Arnold Schwarzeneger and Iron John: Predator to Protector

Susan Seyfarth
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Iron John:
Predator to Protector
Inthe years surroundingand since the publication ofRobertBll/slron
John : A Booh About Men, several other books have appeared describing the
processes by which contemporary males might discover and enlarge upon
a positive definition of masculinity. Reacting against the traditional
excesses and effects of the patriarchy, such as war and environmental
destruction (Johnson 13), writers of such books usually provide a model for
readers to follow in order to achieve a reconstructed sense of self. Part of
that model is comparative-what men have been, are, and can become. In
the decade that BIy spent thinking about and writing lronJohn (Morrow
52), another man, Arnold Schwarzenegger, was acting out on film the
model,l his characters moving from barbarian, terminator, commando,
and predator to the gentle warrior, John KimbaII, the cop-turned-teacher
of Kindergarten Cop, a fiIm that appeared at nearly the same time that
Bly's book hit the stands.2
From 1982 to 1988, Schwarzenegger starred in extremely violent male
action films, playing what Diane Johnson calls "an inarticulate, testosterone-engorged bully" (13). In fact, even his fans refer to the early Conan
films as the movies Arnold made before he learned to speak, English or
otherwise. In 1984's conan the Destroyer, the first camera shot after the
credits is of the famous Schwarzenegger pectorals, followed by an attack
on him by several black clad warriors. There is Iittle dialogue except for the
grunts and cries of the fighters. The marauders'leader is actually their
queen, Queen Caramus, who speaks some ofthe film's first words. She tells
conan to think, a request conan registers with what could only be called
a "nobody at home look." He then fantasizes about his dead girlfriend,
askingfter what he should do. sparse dialogue is typical of the early frlms,
particularly for Arnold's characters. In fact, the few lines that these
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these guys have a transcendent cause to serve. In fact, the soldiers are
ki l i ng machines, as is.Re d S onj a's C alidor. Schwarzenegger has top billing
in the opening credits of this film, but his role as Calidor is almost no role
at all. He rarely speaks; he is offscreen at least as much as he is on; when
he is on screen, he kills.
As John Matrix in Commando, Schwarzenegger appears to be a man
with a mission; one could say the entire film involves his efforbs to save his
daughter. As the film begins, Matrix exhibits the qualities of Bly's "hairy
man," the inner warrior whose receptive side is developed. He can respond
to and nourish his daughter: we see them spending quality and quantity
time, playing chase, sharing ice cream cones, hand feeding deer in the wild.
His first words in the film are "I love you." But as soon as eleven year old
Jenny is kidnapped, Matrix resorts to Conan style fighting, swinging an
axe into crotches and chopping offarms. It is not until the end of the story
that we see him abandon his role as soldier in favor of nurturer, and this
is only implied by the closing song lyrics: uI will protect you; nothing can
hurtyou, no storm clouds gatheringterrifu. I am a mouritain, surrounded
by your love; you are a mountain that dreams are made of' ('lVe Fight for
Inve"). So the movie is actually a frame story, with Matrix as warrior with
a camse framing the larger narrative of Matrix as soldier in service to no
king, and the latter is the character whom we remember. In 1986's Raw
Deal, Arnold again appears to be a warrior-he has been bounced out ofthe
FtsI for bringing in a criminal a bit too beaten up for the bureau's taste;
however, his defense is that the prisoner molested, murdered, and mutiIated a child which provides him with a cause, avenging crimes against
elildren. What he actually is about in this film is murder-of scumbags,
granted-but the battles, including the self-defense fights, are staged as
grms displays of physical power. The rescue motif reappears in 1987's
Mator as Schwarzenegger's character, Dutch, leads another team of
cornrnando types through the jungles of Central America, supposedly to
firrd and s,ave a kidnapped cabinet minister. Dutch ctaims that his men are
-'l[ rs' assins but rescuers; nevertheless, they are all macho
amongst
l
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kill-"If it bleeds, we can kiII if,'-and get killed. The film,s
*iagrre is in the name of survival, not some true king or transcendent
do is
Gre.
h fS& Aroold Schwarzeneggels screen persona changed with his
*deffirs in Ivan Reifuan' s TLoins. Here he plays a man who grew up
L&tuil*;m ofm island paradise, only to learn that he has a twin
ffirnem*nnl,nd
Ire is immediately receptive to the idea of finding
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woman looks even tinier in schwarzenegger's presence, but it is she who
is in control, and her primary concern is for the children. Because she is
aware of the undercover operation, she worries about the kids'being in
danger. When KimbaII takes over as teacher, she tells him, ,,IlI be
watching you." It is clear that he is intimidated by her, a stunning change
inhis screenpersona. He meets thekids, a group ofmaladjustedpessimists
who have no fun at aII. But these kindergartners are honest about their
problems, and it is their honesty that prompts Kimball to break out ofwhat
Elayne Rapping sees in most film portrayals of males as paralysis,
impotency, and purposelessness (34). He begins to care for his pupils, some
ofwhom are deprived ofcontact with their fathers. Bly says this separation
ofsons from their fathers, whether throughjobs or divorce, causes them to
lose any sense of their manhood. Kimball woruies about his male students
who don't see their dads, and he attempts to establish connections with
them through traditional means. He plays with them;he gets down on the
floor with them; he holds them in his lap; they have fun together.
schwarzenegger apparently grew up connected to his father. They too had
fun. 'IMhen my father came home at night," Arnold has said, ,,he . . . grabbed
the soccer ball and took us outside to play soccer with him for an hour or
so. or badminton, or run around playrng tag or whatever" (schmidt 18g).
And Roger Ebert Points out that schwarzenegger now looks for screenplays that feature him as "the friend of the surrogate hero,, such as the
young boy in Kindergarten Cop who,by tetting loose his pet ferret, saves
the day. so, when Kimball realizes that it is better to be the friend and
protector of the hero, he is succeeding at his kitchen work. He is aware of
his fall; he accepts it; he even likes it. Indeed, towards the frlm's conclusion,
Kimball is shot and literally falls down, a radicai departure from
Schwa:zeneggels powerful position in previous frlms.
Most of Kizdcrgarten cop chronicles Kimball's developing rerationship with the children. To many, he is a surrogate father. He also develops
a sense of purpose in the kids and himself: they strive to be the best
kindergartners they can be. They demonstrate their achievement at the
sthml pageant with a dramatic rendition of the Gettysburg Add.ress. T]he
rry*ierrce realizes that the presentation is possible only through cooperatfun" not competition. Kimball has abandoned his soldier for his inr,".
r'eriq he nurtures, instructs, and supports his surrogate children.
amrdingto Bly, this is as it should be. Man's energies
b" expended
fu&efxrnify, and he doesn't mean earning six figures-ost
ayearby putting
fudghryhnrs a week on Wall Street. As Arnold says, ,,There,s no such
fir"qg as d haying enough time for your kids,, (Schmidt
19g) and this
rmims the lesson of Kindergarten Cop.
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Works Cited
Films:
Hercuks Ges Bananus. Dir. Arthur Allen Seidelman. Unicorn, 19?0. American
release, 1972.
Corwnthe Barbarian. Dir. John Milius. Universal, 1982.
Connnthc Destrtyer. Drr. Richard Fleischer. Universal, 1984.
TTtcTermirwtar. Dir. James Cameron. Orion, 1984.
Commanda- Dir. Mark L. Lester. Tkentieth Century-Fox, 1985.
fud.Sonjo. Dir. RichardFleischer. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists,
R&o
ML
1985.
Dir. John Irvin. De Laurentis Entertainment, 1986.
hedatnr- Dir. John McTiernan. T\uentieth Century-Fox,
Tlp krnning Man. Dilr. Paul Michael Glaser. Tli-Star,
Rd H@t. Dir. Walter llill. Tri-Star,
1987.
1987.
1988.
Twins. Dir. Ivan Reitman. Universal,
1988.
Kndcrgorten Cop. Di.Ivan Reitman. Universal, 1990.
Termi.twtar 2: Judgemcnt Doy. Dir. James Cameron. Carolco, 1991.
Other worksl
Ahramowitz, Rachael. 'A Kinder, Gentler Cyborg." Premier July 19g1: 52-61.
Bly, Robert. Iron John: ABook About Men. Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley,
1990.
-.
'Reclaiming Warrior Enerry." MAN! Dec. 1990-Feb. 1991: 9+.
Ebcrq Rqer. "20 Reasons Why He's No.
1
in the World." Richrnond Times-Dispatch
7
4ug.1991: C1.
Jenkins, Mark- "Fathers' Daze." Washington City Paper 12 July Lggl:27-8.
Johnson, Diane. 'Something for the Boys." New Yorh Reuicw of Books 16 Jan. 1gg2:
1$17.
Morrow, Lance. The Child Is Father to the Man." Time lg Aug. 1991: E2-54.
S.hmidL Julian. "Arnold: An American lcon." Muscle and Fitness. Aug. 1g92: g1+.
TeFightforIove." MusicbyAndyTaylor. Lyr"icsbyMichael Des Barres. perfumed
7-hilF"
b5r
RiIl
Power Station in Commando.
af,r- Big Shot." Rolling Stone 22 Lug.1991: Bg+.