Ten Greatest Film Villains

[BoyScoutKevin]

At least according to the "Time" magazine of May 7, 2007.

Arranged by the year, the film was released.

1945 "Detour" Vera (Ann Savage)

1949 "White Heat" Cody Jarrett (James Cagney)

1962 "Cape Fear" Max Cady (Robert Mitchum)

1962 "The Manchurian Candidate" Mrs. Iselin (Angela Lansbury)

1972 "Aquirre, the Wrath of God" Don Lope de Aguirre (Klaus Kinski)

1976 "Marathon Man" Dr. Christian Szell (Laurence Olivier)

1984 "The Terminator" The Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger)

1993 "Schindler's List" Amon Goeth (Ralph Fiennes)

1994 "Pulp Fiction" Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames)

2001 "Hannibal" Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins)

Any additions? Deletions? Comments?

I'll hold most of my comments to later on, but I do have two quick comments now. Note that most of these actors and actresses were born somewhere else other than the U.S.  And that most of these villains are fairly well known, except for perhaps the first one.

[Menard]

I'll add two:

Scorpio from Dirty Harry, played by Andy Robinson

and

Maximillian Largo as played by Klaus Maria Brandauer in the Bond film Never Say Never Again

[Torgo]

   

[The Burgomaster]

Here 10 more to add:

* GOLDFINGER - Goldfinger (Gert Frobe)
* THE FRENCH CONNECTION - Alain Charnier (Fernando Rey)
* DELIVERANCE - Mountain Men (Bill McKinney and Herbert "Cowboy" Coward)
* M - Hans Beckert (Peter Lorre)
* SILENCE OF THE LAMBS - Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine)
* LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT - Krug Stillo (David Hess)
* JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH - Count Saknussem (Thayer David)
* KILL BILL (VOL. 1 and 2) - Bill (David Carradine)
* STAR WARS - Darth Vader (David Prowse / James Earl Jones)
* THE OTHER - Niles and Holland Perry (Chris and Martin Udvarnoky)

[JaseSF]

Seems to me some version of Dracula or another should have been on that list. Still I'm pleased to see they included Ann Savage from DETOUR.

[fortunato]

These are my Top Ten villains in cinema history

1) Top Dollar (Michael Wincott) in The Crow
2) Norman Stansfield (Gary Oldman) in Leon (The Professional)
3) Jonathan Crane (Cillian Murphy) in Batman Begins
4) Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen) in Reservoir Dogs
5) Darkness (Tim Curry) in Legend
6) John Doe (Kevin Spacey) in Se7en
7) Joseph Curwen (Chris Sarandon) in The Resurrected
8) Captain Renault (Claude Rains) in Casablanca
9) Travis Bickle (Robert DeNiro) in Taxi Driver
10) Dudley Smith (James Cromwell) in L. A. Confidential

[Susan]

[Zapranoth]

Whoever wrote that "Time" list has both alleles for Cinematically Clueless.

He wrote a top ten villain list and it didn't contain Darth Vader?

QED.

[ghouck]

I thought Mr. Smith in the Matrix was a damn fine villan also.

[Raffine]

                   "What will you give me for a basketful of kisses?"

 

[AnubisVonMojo]

Some very recent additions to the list: Dr. William Block from the Planet Terror segment of Grindhouse & Costello from The Departed.

Personal fav villains: Carl Hill from Re-Animator, Edward Pretorious of From Beyond, and Nurse Wilson/Mombi and Dr. Worley/the Gnome King from Return to Oz have been always had a place in my cold dead heart.

[Shadow]

Thulsa Doom!!


Now they will know why they are afraid of the dark. Now they will learn why they fear the night.

[Trevor]

 

Some of mine are:

Dr Soran (Malcolm McDowell) in Star Trek Generations
Khan Noonian Singh (Ricardo Montalban) in Star Trek 11
Judith Herault (Nadia Fares) in The Crimson Rivers
Eddie Kim (played by Some Guy, sorry, forgot his name) in Snakes On A Plane
Colonel Cochrane (Malcolm McDowell) in Blue Thunder
Jimmy Serrano (Dennis Farina) in Midnight Run
Jay Hamilton (Neal McDonough) in Walking Tall
Kaufman (Dennis Hopper) in Land Of The Dead
Neil (Robert DeNiro) in Heat

Lastly, Darth Vader. I know he does kill people and other things like that, but he does save his son (and his soul) eventually so he is a bad guy, but there is some good in him. 

[DodgingGrunge]

I don't know, when I think "villain" I think "evil incarnate".  Most of the characters in Time's list seem to be merely criminal.  And some criminals are just so darn charming!

10.  Mr. Helpmann - Brazil
09.  Richard Nixon - Nixon
08.  Nurse Ratchet - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
07.  Leopold & Loeb - Swoon
06.  H.A.L. - 2001: A Space Odyssey (not evil so much as inhuman, but he is quite nasty)
05.  Raymond Lemorne - Spoorloos (AKA The Vanishing)
04.  Henry - Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
03.  Alan Yates - Cannibal Holocaust
02.  Ilsa - Ilsa: She Wolf of the S.S.
01.  The masked assailants in Guinea Pig: An Experiment In Terror

He wrote a top ten villain list and it didn't contain Darth Vader?

Personally, I always felt the Dark Side got a bad wrap.  For one, the Dark Side was always taking new members, whereas the Rebel Alliance plotted to destroy all who disagreed with their principles.   And the rebels were certainly responsible for more deaths, not to mention the fact they used a robot to trick a peaceful civilization of teddybears (all right, ewoks) to fight a technologically superior enemy with sticks and rocks, resulting in innumerable casualties and disfigurements.  Come on, that's just cruel!  No, I think Star Wars is definitely an epic written by the winners.  Haha.

[RCMerchant]

Dracula and Ming defintly belong on the list!
others...
.DR.MABSUE
.FU MANCHU
.SATAN
.JACK the RIPPER
.the OVERLOOK HOTEL
.the house in THE HAUNTING (60's version)
.GHIDRAH
.the mad Dr. Gogol from MAD LOVE(1935)
.Ygor from SON of FRANKENSTIEN
.Freddy Krugar
.JASON!
.MICHEAL MEYERS
.Krug and freinds from LAST HOUSE on the LEFT
.the TEXAS CHAINSAW clan!!!
.the DEVIL's REJECTS
. Mr.HYDE
.Seems like Erich Von Sroheim should be on their some place...
.DR.PHIBES