#4: General Frank Hummel

“I Hope They Don’t Call My Bluff…”

90s action movies are not known for their restraint; they are regarded fondly now for their excess and over-the-top qualities.  They are fun to watch, and that’s pretty much it.  In this way, Michael Bay’s “The Rock” (his best film) fits the mold perfectly.  It’s crass, vulgar, ultraviolent, and often politically incorrect by today’s standards.  Yet it contains one nuanced quality: its villain, General Hummel, whom Ed Harris plays with surprising depth and genuine emotion.

“The Rock” is a film where its heroes constantly spew ridiculous one-liners gleefully as they maim their enemies in horrific ways.  Ironically, the antagonist Hummel doesn’t do this.  He doesn’t seem to understand that he’s in a silly action movie — and movie is the better for it.

General Hummel’s a tortured, conflicted aging soldier who grabs the focus of the film’s first 10 minutes or so, where we understand that he’s no 2-dimensional Bond-type baddie: he’s lost his wife, and now that he’s alone, he’s made the decision to throw away his reputation and his soul for the sake of “justice.”  As he’s nearing the end of his career, he’s seen too many soldiers under his command die honorably without any acknowledgement from our government.  Yes, he wants money — but not for himself.  For the families of the men under his command.

And he’s prepared to take hostages — but not take innocent life — in order to achieve his goal.  His great balancing act is to feign that he’s a cold-blooded killer when in reality, he’s a reasonable and compassionate patriot. His plot is complex and overly elaborate — but has an honest rationality to it all that allows us connect with him…while we still want him to fail.

He makes his intentions clear in this clip:

There’s a nobility to his quest that we buy into even if we don’t agree with his methods.  And when heroes and villain collide in that classic way, we’re not totally sure we want to see him die a horrible death…but then we remember we’re watching a 90s movie and so he must…