Casino Royale Essay - Task: How are the characters Bond and Le Chiffre represented as hero and villain in the film Casino Royale?
Think about the following when writing your essay.
Categories - What kind of film is this?
· Genre: Action adventure - based on conflict between a Hero and a Villain
Languages - How does it make its meaning?
· Visual:
o composition - (‘mise-en-scene’ – includes lighting, colour and elements within the scene)
o camera codes - (angle, distance, movement)
· Sound (diegetic and non-diegetic sound):
o dialogue
o sound effects
o music (leitmotif)
Narratives - What’s its story and how does it tell it?
· Archetypal story – overcoming the monster.
Representations - How are people, places, events and ideas shown?
· How far do they conform to the traditional ideas of hero/villain?
o Hero: motivated by selflessness, brave, strong, loyal, intelligent and so on.
o Villain: motivated by selfishness; disliked for their motives; flawed; ugly; weaknesses that can be exploited
· What cinematic techniques (languages) does the director use to represent these characters on screen?
From your analysis of the film in class you should have identified examples of cinematic techniques that are used to help portray the two main characters as hero and villain. Like any critical essay your essay should display your understanding of the text, your ability to analyse it (show how it creates its meaning), and your ability to evaluate (show how successful it is in creating its meaning).
Introduction – Name the text, director, main stars and genre. Briefly describe what the film is about. By referring to the task state what your essay is about.
Body of the essay – analysis of various scenes that show how Bond is represented as a hero and Le Chiffre is represented as a villain. Think of Bond as the almost superhuman action-man as represented in the various action scenes. Also think of his more tender human side as revealed through his relationship with Vesper which helps us to identify with him and feel more sympathy for him.
Think of the ways in which Le Chiffre is represented as a villain – dangerous and formidable but ultimately flawed (his greed) in a way that leads to his downfall.
Make sure you include evaluative comment throughout – how well are these characters portrayed; how effective is the filmmaker in telling his story? Stay focused on the task. Remember Point, Evidence, Explanation.
Conclusion – Sum up the main points of your essay. Give evaluative comments on the effectiveness of the two characters as hero and villain and your personal response to the film as a whole.