Finally watched the CSI: NY episode, which originally aired last December. I record everything and watch them when I have time. Anyway, my observations.
Good to hear a gunshot and Matlin not reacting to it. Instead, we see her feet feeling the vibration and the baby monitor light blinking. She walks out of her bedroom and sees a broken lamp. As she makes her way to the baby’s room, she finds her 19-year-old daughter dead on the floor from a gunshot.
The detectives arrive on the scene where Detective Taylor notices her lip-reading from afar. Sorry dude, but you can’t tell a person is lip-reading that far away. Matlin’s character could simply be looking at the cop in the car or the car.
The detectives approach her and introduce themselves. We hear half of Mac’s lines and the other half are silent while we see his lips moving. Glad the audience could get insight into how things look from Matlin’s point of view. Then, Matlin spoke, “Please help me.” I’m sure that some deaf people weren’t happy, but I think it shows viewers that deaf people can also speak — we’re not all silent.
She did use ASL for the entire quesitioning session with Mac at the police department. She spoke again at the end in thanking Mac. This is reasonable as the interpreter wasn’t around and she wanted to sincerely thank him.
The character of Cole dropped out of the deaf school as a senior because he received a cochlear implant. Apparently, his parents weren’t deaf and they treated him like an outcast, so he had the operation.
During the hostage negotiation, Cole couldn’t read Mac’s lips and had to rely on Matlin for interpretation. I find it hard to believe a boy who grew up deaf suddenly lost the ability to read lips within a couple of years (best I can figure) of the implant. Besides, Mac stood too far away for either of them to read his lips from the car. Thanks to LASIK, I see 20/20, but reading lips that far is like reading the title on a book cover from across the room.
I know, I know… dramatic effect. Distracting Cole made it possible to rescue the baby and capture him. Nice episode.
1 comments
“The detectives arrive on the scene where Detective Taylor notices her lip-reading from afar. Sorry dude, but you can’t tell a person is lip-reading that far away.”
Actually, you can. It requires intensive training–Secret services do know how to do this…Sue Thomas did that..Just a thought..
Lip-reading is a talent. Many hearing people do not know how to do it, save for the most obvious ones..It’s more instinctual with the Deaf people about reading lips than it is for hearings..
just my thoughts
der sankt