I don't think the other Sandbaggers are necessarily insensitive,
rather what I said initially, that Alan is too sensitive for the job,
which is supported by his reactions on screen and by Willie's estimatation
of him. Willie can be either, Mike is a very cool customer though seldom
overtly callous (I never questioned whether or not he should be a
sandbagger, which was my immediate reaction to Alan). Laura has deep
sensitivities but doesn't display them. Marianne, who wants to be a
sandbagger, conveys that she could carry the job, she's cool and clever,
though obviously caring as well. All these people are more in control of
their responses than Alan. On the other hand, Neil cultivates his
insensitivity and uses it whenever possible.
An earlier post says that Alan was not manipulated at all. I not
know how else to describe the scene in which Neil does his infrequent nice
human being act, wishing Alan well when he's plotting to decimate his
emotional life.
How about a round of Catch 22 with Colin Grove? That whole
scenario is open to varied interpreations. While Colin was overstepping
the mark, he looked to be good sandbagger material to me. Not as good as
Mike, but better than Alan. While their personalities aren't alike, I
think Neil dislikes Colin because what he did is exactly the sort of thing
Neil would have done if he felt he hadn't proved his worth to get into the
Sandbaggers (that is conjecture, I know). As the story unfolds, I think
that Neil is at much at fault in the overreactions as anyone - he had the
choice of confronting Colin far earlier). Piqued, he has to play squash
the bug with Colin, then gleefully (for Neil) uses the information he's
gathered. Slimy.
Gayle