When it comes to burning one’s flesh, context is everything. In Lawrence of Arabia, Peter O’Toole‘s willingness to singe his fingertips indicates a curiously likable apartness…a certain charisma…especially when he says that the trick is “not minding” that it hurts. When Hal Holbrook talks about Gordon Liddy having held his hand over a candle at a Washington party and offering the same answer when someone asks “what’s the trick?”, it indicates a slight nutter mentality — somebody you don’t want to get too close to.
