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Since several people have commented that they know Le Chiffre (Jean) but have no idea who Joe Connor is, and havenât watched Shooting Dogs, allow me to make this thread to enlighten those who are curious or want to get into Le Joe but donât wanna watch the movie.
I am 100% going to spoil yâall the whole movie, so if you still wanna watch it, stop here, ask me for a link to the movie via DM which Iâll happily provide.
SPOILERS AHEAD.
SPOILERS AHEAD.
1: Do I HAVE to watch Shooting Dogs / Beyond The Gates to ship Le Joe?
Absolutely not! Thankfully, Joe is a very noble straightforward character and himself as a character is not the main focus of the movie. The movie is also quite heavy and could rattle those who +
Absolutely not! Thankfully, Joe is a very noble straightforward character and himself as a character is not the main focus of the movie. The movie is also quite heavy and could rattle those who +
are particularly sensitive to strong topics and imagery. It is also a DAMN sad movie, so I totally get not wanting to watch it.
Half the Le Joe Nation group didnât watch the movie when we first read the fics. Half still havenât. So Iâm gonna try to make this super easy!
Half the Le Joe Nation group didnât watch the movie when we first read the fics. Half still havenât. So Iâm gonna try to make this super easy!
2. What IS the movie about?
The movie is actually about the Hutu vs Tutsi conflict in Rwanda in 1994, which ended up in a huge massacre of Tutsi at the hands of Hutu soldiers. Of course the actual real life conflict is much more complicated than that, but that is the main+
The movie is actually about the Hutu vs Tutsi conflict in Rwanda in 1994, which ended up in a huge massacre of Tutsi at the hands of Hutu soldiers. Of course the actual real life conflict is much more complicated than that, but that is the main+
conflict of the movie.
We see the conflict and the massacre through Hughâs character Joe and John Hurtâs character Father Christopherâs eyes, as they end up trapped in the middle of the conflict at a Technical School in Rwanda that becomes a refugee camp.
We see the conflict and the massacre through Hughâs character Joe and John Hurtâs character Father Christopherâs eyes, as they end up trapped in the middle of the conflict at a Technical School in Rwanda that becomes a refugee camp.
3. What HAPPENS in Shooting Dogs?
As I said, Joe (who was a teacher at the school) ends up among the thousands of Tutsi refugees. There are UN soldiers stationed in the school, so the Hutu men canât touch them, but tension increases when they realize help isnât coming +
As I said, Joe (who was a teacher at the school) ends up among the thousands of Tutsi refugees. There are UN soldiers stationed in the school, so the Hutu men canât touch them, but tension increases when they realize help isnât coming +
And Joe, Christopher, all the innocent refugees and the UN soldiers are basically sitting ducks. The soldiers are not allowed to shoot the hutu men unless they open fire first, despite the fact they are slaughtering all the civilians outside the school.
4. Why is it CALLED Shooting Dogs.
While the movie was called âBeyond The Gatesâ in some places, it is originally called âShooting Dogsâ.
As the UN soldiers are not allowed to shoot at the Hutu men stationed outside the camp ready to come on and kill everyone,
While the movie was called âBeyond The Gatesâ in some places, it is originally called âShooting Dogsâ.
As the UN soldiers are not allowed to shoot at the Hutu men stationed outside the camp ready to come on and kill everyone,
the soldiers begin to shoot at the stray dogs outside who were roaming around the camp, attracted by the decaying corpses outside :( yeah it is pretty depressing, hence the name change. I will talk more about this later.
5. Is it REALLY that sad of a movie?
Yeah :( it honestly touches very sensitive subjects and itâs quite crude, and sad. Whatever little hope Joeâs perspective gives to the story it obviously ends in disaster because this is an actual thing that actually happened and many
Yeah :( it honestly touches very sensitive subjects and itâs quite crude, and sad. Whatever little hope Joeâs perspective gives to the story it obviously ends in disaster because this is an actual thing that actually happened and many
People died. And the movie doesnât gloss over the loss and trauma and pain. So again, I totally get why people may not want to watch it or like it. I personally loved it cause I like having my heart broken, but it may not be for you. Which brings us to:
6. Who IS Joe Connor?
You may have seen me gush about Joe like, daily, but what is his character actually about?
Well, first, this movie is more /realistic/ than the usual Hugh movie, hence Joe being a bit less Hollywood-ey than your regular Hugh character.
You may have seen me gush about Joe like, daily, but what is his character actually about?
Well, first, this movie is more /realistic/ than the usual Hugh movie, hence Joe being a bit less Hollywood-ey than your regular Hugh character.
Joe Connor is a young teacher from England who does a year abroad in Rwanda at a local rural school, as a way of âgiving backâ as he puts it further down the movie. He teaches children of all ages in this school which was founded by Father Christopher (John Hurt).
When the conflicts begin, Joe is hopeful it will all be sorted and itâll all be alright. He makes himself useful, helps in the camp, he even goes out twice despite it not being safe out there, to help the refugees. When the white tourists in Rwanda are sent home safely +
Joe refuses to go with them and stays to help. Slowly, Joe begins to realize things may actually be more fucked than he originally thought, and begins to lose hope, until he finally realizes that all those people are going to die, nobody is going to help them,
And there is absolutely NOTHING he can do about it. This obviously frustrates him, makes him have a crisis of faith and of how long he can continue âdoing the right thingâ and risking his life. He witnesses absolutely horrifying scenes and at the end he is entirely hopeless.
He is ready to stay with his friends and the people, and die at the hands of the Hutu men. He even witnesses a friend of his, who is Hutu, carry a bloodied machete, understanding he has murdered innocent people and would probably murder him for being on the âwrong sideâ.
At the very end, as the UN soldiers are leaving, and they KNOW the people are going to be defenseless and be slaughtered, Joe wants to stay and die with them, but Christopher convinces him to leave with the UN soldiers because his sacrifice will be meaningless.
In the end, Joe leaves, and he leaves Christopher, his favorite student called Marie, and all the people behind, understanding they will all die.
Sometime after it is discovered that Marie survived and she visits him in the UK. They talk.
Sometime after it is discovered that Marie survived and she visits him in the UK. They talk.
It becomes obvious that Joe was left with severe PTSD from what he lived in Rwanda, and that he feels terribly guilty for leaving. He admits he didnât wanted to die. They both agree they have to live their lives to the fullest for those who died, and the movie ends.
7. Joeâs personality:
At the beginning of the movie, Joe is showed to be a sweet, enthusiastic, fun, kind man, who is very selfless and empathetic. He likes helping people, he loves teaching, he is sweet and friendly and he canât stand injustice. He is, as we say, a soft baby.
At the beginning of the movie, Joe is showed to be a sweet, enthusiastic, fun, kind man, who is very selfless and empathetic. He likes helping people, he loves teaching, he is sweet and friendly and he canât stand injustice. He is, as we say, a soft baby.
But it is not all perfection. He is also:
Incredibly stubborn, very naive, a little bit privileged (it is revealed he had a ânice childhoodâ and is a bit posh), and reckless. He is brave and selfless but he puts himself at risk to help others.
Incredibly stubborn, very naive, a little bit privileged (it is revealed he had a ânice childhoodâ and is a bit posh), and reckless. He is brave and selfless but he puts himself at risk to help others.
As the movie progresses you can see more of him, as he becomes impatient, desensitized, more sarcastic and hopeless, and overall scared. In the end he leaves and feels like a coward because he was afraid to die, and after a few years he seems colder and more withdrawn
After all the trauma he encountered.
Still, his optimism, tranquil and kind temperament and overall âgoodnessâ is what is characteristic of Joe. He is brave, smart, has a good heart, and is FREAKING GORGEOUS of course! Whatâs not to love?
Still, his optimism, tranquil and kind temperament and overall âgoodnessâ is what is characteristic of Joe. He is brave, smart, has a good heart, and is FREAKING GORGEOUS of course! Whatâs not to love?
8. Okay but, whatâs the deal with âLe Joeâ?
Since most people know Madsâ character Le Chiffre, I will skip the details of him (Unless you want me to do a thread about it) and jump right into the ship!
Le Joe is the ship conformed by Joe Connor and Le Chiffre (Jean Duran).
Since most people know Madsâ character Le Chiffre, I will skip the details of him (Unless you want me to do a thread about it) and jump right into the ship!
Le Joe is the ship conformed by Joe Connor and Le Chiffre (Jean Duran).
It all started by a fanfic called âLe Joeâ by VictoriaSkyeMasters published in 2016.
(Victoria we havenât been able to find you but if youâre out there, please know you changed our lives and weâre keeping your tradition alive!)
(Victoria we havenât been able to find you but if youâre out there, please know you changed our lives and weâre keeping your tradition alive!)
You can check the fic here:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/6469684
Apart from that, there was a Gif set circling around Twitter which had Lw Chiffre and Joe, seemingly meeting in Rwanda, Le Chiffre being his terrorist Lord self in the conflict:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/6469684
Apart from that, there was a Gif set circling around Twitter which had Lw Chiffre and Joe, seemingly meeting in Rwanda, Le Chiffre being his terrorist Lord self in the conflict:
A few months back, @_Pradelle and I saw the gif and became OBSESSED. We found more info on the ship and discovered the Fic (Our Sacred Texts). We donât know what came first, the fic or the gif, but they were the ONLY two media from Le Joe in the entire web.
Now, in the fic, Joe meets Le Chiffre right after he escapes with the UN soldiers. The story is filled with passion and love and romance that slowly build up, and itâs extremely well written. Since it was the first (and then only) fic, we consider it the most âcanonâ.
So after that, Eva and I began to obsess over these two characters, and started sharing the fic. And more people joined into what itâs now âLe Joe Nationâ. We have a Group Chat, where we write prompts almost daily, and have written a few fics and made fanart!
We are still a small nation, our HEU ship is not as big as other HEU ships such as Spacedogs or Basic Chickens, but weâre strong and very dedicated, and we really love these two cute idiot nerds together.
9. So why should I ship Le Joe?
Well, first, if youâre into HEU ships (also called rare meat), weâre one of the strongest. It is a very well defined ship and we are working on HCs that are slowly becoming more known outside of the chat, like Jeanâs backstory (for another thread):
Well, first, if youâre into HEU ships (also called rare meat), weâre one of the strongest. It is a very well defined ship and we are working on HCs that are slowly becoming more known outside of the chat, like Jeanâs backstory (for another thread):
Also we have such dedicated fans! Writers and artists who continuously come up with new HCs and prompts, stories and AUs and make art for it! We just started, so give us time to grown and have more material for you!
Lastly, while obviously you are free to ship HEU character with whomever you want, and there are other popular ships (especially for Le Chiffre) like Royale Instinct and Poker Space (I think theyâre called), and that is absolutely cool too!
we simply think youâll like Le Joe! There is something that just
clicks about them, and we strongly believe they are soulmates in the way Hannigram and Spacedogs are.
clicks about them, and we strongly believe they are soulmates in the way Hannigram and Spacedogs are.
10. Okay fine Ary, so what are they about?
In most of the HCs we have, Joe and Jean (Le Chiffre) meet either during or after the events of Rwanda, and sometimes of those of Casino Royale. Sometimes Jean is still a Bond villain terrorist baddie... sometimes after that.
In most of the HCs we have, Joe and Jean (Le Chiffre) meet either during or after the events of Rwanda, and sometimes of those of Casino Royale. Sometimes Jean is still a Bond villain terrorist baddie... sometimes after that.
The overall arc for them that most fics and prompts coincide with is: they are both VERY broken people. They are both men who have endured and survived trauma. Obviously Joe everything he went through in Rwanda, and Jean the events of Casino Royale +
Where he was terrified of being killed and did everything he could to escape the men who wanted him dead, and was almost killed (Almost 
). Whenever they meet, they are always very broken, very traumatized men. In the OG fic they both have panic attacks sometimes and
). Whenever they meet, they are always very broken, very traumatized men. In the OG fic they both have panic attacks sometimes and
are just two people who have suffered a lot. We of course have more HCs that weâve sort of made up along the way (and you can find in the fics), but the main core and beating heart of Le Joe is two lonely broken men who never expected to find love, learning how to +
love and care for someone else, by learning how to love and forgive and take care of themselves. Through helping the other heal their own trauma, they slowly begin to heal too.
And it is absolutely soft and beautiful
trust me. Ask any Le Joe Nation member!
And it is absolutely soft and beautiful
trust me. Ask any Le Joe Nation member!
That, and the fact they are both absolutely adorable, and their relationship is extremely soft and also very hot! Again, using the main fic and the new ones we have created as guideline.
Le Joe has a lot of substance, a lot of tenderness and vulnerability,
Le Joe has a lot of substance, a lot of tenderness and vulnerability,
And that is the main thing that makes people like this ship and stay. The vulnerability and understanding both characters are seen with, and how they lower their defenses for each other, to let the other help and heal.
Now, we also offer horny packages that include Joe wearing diamonds and in lingerie, sexy Poker matches, misunderstandings and angst and pain, but all our menu comes in a sandwich of fluffy bread filled with delicious angst in the middle!
Overall, Le Joe offers everything youâre looking for in a good HEU ship. They are sexy, they are sweet, they are vulnerable and misunderstood and absolutely soft and feral for each other. They are not as dumb as Hannigram, Joe is not a mean slut and Jean is honestly just a nerd.
So yeah! We are not as big as Spacedogs and there are other perfectly valid sexy people you can ship either of these two sweet, sexy babies with... but we highly recommend Le Joe :) 
it honestly has everything and you wonât be disappointed.
it honestly has everything and you wonât be disappointed.
We are however a developing nation, and we need more people interested in this ship to create more art and fics and keep nurturing it! We are working in new projects, but please, if you feel like you may be interested in Le Joe, let us know! Weâd love to come gush about this!
Legit just #LeJoeNation and weâll come running!
I am going to leave you all with all our Sacred Texts, and Iâm going to make a thread of all the amazing Le Joe fanart that has been made for this ship! So you can enjoy it! And I hope Joeâs info is useful!
I am going to leave you all with all our Sacred Texts, and Iâm going to make a thread of all the amazing Le Joe fanart that has been made for this ship! So you can enjoy it! And I hope Joeâs info is useful!
Needless to say, I love Le Joe with all my heart. It is my favorite ship after Hannigram, and my favorite HEU ship. I will never ever stop screaming about them, and I hope you give them a chance!
Thank you for reading my very long thread! I hope you fall in love with these babies as much as we have!!
Fics: https://archiveofourown.org/tags/Le%20Chiffre%20(James%20Bond)*s*Joe%20Connor/works
Thatâs all! Thank you guys!!
Fics: https://archiveofourown.org/tags/Le%20Chiffre%20(James%20Bond)*s*Joe%20Connor/works
Thatâs all! Thank you guys!!
Ah blimey! I forgot to mention! We have seen the ship being called Royale Dogs sometimes, but we prefer Le Joe so it is not confused with Nigel as a character or with Spacedogs, and because the dogs are actually a very sad and traumatic element of the movie :(
