We Need a Hero

            Art reflects life. Cinema draws from and influences pop culture in ways that permeate the populace and influence viewpoints. In the case of good and evil a line has been drawn so bold and so long ago as to have become ingrained in the majority viewpoint. But occasionally works of art challenge this viewpoint. Heroes can become villains just as the opposite is true if not rare. In several Christopher Nolan films this challenge is subtle, occasionally ambiguous, and even sometimes completely overt. In Memento narrative tricks and diegetic knowledge revealed to the audience at the same pace as the characters reveals a hero’s journey marred by villainy. In The Dark Knight a famous line overtly turns the tables, “You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain” (Nolan). And finally, Inception leaves the case shrouded in ambiguity almost as much as the brilliant ending. Drawing upon writings concerning villainy in cinema, literature, and pop culture a case will be made for a cultural shift of viewpoint as well as the concerns emerging from this transformation.

            A distinction must also be made concerning the semantics of terms: good, evil, hero, villain, protagonist, and antagonist. Good and evil should be mostly self-explanatory. And for this argument a hero will usually fall on the side of good while a villain will usually fall on the side of evil. Where some fog creeps in is in the terms protagonist and antagonist. A protagonist in any given story is simply put the leading character with a goal. The antagonist is the character (or object) trying to prevent the protagonist from achieving their goal. While usually a good hero, the protagonist does not need to be either and can in fact have varying motivations for their journey. This sort of protagonist is the main concern here.

            In the case of these three films when applying Christian Metz’s concept of codes and outsider source will be used. In Christian Metz’s book titled Film Language he considers the evolution of film to be similar to the evolution of a language. He lists many technical terms but is sure to describe how these techniques and terms have become akin to a “filmic language” if not to “thereby unify them up to a certain point into a coherent syntax…” (Metz 56). Later Metz compares film to the novels of yore. In this comparison he stresses the importance of diegesis as it relates to the narrative. Metz further relates how diegesis is represented in film and how this representation leads to “the denotation itself that id being constructed, organized, and to a certain extent codified…” (Metz 58). It is the concept of these codes that is so important here. Metz suggests there is a semblance between all films that helps further a coherent narrative through codification.

            Later in the book Metz discusses two types of codes: cultural codes and specialized codes. The former being more universal in their interpretation while the later require some sort of “special training” in order to properly interpret them. In this case “special training” requires an outside source to help consider what constitutes a villain in any given circumstance. Good versus evil should be considered a cultural code while hero versus villain is specialized. Just as any language evolves, so too has cinema. Further, the way film is studied has evolved as well as systems to help interpret and apply Metz’s codes. In this way an outside source will help stand in for Metz’s specialized codes, bringing outside previous knowledge to poke at villainy in Christopher Nolan’s three films.

            The tabletop roleplaying game Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) was first released in 1974 by creator Gary Gygax after being developed in the late 1960’s. Much of the game was influenced by author J.R.R Tolkien’s fantasy setting of Middle-Earth from his The Lord of the Rings novels. In 1997 the corporation Wizard’s of the Coast (WotC) purchased D&D from parent company TSR. WotC would go on to release several versions of the game since 1997 arriving at the current version considered the “fifth edition.” Throughout every edition of the game a way to explain the motivations of a created character remained largely the same. This is known as the alignment chart. This chart considers a character’s stance on law versus chaos and good versus evil. The chart has nine available alignments for any given character to be used in the game. They are Lawful Good, Neutral Good, Chaotic Good, Lawful Neutral, True Neutral, Chaotic Neutral, Lawful Evil, Neutral Evil, and Chaotic Evil (Peterson). These nine alignments, while falling prey to literally boxing a character into certain actions, are quite useful when thinking about the motivations of characters in cinema. Additionally, this chart is often used a starting point to box in pop culture characters and how they react in their respective universes.

            A similar way to look at the motivations of characters in fairy tales was developed by Vladimir Propp. John L. Fell wrote an article titled Vladimir Propp in Hollywood to help bring Propp’s theories to film studies. These theories can help elucidate the concept of alignment and help form more concrete examples of motivations in cinema. Fell writes, “Interestingly, Propp notes that the attributes of the dramatis personae, their external qualities, are greatly affected by a society’s actual experience, which ‘creates new, vivid images which supplant tale personages’: an antecedent to the patina of naturalism which coats melodramatic formula” (Fell 22). Fell then goes on to explain the attributes of Propp’s dramatis personae. They are as follows:

1.      The Villain (fights and pursues the Hero).

2.      Donor or Provider (provides Hero with a magical agent).

3.      Helper (effects escapes and movements of Hero, overcomes misfortune or lack, solves tasks, transfigures Hero).

4.      Princess and or her Father (assigns tasks, brands Hero, recognizes Hero, punishes second Villain, marriage).

5.      Dispatcher (sends Hero off).

6.      Hero (departs on search; if Seeker-Hero, he reacts to demands of the Donor. Weds if a Victim-Hero).

7.      False Hero (departs on search, reacts to Donor’s demands, has special functions). (Fell 22-23).

            Several films by Christopher Nolan transform the archetypes in this list suggesting a differing viewpoint by the director; the popularity of these films and the characters contained therein suggest a differing viewpoint of society as a whole. The most notable examples by Nolan are Memento (2000), The Dark Knight (2008), and Inception (2010). Each film treats its heroes and villains in different ways focusing society’s shifting attitude toward villainy.

“Don’t believe his lies” (Nolan)

            Memento is told in a non-linear fashion. This technique helps advise the viewer of pertinent information as it is needed. The unique nature of the film also reveals information simultaneously to the protagonist and the audience. The film centers around Leonard. Leonard was the victim of an accident resulting in a condition where he can no longer make new memories. He has developed a system by which he creates notes for himself on polaroid pictures to help remind him of his tasks. For very important things he tattoos the note directly on his body. Christopher Nolan uses several film techniques to help the viewer keep track of the timeline. Firstly, Nolan uses black and white to denote a flashback further back than the main storyline. He also uses clues written on the polaroids taken by Leonard. These clues serve both Leonard and the audience simultaneously. Nolan also uses cuts in the film in a similar fashion; not only do the serve to cut the action of the film, they also serve to represent a cut in Leonard’s memory. Repetition is also used as a reminder to the viewer of connections and to help keep the timeline straight. Clothing is also used to hint to the audience where certain scenes take place. Leonard’s outfit changes during a pivotal scene.  Lastly, wounds and scratches on the characters are used to help the viewer keep track of the narrative order.

            All of these techniques serve an important point for this particular discussion. Throughout the film Leonard is shown to be the hero of the story. He seeks vengeance for the murder of his wife. He is initially coded as a hero. While his heroic nature is possible to believe during an initial viewing of the film, upon multiple viewings the sinister nature of every character in the film is astounding and evident. Each character, including Leonard himself, uses Leonard’s condition to accomplish their own twisted motives. Leonard is presented as an unreliable narrator for certain, but it is only after the end of the film Leonard’s true nature is revealed.

            The film is no fairytale, so the combination of both the hero and villain into one character is less egregious than if it were. According to Propp’s dramatis persona the other archetypes are present. Natalie, played by Carrie-Anne Moss, serves as the “Princess” as she provides Leonard with information for his quest, as well as sending him on a side-quest. The “Helper” is played by Joe Pantoliano, named Teddy, as he assists Leonard in his quest. The “Donor” is split between Teddy and Natalie as they both provide information for his quest. The “Dispatcher” is harder to define in this case, but it is best qualified as Leonard’s Wife’s killer; without the murder, there would be no quest. “False Hero” is also combined into Leonard.

            Applying the D&D alignment chart to the characters of Memento is somewhat difficult. To murder is truly an evil act, but in the terms of the narrative of the film, the murders that occur are not necessarily justified, but they at least serve a purpose in the eyes of the characters themselves. This would eliminate the Chaotic Evil option for all characters. All Good options are also eliminated here as there is no hero. No one is falling inside any aspects of the law in this case so Lawful Neutral and Lawful Evil must be scratched out. That leaves us with True Neutral, Chaotic Neutral, and Neutral Evil. Applying any of these to the characters in the film would place the three main characters as Chaotic Neutral. They skirt the law at all roads and use any means necessary to fulfil their goals. None of them are committing atrocities for the fun of it, but only to further their personal agenda.

            A through line of the film is the story of Sammy Jankis. Sammy is a character with the same memory condition as Leonard. Leonard explains through exposition, flash back, and voice over narration he is an insurance investigator tasked with helping determine the nature of Sammy’s condition. Leonard determines Sammy’s condition is hopeless and very real, indicating his own is just as real and just as hopeless. Sammy’s wife devises a way to test his condition by having him give her insulin shots until she falls into a coma. This development serves as catalyst for determining the nature of Leonard.

            The final confrontation occurs between Leonard and a previously unknown character named Jimmy. This final confrontation is actually the first confrontation of the visible timeline. You see, Teddy has convinced Leonard that the local drug dealer Jimmy is the killer Leonard is looking for, only it is not. It is simply someone Teddy and Natalie want dead. They use Leonard’s condition to convince him to commit a murder for them. The major twist is when Leonard realizes he has been tricked. Tricked by Teddy, tricked by Natalie, tricked by himself. Teddy reveals to Leonard the story of Sammy Jankis is the story of Leonard. Leonard’s wife survived the attack and the test administered by Sammy’s wife was in fact administered by Leonards’ wife. Teddy also reveals Leonard has already had his revenge multiple times already. He also reveals Leonard knows all of this.

            The film’s climax shows Leonard realizing everything Teddy has just told him is true. And his reaction is to destroy all the evidence of this so he can forget it and repeat the cycle all over at least once more. Leonard has killed before, and once he figures out why, he only wants to create a world where he can kill again. The final line spoken by Leonard says it all: “Now, where was I?” (Nolan).

“Why so serious?” (Nolan)

            The Dark Knight is more overt in its depiction of heroes and villains. The one caveat being the difference between the viewpoint of the audience versus the diegetic viewpoint of Gotham City. To the audience Batman is clearly the hero, he fights evil for the city and sacrifices his reputation to become a symbol to replace what the Joker wanted all along. The Joker is obviously a villain to both the audience and Gotham. His motives are clear; “Some men just want to watch the world burn” (Nolan). In the film, the Joker seeks to create chaos and attempts to bring down "Gotham’s White Knight” in the form of Harvey Dent. The Joker succeeds and Harvey Dent becomes the villain Two-Face. In this way, the villain wins. The Joker is successful, it is only by Batman’s sacrifice that the day is saved, and Gotham is none the wiser to the success of a chaotic plan of a madman.

            The Dark Knight is also closer to a fairytale. In terms of Propp’s dramatis personae each type has a representative even if they are not completely clear and some are shared as in Memento. The “Villain”, again, is obvious. It is the Joker. He both physically fights and physically pursues the “Hero”, Batman. The “Donor or Provider” is Lucius Fox played by Morgan Freeman. Throughout the film Lucius provides all manner of “magical items” to Batman in the form of his trademark gadgets and “toys.” The “Helper” is Alfred, Batman’s butler, played by Michael Caine in the film. Alfred is the one character most responsible for the “transfiguration” of Batman/Bruce Wayne throughout the entire series. The “Princess” is a bit harder, but the love interest is Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal) and fits the profile. The “Dispatcher” is Gary Oldman’s character, Commissioner Gordon who literally sends a “Bat signal” into the sky to send Batman on quests. Finally, is the “False Hero.” In this case Harvey Dent serves the role until his fall from grace and transformation into Two-Face (the one Caveat being how Harvey never interacts with Lucius (The “Donor”) and instead has interactions with Gordon (the “Dispatcher”)). However, Harvey literally claims to be the Batman and goes on a brief “search” to suss out the Joker and his minions.  

            There are many iterations of Batman and his enemies to draw “specialized knowledge” to apply Metz’s codes, however the D&D alignment chart is an excellent source of pop culture tow draw from. Additionally, the codification of this pop culture is another source of “specialized” evolutionary knowledge applied to heroism and villainy. This application speaks to the motivations of the characters in the film suggesting the “box” they are placed into based on the alignment chart is in fact a code. While it is difficult to apply each “box” with certainty, in an effort to use each the list is as follows:

1.      Lawful Good: Jim Gordon, his motivations are pure, and he generally follows the law.

2.      Neutral Good: Lucius Fox, he does not directly break any laws but instead looks the other way as Batman does, and he has pure intentions as well (evidenced by his dismantling of a surveillance technology at the end of the film).

3.      Chaotic Good: Batman, he does what it takes to accomplish is goals which are to better the city of Gotham and rid it of crime.

4.      Lawful Neutral: Rachel, she works as a DA, but has selfish motivations.

5.      True Neutral: Alfred, he is unconcerned with the law and is only worried about Bruce Wayne (Bruce: “How did you capture the bandit?” Alfred: “We burned the forest down” (Nolan).

6.      Chaotic Neutral: Harvey Dent, he starts off Lawful, but as his story progresses so too does his descent into chaos to accomplish his goals, which are to protect Rachel.

7.      Lawful Evil: Gambol, a minor roll of a crime boss, who follows the rules of an organized crime syndicate for nefarious purposes.

8.      Neutral Evil: Two-Face, he uses a coin flip to decide if he is going to murder someone or not.

9.      Chaotic Evil: The Joker, he has become the poster boy for this alignment, his main motivation being utter chaos and destruction, he is unconcerned with money and will kill almost for the thrill of it.

            The most important aspect as it applies to Metz’s codes through the alignment chart is that of the Joker as Chaotic Evil. Throughout the film he kills, maims, and destroys the city and its inhabitants all to bring down the Batman. It is through this lens the Joker’s villainy becomes apparent. Two-Face’s villainy is completely dependent the diegesis of the film. As far as the citizens of Gotham City are concerned Harvey Dent’s reputation is intact and he is the hero of this story. It is only the audience (and Batman and Jim Gordon) that is aware of Two-Face’s deplorable actions. Therefore Two-Face/Harvey Dent is coded both villain and hero.

“No idea is simple when you have to plant it in someone else’s mind.” (Nolan)

            The application of the alignment chart to Inception is complicated. If the chart is used to help understand a character’s motivations and how those motivations are coded to an archetype the chart falls short. The films protagonist is neither hero nor villain, nor are any other main characters, in fact most of what would be considered an antagonist is only a subconscious portion of another character’s psyche. This further muddles the codes with ambiguity as even till the last frame of the film the viewer is uncertain if the entire story takes place in a “real” world or a “dream.” Perhaps the films best aspect is its ambiguity, leading to the only way of understanding any coded character murky at best. Further even the characters in the film are uncertain of their status leading to a collision of ambiguity both in the diegesis and outside of it. This is all without considering how the motivations of a character could possibly be understood within a dream at all. By making the entire film a dream (a possibility but not a surety) all motivations are greyed. Even if a character is to be considered Lawful Good as it would normally be understood, that character could be dreaming, or be a figment of another character’s psyche leading to an impossible conclusion. What would the alignment of a dreaming character therefore be? True Neutral? Adhering to no laws and only concerned with complete selfishness? A conundrum to be sure.

            The film is however a decent example of a fairy tale and thus the application of Propp’s dramatis personae is less cloudy. One admonition would be the coding of a hero and a villain. Both are ambiguous as shown, but will still be used to further the comparison to Propp’s fairy tale analysis. Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is either the “Hero” or the “Villain” and depending on which is chosen Cillian Murphy’s Robert Fischer becomes the other. Based on the hypothesis Cobb must be the “Villain,” or possibly the “False Hero.” But in order to classify the other characters Cobb must be considered the “Hero” as Fischer has no supporting characters. The supporting characters must be allowed to assist the “Villain.” The “Dispatcher” is the corporation that hires Cobb and his team (represented by Tom Berenger as Browning). The “Princess” is Mal, Cobb’s wife (even though she also serves as occasional antagonist through twists and turns). Mal is played by Marion Cotillard. The “Helper” is spread around to the rest of Cobb’s team, Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), Ariadne (Ellen Page), Eames (Tom Hardy), and Saito (Ken Watanabe). Yusuf (Dileep Rao) has a dual role of “Donor” and “Helper” as he is the one who supplies a special version of a drug needed to sink the characters deeper and deeper into dream realms.

            The reversal of hero and villain as well as the overall ambiguity is a shot to using codes at all. But that is the point. With the previous two films, Memento and The Dark Knight the codes, alignment chart, and even Propp’s concepts are applied either in unique ways through film techniques, performances, or even a disconnect between audience and diegesis. But with Inception everything is so vague and unclear as to make the exercise almost moot. This is the point; uncertainty makes the application of codes more difficult. The enigmatic nature of the film from dreams within dreams to dubious motivations hinders any previous “specialized knowledge” of coded villainy. Even the application of cultural codes is rendered impossible as the cryptic ending calls the entire narrative of the film into question. This is the brilliance. This is the subversion of expectation. This is the ultimate in suspension of disbelief. Everything you think you know, whether from previous experience, or natural ingrained instinct, is inapplicable.

            There are no heroes, only villains, and if that is the case in pop culture, so too is it a possibility in reality.

            Christopher Nolan’s films have evolved from 2000 to 2008 to 2010 and with each evolution his look at what makes a villain has evolved as well. Through these three films a misinterpretation of who is a hero and who is a villain occurs to the populace at large. In Memento the hero is shown later to be a villain. In The Dark Knight the roles are reversed in interesting ways dependent on the viewpoint of the audience versus the viewpoint of the diegetic characters. Finally, in Inception there is no hero to speak of, all the characters are supposed to be coded as neutral at best, but their actions belie their intentions and only villains exist.

            If heroes become villains in cinema, what chance does the real world have of heroism overcoming villainy?

            Perhaps only time will tell…or maybe the world must be left behind, and the stars hold the answer. If only Interstellar travel were possible…

Works Cited

Fell, John L. "Vladimir Propp in Hollywood." (n.d.).

Inception. Dir. Christopher Nolan. n.d.

Memento. Dir. Christopher Nolan. Perf. Guy Pierce. n.d.

Metz, Christian. "Film Language." n.d.

Peterson, Jon. https://dnd.wizards.com/dungeons-and-dragons/what-dd/history/history-forty-years-adventure. n.d.

The Dark Knight. Dir. Christopher Nolan. Perf. Aaron Eckhart. n.d.