Hollywood Heroes

Paper Summary:

This paper explores Ray's book "A Certain Tendency of the American Cinema," in which the author points out how, in classic Hollywood films, a dichotomy between the "outlaw hero" and the "official hero" not only exists but converges in a delicate balance. The writer of this paper discusses how this specific balance allows one type of hero to have the characteristics of the other type and vice versa. This paper focuses on the two leading characters, both portrayed as heroes, albeit differently, in the 1993 film "The Fugitive." This paper analyzes the characteristic and personality traits of both characters while clearly describing how their actions reinforce the process of crossing over into the realm of the official hero.

From the Paper:

"Another way Kimball defies traits of the classic outlaw hero is that he lacks "distrust of civilization...represented by women and marriage," which Ray attributes to the outlaw hero. Near the beginning of the movie, Kimball mockingly wards off the men who ogle at his wife Helen at a party hosted by the Devlyn-McGreggor pharmaceutical firm. Later, he justifiably shows anger over his wife's death and repeatedly sees Helen's warm countenance in his sleep. His actions, feelings, and dreams all show that he is still very much in love with his late wife. In general, the characterization of Dr. Kimball as an outlaw hero, coupled with his set of traits as an official hero, allows him to move between the two extremes without having to choose either one or the other. This duplicity reinforces Ray's idea of how "the parallel existence of these two contradictory traditions evinced the general pattern of American mythology: the denial of the necessity for choice."

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