Friday, March 25, 2016

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3508: Batman V Superman - Sad Affleck? (NOT!) - Body Language (VIDEO, PHOTOS)





In this video which is currently going viral, Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill are being interviewed regarding their just released film, Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. This is of course just a segment and highly edited, with Simon and Garfunkel's, The Sound of Silence playing through most of this clip. The YouTube title to this video is, "Batman V Superman - Sad Affleck" - yet this is completely wrong. Ben Affleck is not sad, he is mad. We cannot say specifically what's the cause of this emotion - but it's definitely anger.


This image is from 0:08, just after Affleck says, "I haven't read any reviews".

Affleck is looking somewhat through his interviewer, not at him. His mid-face, particularly his mustache area (tissue between the upper lip and nose) has significant tension. His lower lids also are tensed.




This image was captured at 0:54. Not only does Affleck project anger (thinned lips and mildly flared nostrils) there is also a mild amount of contempt in his face here. Do you see it?








This frame is from the last second of this video (1:08), an instant after Mr. Affleck says, "I agree" (Did you see the quick torque of his head-neck with a prolonged blink as he said this?



 Please watch the video to appreciate the dynamic and evanescent nature of this sarcastic head snap).

In this last second Affleck is focusing directly at his interviewer, not though him. The tension in both his mid-face and his lower lids, nostril flaring and thinning of his lips can be clearly seen. He is angry.

It is amazing to think of the percentage of otherwise socially adept people who will completely misidentify subtle to mild, let alone moderate nonverbal signals. Here is a classic example of this phenomenon. If you pressed them, many of those people who misunderstand his facial expression would say the reason he looks sad is because he was looking down and at a distance. While it is true that those who are sad will often look down (and often down to their right), Affleck has no other facial nonverbal signals which may be construed as sadness. Moreover many people, consciously or subconsciously will not look directly at another person's face, in an effort to avoid escalating their own anger.

Batman V Superman - Mad Affleck.


See also:

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3507: Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck and Amy Adams Do The Batman Voice - The Graham Norton Show

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3501: Salah Abdeslam of Paris Attacks is Captured - Body Language Traits Shared by Terrorists 

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3499: President Obama Nominates Merrick Garland to Supreme Court

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3495: Donald Trump swarmed by security on stage in Ohio

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2231: A Common Facial Expression of Mass Killers - Using Body Language as a Threat Assessment Tool

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3323: Matt Damon on Graham Norton reflecting on Winning Oscar - Blended Expressions

Nonverbal Communication No. 3110: Scarlett Johansson gets invaded by John Travolta - An Awkward Moment from the 2015 Oscars

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 1858: What the Eyes Do - Transitioning from Mild to Severe Anger



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