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Who is the greatest film villain of all time?
Once we have a good list built, we'll get a poll put in, so for now, just list your pick and if he hasn't appeared already, maybe give a brief rundown.
The Shark - Jaws (1975). A modern retelling of Moby Dick, Jaws is a masterpiece and at it's center is one of the great all time villains. Black eyes, lifeless eyes, like a doll's eyes... Jaws revolutionized SFX and led us into a decade dominated by them.
Pennywise the Clown/It - It (1990). Part creepy clown, part reptilian monster, part giant, intergallactic spider monster, Pennywise is an iconic villain brought to life by one of the great all time performances by one of the great character actors. There's something deeply disturbing about Pennwise, he embodies fear itself.
Darth Vader - The Star Wars Trilogy (1977, 1980, 1983). Chaaaaw-cheeeee. No other villain is so instantly recognizable. The black, fetishized armour, the sound of the breathing apparatus and the iconic theme song, Darth Vader, voiced by the great James Earl Jones, is one of the iconic figures in American film. His ultimate redemption (and waaaaay too much exploration of his backstory) might disqualify him from this contest. Is he really a villain at all, or a fallen hero?
Norman Bates - Psycho (1960). Anthony Perkins was born to play the role of Norman Bates. Combining a healhy dose of mommy issues with the highly taboo practice of cross dressing, Norman Bates forced his audience to address the dirty secrets of society at large and the primal disgust of the Oedipus Complex.
The Alien - Alien (1979). Alien is one of the most relentlessly original films of all time, questioning everything we knew up to that point about horror films. SFX took a quantum leap forward in the 70s thanks to films like Alien and Jaws. While Jaws forced us to confront an ancient, primal fear, Alien presented us with a whole new nightmare to ponder. From acid blood to the prehensile tongue, the Alien was like nothing we had seen before.
Sean Noakes - Sleepers (1997). The other villains on this list share a common bond: They're killers. Kevin Bacon's Sean Noakes didn't need to kill you; the psychological scars of his abuse would drive you to a life of drugs, murder and early, tragic death. This is one of the great under rated performances with Kevin Bacon forcing us to confront the truth about demons: They walk among us.
Hannibal Lecter - The Slience of the Lambs (1991). One of the most influential antagonists of all time, Hannibal Lecter brought an air of sophistication to the role of the villain. But beneath that veneer of class lurked a brutal, primal fear: Cannibalism. Equal parts charming and deadly, Hannibal Lecter expanded the role of the villain in modern film.
Once we have a good list built, we'll get a poll put in, so for now, just list your pick and if he hasn't appeared already, maybe give a brief rundown.
The Shark - Jaws (1975). A modern retelling of Moby Dick, Jaws is a masterpiece and at it's center is one of the great all time villains. Black eyes, lifeless eyes, like a doll's eyes... Jaws revolutionized SFX and led us into a decade dominated by them.
Pennywise the Clown/It - It (1990). Part creepy clown, part reptilian monster, part giant, intergallactic spider monster, Pennywise is an iconic villain brought to life by one of the great all time performances by one of the great character actors. There's something deeply disturbing about Pennwise, he embodies fear itself.
Darth Vader - The Star Wars Trilogy (1977, 1980, 1983). Chaaaaw-cheeeee. No other villain is so instantly recognizable. The black, fetishized armour, the sound of the breathing apparatus and the iconic theme song, Darth Vader, voiced by the great James Earl Jones, is one of the iconic figures in American film. His ultimate redemption (and waaaaay too much exploration of his backstory) might disqualify him from this contest. Is he really a villain at all, or a fallen hero?
Norman Bates - Psycho (1960). Anthony Perkins was born to play the role of Norman Bates. Combining a healhy dose of mommy issues with the highly taboo practice of cross dressing, Norman Bates forced his audience to address the dirty secrets of society at large and the primal disgust of the Oedipus Complex.
The Alien - Alien (1979). Alien is one of the most relentlessly original films of all time, questioning everything we knew up to that point about horror films. SFX took a quantum leap forward in the 70s thanks to films like Alien and Jaws. While Jaws forced us to confront an ancient, primal fear, Alien presented us with a whole new nightmare to ponder. From acid blood to the prehensile tongue, the Alien was like nothing we had seen before.
Sean Noakes - Sleepers (1997). The other villains on this list share a common bond: They're killers. Kevin Bacon's Sean Noakes didn't need to kill you; the psychological scars of his abuse would drive you to a life of drugs, murder and early, tragic death. This is one of the great under rated performances with Kevin Bacon forcing us to confront the truth about demons: They walk among us.
Hannibal Lecter - The Slience of the Lambs (1991). One of the most influential antagonists of all time, Hannibal Lecter brought an air of sophistication to the role of the villain. But beneath that veneer of class lurked a brutal, primal fear: Cannibalism. Equal parts charming and deadly, Hannibal Lecter expanded the role of the villain in modern film.
