Sunday, January 28, 2018
Heroes Anyone?
In the movie The General Johnnie Gray, a simple engineer,tries to win the heart of his girlfriend by enlisting in the army. Although he is refused, he eventually takes on a group of Northern soldiers who hijack his train. Not only does he rescue his beloved Anabelle (and General), but he also helps defeat a Northern army in battle. Yet, his methods are hardly standard derring-do. Is Johnnie just lucky or a true hero? Does this film endorse standard ideas of military heroism or make fun of them? Or does this movie redefine a hero? What does this movie tell us about heroism (or related concepts of machismo, chivalry, or militarism)?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I think that the General was making fun of the ways war heroes were being acknowledged during the time period. After watching the movie, it was pretty clear that Johnnie Gray did not deserve to be a war hero for multiple reasons. First, he had no desire to win the war, his main goal was to regain control of his train and then his girlfriend. You could say that he was keeping the war in mind by warning the Southern army, but he would have needed to go past the army to return to safety anyway. Second, he was denied by the military to be enlisted, while the end of the movie suggests that the qualities of a hero could be in all of us, the audience knows that the heroics by Gray were meant for his personal desires and not the benefit of the country/army. I think that there were few examples of him being a hero because of the fact that many of his “heroics” were complete accident or coincidence. I think that this movies tell us that heroism does not have to come from the biggest and most brave of men, but simply that it can happen to whomever takes credit for the situation. The General was a great movie, I enjoyed watching every minute and I loved the comedy. I think that the story they are trying to tell about heroism is supposed to be a joke as well and that the heroics by Johnnie Gray were all good fun to make more laughs in a movie.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteIn the movie The General the question of what makes a hero is a prevalent one. The director decides to show the hero of this film in a strange way. His hero of the film is not what you would characterize as a traditional hero. Johnnie is not big and strong, and he is clever with his sword, but he gives everything he has for his nation. He goes down as a hero in this movie because he does not care about his own safety, and is willing to give up everything showing off his true bravery and heroism. This film kind of makes fun of the traditional yes sir, no sir hero. The General shows through Johnnie Gray that the need for a traditional hero in a war is not needed. Someone can make an impact in a positive way by giving everything thing for your country. This film I don’t think redefines what it means to be a hero but presents another way a hero could be formed. There will always be someone who is in a film that follows the tradition war hero story but this film shows there are multiple ways to become a hero. I think this movie touches on how important the military and serving your country was back in this time period. I also think that it touches on how heroes can come out of nowhere and surprise everyone even if it is the last person that you think it would be. Overall I thought that this was an interesting film and touched on a lot of important things that will take more viewings to unpack.
The General has an odd way of portraying heroism. Most of the story revolves around Johnnie Gray and his quest to save the General. Through his journey, Johnnie proves that you don’t only have to be a soldier or lucky in order to be a hero. There are other qualities that people can possess and this can make them a hero in anyone’s heart. Johnnie showed determination and bravery through every part of his journey. In the film, Johnnie is initially denied from joining the army. Being smaller and not as strong as the others, he was turned away because they didn’t think he could help. By the end of the movie, Johnnie proved that none of that mattered. Although the main character does get through many of his encounters by luck, it takes a lot of guts and bravery to keep going. If a soldier does not possess those qualities, he is just another normal person. The movie strengthens this idea by making fun of military heroism. While there are soldiers and fighting throughout the film, it portrays them in a way that makes them look foolish next to someone like Johnnie. Not only does he save the train but he also saves Anabelle, the lady that was captured along with the train. After all that, he even finds a way to escape and help the Southern army ambush the Northern one. While all of these quests could’ve been unintentional, Johnnie never gave up even in the most perilous of situations. These actions in the end were rewarded as he was given the rank of lieutenant and even got the girl. The qualities of heroism cannot be defined by physical attributes only. As seen with Johnnie, real heroism cannot be truly unveiled until given an opportunity to do so.
ReplyDeleteUsing mainstream ideals of heroism, it is difficult to categorize the main Character Johnnie as a hero because does not quite fit all the requirements; however, he is still a hero in a “Buster Keaton” sort of way. There are two common ideas of a hero, the superhero, and the underdog hero. The superhero character is someone who possesses exceptional physical capabilities, capable of doing whatever necessary to save the day; for example, Superman. On the other hand, there is the underdog hero, someone who may not seem to be able to overcome most situations but, due to their outstanding courage and bravery, they too prevail in the end. While these two heroes are very different, they are the same in that their intentions are to save the day and all of their efforts are for that specific goal. Johnnie may be comparable with an underdog hero in that he acts courageously; however, he lacks the correct motivation to be an underdog hero. It is evident from the beginning that Johnnie’s only desire is to impress the girl, and he accomplishes this along with defeating the Northern army. As a result, Buster is able to create a new kind of hero for his own, an unlikely hero; someone whose intentions are irrelevant to saving the day and yet their efforts do exactly that. The idea of an unlikely hero and the character Johnnie are enjoyable because they provide a new perspective into what makes a hero while also incorporating a very comical story.
ReplyDeleteThe film, The General, delivers a strong message about heroism while using comedy. Johnnie Gray does not fit the traditional standards of a hero and luck plays a big role in his success but nonetheless he is a hero. As for the comedy aspect of Johnnie’s adventure, it adds to the entertainment of the film. An often phrase said is anyone can be a hero and this is exactly the message the movie delivers. Johnnie Gray’s intentions were always to return the train and take it back from the Union spies. During the scene when Johnnie and the group of people are chasing after the runaway train, the rest of the group stops and gives up but Johnnie is determined the get the train back. He is willing to go up against a squad of soldiers alone and does not turn away from the challenge. Although most of his success is the result of accidents and luck, Johnnie never gives up. The movie tells us that a hero does not need the skill or appearance, only the drive to do what is right. This movie only partly demonstrate the ideas of military heroism. A military hero is someone that is willing to sacrifice everything for his or her country. In the beginning of the movie, a title page informs the viewer that Johnnie only has two loves, his girlfriend and his train. The reason Johnnie tries to enlist into the army was to win the heart of his girlfriend and the reason Johnnie so desperately wants to take back his hijacked train is that it is one of his two loves. Neither of these choices were made for the love of his country. Johnnie does not exhibit this aspect of a military hero but he does represent the determination aspect. Johnnie starts this journey for the love of his locomotive. Overall, the film demonstrates the idea that anyone can be a hero and a hero does not have to fit the conventional norms.
ReplyDeleteJohnny, from The General, is most certainly a hero for his bravery and heroic ideas, but his success definitely involved a great deal of luck. Johnny displays his heroic attribute in the way he faced the loss of his girlfriend and her kidnapping in that he risked his life to save her. Although he had no war experience or training, he felt that his love for Anabelle was so great that his life was worth risking for her. He ultimtelely saved her after weaving through enemy lines and a union general’s house, which shows great bravery. Johnny also ended up defeating a whole union infantry, which is cause for heroism no matter how much luck was needed. During, his experiences, luck definitely paved the way for his success but they should take away from his bravery, through his struggles, multiple missteps that ended up benefiting Johnny were very lucky but any difficult missions involve luck in successfulness. In terms of military heroism, this film is making fun of them because of how Johnny’s luck is portrayed. His luck is quite comical and unrealistic, which shows that not all heroes of war deserve credit, but there bravery should not be overlooked and that is why they are considered heroes. Overall, this film displays that heroism comes with great luck and bravery. Its shows that risks, like Johnny’s mission, should be considered as heroic acts because the fact that one risks their life for another person, which constitutes the greatest sacrifice. This heroism relates in a way to the many other war films that display soldiers trying to save another soldier in their platoon because of their duty to leave no man behind. This is most certainly displayed in The General.
ReplyDeleteThe General, a silent comedy released in 1962, goes against mainstream ideals of a hero and redefines what makes someone a hero. In most movies today the “hero” is portrayed as physically and mentally superior. They are strong and good looking and are often very intelligent. The character Johnnie, goes against many of the stereotypes of what a hero looks like; he is small in comparison to the average man and he does not possess any amazing talents. However, he is still considered heroic due to the ambitions a hero has. The objective for Johnnie and other heroes is to do well by someone or a large group of people. The main character does this by saving his girlfriend from the people who kidnapped her as well as saving the union from an incoming flank that would have ultimately ended in the demise of the South. Even though Johnnie was the hero of the film, he still was very lucky in doing so. After the North captures one of the Southern trains, Johnnie attempts to capture it back. He intends to take an army with him to stop them, but ends up forgetting them behind. Then he manages to steal his girlfriend from the leader of the North army and finally he accidently sets a bridge on fire which led to victory. He did all of these things because he is a hero, but he got lucky while doing all of them. Overall Johnnie is a hero not only redefines the definition of a hero, but also tumbles upon some luck which helps him with his intentions.
ReplyDeleteFrom what is shown in the movie The General, it certainly seems like Johnnie Gray is a true hero rather than a clumsy man who happened to always end up in the right place at the right time. Some things that Johnnie did to help his cause were lucky, but the vast majority of them- defeating traps set by those who were being pursued by him, stealing the Northern train, setting his own obstacles for the Northerners when they began to chase him, etc.- were a result of his own will. In fact, maybe the most crucial thing that Johnnie did was caused by himself rather than sheer luck. Johnnie burned down the bridge that the Northerners had planned to cross and, as a result, caused the bridge to collapse and forced the Northerners back. No amount of luck brought on this action (though it certainly helped to overhear the plans from underneath a dinner table); Johnnie brought it about himself. In addition, Johnnie Gray showed great determination and perseverance throughout his quest, both being traits of a hero. Johnnie faced many trials as he chased after his train, rescued his girlfriend, and returned to the South. At no point in time, however, did he stop what he was doing or give up. Even after abandoning his train and being lost in the rain, he continued onwards to complete his goal. Johnnie refused to stop working until he had done what he had set out to do and then some.
ReplyDeleteWithin the film “The General” our main character is seen doing many different actions that could be determined heroic in the context of the film, but did these actions make him an accidental hero or a legitimate one. The main character did many amazing feats throughout the movie that all eventually lead to the end result of the Northern army’s plan from succeeding. He seemed to always be one step ahead of his opponents outsmarting them at every turn but was he really? I personally believe the answer to that question is yes. Many of his heroic action were all caused by him as opposed to luck like some of his more questionable heroic acts. The ones that stand out the most to prove this point are the main actions that lead to the Unions defeat. Burning the bridge, impeding their advance with minutes and major obstacles, and eventually helping to defeat them in battle at the river crossing area. These small actions, that were in no way accidents, greatly affected the outcome of the story. The constant annoyances to the Union army gave him plenty of time to prepare a counter attack. The burning of the bridge took out a central part of the Unions plan to invade and made it impossible for the original plan to succeed. Him going to the battle helped with some of his goofier and less believable “heroic” acts but in the end they still ended up winning the south the battle.
ReplyDelete