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Thoughts on how my villains are portrayed?

H

harmonica44

It's a violent gang, but usually in movies violent gangs come in two forms. Suits and ties, or leather and tatoos. A lot of them seem to have a tatoo or something on them that's their gang symbol. I want to do a gang where everyone in it looked and dressed like completely normal people. The idea being that they are still very much like everyone else, and can blend in very well also. They want to remain hidden and not want to stick out like a sore thumb. Nothing to distinguish them from looking different than the norm. Would audiences buy a gang having a crime meeting, if they came dressed in things like casual jeans and polo shirts or would they find it unconvincing if they looked very normal everyday people?
 
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Ever hear of Masons? Or 'The Illuminati'? I am in no way equating Masons, or Free Masonry, with violence, but a gang is defined as a group or band. Generally, the point of criminal gangs showing colors is to identify themselves and to inspire fear in others. If a gang were to be unusually smart, they might attempt to blend in to normal society. It does go against the general gang profile though.
 
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In this biz aren't "villains" called antagonists, or antags, because the antagonize the protagonist? ;)

Otherwise, in DIE HARD 2 the military antags running around the airport were fairly discrete, as were those in the BOURNE trilogy.

I think the director used association (known antag speaking/phoning with new antag) and music to suggest they were "bad".
I don't think cartoon grimaces and generally whacked-out behavior are always necessary.

Here's the deal, and it's another director's dilemma: How stupid is your audience?
You're going to have to predetermine the market for your film.
Is it fairly smart and you don't have to spoon feed information and key concepts to your audience?
Is it primarily blue collar where just a little bit more exposition is required to keep the little doggies following the story line?
Is it family fare (which obviously this story isn't, but the principle remains) where dumba$$ teens will be watching with their parents which may or may not themselves be smart enough to follow along?

How subtle is "toooooo subtle"?

Who is your audience?
Know them well during the pre-planning stages.
Write/edit for your audience.

GL
 
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Or you would pull this off by having them all dressed casually but acting really serious and sound is your friend.. portray a very tense atmosphere for some time.. make it obvious that something is going on between these guys..
 
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For sure, there will talk about their crimes and evildoings and future plans. I just don't want the audience to look at them and think they are unconvincing cause of how they look or dressed. I mean if in say Goodfellas (1990), or The Warriors (1979), if the gansters dressed just like everyone else, cause they were just like everyone else, accept for wanting to commit crimes for a purpose, would that diminish or ruin the movies in anyway?
 
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harmonica44 said:
It's a violent gang, but usually in movies violent gangs come in two forms. Suits and ties, or leather and tatoos. A lot of them seem to have a tatoo or something on them that's their gang symbol. I want to do a gang where everyone in it looked and dressed like completely normal people. The idea being that they are still very much like everyone else, and can blend in very well also. They want to remain hidden and not want to stick out like a sore thumb. Nothing to distinguish them from looking different than the norm. Would audiences buy a gang having a crime meeting, if they came dressed in things like casual jeans and polo shirts or would they find it unconvincing if they looked very normal everyday people?
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There is no such thing as perfectly normal people. That is why they try to look alike because they are not normal and they want to hide their differences. Try to have the gang all use a certain word or wear the same ring. Hilary Clinton and the progressives all use the phrase, "civil society." This tips you off that they are progressives.
 
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Well........ the Maxtrix

Morfius and his gang are all dressed casual. Still....realy dark black and greay tones in there clothing, sunglasses and serious faces.
If you see this group of people, you know not to f#ck with them....
 
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Anytime something differs too much from expectation, it causes awe or laughter. Focusing in on a coffee klatch of grannies knitting and casually talking about murdering someone will cause this "Uh? What?" then given the other factors--lighting, sound, etc.--laughter or disbelief. The effect you'll get will come from the acting, direction, dialogue, and many other elements. Lots of shows have had killers who walk around like tourists--Hawaiian shirts and khakis. There is something ominous when a group of people all stop and slowly turn and stare at someone (or the camera).

Whether it works depends on the effect you want and your ability as writer/director to achieve it.
 
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I believe in film Fight Club, all the people in the club are supposedly normal people. They dress normally during the day, some of them even office clerks, accountants, bankers, teachers. They do not acknowledge one another during the day, but do their things at night. So yes, it'll work fine.
So stop worrying and GO SHOOT THE SHORT FILM ALREADY!

Look, honestly, as long as you do SOMETHING, anything will be fine. And if I remember correctly, you are shooting in a weeks time? Are you trying to say that you've got the crew and everything but haven't written the script?
 
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The mechanics of the gang will have as much to do with how it is accepted as how they look.

If they dress like frat boys and are selling coke in New York City, that wont work particularly well. If they dress like frat boys and they are selling ecstasy and steroids on a college campus you have a viable "normal" gang.

If the characters are selling weed in the suburbs jeans and t shirts work fine.

None of those things work if you set them in a conference room for a meeting of the bosses. you can do whatever you want as long as it all makes sense in context.
 
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