If you love value for money, you’ll love these awesome films with not just one great villain but two (or more) for the price of one…
An action film is only as good as its villain. Whether it’s a Terminator or the mighty Ivan Drago, a fear-inducing antagonist makes the hero’s journey all the more thrilling. Not every film has a standout villain, and it’s rare that they tend to live long in the memory.Sometimes however, a film is blessed with not just one great villain, but two – and sometimes even more – hiss-worthy bad guys who stand in the way of the hero.
For actors, playing the bad guy is usually a more expressive and open experience where they can tap into a dark side, or just go wild and have a lot of fun with it. Generally, when there’s scenery to be chewed in a genre picture, it’s the villain who has their knife, fork, and napkin at the ready to devour. Here are some essential films blessed with two (or more) villains…
Under Siege
There were plenty of memorable moments in Steven Seagal’s levelling-up, Die Hard riff, Under Siege. It’s the film that put him right up, snapping at the heels of the Planet Hollywood trio of Willis, Stallone, and Schwarzenegger. Whether it’s Seagal breaking limbs or Erika Eleniak bursting out of a cake, Under Siege remains Seagal’s most polished and large-scale film.
However, the main reason the film works so well (aside from Andrew Davis’ expert direction) is the villain lineup. Gary Busey and Tommy Lee Jones join forces to chomp scenery, peacock into every one of their scenes, and completely steal the movie from the comparatively dull Seagal. Jones in particular seems to really lift his villain off the page and make Strannix feel like a lost member of a 70s rock band who decided international terrorism was better than a Knebworth gig.
Surviving the Game
Not so much a duo but more a veritable roster of bad ‘uns, as Rutger Hauer leads a team of hunters whose prey is the unwitting Ice-T. Hauer, an elite movie villain whether flying solo or not, is joined by Charles S. Dutton, John C. McGinley, F Murray Abraham, and, for good measure, Gary Busey once again.
It’s a solid enough entry in the Most Dangerous Game sub-genre, but that lineup of villains is what has given this film a lasting legacy. Busey, in particular, is at the top of his scene-stealing game with a monologue about killing his beloved pet dog as a child, which feels like it was invented on the spot and delivered in a way only Gary (MF) Busey could do.
Robocop
Robocop is a perfect movie, far exceeding just how good a film about a robo-cop should ever have been. Firstly, a good script gets injected with Paul Verhoeven’s idiosyncrasies and love of biting satire. Then it’s got Verhoeven’s trademark gleefully excessive violence and a brilliant performance from Peter Weller as the titular Frankensteinian hero.
So even without a sprinkling of top-level villainy, the film would be winning. However, there’s more than a sprinkling here, thanks to Kurtwood Smith deciding to rewrite the book on showstopping bad guys. Smith gets nothing but great lines and delivers them so assuredly as to make them legendary. Great movie villains are there to be quoted, after all. Then you have Ronny Cox, who seemed to make a habit of delivering iconic and unscrupulous corporate villains.
Total Recall
Speaking of Ronny Cox, he doubled down on his Verhoeven villain routine in Total Recall. He managed to deliver more of the same but with enough variation to make Cohagen feel like a whole different piece of megalomaniacal turd. Like Robocop, Total Recall is a film that’s better than its B-movie trappings would usually allow. Again, it’s largely down to Verhoeven’s flair, a strong heroic presence in Arnold Schwarzenegger (complete with wall-to-wall killer lines), and the stellar bad guys.
Cox is aided and abetted by Michael Ironside (once again, another specialist in being a tormenting presence) and a great performance from Sharon Stone.
Hard Target
Another film in the Most Dangerous Game mould was Hard Target. It was a perfect star vehicle for Jean-Claude Van Damme and a great announcement to the action world of the West, for John Woo. Van Damme gets hunted for sport by Lance Henriksen and Arnold Vosloo, who set up the hunts for rich clients who want to hunt more than pheasants.
Van Damme is at his posing, high-kicking best, but Henriksen and Vosloo make a great pairing. Henriksen is all dialled up explosions of rage, whilst Vosloo is intense, glaring menace with stares that could kill. Both of them get the best lines, too. Though the initial response to the film was mixed, in time it’s come to be regarded as one of (if not) the best Van Damme star vehicles.
Commando
If Commando didn’t exist but you asked AI to create the ultimate 80s action film, it would probably create a pretty close blueprint of Commando (minus the inherent human flair). Commando is the perfect compendium of action movie tropes, melded into one uproariously over-the-top spectacle. Arnold is the near indestructible badass, who doesn’t look so much forged, but more like the vivid doodle of a 12-year-old boy’s idea of a superhuman.
With Schwarzenegger in such peak physical condition and playing a character so immovable, Mark L. Lester’s film needed a team of villains capable of making it interesting. With Vernon Wells playing a maniacal and beefy merc (who looks like a Freddie Mercury impersonator), you’ve got the crazy, but then there’s Dan Hedaya, Bill Duke, and David Patrick Kelly (all on top form) for good measure.
The Crow
Sticking with David Patrick Kelly (so iconic in Walter Hill’s The Warriors), he also makes up part of a ragtag group of hedonistic nutters who terrorise their City every Devil’s Night. He’s got Tony Todd and Michael Massee to help, too, and they all work under the incredible Michael Wincott and his right-hand woman, Bai Ling.
The Crow’s dark gothic tone was so memorable and inspired so many films that came after. Most importantly, the star vehicle for the incomparable Brandon Lee is stuffed with these colourful villains. In more recent years, comic book films have often come unstuck or never linger long in the memory, precisely because the villains are lacklustre.
The Punisher
Jon Bernthal has recently returned as the Punisher, but the very first on-screen depiction of Frank Castle came with Dolph Lundgren’s initially derided starrer. The comic book boom was way off, and the success of Burton’s Batman did little to help failing adaptations like The Punisher or Albert Pyun’s Captain America. Still, in time, fans have grown to appreciate the Lundgren incarnation of Mr P. Firstly, it’s got Ozploitation coursing through its veins (shot in Australia with several Mad Max crew).Secondly, Lundgren’s performance as Castle is an effective husk of almost fume running vengeance, differing from the more outright rage-filled depictions since. It’s all out, well-orchestrated action, too.
Then there’s the impressive supporting cast, who give weighty performances, such as the gravitas of Louis Gossett Jr. As for the bad guys tasked with punishing the Punisher, well, Jeroen Krabbe is a compelling bad guy who injects plenty of intrigue into what could have been a generic gangster. However, the star turn comes from the fierce Kim Miyori (and well backed by her mute daughter and ominous Karate duo bodyguards) as the Yakuza head. It’s precisely because the villains don’t immediately scream ‘comic book’ that makes them a bit more interesting than normal.
The Silence of the Lambs
With Oscar-winning clout, The Silence of the Lambs proved to be a film that perfectly balanced award season heft with blockbuster appeal and pop cultural legacy. Jodie Foster was a great heroine in a story that is dark, chilling, and thrilling. Of course, the film, and indeed the books of Thomas Harris, made Hannibal Lecter an icon.
Yet there’s a danger that the impact of Ted Levine as Buffalo Bill might be undervalued compared to the showiness of Anthony Hopkins’ Lecter. Levine is ultimately the one that Clarice (Foster) will have to take down, and his performance is all (tucked) in.
Manhunter
Of course, Lambs wasn’t the only screen adaptation of the Lector-verse, nor was it the first. Michael Mann’s box office dud, Manhunter, is a film many a cinephile and cult film lover might attest is the best adaptation of Harris’s works. It’s an adaptation of his Red Dragon book, with burned-out criminal profiler Will Graham reluctantly coming back to the force to stop the serial killer known as ‘The Tooth Fairy.’
Mann’s glossy style mixes well with intense procedural details. Then there’s Brian Cox’s chilling and far less showy depiction of Hannibal Lecter. It’s a cold and calculated performance that feels more real than being a showy Hollywood villain. Hopkins is superb, of course, but it’s a really nice antithesis here. Really, though, the star of Manhunter is the late great Tom Noonan, who is absolutely terrifying, able to inject some degree of complexity and near sympathy into the part. It doesn’t feel like a movie villain, more like a fly on the wall view of a real serial killer.
What’s your favourite film with multiple villains? Let us know on our social channels @FlickeringMyth…
Tom Jolliffe
