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Monday, July 14, 2008
Who are the best movie villains ever?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With “The Dark Knight” debuting on Friday — and featuring Heath Ledger as The Joker — it’s a great time to name the best movie villains of all time.
Time magazine’s Richard Corliss has proclaimed his Top 25 … and, somehow, Darth Vader didn’t measure up. It’s hard to fathom how that happened.
I have my own list. As I’m sure you do, too.
Here are my 10 Favorite Movie Villains on Film:
1. Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs.” He creeps me out every time I see him. And the weird chemistry with Jodie Foster is amazing.
2. James Earl Jones as the voice of Darth Vader in The Empire Strikes Back.” It would be totally terrifying to be the good son and hear the words, “Luke, I am your father.”
3. Margaret Hamilton in “The Wizard of Oz.” She’s perfect every moment she’s on the screen.
4. Ralph Fiennes in “Schindler’s List.” Pure evil and easy to hate.
5. Alan Rickman in “Die Hard.” Pure evil and easy to love.
6. Ben Kingsley in “Sexy Beast.” Kingsley talking to himself in the mirror is amazing.
7. Glenn Close in “Fatal Attraction.” Over the years, the movie’s grown on me. And Close is about as good as an actress can be.
8. Henry Fonda in “Once Upon a Time in the West.” Fonda’s always the good guy in other films, so it’s jolting to see him be so harsh, hard and dastardly.
9. Andy Serkis as Gollum in “The Two Towers” and “The Return of the King.” He’s a vision of Frodo’s future if our Hobbit hero doesn’t watch out.
10. Angela Lansbury in “The Manchurian Candidate.” Talk about the mother from hell.
I also have two favorites from TV miniseries: Tim Curry in “It” and Jamey Sheridan in “The Stand.”
Who are your favorite villains from the movies? Arnold Schwarzenegger in “The Terminator”? Lionel Barrymore in “It’s a Wonderful Life”? Bette Davis in “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane”?
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