Character Analysis
You may not realize it, but you've meet Rodolfo before. He's your classic "wrong guy first" character. You know, that guy who shows up in every romantic comedy you've ever seen…ever.
Ever.
If you're unfamiliar with the character type, let's break him down. This guy is handsome and rich, or he has a respectable middle-class job at least. He's charming, and everyone seems to like him. Naturally, our leading lady is into him. At first.
But then it starts to become clear that he's not the one for her. Maybe he has a major character flaw or the two don't see eye to eye on an important issue. Maybe there's just another guy out there who's a better fit.
Does Rodolfo meet these qualifications? You betcha. He's the head of the licensing department in the city, and handsome (if you're into that sort of thing). He's also well-to-do enough to afford box seats for the opera and receive invitations to dine at the Prefect's house. What's not to dig?
Uh, how about the fact that he's a jerk?
When we first meet him, he rudely ignores Guido's request for a signature:
RODOLFO: No, I can't. My substitute will be here in an hour. Ask him.
GUIDO: All I need is a signature.
RODOLFO: We close at one here.
GUIDO: It's ten to one.
RODOLFO: File a complaint.
Come on, Rodolfo. You have one job to do and that's to sign official documents. It doesn't even have to be a fancy signature. A scribble will do.
Okay, okay, so he's a bureaucrat—give him a break. Maybe this guy doesn't make good first impressions.
Unfortunately, he doesn't make positive second, third, or fourth impressions either. When we catch up with him at the theater, he promises to take Dora out for some chocolate ice cream, but then reneges on the promise when the Prefect shows up. Then at their engagement party, Rodolfo's friend Bruno whispers a little too loudly that Rodolfo frequents the local brothels.
And when the principal puts forward a math problem asking how much the state would save by eliminating undesired members of society, Rodolfo doesn't bat an eye:
RODOLFO: No, all it takes its multiplication. You said there are 300,000 cripples?
PRINCIPAL: Yes.
RODOLFO: 300,000 times four. If we killed them all, we'd save 1,200,000 marks a day.
PRINCIPAL: Exactly. Bravo!
Wow. Yeah, this was the comment that made Dora realize she just couldn't marry this guy. Well, that and the whole brothel thing.
Two Guys, a Girl, and Egg on Your Face
In true rom-com fashion, Rodolfo is Guido's antithesis: the Darth Vader to his Luke Skywalker, the Joker to his Batman, the Daffy to his Bugs Bunny.
Guido has a love of life and wants to share that joy with Dora, but we never see Rodolfo really enjoy anything. He sidelines what Dora wants in order to go to dinner with the Prefect and, one can assume, better his place in the upper crust of society.
On the other hand, Guido doesn't have any desire to climb the social ladder at all; he just wants to make Dora happy and open a small bookstore.
Rodolfo also seems to take Dora's love as a given: "Dora and I were born on the same street. We went to school together, we had the same friends. Dora is the woman of my life, and I'm the man in her life; therefore, we've decided to get married within the year." It's just the way it should be, in his mind. But Guido tries to earn that love through grand gestures and minor kidnapping plots.
If there's one positive thing we can say about Rodolfo, it's...yeah, we got nothing. Sticking to the rom-com formula, Dora eventually figures out what a cad he is and decides to hook up with Guido. She rides off with Guido, and the last we see of Rodolfo, he literally has egg on his face.
Classic comeuppance.