Villains in movies who maybe... weren't.

[Svengoolie 3]

OK, can you name some movie vilains who maybe weren't really the bad guys?

I'll open up with one Dr. Zaeus, from "planet of the apes ". Now he did some stuff I do tend to frown upon, like lobotomizing people, concealing the truth, framing innocent people like Cornelius and zira, plus a few other things.

But was he really a bad guy? He did know the truth about humanity and the world's last and repressed it. He knew human history and feared the return of human power because he knew what humans had done to the world long ago. He had a granddaughter, he had a family he presumably loved. He feared for their safety if humanity ever rose again . Given his world was blown to cinders by a human weapon detonated by a human hand I'd have to say his fears were pretty reasonable. So was he a villain?

How about khan in star trek into dumbness? He was created by humanity to be a conquerer, condemned by humanity to death for being what they made him to be, fled with his people, was captured, his people, Hus family threatened if he did not cccoperate with ADM. Marcus. He did and Marcus planned to murder him and his people anyway. What he did afterwards was to save his people.  Icd say the real villain in that movie was Marcus. Khan kept his world to firm, depsote being betrayed by Marcus, until kirk betrayed him after khan saved kirk's life.

Any other movie bad guys who'se villainy is questionable?

[dean]

The best villains are those with motivations you can understand even if you don't condone.

#thanoswasright?

[Trevor]

How about khan in star trek into dumbness?

 

[Trevor]

I've always felt that Darth Vader / Annakin Skywalker was never really a villain: just someone who went on a wrong journey for a while but redeemed himself by saving his son. I always liked him, even as a kid and no, I wasn't scared of him, quite the opposite. 

[RCMerchant]

The Frankenstein Monster, of course.
The Wolf Man- actually, most werewolves.
Talos, from Jason and the Argonauts. He was just the island cop. Doing his job.

[Svengoolie 3]

I've always felt that Darth Vader / Annakin Skywalker was never really a villain: just someone who went on a wrong journey for a while but redeemed himself by saving his son. I always liked him, even as a kid and no, I wasn't scared of him, quite the opposite. 

No, vader did not redeem himself just because he saved his own son, that doesn't cut it after murdering a roomfull of children. And murdering that guy at the beginning of ANH, and torturig god knows how many people, we saw two.

If the force let vader off that easily it's pretty lame.

[indianasmith]

DRACULA in the 1990's Francis Ford Coppola film.

[WingedSerpent]

Pretty much any movie where the antagonist is just an animal that's doing what is natural to them.  So examples like the Redesaurus from Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, various other kaiju, the crocodile from Lake Placid. 

Its what's their nature is.

[sprite75]

This isn't a movie villain so much but more of a TV villain - that being Dr. Toby Russel in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode Ethics.  Yes she was unethical doctor who took shortcuts right through living flesh.  But Worf would never have survived if not for her and the surgical procedure she had devised.  I think Picard was on the right track - Worf was not a human and even though he spent all that time among humans he was still an alien with his own culture and no amount of time among humans could bridge all of those cultural differences.   I think Dr. Crusher and Riker were in the wrong here to try to force Worf  to act according to their values.

[RCMerchant]

Pretty much any movie where the antagonist is just an animal that's doing what is natural to them.  So examples like the Redesaurus from Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, various other kaiju, the crocodile from Lake Placid. 

Its what's their nature is.

I always thought that as well.  I wasn't angry at the shark in JAWS- I was scared of him- but not angry. It's his f**king ocean. You swim in his backyard, your food.

[Svengoolie 3]

Of humans gp on safari to hunt animals because they can, are they bad guys or is the Predator not a bad guy?

[El Misfit]

The best villains are those with motivations you can understand even if you don't condone.

#thanoswasright?

Personally I preferred it to when Thanos wanted to date Death and killing people over being an angry farmer and killing people.

[RCMerchant]

Of humans gp on safari to hunt animals befaisenthey can, are they bad guys or is the Predator not a bad guy?

As far as this-"befaisenthey" is- I'm not sure exactly, but yeah- all them Clark Gable Jungle movies and Predator movies are about the same!
 

[Svengoolie 3]

TV villians are fair here, so for a TV villain.....Q on star trek. Was he a villain or just a pompous ass?

[Trevor]

TV villians are fair here, so for a TV villain.....Q on star trek. Was he a villain or just a pompous ass?

John DeLancie was once quoted as saying that Q considered Picard and his crew to be family.