Dominic Greene: Quantum’s “Environmentalist”
Dominic Greene, a billionaire tycoon running environmental organization, Greene Planet, who dually serves as a key agent for Quantum, a crime group with interests in a resource-rich Bolivian territory. Played by French actor Mathieu Amalric, he is the main villain in the 2008 James Bond film, Quantum of Solace, and also resurfaces in the video game 007: Quantum of Solace.
Dominic Greene
Dominic Greene runs Greene Planet, an entity seemingly focused on safeguarding large swathes of land for environmental conservation. Yet, concealed beneath this guise, Greene is a key player in Quantum, an illicit group amassing power through global financial and geopolitical manipulation.
With Greene Planet is merely a façade for his true agenda — Greene’s aim is to gain control over critical commodities such as oil and water, the latter being pivotal to his present scheme: Tierra Project in Bolivia.
Dominic Greene’s strategy involves dominating Bolivia’s water supply, which, if achieved, will put his organization in charge of the nation’s most crucial resource. To legitimize this transaction, Greene extends an offer to Bolivia’s president — a substantial monetary sum for a 60% stake in the water supply.
The president rejects his proposal, leading Greene to negotiate with Bolivia’s exiled dictator, General Medrano. Greene offers to restore Medrano to power in exchange for a large, seemingly barren area of land. Medrano consents, ignorant of the plot’s true nature, only to be later duped by Greene.
Camille Montes, Greene’s love interest, has sought Medrano for an extended period. Medrano had brutally executed her family years ago, spurring Montes on a mission of vengeance.
Her discovery of Medrano’s dealings with Greene compels her to associate with the villain to reach Medrano. Greene, aware of her intentions, arranges for Montes’ death, but James Bond rescues her.
After confronting Greene, Montes is handed over to Medrano with instructions to dispose of her body. A thrilling chase ensues, with Bond successfully intervening to save Montes’ life, inadvertently aiding Greene’s plan.
Advancing his scheme, Greene goes to a stealth Quantum meeting at a Tosca performance. Bond infiltrates the meeting, creating panic among some members, Greene flees, but others such as Mr. White remain cooly seated.
A while later, when hosting a celebration to honor the preservation of Bolivian land, Dominic Greene seizes the opportunity to forge new deals, one of which is abruptly terminated by Camille Montes.
Enraged, Greene tries to kill her by pushing her off a balcony, but Bond intervenes, escaping with Montes. Greene sends his subordinate, Elvis, to get them, but an encounter with Agent Strawberry Fields leaves him injured. Greene subsequently orders Fields’ execution, culminating in her tragic demise by drowning in oil.
Greene later meets with Medrano and Colonel Carlos, the man responsible for the death of Bond’s ally, René Mathis.He compensates Carlos initially, but when Medrano asks about his payment, Greene elucidates a secondary arrangement.
For Medrano to secure funds for a governmental coup, he must surrender 60% of Bolivia’s water rights. Medrano refuses at first, but when Greene tells him he’d first approached the current president with a similar proposition, Medrano grudgingly yields to Greene’s terms to obtain the funds.
All appears to be in order until Bond disrupts the gathering. Bond kills Carlos, while setting fire to the building. With Medrano already in his room, Greene, Bond, and Elvis remain in the conference room.
Greene instructs Elvis to kill Bond, but a nearby explosion kills Elvis, while Bond and Greene scramble for safety. Greene confronts Bond in the corridor, brandishing a fire axe. They clash above the inferno on a collapsing catwalk. As Bond leaps to safe ground, Greene teeters precariously towards the flames, but Bond pulls his hair, ultimately saving him from certain death.
While this was ongoing, a struggle between Montes and the General in Medrano’s room had taken place. They heard a gunshot, and Greene laughed thinking it was Medrano killing Camille Montes.
Bond rushes off to rescue Camille, and as he enters the room he finds Medrano lifeless and Camille struggling to escape the blaze. They manage to evacuate, and Bond notices Greene, wounded but alive, trying to flee on foot.
Bond gets hold of Dominic Greene, who divulges all he knows about Quantum, sparing his life in exchange. Nevertheless, Bond leaves Greene stranded in the barren desert, offering him a can of motor oil, referring back to Strawberry Fields’ oil-induced death.
He wagers with Camille Montes that Greene won’t reach twenty miles before considering drinking the motor oil. Following the arrest of Yusef Kabira, M informs Bond that Greene’s body was found in the desert, marked by two bullet wounds at the base of his skull and motor oil in his stomach.
Mathieu Amalric
Mathieu Amalric is a French actor and filmmaker who shot to fame for his role in the French film Ma Vie Sexuelle and has continued to excel in French and international cinema, including works like Favorites of the Moon, La Chasse aux papillons, Lettre pour L…, Steven Spielberg’s Munich, and Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel and The French Dispatch.
In 2007, he delivered a critically acclaimed performance in The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, earning him the Cesar Award for Best Actor. In 2008, he was cast as the main villain Dominic Greene in Quantum of Solace, sharing the screen with Daniel Craig.
Amalric’s talents extend to directing, with notable works like Marre de café, La Seule différence c’est que les cafés sont plus chers, and On Tour, the latter earning him the Best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival. His contributions to French cinema have been recognized with several César Awards and the Lumières Award.
