Character Relationship Map: Bananas

Characters

• Fielding Mellish (played by Woody Allen) — protagonist

  Neurotic blue-collar protagonist who travels to San Marcos to impress Nancy, survives an assassination attempt, joins rebels, becomes president, returns to the US, faces trial, and ultimately wins Nan...

• Nancy (played by Louise Lasser) — supporting

  Social activist whom Fielding attempts to impress. She reunites with him in the US, witnesses his exposure as a rebel leader, and agrees to marry him after his suspended sentence.

• General Emilio M. Vargas (played by Carlos Montalbán) — supporting
• Esposito (played by Jacobo Morales) — supporting
• Mrs. Ruth Mellish (played by Charlotte Rae) — supporting
• Dr. Al Mellish (played by Stanley Ackerman) — supporting
• J. Edgar Hoover (played by Dorothi Fox) — minor
• Judge (played by Arthur Hughes) — cameo

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Dr. Al Mellish → Fielding Mellish (Family Connection) — The shared Mellish family identity indicates a family connection, though the supplied plot does not specify its exact form.

  The character list identifies Dr. Al Mellish as a Mellish family character, while Fielding Mellish is the protagonist bearing the same family name.

• Mrs. Ruth Mellish → Fielding Mellish (Family Connection) — The shared Mellish family identity indicates a family connection, though the supplied plot does not specify its exact form.

  The character list identifies Mrs. Ruth Mellish as a Mellish family character, while Fielding Mellish is the protagonist bearing the same family name.

• Fielding Mellish → Judge (Professional Defendant And Judge) — The Judge presides over the legal consequences facing Fielding.

  Fielding defends himself in court and is eventually sentenced to prison by the Judge.

• Fielding Mellish → Nancy (Romantic Interest) — Their relationship develops from Fielding's attempted courtship into marriage.

  Fielding travels to San Marcos partly to impress Nancy, and Nancy later agrees to marry him after his suspended sentence.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• J. Edgar Hoover → Fielding Mellish (Conflict Adverse Witness) — The claimed Hoover identity is used as part of the prosecution's hostile testimony.

  One incriminating witness is a middle-aged African-American woman claiming to be J. Edgar Hoover in disguise, and her testimony is presented during Fi...

• Fielding Mellish → Esposito (Alliance Revolutionary Teammate) — Fielding joins Esposito's rebel cause before replacing him as president.

  Fielding joins the rebels for two months, and Esposito is identified as the Castro-style leader of that revolutionary movement.

• Fielding Mellish → General Emilio M. Vargas (Conflict Political Enemy) — Vargas treats Fielding as a political liability and attempts to eliminate him.

  Vargas secretly orders his men to kill Fielding and later declares him dead regardless of his survival.

Story Analysis

A neurotic man's attempt to impress Nancy accidentally carries him from romantic aspiration into revolution, presidency, trial, and marriage.

Plot Progression

1. A Coup And A Courtship — The film introduces San Marcos through political assassination and a coup that brings Vargas to power. In the United States, Fielding tries to impress Nancy by presenting himself as concerned about re...
2. The Manufactured Assassination — Fielding travels to San Marcos and becomes the target of Vargas's deceptive assassination scheme. He survives the attack but is captured by the real rebels after Vargas falsely declares him dead.
3. An Unlikely Revolutionary — With no practical way to return to his former life, Fielding joins the rebels for two months. His awkward revolutionary training leads into the successful overthrow of the existing political order.
4. The Accidental Presidency — The victorious rebels discover that Esposito has gone mad and replace him with Fielding as president. Fielding then travels back to the United States to seek financial aid for San Marcos.
5. Trial And Matrimony — Fielding reunites with Nancy, is exposed, and faces a bizarre trial involving contradictory testimony. His sentence is suspended, Nancy agrees to marry him, and the film closes with Cosell's comic wed...