Thesis: The representation of men through
propaganda, with an element of weakness.
The Utopian action thrillers, Mission Impossible 4 – Ghost
Protocol and Skyfall correspond with one another in the representation of men
through propaganda, with an element of weakness. In Skyfall and Ghost Protocol
both of the male leads are represented as strong and independent despite having
a team to back them up and support them. They are shown fighting most crucial situations
independently to highlight their dominance. Although they are portrayed as
classical heroes, both films include certain weaknesses in their characters.
This is most likely an attempt to add an element of realism and for the
audience to relate to the character better.
Skyfall presents a Britain that has an agency known as MI6.
MI6 have some of the best agents, who can conquer any radical situations that
come in their way, especially the unbeatable agent, 007. James Bond is
presented as a courageous and fearless man, who has a strong and suave screen
presence. However, he is shown to have his own weaknesses, such as depression,
emotions and sensitivity towards his mother figure, M. In comparison Ghost
Protocol presents a United States that has its own secret agency named IMF,
which yet again is a surreal presentation of a team that is unbeatable, smart
and powerful. The leader of the team, Ethan Hunt is shown as a strong and
determined man, who conquers any situation he is placed in. He’s shown to be a driven
individual who doesn’t want to see anything apart from his mission. However, just
Bond, he also has his own personal background.
Bond’s first weakness
is shown after he accidentally gets shot in the first fight sequence and is
considered to be dead. In his absence the MI6 building is attacked. Bond learns
this and returns back to Britain. Unfortunately he isn’t welcomed back by the
MI6, which touches on the disposability of these heroes, despite their training
and expertise. Bond has to retake the tests to become a field agent again. This
adds to the element of weakness as he fails the tests and displays poor
physical ability. However, heroes being heroes this is justified by the
presence of shrapnel in his shoulder which he bravely goes onto remove himself.
The balance between weakness and heroism always tends to tilt in favour of
heroism.
Bond’s sensitivity is revealed during M’s death scene. Bond successfully
lodges a knife into Silva’s back, killing him, but M succumbs to her bullet
wound and dies in his arms, leaving Bond distraught. Bond’s tears and affection
towards M during that scene informs us of the depth of their relationship. He
also affectionately closes her eyes and gives her a kiss on the forehead,
showing her as not just a boss but like a mother-figure. This is supported by
the cinematography. For example the camera angle is at a close up and goes back
and forth from Bond and M’s perspective. This highlights the special bond that
they share and we as an audience almost feel like outsiders. In particular,
when the camera zooms out with Bond’s back turned to us. The lighting adds to
create atmosphere, as it turns dark and dull when M falls to the ground. This
also exemplifies Bond’s emotions and distraught feeling that he’s lost a guiding
figure who he used to look up to and now he will have to find his way alone.
In Ghost Protocol, Ethan Hunt is portrayed as a tough and
focussed individual, with seemingly little in terms of weakness. However, as
the film progresses we find out that his apparently late wife is his biggest
weakness. The main difference between Hunt and Bond is that Hunt has
acknowledged his weakness and in a way dealt with it. Hunt has made the
ultimate sacrifice for his line of work by detaching himself from his wife
leaving him to be the ideal hero. However, he watches Julia discreetly from
afar. The scene involves a crowd but the close up camera shots of both of their
smiles gives us a sense of the intimacy of their relationship. This shows the
softer side of Hunt and his sense of selflessness.
The representation of men through propaganda is a common
feature in both films. Male dominance is shown through different scenes with
respect to the heroes and the villains. For example, in Skyfall, Bond is juxtaposed
against a fluttering Union Jack flag, staring confidently out at the Kingdom.
This states that Britain’s responsibility is on his shoulders and also depicts
him as a symbol of hope. This is male dominance at its extreme, as he is being
compared to the entire population of Britain. The cinematography here supports
this as a medium close up shot is used where the frame is split equally with
Bond on one side and the flag on the other. The Union Jack flying at full mast
is also a form of phallic imagery representing Bond’s return to his best
performance.
Similarly, in Ghost Protocol, Hunt is also portrayed as dominant,
but this time over women as oppose to the nation. When Hunt escapes jail and
reunites with his team, he is immediately expected to take charge. Whilst in
his absence, Carter, the only female member of the team was in charge. This
follows the rules of a classical Hollywood narrative of a hero who always
rescues the female of in this case relieves her of her duties. He then goes on
to undertake tasks such as climbing the side of the Burj Khalifa using a
glove-type gadget. Upon the gloves malfunctioning, Hunt takes a risk even after
his team’s disapproval, and swings into the room. This resembles a typical
Tarzan movement and adds to Hunt’s image of male dominance, as Tarzan is a
human embodiment of animal strength and prowess. The use of a tall building
portrays the use of phallic imagery and adds to the masculinity of the hero.
The use of a crane shot shows Hunt’s dominance over the building as he is shown
as looking down on the building, whereas the majority look up and in awe of
tall buildings from the ground.
Ghost Protocol and Skyfall are quite biased in the way they
present their male protagonists and antagonists. The male protagonists and
their teams are shown to be using the same “terrorist” techniques and
strategies in order to get their respective missions accomplished. However
they’re shown in a positive light and energy, whereas the antagonists are shown
as being evil. If the heroes are using similar strategies as the villains, then
this means our ideal heroes are not so different from the villains, or does it?
The fact that these heroes are British and American plays an important role in
our perception of their activities. Throughout these films there is always a
sense of national pride and a greatness of our way of life. The use of
terrorist-style techniques is justified to us by the need to protect the
freedom enjoyed by the British and Americans. Ghost Protocol follows the
traditional and expected classical Hollywood narrative where the male
antagonist is foreign. Skyfall is more sophisticated in a sense that the male
antagonist is British and moreover, a former member of the MI6.
In Skyfall there’s Raoul Silva, who wants to destroy M and
MI6, in order to take revenge for the sacrifices that he made for her, which were
futile and instead destroyed his life. Silva is shown to have his own background
story which is motivating his actions. The confrontation scene between M, Silva
and Bond is a turning point in the movie. This is when the past draws in and
the Mise En Scene reflects the twist in the story. We see M in the slightly
darker side of the room, which now reflects her shadier past. Silva is
contradicting to his character in this particular scene, as he is seen
underneath the light, which shows us that he was a better person in his past,
but the urge for revenge turned him into what he is. Then there’s Bond standing
in between both M and Silva – the darker and lighter side of the room, which
shows us that although Bond didn’t have anything to do with Silva’s past, he’s
still a part of the MI6 agency. Here the lighting is crucial to aid our
understanding of right and wrong. In contrast, Hendricks is more of a typical
Hollywood villain out to destroy America. Hendricks wants to take over the
world and Hollywood portrays America as a key target in this mission. This
sends out the message of how important America is globally. Also, the bombing
of the Kremlin demonstrates the apparent disposability of other nation’s key
buildings.
Each of these films has a strong sense of national identity
embedded in its roots. In Skyfall, when Bond is called to M’s makeshift office
he is surprised that one of M’s less tasteful desk ornaments, a white china
bulldog with a Union Jack flag painted on its back, survived the explosion.
This is a metaphorical way to present Britain’s tough resilience. The
significance of this is emphasized in the end of the film where Bond is handed
this bulldog by Eve indicating how Bond is a symbol of British resolve in times
of hardship. Ghost Protocol differs as it uses little symbolism and is more a
show of Hunts strength and fearlessness. Hunt is often filmed bare-armed
displaying his muscular physique and is headstrong in his decisions regardless
of the risk involved.
Skyfall and Ghost Protocol both represent men as dominant
and undefeatable. Both heroes adopt techniques that are more familiar with
terrorists than law-abiding citizens but the use of propaganda enables the
audience to justify this as a form of achieving the greater good. However, the
male antagonist in Skyfall does make us question morality. The strong sense of
national pride through propaganda helps to distinguish the male protagonist and
antagonist as hero and villain, respectively. Moreover, the heroes themselves
are representative of their nations; Bond is reserved, suave and resilient whereas,
Hunt is driven, brawny and feisty. The
use of weakness and sensitivity within the heroes, whether due to a woman as in
Hunts case or Bond’s physical ability, adds another dimension to the characters
helping the audience to relate.
