A character’s arc

Talk about a character’s arc that had an impact on you in a film. 

1. Where did the character start and where did they end up? 

2. How would you “describe the character” in the action line of your script based on the example in the reading. 

3. Does the character represent a stereotype that is being subverted?  

4. Are there any aspects of the structural arc handout you notice in your character’s journey?

5. What do they want, what do they desire? What is their flaw? What is their problem? What do they fear? What do they trust? (Answer these as best you can as all may not be blatantly apparent as in the examples.)

6. Do you notice any objects and behaviors that externalize the character?

Example:

I’m doing this about Tony Stark in Iron Man 1, but I do love his character arc’s conclusion in Endgame as well, so for part 1 I’ll be talking about that too. So there are Endgame spoilers in the first part!

1. Tony Stark started off as a powerful billionaire, carefree and brilliant, developing weapons through Stark industries and profiting off the weapons business regardless of the horrifying consequences and resulting loss of life. In the end of Iron Man 1, after experiencing the devastation his weapons caused firsthand, he ends up eschewing the weapons business and instead focusing on using his newly constructed Iron Man suit and his intelligence to do good in the world, turning a new leaf and starting his journey as Earth’s defender. In the end of Avengers Endgame, Tony has grown a tremendous amount; he has extended the circle of people he cares for from only himself to his chosen family, the Avengers, his biological/adopted family of Pepper, Morgan, Peter, and even Nebula (and Harley), and those he feels are his responsibility to save, which encompasses the entire Earth. In the end, he makes the ultimate selfless sacrifice, which is the culmination of 10 MCU years of character growth: he gives his own life so that all those vanished by the snap could live again. Tony went from selfish and egotistical to selfless and self-sacrificing, and dies a hero who did all he could for his people. 

2. Besides the obvious “Genius, Billionaire, Playboy Philanthropist” that truly encompasses Tony’s character, the action line of the script would most likely describe Tony as male, in his late 30s, and sassy.

3. Tony represents the subversion of the stereotype of the rich, powerful businessman who only cares for his own interests and gain. He starts off in that role, but by the end becomes a far better person who cares for the entire world.

4. In Iron Man 1, some examples of structure would be the INCITING INCIDENT, which was Tony being ambushed in the middle east and taken hostage, and also the shrapnel wounds he suffers. Tony’s almost certain death due to shrapnel entering his heart is averted by fellow hostage Doctor Yinsen, who convinces Tony to live again and make something good out of his life; this is the DECISION that shapes the rest of the movie. In this NEW WORLD, surrounded by people who want him dead, Tony sees the effects of his mindless production of weapons, and is reborn as Iron Man, allowing him to escape and eventually follow through on his promise to Yinsen: he halts Stark Industries’ weapons production. The rest of the movie, and the anger of the antagonist, Stane, is fueled by this decision. The FINAL BATTLE is the fight between Tony and Stane in their respective Iron Man suits, which ends with Tony defeating Stane by throwing him in the large arc reactor.

5. After the first part of Iron Man 1, Tony wants to use his resources (like the Iron Man suit) to help people, but he also wants to keep his same lavish lifestyle of partying and drinking and inventing, or rather wants to be able to fall back on that when he needs a distraction. Tony also wishes to right his wrongs that he committed by manufacturing weapons without considering the consequences. Tony’s flaws are his self-centered arrogance, his mask of strength on the outside, his impulsive and rash decision-making, and his hardships with expressing his own emotions. These flaws are also the root of his problems, with his main problems in Iron Man 1 being the rotten people (like Stane) and devastation Stark Industries’ Weapons have created because of Tony's arrogance, and the resulting struggle with putting an end to that. Tony fears leaving a negative mark on the world, and fears surviving while everyone else dies, and feeling as if he could have done more to help but did not or was not able to. He also fears that those he has taken under his protection, that he loves, like Pepper, will get hurt because of him. In Iron Man 1, Tony trusts (for the most part) his own intelligence and inventions, and the select few people he is close to, like Pepper, Happy, and Rhodey. Later that group of people will expand to the Avengers as well.

6. Tony’s sunglasses externalize his nature of shielding himself from the world and trusting few people, and also his wealth and power because they’re usually sporty and expensive. Tony’s Iron Man suit externalizes the balance he is trying to find between creating weaponry that protects instead of hurts, and creating something to help people, and the suit’s ever-changing, always-improving technology demonstrates Tony’s need to continuously do better, do more, and the obsessiveness with which he works. Tony’s love for coffee also could show that, besides the fact that he doesn’t sleep often, he feels the need to be doing something constantly, since coffee keeps him awake and energetic.