David Greene In The Film School Tie

984 Words4 Pages
More often that not forms of entertainment such as films portray as the protagonist an alpha male figure. This person is depicted as being a true, courageous leader who is determined and persistent. Several personality traits of this stereotype are demonstrated by the character David Greene (Brendon Fraser) in the film School Ties (1992) directed by Robert Mandel. David appears to be the ultimate alpha male due to his fearlessness, respect for others and courageous attitude. The director uses numerous narrative, symbolic and technical elements to draw the audience to an appreciation of the strength of David’s personality and masculinity. These are exemplified by the respect which he shows for his beliefs and traditions, his confidence in himself…show more content…
Mandel accomplishes this through the use of film techniques such as meaningful dialogue and camera shots such as the high-angle shot of David and the headmaster. Also, the costumes, editing and camera work all work in unison to highlight David’s many honourable qualities. The invited reading of David, as a true alpha male, is accomplished by foregrounding the three main elements. These are David’s commitment to his faith, his inner-strength and his belief that no matter what, he will succeed in life. The film School Ties seeks to expose the true ugliness of bigotry. He does this by the juxtaposition of the shallowness of the chief bigot, Charlie Dillon and the strong but understated nature of David. The viewer is however shown that behind David’s kind and unassuming nature lies the steely determination of a true man. This culminates in the viewer realising that there is nothing strong or clever about bigotry, but rather “turning the other cheek” and persevering to achieve desired goals can show true masculinity. For David, he refuses to hate his tormentors but rather focuses on obtaining admission to Harvard
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