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Villain As Protagonist

by J_Frank_Parnell • Created 2 years ago • Modified 8 months ago
Say hi to the bad guy
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List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
  • 49 titles
  • Al Pacino in Scarface (1983)

    1. Scarface

    19832h 50mR65Metascore
    8.3 (966K)
    In the 1980s, a determined criminal-minded Cuban immigrant becomes the biggest drug smuggler in Miami, and is eventually undone by his own drug addiction.
    DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsAl PacinoMichelle PfeifferSteven Bauer
  • Joaquin Phoenix in Joker (2019)

    2. Joker

    20192h 2mR59Metascore
    8.3 (1.6M)
    Arthur Fleck, a party clown and a failed stand-up comedian, leads an impoverished life with his ailing mother. However, when society shuns him and brands him as a freak, he decides to embrace the life of chaos in Gotham City.
    DirectorTodd PhillipsStarsJoaquin PhoenixRobert De NiroZazie Beetz
  • Kevin Spacey, Stephen Baldwin, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio Del Toro, and Kevin Pollak in The Usual Suspects (1995)

    3. The Usual Suspects

    19951h 46mR76Metascore
    8.5 (1.2M)
    The sole survivor of a pier shoot-out tells the story of how a notorious criminal influenced the events that began with five criminals meeting in a seemingly random police lineup.
    DirectorBryan SingerStarsKevin SpaceyGabriel ByrneChazz Palminteri
  • Christian Bale in American Psycho (2000)

    4. American Psycho

    20001h 42mR64Metascore
    7.6 (781K)
    A wealthy New York City investment banking executive, Patrick Bateman, hides his alternate psychopathic ego from his co-workers and friends as he delves deeper into his violent, hedonistic fantasies.
    DirectorMary HarronStarsChristian BaleJustin TherouxJosh Lucas
  • Akira (1988)

    5. Akira

    19882h 4mR68Metascore
    8.0 (216K)
    A secret military project endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a teenage biker gang member into a rampaging psychic psychopath who can only be stopped by his best friend.
    DirectorKatsuhiro ÔtomoStarsMitsuo IwataNozomu SasakiMami Koyama
  • James Cagney and Jean Harlow in The Public Enemy (1931)

    6. The Public Enemy

    19311h 23mPassed80Metascore
    7.6 (24K)
    An Irish-American street punk tries to make it big in the world of organized crime.
    DirectorWilliam A. WellmanStarsJames CagneyJean HarlowEdward Woods
  • Eric Bana in Chopper (2000)

    7. Chopper

    20001h 34mR68Metascore
    7.1 (43K)
    Chopper tells the intense story of Mark "Chopper" Read, a legendary criminal who wrote his autobiography while serving a jail sentence in prison. His book, "From the Inside", upon which the film is based, was a best-seller.
    DirectorAndrew DominikStarsEric BanaSimon LyndonVince Colosimo
  • Clint Eastwood in High Plains Drifter (1973)

    8. High Plains Drifter

    19731h 45mR69Metascore
    7.4 (68K)
    A gun-fighting stranger comes to the small settlement of Lago and is hired to bring the townsfolk together in an attempt to hold off three outlaws who are on their way.
    DirectorClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodVerna BloomMarianna Hill
  • Michael Douglas in Falling Down (1993)

    9. Falling Down

    19931h 53mR56Metascore
    7.6 (217K)
    An ordinary man frustrated with the various flaws he sees in society begins to psychotically and violently lash out against them.
    DirectorJoel SchumacherStarsMichael DouglasRobert DuvallBarbara Hershey
  • Tom Hardy in Bronson (2008)

    10. Bronson

    20081h 32mR71Metascore
    7.0 (145K)
    A young man who was sentenced to seven years in prison for robbing a post office ends up spending three decades in solitary confinement. During this time, his own personality is supplanted by his alter-ego, Charles Bronson.
    DirectorNicolas Winding RefnStarsTom HardyKelly AdamsLuing Andrews
  • Jake Gyllenhaal in Nightcrawler (2014)

    11. Nightcrawler

    20141h 57mR76Metascore
    7.8 (637K)
    A petty thief desperate for work muscles into the world of crime journalism and becomes the star of his own story as he blurs the line between observer and participant.
    DirectorDan GilroyStarsJake GyllenhaalRene RussoBill Paxton
  • Leonardo DiCaprio, Chris Kerson, and Jonah Hill in The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

    12. The Wolf of Wall Street

    20133hR75Metascore
    8.2 (1.7M)
    Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, from his rise to a wealthy stock-broker living the high life to his fall involving crime, corruption and the federal government.
    DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsLeonardo DiCaprioJonah HillMargot Robbie
  • Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver (1976)

    13. Taxi Driver

    19761h 54mR94Metascore
    8.2 (979K)
    A mentally unstable veteran works as a nighttime taxi driver in New York City, where the perceived decadence and sleaze fuels his urge for violent action.
    DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsRobert De NiroJodie FosterCybill Shepherd
  • Jeff Goldblum in The Fly (1986)

    14. The Fly

    19861h 36mR81Metascore
    7.6 (215K)
    A brilliant but eccentric scientist begins to transform into a giant man/fly hybrid after one of his experiments goes horribly wrong.
    DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsJeff GoldblumGeena DavisJohn Getz
  • Christine (1983)

    15. Christine

    19831h 50mR57Metascore
    6.8 (97K)
    A nerdish boy buys a strange car with an evil mind of its own and his nature starts to change to reflect it.
    DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsKeith GordonJohn StockwellAlexandra Paul
  • Robert Newton in Treasure Island (1950)

    16. Treasure Island

    19501h 36mApproved89Metascore
    6.9 (10K)
    The treasure seeking adventures of young Jim Hawkins and pirate captain Long John Silver.
    DirectorByron HaskinStarsBobby DriscollRobert NewtonBasil Sydney
  • Malcolm McDowell in A Clockwork Orange (1971)

    17. A Clockwork Orange

    19712h 16mR77Metascore
    8.2 (912K)
    Alex DeLarge and his droogs barbarize a decaying near-future.
    DirectorStanley KubrickStarsMalcolm McDowellPatrick MageeMichael Bates
  • Badlands (1973)

    18. Badlands

    19731h 34mPG94Metascore
    7.7 (81K)
    An impressionable teenage girl from a dead-end town, and her older greaser boyfriend, embark on a killing spree in the South Dakota Badlands.
    DirectorTerrence MalickStarsMartin SheenSissy SpacekWarren Oates
  • The Shining (1980)

    19. The Shining

    19802h 26mR68Metascore
    8.4 (1.2M)
    A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter, where a sinister presence influences the father into violence. At the same time, his psychic son sees horrifying forebodings from both the past and the future.
    DirectorStanley KubrickStarsJack NicholsonShelley DuvallDanny Lloyd
  • Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynskey in Heavenly Creatures (1994)

    20. Heavenly Creatures

    19941h 39mR86Metascore
    7.2 (69K)
    Two teenage girls share a unique bond: their parents, concerned that the friendship is too intense, separate them, and the girls take revenge.
    DirectorPeter JacksonStarsMelanie LynskeyKate WinsletSarah Peirse
  • Mr. Freedom (1968)

    21. Mr. Freedom

    19681h 35mNot Rated
    6.4 (1.3K)
    Mr. Freedom is an all-American superhero that destroys everyone who even remotely disagrees with imperialism. The film accounts his latest assignment to save France from being taken over by the commies.
    DirectorWilliam KleinStarsJohn AbbeyDelphine SeyrigDonald Pleasence
  • Henry Jones, Nancy Kelly, and Patty McCormack in The Bad Seed (1956)

    22. The Bad Seed

    19562h 9mApproved51Metascore
    7.4 (17K)
    Rhoda Penmark seems like your average, sweet eight-year-old girl. After her rival at school dies in mysterious circumstances at the school picnic, her mother starts to suspect that Rhoda was responsible.
    DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsNancy KellyPatty McCormackGage Clarke
  • Humphrey Bogart, Pat O'Brien, Gabriel Dell, Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, Billy Halop, Bobby Jordan, Bernard Punsly, and The Dead End Kids in Angels with Dirty Faces (1938)

    23. Angels with Dirty Faces

    19381h 37mApproved
    7.9 (24K)
    A priest tries to stop a gangster from corrupting a group of street kids.
    DirectorMichael CurtizStarsJames CagneyPat O'BrienHumphrey Bogart
  • Downfall (2004)

    24. Downfall

    20042h 36mR82Metascore
    8.2 (389K)
    Traudl Junge, the final secretary for Adolf Hitler, tells of the Nazi dictator's final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of WWII.
    DirectorOliver HirschbiegelStarsBruno GanzAlexandra Maria LaraUlrich Matthes
  • Buffalo '66 (1998)

    25. Buffalo '66

    19981h 50mR69Metascore
    7.4 (64K)
    After being released from prison, Billy is set to visit his parents with his wife, whom he does not actually have. This provokes Billy to act out, as he kidnaps a girl and forces her to act as his wife for the visit.
    DirectorVincent GalloStarsVincent GalloChristina RicciBen Gazzara

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