any movie monster I can imagine!

Here's the trailer, if you'd like to get a sense of the characters in Bad Influence:

 

This movie still has me thinking, days after seeing it. It made me consider how much one person can influence another person's life. It made me wonder how far is too far in defending yourself. I also gave a lot of thought to how a person could ever get rid of someone like Alex. Bad Influence would make a great topic for discussion!