Applied Lip Reading: 5x01
I love lip reading. I owe my interest in it to my late mother, who took American Sign Language classes in the mid 80s. Just for fun. I remember her practicing all the time, even signing to TV shows with the sound on mute: lip reading.
I was maybe 13 when I realized I could do it, too: take context into account when you can, filter out distractions, and listen... to the lip movements. Do it enough, and you'll hear individual words, the syllables that form them, and even the breaks between.
Recently, the gif below* has come up via DM.
Sam says... something:
First guess in the discussion was: "I need you."
Say them while Sam's lips are moving. They don't line up. The first and last words are right, but there are more syllables in between them than just one.
Second guess was: "I need to kiss you."
Same as the first time, say the words with Sam's lips. I think it's a closer fit: the number of syllables is correct. But is he really saying "need to"?
No.
To make an "n", the tip of the tongue has to make contact with the roof of the mouth. His mouth is pretty much wide open; we'd see that.
Third and final guess: "I gotta kiss you."
😳
That's it! I...gotta...kiss...you. Try it: your lower jaw will dip slightly at "gotta", exactly when his does.
🚨 Sam to Cait: "I gotta kiss you." 🚨
Here's what I think happened: there are several shots of this scene where they are holding their mouths open, likely the director's choice. Drama, passion, connectedness, yada yada yada. 🙄 Yeah. It's season 5. We. Get. It.
They likely shot it over and over, mouths open... and at some point, it became too much for Sam. Inertia? Maybe. Jaw ache? Could be. Or it just might be the plea of a man (in a Jamie Fraser wig) to his real-life love (in a Claire Fraser wig) during an intimate scene that was driving him a little bit mad with desire.
Whatever it is, enjoy it. He. Said. That.
"I gotta kiss you."
*Credit to the gif maker: I tried to find your name in an exhaustive search, but failed. I'm so sorry.
