Okay Wunderkins, think quick: what’s the most annoying movie archetype?
The sort that - after hearing a character utter their first lines - you become painfully aware you’re trapped in a theater with a walking, talking cliché; one you’ve encountered countless times before. A 2d cardboard cutout with zero surprises up their sleeve. One glimpse, and you’ve got their every move sussed out. So why are they (and the film’s producers) now wasting your precious time?
Suddenly – you feel the irresistible urge to disengage from whatever story’s playing out onscreen, and instead check emails on your phone.
What characters commit that crime the most? The Hooker with the Heart of Gold? The Nerd Who Proves He’s the Coolest Kid in School? Admittedly, both of those are lame. But wait: there’s one culprit out there that’s worse:
The Bad Guy Motivated by Ambition and Greed, Who Has No Soul.
Admit it: when it comes to 2D caricatures, movie villains are as corny as it gets. Though they’re still entertaining, when done right. For where would our childhood be without Scar from the Lion King? Gordon Gekko? Or Die Hard’s Hans Gruber, if action flicks suit your taste? (Alan Rickman – you will be eternally missed!)
But let’s take that further, and see how - and why - other movie villains fall flat. For instance, Colonel Quaritch of Avatar. Or General Grievous: Revenge of the Sith. Are either of those characters cinematic classics? No way. And while we’re grooving on military metaphors, there’s that army of Corporate Villain Clichés, as well.
As scriptwriters, let’s be honest for a moment: when it comes to creating bad guys for your plot, businessmen are a formulaic cheat. Nothing screams “color by the numbers” more than having your bad guy chuckle while he drinks expensive champagne. In an expensive, designer suit.
Aye, there’s the script-tastic rub. Because unless you’re crafting dialog for Cruella de Ville, human beings aren’t cartoon stereotypes.
You want to be a writer that gets remembered and recognized? Then never, ever conceive of your bad guy (or any character) that way. What drives humankind is far more complex. Only in Disney flicks are characters motivated by “pure evil”; at least when it comes down to real life. As American writer John Barth once opined:
“Everyone is necessarily the hero of his own life story.”
That’s a profound observation; one which applies to pretend heroes, and actual bad guys as well. From petty muggers with a sympathetic side, to the worst people that ever trod this Earth:
Jim Jones. Stalin. Pol Pot. Name any flesh-and-blood historical monster, they all believed this at their core:
That they were good, justified - and RIGHT. At least on one level, Hitler imagined he was restoring Germany to its former glory. And Charles Manson? Who the HECK knows what was in his mind…
But whatever motive’s buried under the Crazy Rubble, that’s what a scriptwriter’s duty-bound to analyze. As countless literary greats have noted, writers must dedicate their lives to studying humanity. And psychology - both normal and abnormal - as well.
Ultimately, to breathe life into a character, one has to dig coal-miner deep inside their mind. Unless you’re intending to be banal, platitudes and stereotypes have no business in a script. Rather, listen carefully to those seductive voices. Sympathize with what they whisper. And if they point in a particular direction, hop into that car, squeeze behind the wheel, and prepare for a long, winding drive…
For anyone who’s marveled at the brilliant writing that forged the framework for Heath Ledger’s Joker, or Bryan Cranston’s Walter White, that rule of thumb’s an eternal scriptwriting must. For heroes, sidekicks and – yes – bad guys.
In the end, Villains are people too. Ones that are particular juicy to write!
Comments
Great blog post. You have a typo, though. You forgot the N in Manson. You spelled it "Mason."
Corrected :)
Gabe - lots of thanks.... both for the compliment and the typo catch!!! :)))
PS: CJ - thanks on your end as well (and always)!