Sunday, February 16Royal Holloway's offical student publication, est. 1986

Vain Film Characters: Why Do We Need Them?

We have all encountered someone vain. Perhaps someone we know personally, a celebrity we’ve come across, or a fictional character. More often than not, they get under our skin.

Film characters are no exception to this idea of vanity. These are the characters that make you want to throw your popcorn in the air or your remote at the TV. We might love to hate them, or just simply hate them, but they add a certain undeniable quality to a film; the quality of being human. Whilst we might never admit, or openly embrace it, we are all a little vain. That’s what makes us human.

Yet, do we really need these vain film characters? What do they add to a film? Let’s take a look.

Starting off strong with a classic vain character: Gaston, the arrogant antagonist of the 1991 animated Disney film ‘Beauty and the Beast’. Gaston chases after beloved protagonist Belle because she is the most beautiful girl in the village, and his unrequited desire for her further fuels his ruthless arrogance. Gaston has a loyal sidekick, LeFou, who he belittles and mistreats; LeFou’s role is to elevate Gaston by feeding into his vanity and arrogance. Gaston even has a whole musical number dedicated to his arrogant personality, which is enough for us to know what kind of character he is, an egocentric narcissist. We particularly enjoy Gaston’s downfall because his empathy is replaced by vanity, and he plots to kill the Beast who we’ve grown to love. Arguably, ‘Beauty and the Beast’ is a classic because of Gaston’s character. The film not only needs him to drive the plot towards its dramatic ending, but also to enable a typical Disney teaching of moral lessons and values. We should be more like kind-hearted Belle, and less like arrogant Gaston.

A slightly more humorous exploration of vanity is presented in the 2023 comedy film ‘Bottoms’, through the character of Jeff, played by Nicholas Galitzine. Jeff is the stereotypical American high school football player, worshipped by the teachers and always the centre of attention on campus. The film exaggerates these stereotypes for comedic purposes, but the message of vanity is still clear; Jeff is a self-centred jerk. When gently hit by a car at the start of the film, he overreacts as if his life is at risk and comes to school the next day with crutches to gain the sympathy and attention of his peers. Like Gaston, Jeff acts as the antagonist of the film through his attempts to stop the protagonists, PJ and Josie’s, fight club. When we bear witness to actions that wound his vanity and pride, such as the humiliation of having his car destroyed or his house egged, it feels deserving.

Based on real events, the selfish Mark Zuckerburg presented in the 2010 film ‘The Social Network’ is perfect for emphasising how the vanity of film characters is very human. Jesse Eisenberg portrays Zuckerburg so well that the boundaries are blurred between the real life Zuckerburg and the film’s dramatised version. Directed by David Fincher, the film charts the beginnings of Zuckerburg’s journey to becoming a billionaire through the invention of Facebook. The film ensures that we understand Zuckerburg’s vain selfishness in his path to achieving this; he was willing to cut anyone out for success, even his best friend. Zuckerburg acts nonchalant during lawsuits, indulges in quick and self-assured comebacks, talks negatively about women online, and believes himself to be intellectually superior. If the film was from the perspective of almost any other character, Zuckerburg would certainly be the antagonist. It’s hard to pinpoint the true antagonist of the film since Zuckerburg’s actions set him up as an antihero; we understand why he is driven to achieving his goals, yet still dislike him as a character. Naming Zuckerburg the protagonist makes for a driven, riveting film. In this sense, the film showcases the importance of vain, selfish characters.

Another example of a vain protagonist is Patrick Bateman in ‘American Pyscho’, the 2000 satirical horror film based on the novel by Bret Easton Ellis. Bateman is an investment banker living in 1980s New York. He is narcissistic, vain, and manipulative. Bateman’s strict, self-absorbed, and meticulous self-care routines align with his vain personality, as we observe his rigorous exercise, skincare, balanced diet, and general judgement of others due to his apparent superiority complex. In this film, we see vanity take form in an extreme way. Bateman takes out his sadistic, violent desires on other people, becoming a serial killer. One famous example is when Bateman kills his colleague Paul Allen out of his jealousy over an account that he wants. Unlike Zuckerburg, whose role in ‘The Social Network’ is somewhat an antihero, Patrick Bateman is purely a villain whose vanity leads him to the extremes of murder.

One thing about vain characters is that they are often masking some form of insecurity and self-doubt. These hidden insecurities add to the human quality of a film, as it is something we all experience. An example of this would be Regina George in the 2004 film ‘Mean Girls’. Regina is the self-absorbed queen ‘plastic’, dominating her high school through manipulation to stay at the top of the social ladder. Regina writes names in her Burn Book, sabotages her peers, controls her own mother, and lives an infuriatingly expensive lifestyle. Regina stops at nothing to get what she wants, but we can’t help but feel a sense of sympathy as she is clearly a character masking insecurity. Regina allows the perception of others to influence her confidence, appearance, self-esteem; all of her defining factors. When new-girl Cady attempts to destroy the reputation of Regina and becomes entangled in her world, taking Regina’s role from her, we feel sympathy for both Regina and Cady’s desperate need to fit in. We’ve all been there, experiencing the harsh cliques of school. It’s particularly satisfying when there is a clear change in their characters at the end of the film, as they reform their mean, vain ways.

It seems that without vain characters, these films would be uninteresting and even lifeless. Vain characters are needed as antagonists to make a film authentic, engaging, and most importantly human. Without antagonists, films would lack the conflict and tension needed to make a story work. They add layers of quality to a film, with filmmakers using them to push their message across, like in ‘Beauty and the Beast’. Perhaps we enjoy discovering these vain characters because vanity is a quality we are taught to suppress, so creating characters that are vain and self-absorbed is an interesting concept to explore. More often than not, we enjoy witnessing the downfall of vain characters because of their role as the antagonist. In exceptions, like ‘The Social Network’ and ‘American Pyscho’, where vain characters take the leading role, these characters are often so unlikeable that they turn into antiheros or villains. Ultimately, films wouldn’t be the same without vain antagonists; look out for one next time you watch a film.

Image: Felix Mooneeram on Unsplash