Séverine is the representative of villain Raoul Silva in the 2012 James Bond film Skyfall. Appearing as a classic femme fatale, Séverine's dark and sinister past is catching up with her and initially posing as a potential enemy to Bond, she soon realizes he is probably her best opportunity of a way out of the dangerous world she is living in. She is portrayed by Bérénice Marlohe.
Film biography
Shanghai
James Bond first sees Séverine assisting Patrice in an art dealer's assassination. Séverine is in an apartment across from Patrice, and she leads the dealer to a large window allowing Patrice a clear shot. After Patrice kills the dealer, Bond successfully disarms him and demands to know who he is working for. Patrice remains silent and falls out of the building to his death. Séverine, now alone in the apartment, witnesses this, and after a sinister glance towards Bond she leaves to re-join her guards. Searching through Patrice's briefcase, Bond finds anonymous payment in the form of a chip from a casino in Macau. Bond decides to visit the cacino and cash the chip, knowing this will attract attention and bring him closer to Patrice's employer.
Macau
Knowing the previous assassination has been compromised by Bond, Séverine awaits Bond's arrival at the casino to claim the money that belonged to Patrice. Bond spots Séverine leaning against a staircase banister; she sees him and informs her guards she'll deal with him herself. Joining Bond on the casino floor, Séverine teases Bond for a drink to which Bond accepts her offer.
Becoming acquainted, the pair sit at the bar, while being watched by her guards. After briefly trying to out-smart one another Bond reveals his true motives: he wants to meet her employer. Suddenly, a new side to Séverine is displayed. She warns him to be careful of what he wishes for and as she goes to leave, Bond pulls her back. Bond sees from her wrist tattoo that she was a victim of the Macau sex trade, and determines she was rescued by her employer and now works as his representative. Promising to help her escape being her employer's captive, Bond asks Séverine to join forces and allow him to find the man in the shadows.
Trusting Bond, she warns him her guards plan to kill him. She tells him that if he is to survive, he will find her on the Chimera, her yacht, where they will sail to Silva's base.
At Sea on the Chimera
Setting sail for Silva's base, Séverine seems disappointed that Bond hasn't made it out of the casino alive. She soon discoveres he has in fact survived and hidden on board when he joines her in the shower.
In the morning, Séverine watches in fear as they approach Silva's base on Dead Island. Bond joins her on the deck. As she tells him it's not too late to turn back, the men on the boat hold them at gun point; Bond fully well knowing that this won't be the case.
Raoul Silva's Island
The pair now handcuffed, Bond and Séverine are now escorted through the derelict streets of the abandoned island to which Séverine informs Bond was once the home to many, until Silva made them believe there was a leak at the local chemical plant causing them all to flee. Knowing Silva's ways, Séverine warns Bond that he always gets what he wants in the end. Bond is taken to meet Silva while Séverine is beaten for her defection.
Following Silva's interrogation, Bond is taken outside to find Séverine bloodied and bound to a collapsed statue. A French pre-war song, Boum! by singer/songwriter Charles Trenet, ironically plays over the island's loudspeakers. After carefully placing a shot glass of scotch on Séverine's head, Silva hands Bond an antique Percussion Cap Pistol and challenges him to shoot the glass off her head - a sadistic opportunity to improve his recent, sub-par marksmanship scores.
- "Oh I can't believe it... I can't believe it. Did you really die that day? Is there any - any - of the old 007 left?"
- ― Silva laments Bond's hesitation and shaky trigger hand.
Bond misses far to her left but Silva shoots her squarely in the head, killing her.
Behind the scenes
- Séverine (as well as the stolen hard-drive) acts as the films MacGuffin (commonly explored in many Hitchcock films); after discussing her dark past with Bond we are led to believe that part of the narrative will include Bond rescuing her from the hands of Silva however this is merely a plot device to introduce Bond to Silva.
- Marlohe described her character as being "glamorous and enigmatic",[1] and that she drew inspiration from GoldenEye villain Xenia Onatopp (played by Famke Janssen) in playing Séverine.[2]
- Some may argue that Séverine is not a true villain. However, she did help Patrice in the assasination of the art dealer and, upon Bond grabbing her by the arm at the bar, she was prepared to let her guards kill Bond. She does conform to the stereotypical conventions of the femme fatale, however; using men to her advantage (both Silva and Bond).
- Séverine is essentially an anti-heroine Bond Girl; similar to May Day from A View to a Kill and Pussy Galore in Goldfinger, Séverine is first introduced as a main associate, if not henchwoman to the central villain of the film. As the film progresses, Séverine's loyalties change and lie with Bond (however, Séverine only changes sides to benefit herself, rather than to stop the plan set out by the main villain, Silva).
- One of a few Bond Girls who first becomes aquainted with Bond in a casino. Others from the franchise include Sylvia Trench from Dr. No, Teresa Di Vicenzo from On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Plenty O'Toole from Diamonds Are Forever, Lisl Von Schlaff from For Your Eyes Only and Solange Dimitrios from Casino Royale.
- Severine is the first leading (exempting secondary or supporting) Bond Girl to be killed by the hands of the main villain.
- Her name and role as a sex slave is a reference to Severin, the dominated character in the novel Venus in Furs that allows himself to become a slave to the object of his affections.
- She is one of four leading Bond girls to be affiliated in some way with SPECTRE. Though her connection was indirectly through Silva. The others are Tatiana Romanova, who was an unwitting/unknowing employee of SPECTRE, Tiffany Case, who was a diamond smuggler for Ernst Stavro Blofeld, and Vesper Lynd, who was SPECTRE member Mr. White's henchwoman.
Images
References
- ↑ Macnab, Geoffrey. "Bond 23's title confirmed as Skyfall", 3 November 2011.
- ↑ Simon Reynolds and Tom Mansell (26 March 2012). 'Skyfall': Bérénice Marlohe talks Bond girl Severine – video – Movies News. Digital Spy. Retrieved on 5 April 2012.