MovieChat Forums > Helen of Troy (2003) Discussion > Calchas

Calchas

posted 17 years ago by schweinhundt1967
7 replies | jump to latest

What's with the little tiny arms on this guy?I mean,he looks like a thalidomide baby!
Now,the way the story goes,in ancient times and in primitive cultures,the shamans ,soothsayers,and wise men are supposed to,oftern enough,to be handicapped,have something wrong physically,and/or have some sort of physical or mental abberation.
The Shamans of the primitive Siberians,I've read,are also supposed to demonstrate the symptoms,and behaviors that are indicative of Paranoid Schizophrenia in Western Culture.
And,in the Plains Indian tribes,from what I've read,the homosexual assumed the role of the medicine man.(Nothing to disparage gay people.It's just the role that they were assigned.)
So, did Clachas end up as the prophet because he was handicapped,had no future as a warrior,and they started training him quite early in life for a role that required intuition,insight,and an uncanny wisdom rather than physical strength?
I'd appreciate your thoughts on this matter.

[–] Musical-Muse 17 years ago

me friend and I just started lauging when we saw him, if he really has tiny arms in real life I feel kinda bad for him, but like what was going on there?

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[–] ceebeegee 13 years ago

The actor WAS a thalomide baby. He's physically handicapped. You two are a class act, laughing at a man's physical deformity.

[–] schweinhundt1967 12 years ago

I, for one,was in NO way laughing at this man's deformity.I was inquiring as to what I was noticing.
if this actor was, indeed, a thalidomide bay, then I think he must be congratulated for rising above a handlcap, and entering a profession which is highly competitive,and reuqires a strong ego.(Which is Not the same as being egotistical.)

[–] gwen_christie 12 years ago

A brave actor indeed.

[–] Belletrist0 12 years ago

So, did Clachas end up as the prophet because he was handicapped,had no future as a warrior,and they started training him quite early in life for a role that required intuition,insight,and an uncanny wisdom rather than physical strength?
I'd appreciate your thoughts on this matter.

This would make sense from your post, but ancient Greeks had the habit of taking sick or malformed babies and leaving them to die by exposure, or to be eaten by wolves. The only way a baby like Calchas could survive is if his compassionate father paid priests to raise him in their temple, hence his occupation as a soothsayer, or if a priest found him on a mountaintop and took him in because of his deformity. Sometimes families would rescue abandoned babies and raise them as slaves, or sell them as slaves to other families. That may also have been the case for Calchas.

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[–] londor11 12 years ago

Saw him on Howard Sterns show a few years ago. He wasnt in the same category as "whack pack" freaks but was smart and entertaining like any show biz professional.
I thought he distingushed himself well in a small but important role that required someone who would stand out and get your attention.

Well played and memorable. Bravo!

[–] deirdre82 11 years ago

Yes, he was a thalidomide baby.

I think some of the comments on this thread about how people might have become shamen were interesting.

I did check the website of the actor, Mat Fraser. He seems a really interesting person who is multi talented and made a great name for himself -- he's a rock musician (drummer), actor and a performance artist.