As i read McKee, Robert. (1997). ‘The substance of story.’ In Story: Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting. New York, USA: HarperCollins, pp. 135-154, it really got me thinking about all the meanings and portrayals of characters in my favourite films. He said “the protagonist is a willful character…a conscious desire…must be empathetic” and much more. But are all protagonists of these statements. For example in whiplash, Andrew isn’t emphatic, but is willful and has a desire. Or in The Dark Knight, does Batman have a desire, and is willful or even empathetic? I dont even know how to answer that question. But then as i looked closely at the three levels of conflict and the way the object of desire work, i was able to understand and work out what the answers to my own questions were. Even if there is a gap in progression which leads to the characters keep on having to take part in risks like Batman, he still comes out in the end to the area of desire.