In the film *Moulin Rouge!* (2001), the audience's emotional allegiance is meticulously crafted through Baz Luhrmann’s "Red Curtain" style, which uses high melodrama and archetypal characters. The audience overwhelmingly roots for **Christian** and **Satine**, while they root against **The Duke of Monroth**.
### **Who the Audience Roots For**
#### **1. Christian (The Romantic Hero)**
* **Why we root for him:** Christian represents the pure "Bohemian" ideals of **freedom, beauty, truth, and love**. As the narrator, he provides the audience's entry point into the story, ensuring we see the world through his idealistic, if naive, lens.
* **Key Actions:**
* **"Your Song":** His sudden, heartfelt performance of Elton John’s "Your Song" to Satine establishes him as someone who values soul over money.
* **Selfless Devotion:** He is willing to live in "romantic poverty" and risk his life to be with a woman the rest of society considers a commodity.
* **The Secret Song:** He writes **"Come What May"** specifically as a secret code for their love to be sung during the show, a defiant act of romantic rebellion against the Duke’s control.
#### **2. Satine (The Tragic Muse)**
* **Why we root for her:** Satine is a "Sparkling Diamond" trapped in a "gilded cage." While she initially appears materialist (singing "Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend"), the audience learns she is a victim of her circumstances who longs for professional respect as a "real actress." Her vulnerability is heightened by the reveal that she is dying of **tuberculosis**, a secret she keeps to protect those she loves.
* **Key Actions:**
* **The Choice of Love:** Her decision to choose the "penniless sitar player" (Christian) over the "Maharajah" (the Duke) is an act of agency that makes her a hero.
* **The Ultimate Sacrifice:** In the film's climax, she cruelly breaks Christian’s heart by telling him she doesn't love him. The audience roots for her because we know she is **lying to save his life**, as the Duke has threatened to have him murdered.
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### **Who the Audience Roots Against**
#### **The Duke of Monroth (The Antagonist)**
* **Why we root against him:** The Duke is the antithesis of the film's theme that "Love is all you need." He represents **possession, greed, and entitlement**. He does not want Satine’s love; he wants to own her as property. He is portrayed as a "sneering fop" whose wealth gives him a dangerous, unearned power over the artists.
* **Key Actions:**
* **The Legal Contract:** He demands the deeds to the Moulin Rouge and a legal contract for **exclusive rights** to Satine’s body in exchange for his investment. This commodification of the heroine immediately vilifies him.
* **Attempted Assault:** During the "El Tango de Roxanne" sequence, the Duke attempts to rape Satine when she refuses to submit to him, a violent act that cements his role as a monster rather than just a rival.
* **Attempted Murder:** He orders his bodyguard, Warner, to kill Christian during the final performance, showing that he would rather destroy beauty than allow it to exist outside of his control.
### **The Role of Perspective**
It is important to note that because the story is told by a grieving Christian a year after the events, the characters are heightened versions of themselves. The Duke is framed as a **cartoonish villain** because that is how a heartbroken lover would remember the man who tried to steal his beloved. Conversely, Satine is portrayed with almost **angelic reverence**, ensuring the audience feels the weight of her tragedy.