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Here it is. My list of favorite movie villains. I already started a list of over 100 characters, but I found it frustrating because I kept thinking of more people after I thought I was done with it. Therefore, Im starting out with a countdown of the Top 50, and maybe I'll work in the other direction when I'm done.
HONORABLE MENTION: FATHER BRENDAN FLYNN
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt (2008)
I included this guy as an honorable mention because of
the movie’s ambiguity. It’s very clear
there’s no proof whether or not he molested that child. If he did, he’s undoubtedly a villain. If he didn’t, he’s a saint who genuinely cares
for the children at his school, and sister Aloysius is arguably a different
kind of villain. Good or bad, he’s a
charismatic priest who knows how to get people on his side.
50. MONA DEMARKOV
Lena Olin, Romeo is
Bleeding (1993)
The protagonist, Jack, bites off more he can chew when he
runs afoul of this beautiful, but psychotic Russian assassin. Nearly unstoppable and crazy as hell, she
hunts him down in a way that makes it look like she could give Anton Chigurh a
run for his money. She even cuts off her
own arm and places it with the charred corpse of the protagonist’s mistress to
throw off the police. For some
perspective on this, she’s a complete nightmare for a character played by Gary Oldman. Unfortunately, her mystique is diminished
when she’s killed abruptly at the end of the movie. The experience still leaves Jack a broken,
lonely, and haunted man.
49. LORD HUMUNGUS
Kjell Nilsson, The
Road Warrior (1981)
Big, scary, hilariously named warlord who brutally
pillages and murders in the name of being the only power in a desert
wasteland. His frightening presence is
enhanced by throbbing veins on the back of his scarred head. Despite this savage appearance, he’s calm and
calculating. He attempts to talk his
potential victims into submission, and sometimes needs to restrain the more
irrational Wez. Some clues suggest he’s
lost some loved ones of his own in the apocalypse.
48. LADY EBOSHI
Yūko Tanaka/Minnie Driver, Princess Mononoke, 1997
A capable leader and fighter, Lady Eboshi has no mercy
for the spirit world of the forest.
However, she is kind-hearted and charitable toward the humans under her
care, as evidenced by her compassion for the lepers. So dedicated she is in her concern for humans,
she’s willing to sacrifice other life for them.
In the real world she would be a good guy.
47. BIFF TANNEN
Thomas F. Wilson, Back
to the Future Part II (1989)
As a young man in the first movie, Biff was not much more
than a buffoonish and sometimes dangerous bully. When bested by George McFly in the improved
timeline, he becomes an outwardly meek man.
However, the minute an older and far more intelligent Biff sees an
opportunity to change the past for his own gain, he actually manages to be
selfish to the point of self-sacrifice. He’s
willing to erase the majority of his own existence (and those of countless
innocent people) so that his younger self would have power. With this power he destroys Hillsdale and the
lives of everyone around him. I also
think it’s of some current relevance that this character was inspired by Donald Trump. Wilson gives a comical and
versatile performance in these movies, and it’s amusing that the old Biff’s can
has a fist on it to mimic the way he’d knock on people’s heads when he was
ridiculing them in high school.
46. THE JOKER
Jack Nicholson, Batman
(1989)
A creative, witty, and fun version of the classic character. I like how his smile is permanently plastered
on his face. He dresses with style and he’s
always a hoot to watch. He’s about as
evil as any incarnation of the psychotic clown prince of crime, killing for no other
reason his own amusement. I still have
some complaints about the character. By
giving him a past as mob enforcer Jack Napier and making him the killer of
Bruce’s parents, it robbed the character of his mystery. Although I love Jack Nicholson’s performance,
he’s still Jack Nicholson in clown makeup.
James Woods was considered, and he would have been perfect in the
role. It looks like we’re never going to
see this, either.
45. SIR HISS
Terry-Thomas, Robin
Hood (1973)
Hiss seems to be the only villain in the movie with a
clue. He constantly cautions Prince John
against his own bottomless stupidity and he does a decent job of figuring out
the situation at the archery tournament despite being kept in the dark. Despite this, he doesn’t seem genuinely
malicious. He’s horrified when he finds
out that John intends to execute Friar Tuck, and he’s overjoyed when Robin
survives the third act. He’s still
complicit in evil out of cowardice and sycophancy. I also always loved snake characters.
44. NORMAN STANSFIELD
Gary Oldman, Léon:
The Professional (1994)
A corrupt, murderous, impulsive, irritable,
crack-addicted detective, Stansfield is Gary Oldman at his best. His best moment is when he asks Mathilda
(Natalie Portman) if she enjoys life, and when she tells him yes:
“That’s good, because I take no pleasure in taking life
if it’s from someone who doesn’t care about it.”
43. XENIA ONATOPP
Famke Janssen, GoldenEye
(1995)
My favorite Bond henchman. A sexy femme
fatale who has a unique way of killing people: asphyxiating them by
constricting their abdomens with her legs (preferable during sex). Her shooting spree in the Severanaya bunker
reveals a particularly disturbing trait: she
is sexually aroused by murdering people.
Even Ourumov (Gottfried John) is creeped out.
42. THE NAZGÛL
v. Andy Serkis, Fran Walsh, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Formerly nine human kings, Sauron corrupted them with
rings of power and turned them into his slaves.
The Ringwraiths may have a generic Grim Reaper look, but they are among
the most frightening manifestations of that trope. Great directing and design has made them
nightmarish almost every time they’re on screen. Fran Walsh’s (Peter Jackson’s wife) modified
screech also helps. The leader of The
Nine also dons some pretty neat armor in the third movie.
41. THE THING
The Thing
(1982)
One of the most horrifying creatures put on screen, the
Thing is an alien that kills whatever organism it assimilates. The people trapped with it in an Antarctic
research station have to stop it from escaping and assimilating the whole
planet. Despite its appearance, it’s at
least as intelligent as a human. As well
as apparently being able to build a spaceship out of spare parts, it can
perfectly imitate anyone and it acts rationally, only revealing itself when
necessary (well not in the 2011 prequel, but that movie sucks). This inspires paranoia in the characters and
helps create tension and mystery. 