MBTI: Where to Spot Your Type in Film- Artisans (SP)
A while back we did an article on where SJs would be able to find their types in film. As in reality, they’re often the characters that call the shots, tell you how things can or can’t be done and give the protagonist all the rules so when they’re broken, you can see how amazing that protagonist really is.
So who is that protagonist, you ask? Usually, you have to look no further than the Sensing Perceiver types, those wascally SPs.
ESFP- The Hot Best Friend, The Clownish Screw-Up
Horror movies and Comedy are probably these tropes most obvious placement; the main character will have a friend that just doesn’t care about anything. If it’s a female, they’re the kind-of slutty best friend; if a male- they’re the Clownish Screw-up.
No matter how many times they mess things up for the protagonist, you’re feelings on them from the beginning aren’t going to have changed much. You’ll either have liked them from the beginning or hated them already.
The times they don’t screw things up for the main character they’re usually used to allow you to gauge even the protagonist’s closest friends reaction to whatever selfish thing they’ve done. Example-
Protagonist- I can’t believe they’re overreacting like this! Has everybody gone crazy?
*Best friend is silent for the first time in film*
Best friend- Yeah. I guess we have.
Protagonist- Aw, not you too!
In Horror, the difference between them is substantial. Because the female ESFP is the Hot Best Friend who may or may not be cheating with the protagonist’s boyfriend, her death will usually come earlier on. The Clownish Screw-Up is generally a guy that is not hot and will play a more important role in the story, and he may not die at all. But probably will in the third act. Rules do not cross their mind.
ESTP- The Snarky Agent, Conquering Hero
Compare to the ISTJ’s Quiet Soldier, the Snarky Agent may be a soldier, a cop, or (of course), any type of agent, secret or otherwise. As mentioned previously, the entire duration of this character’s screen time, they’ll make jokes and the like, maybe even to the point of you thinking that they’re sort of an idiot. But they’ll always be an expert in whatever tools they’re using even if they ignored the lab geek that tried to show them how to use this newest prototypical weapon that they were too cool to listen to.
Sometimes the Snarky Agent is the same as the Conquering Hero but the difference mainly lies in their profession. The Snarky Agent is involved in the story because of his job while the Conquering Hero just happened to be thrown into this craziness. Either way, they’ll rise to the challenge, specifically if the film is a straight Action film where jokes have been told nonstop. Both are rule breakers, of course.
Nobody expects, nor wants the Snarky Agent or Conquering Hero to die after the lighthearted attitude they’ve kept throughout all the gunfire and divorce they’ve survived. One of the two most prominent types in Action films as the Protagonist.
ISFP- The Peaceful Warrior, Straight but Likable
When featured in Action films (A staple genre for SP in film), the Peaceful Warrior does everything they can to avoid the fight they’ve also prepared for for years. After training nonstop, they hope to never have to use the abilities that allow them to murder and maim effortlessly.
Peace is their preferred method but fortunately for the audience, peace isn’t an option for the rednecks that refuse to mind their own business and will end up with their heads jammed firmly up their butt due to the Peaceful Warrior’s superior skills.
The Straight but Likable character isn’t limited to Action of course but can be found in any type of film that involves a character having to react to the constant insanity around them. Despite being the character that could easily come off as the one with the least personality, the Straight but Likable character (if played properly) will assert themselves as someone with a single goal in mind as opposed to being snobbish or, at worst, void of any real character. Think Harold of Harold and Kumar but less uptight.
These types will break rules only as a last resort.
ISTP- The Lone Wolf, The Obvious Suspect
Often mistaken for an INTJ by online typists, the Lone Wolf ISTP is the other most common type found in Action films, next to the ESTP. Quiet and withdrawn, much of the story can be found on this character’s face who says about a third as much as the Snarky Agent and is a third as rigid as the Quiet Soldier, though their principles are much more loose.
Death is much more likely for this character as their sullen and sometimes downright dark demeanor will leave the story open to go down much darker roads. Still, the Lone Wolf is a Loner in personality regardless of who they’re actually teamed up with. In the 90s, Rob Schneider would have played the Clownish Screw-Up next to this type for supposed “levity” but these days, the team-up has been traded for a gloomier tone.
Female Lone Wolves do appear occasionally but are more likely to be Black Widows (Or Marvel’s actual Black Widow), meant to seduce men and harm men or possibly kill them.
The Obvious Suspect comes into play in other genres- he could be the bad boy of a female-oriented comedy that the female protagonist wants to date even though we know he’s just going to try and get in her pants. The ISTP type may be the easiest for writers if dealt with lazily- doing rebellious things quietly.
Rules are followed and ignored at their leisure.
MBTI: Where to Spot Your Type in Film (SJ)
MBTI: ISTP and ESTP: Action Heroes
Zombies Ruin Everything 
03/27/2014 at 11:50 pm
hello. I’ve been finding the difference between INTP and INTJ.
It seems so similar to me. Could you please let me know the difference??
03/28/2014 at 2:13 pm
Other than the generic differences between Judgers and Perceivers, a huge difference you’ll notice, in less scientific jargon, is that INTJs are naturally jerks and INTPs are naturally weirdos.
Look at the respective types characterized by fiction-
The INTP is nearly always in the role of some form of scientist; Spider-Man, L of Death Note, Sherlock Holmes, Mr. Fantastic.
And the INTJ is pretty much always the leading behind-the-scenes villain: Emperor Palpatine, Professor Moriarty, Walter White of Breaking Bad, Doctor Doom, and Batman.
So in fiction, the INTP mad scientist might experiment for an untold amount of time possibly never coming up with a solution (They really love problems that CAN’T have a solution), while the INTJ Archvillain sees the value in an idea; though not simply play with but put it use as a way to make money or help them in some way. INTPs don’t care about people because they simply aren’t thinking of them for the most part while INTJs are aware of people and are usually annoyed by them.
Studying the functions will make the differences so clear it’s almost as though there are no similarities. INTP’s first function is Introverted Thinking which makes them what to take things apart and see how they work, why they work, etc. Their secondary Extraverted Intuition makes them see the possibilities for what else this toy can be and may result in them creating something brilliant or wasting a LOT of time on something they eventually lose interest in.
INTJs will look at that same toy and instead of taking it apart to see how it works, they just be satisfied with knowing that it works and using it for what they need; using it as a prototype for a line of toys they’re creating perhaps. Their dominant and auxiliary functions are the reverse and flipped from INTPs. Instead of Ti and Ne as the INTPs have, INTJs have Ni then Te. Ni is long range and sees all the possibilities that one toy could have while their secondary Te wants to put those ideas into use. Ti takes things apart, while Te’s drive is to put them together.
Hopefully that helps a bit. Here’s a link to help compare them. Interesting site, if not a bit vague.
http://www.preludecharacteranalysis.com/types/INTJ/vs/INTP
03/29/2014 at 12:23 am
I really appreciate your kind reply and the site, it helps me a lot. But the only thing I still confused is that the difference between Ne and Ni.
I think Ne is thinking about the possibilities of things itself surround you, and Ni is thinking about the fundamental pettern of things, but not the things itself. Am I right??
Sorry for bothering you with so many questions. Have a good weekend 🙂
03/29/2014 at 3:14 pm
Nope, no bother.
But yep, that’s pretty much it. Ni looks at the thing and sees what it could be. Ne imagines what could be and narrows it down to one thing. You get the idea.
01/06/2018 at 4:23 pm
Sherlock Holmes is an ISTP.
Focus on the details of the immediate physical reality and decisive.
Observation, analysis, deduction.
Not a strategist, impulsive…
01/07/2018 at 1:10 pm
Or he is a surrealist INTP, how explain the good Se… By Ne/Si? Or INTJ without view for the future.
Fictive character after all.