The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
A simple espionage story that doesn't captivate
EST V ACT domestic box office revenue
$15 – 30MM V $21MM
Mythosis universal quests used
3
Audience appeal
0.40 – 0.50%
Hidden potential
$430 – 470MM
Guy Ritchie’s latest spy film, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is based on the 2014 book Churchill’s Secret Warriors: The Explosive True Story of the Special Forces Desperadoes of WWII by Damien Lewis. The film is a retelling of the Greek mythological tale, Jason and the Argonauts’ heist of the Golden Fleece. Other characters from the mythological tale – Pelias, Aetees & Medea also find their roles attributed to different characters in the film.
1. The invisible plot structure of Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
1A. The script of Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare borrows 92% of its events from 4 mythological tales
Gus’ quest mirrors the tale of Jason from Greek mythology, where both are driven by the desire to find an elusive person/object. Jason & the Argonauts undertake an arduous journey to Colchis and overcome multiple obstacles to escape with the Golden Fleece. Gus & crew reach Fernando Po travelling through enemy territory and escape with a German ship.
Gus’ crew & Heron’s quest mirrors the tale of Hanuman from Hindu mythology, where both are driven by the desire to be loyal to an order or clan. Hanuman is sent by Ram to find Sita’s whereabouts and take him there. Heron sends crucial information about the mission to Gus from Fernando Po & the crew takes Gus there.
Luhr’s quest mirrors events from the tale of Ravan from Hindu mythology, where both are driven by the desire to dominate others. A spy escapes from Ravan’s custody & destroys his kingdom. Luhr apprehends Marjorie but is shot dead by her.
Marjorie has an underdeveloped quest of vengeance.
NOTE: Detailed mirroring of each character’s primary quest to their respective mythological tales is in section “3A. Quests of characters and their mythological counterparts”
Mythosis plot structure
# 19,183
Tales interweaved
Ravan, Jason & Hanuman
I. How does interweaving mythological tales lead to infinite story plots?
II. Can the pursuit of a Desire have more than one quest?
2. The potential of Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare's plot structure: $15-30MM
The interweaving of 32 mythological tales can generate a billion unique stories. By using these 32 tales, we can extract the plot structure of any story across various genres. Our study of blockbuster, hit, and flop plot structures led to the discovery of the Mythosis Code, a set of principles for creating compelling stories. The plot structure of a story is analyzed to see how well it adheres to these storytelling principles.
2A. Plot structure evaluation of Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
- All Blockbusters have at least 3 universal quests. The script primarily uses the universal quest of Expedition. The quests of Power, Vengeance and Honour are used sparingly.
- In Blockbusters, each universal quest is mirrored by ONLY ONE character. Gus mirrors the quest of Expedition. Heron & Gus' crew mirror the universal quest of Honour whereas Luhr mirrors the quest of Power.
- Every Blockbuster character borrows at least 35% of the universal quest. Gus borrows 19% of the events from Jason’s quest. Heron & Gus’ crew borrow 10% of the events from Hanuman’ quest. Luhr borrows 7% of the events from Ravan’s quest.
- Blockbusters have a quest interweaving threshold of 0.5. Interweaving occurs when events of 2 quests occur simultaneously in the story. Ministry of Warfare’s quest interweaving score of 0.17 is below par.
An example of interweaving the quests of Gus & Heron:
2B. Box office revenue estimation of Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
The plot structure draws primarily from one quest that too sparsely.
The Script Score measures a plot structure’s adherence to the four principles of Mythosis Code. We use the Script Score to estimate a movie’s audience appeal & revenues. Blockbuster plot structures have a score of at least 0.64 and appeal to 20% of the audiences.
Script Score
0.01
Audience appeal
0.40 – 0.50%
I. How is Mythosis Code used to estimate revenues?
II. Aren’t box-office revenues influenced by several factors beyond just the story plot?
3. The ideal plot structure of Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
We have identified 32 mythological tales, the superset of all tales across cultures. The quests of these tales have also recurred over time periods. They represent human behaviours that are deeply embedded in our shared memories. Each tale is the richest expression of the pursuit of a human desire. The tales have a unique pattern of events spread over 5 major arcs.
Mapping a character’s quest to the relevant mythological tale reveals the gaps in their quest, if any. Plugging these gaps with the missing events deepens the character quest. The missing events also provide an opportunity for interweaving the various quests. These events strengthen the story and unlock its hidden potential.
3A.Quest of characters and their mythological counterparts
Quest 1: Gus mirrors the universal quest for Expedition
Gus’ desire for Expedition stems from the need to find an elusive person or object. The tale of Jason from Greek mythology is the universal quest for Expedition.
Quest 2: Heron & Gus’ crew mirror the universal quest for Honour
Heron’s desire for Honour stems from the need to be loyal to an order or clan. The tale of Hanuman from Hindu mythology is the universal quest for Honour.
Quest 3: Luhr mirrors the universal quest for Power
Luhr’s desire for Power stems from the need to dominate others. The tale of Ravan from Hindu mythology is the universal quest for Power.
3B.Gaps in the current plot structure
The plot structure draws upon a single mythological tale i.e. Jason. Since all quests are shallow, the characters mirroring them lack complexity and are uni-dimensional. The shallowness of quests also impacts the interweaving between quests resulting in a disjointed sequence of events.
3C.Unlocking the hidden potential
Mythosis plot structure # 19,183 helps in improving the script. It reveals the missing events from the tales of Jason, Hanuman & Ravan that can be used to enhance the script. However, it doesn’t unlock the potential of the script.
Mythosis plot structure # 557,391 that incorporates the quest of Kaikeyi besides Jason, Hanuman & Ravan has the potential to generate revenues of $430 – 470MM in the domestic market.
Jason’s tale has three prominent characters besides Jason himself. Argonauts join Jason to acquire the Golden Fleece, Medea provided insider information to Jason and King Aetees furious with Jason’s demand wanted him dead. The major interventions to unlock the hidden potential of the script are as follows:
- Deepening Gus’ quest: A deeper borrowing of events within each of the 5 arcs in Jason’s tale makes Gus’ quest compelling.
- Deepening Luhr’s quest: King Aetees’ sadistic pleasure, treachery, viciousness and disastrous defeat made Jason’s quest engaging. A deeper borrowing of events from the relevant arcs of Ravan’s tale makes Luhr’s quest compelling.
- Deepening the Crew’s quest: Argonauts helped Jason reach, navigate and escape from Colchis. Gus’ crew play exactly the same role. Their quest can be made stronger by borrowing from the tale of Hanuman.
- Assigning a universal quest to Heron/Marjorie: Medea was privy to crucial information. She chose to share it with Jason because he promised her status & freedom. Medea ensured Jason succeeded by guiding him to successfully complete the tasks, stealing the Golden Fleece and finally helping him escape by taking down the pursuers. Both Heron & Marjorie’s quest can be drastically improved by borrowing from a 4th mythological tale – Kaikeyi from Hindu mythology.
Leveraging Mythosis Plot structure # 557,391 enhances current revenues by ~20X!
Tags: Jason, Expedition, Hanuman, Honour, Dron, Vengeance, Ravan, Power, 2024, Paul Tamasy, Eric Johnson, Arash Amel, Guy Ritchie, Black Bear Pictures, Jerry Bruckheimer Films, Lionsgate