The Mathematics of Screen Chemistry

The constant search for one's true identity ... relentlessly bouncing off our stream of consciousness with others to see what it generates ... one's hope is always to earn appreciation, admiration, intimacy, honesty, truth, validation, welcome ... but that is not true most of the time ... which is where conflicts arise ... and this is expressed through character traits and idiosyncrasies that develop over a lifetime of masking the insecurities, fears, dogma, judgement, unapologetic thoughts ... most of which arise from the rejections and failure in being able to manifest the primary hope.

If you can gather a reasonable understanding of your character's early life experiences and how they have manifested in the unique character traits and idiosyncrasies, progressively affecting their environment and therefrom limiting their choices in life, largely perceptively because of their narrowing lens and growing judgements. In this status quo, introduce a catalyst that will upset the false sense of balance that the character has come to terms with, however unlivable or senseless it be. Pick the most unlikely candidate for the role of the catalyst and you have every chance of a highly potent chemical reaction.

It is why Romeo and Juliet has survived so many centuries of changing trends in romance: two characters from who belong to the other side of the tracks; an utterly unlikely match. The foreign body invades the accepted world of the character and challenges everything in it. However much the character hates their own environment, against the foreign body, their natural instinct is to prove their known evils to be a worthwhile asset. In time, the ego wears out and gives way for acceptance of new ways that are indeed better and hold a promise for expansion into a better person with a chance to living a greater dream. When this result is realized through the journey on screen between two characters the mathematics of screen chemistry adds up to great performances and a gripping motion picture experience.

The experience is made better with a third act twist that is completely unexpected. The one who seems to be the helping hand is the one who eventually receives the most critical dose of life thanks to their hard work having paid off and a great character growth in their partner who rises to the occasion and saves the day.

Stay tuned and we'll analyze the following screen pairings for what makes their screen chemistry click with such divine timing that cuts through the clutter and makes its way right to the top of the list:

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