Time & Perspective Quote by Olivier Martinez

Martinez is puncturing one of romance culture's favorite alibis: the idea that falling for someone is a kind of magic instead of a kind of editing. His phrasing refuses the soft, flattering word "imagination" and swaps in something harsher and more clinical: "distortion". That single pivot reframes attraction as a perceptual error we participate in, not a spell cast on us. It also carries a faint moral charge. Distortion isn't neutral; it's willful.

The quote works because it names the mechanics of projection with the cadence of a confession. "You suddenly think" captures how quickly we manufacture a hero narrative: idealistic, strong, full of dreams. Those are not traits as much as a casting call. Coming from an actor, the subtext is rich: we don't meet people, we audition them for roles that serve our hunger for meaning. We see a person and immediately begin directing, writing backstory, picking flattering lighting.

Then he undercuts the fantasy with the blunt aside "when you know better most of the time". That's the adult part: the awareness that our story doesn't match the evidence, and we proceed anyway. The final line, "You put what you want to see on people", lands like a quiet accusation aimed at everyone. It's not just about being fooled; it's about using someone as a screen.

In context, it's also a corrective to celebrity romance mythology. Fans and tabloids build ideals around famous couples; Martinez is reminding us that the same projection happens at street level, and the damage is interpersonal: not seeing people clearly is a way of refusing them.