The villains in a movie make the story. There’s no other way to say it. Heroes are predictable, normally fighting on the side of the perceived “good” with a set of personal rules that prevent them from being too crazy. Villains on the other hand are not hindered by a society’s view of good, only required to do everything but that good. They can be unpredictable, cruel or are often dark character foils for the main character. For everything that heroes can show us about the good we are capable of, there is a villain prepared to show us the darkest depths of the human psyche. Here are Josh’s Top 5 movie villains.

5. Reagan MacNeil/Pazuzu from “The Exorcist” – Regarded as one of film history’s most disturbing films, “The Exorcist” original film print is believed by Evangelist Preacher Billy Graham to have an actual demon in it. “The Exorcist” pits an aging priest, and one who is losing his faith, against the ancient demon Pazuzu in a battle royale for the soul of 12 year old Reagan. Pazuzu takes the cherubic little girl and turns her into a vulgar, supernaturally strong and pea soup vomit spewing hellhound. Favorite line: “Your mother sucks c@&$s in hell Karras, you faithless slime.”

4. Darth Vader from “Star Wars” – Darth Vader is easily recognizable as the darkly clad antagonist of the “Star Wars” trilogy. Vader was voiced by James Earl Jones in the original trilogy, and wowed audiences with his force choking, light saber slashing, no-holds barred pursuit of the Rebel Alliance. It was later revealed that Vader was the father of hero Luke Skywalker, and the character gained a whole new depth. He became a tragic figure, much like Lucifer in Judeo-Christian mythology, who fell from grace to become the figure of ultimate evil in science fiction. Unfortunately for audiences, the aforementioned fall from grace was portrayed by cardboard cutout actor Hayden “Mannequin Skywalker” Christensen in the recently released prequel films. Favorite line: “Remember… no disintegrations!”

3. Alex DeLarge from “A Clockwork Orange” – “A Clockwork Orange” tells the tale of a dystopian future England where teenage gang leader Alex DeLarge wreaks havoc with his gang members. Alex rapes, murders and controls his cronies with disturbing, almost childlike, glee. The tables are turned on the teenage terror when he is imprisoned and forced to give up violence through brainwashing. An odd twinge of pity enters the viewer when watching the terrible struggle Alex faces when tempted to fall into his old habits. Alex deserves a top position for the unpredictable and wanton nature of the violence he perpetrates. Alex was even listed by Heath Ledger as an inspiration for his Joker in “The Dark Knight.” Favorite line: “I’ve suffered the tortures of the damned, sir – tortures of the damned.”

2. Amon Goeth from “Schindler’s List” – Goeth embodies the terror of the Holocaust in a manner that was horrifically real to the viewer. Goeth was the commandant of the camp that Oskar Schindler’s Jewish workers were imprisoned in. Ralph Fiennes, famous now for his portrayal of Voldemort in the Harry Potter films, plays the Nazi officer in a cold, calculating manner. He’s selfish, loathing of the dirty prisoners he lords over and views the extermination of the Jews as a task that he’s required to do efficiently by Hitler. Goeth executes prisoners in a random manner, at one point shooting from the porch of his villa at any random prisoner in his sights. He smokes, drinks and has no remorse for the lives he takes – in essence taking all the pleasure of living while depriving others of it. Goeth is nearly the perfect villain. Favorite Line: “This is very cruel, Oskar. You’re giving them hope. You shouldn’t do that. That’s cruel!”

1. The Joker from “The Dark Knight” – I hate to jump on the Heath Ledger Joker bandwagon, but the unpredictable and chaotic deeds of “The Dark Knight’s”  antagonist went beyond a mere battle of good and evil. Ledger’s Joker asks every viewer about where their hearts lie in the age old debate over humanity’s inclination to chaos or order. The Joker’s monumental task of battling Batman appeared to be no different than taking out the trash as the whole of Gotham City was plunged into chaos by the “Clown Prince of Crime.” Knives, explosives or poison; The Joker had no qualms about who he iced. Favorite Line: “Do you want to know why I use a knife? Guns are too quick. You can’t savor all the… little emotions. In… you see, in their last moments, people show you who they really are. So in a way, I know your friends better than you ever did. Would you like to know which of them were cowards?”

Send article as PDF to