A villain is only as good as their backstory, right? Oh,
wait. . . isn’t a “good villain” an oxy-moron? After all, isn’t the point of
the villain to be bad? Well, in my opinion, the most intriguing villains are
ones with backstories. You know, the ones you hate—until you get to know them.
3. Maleficent: The
Disney version of Maleficent in the movie Sleeping
Beauty was the one most likely to give me nightmares. She was mean for no
reason, had a sinister laugh, and had the ability to turn into an evil dragon.
In short, she terrified me. However, in the 2014 movie Maleficent, we see her fluttering around with birds and butterflies
in a beautiful wood, and befriending an innocent peasant boy. The rest of the
movie tells the story of how a funny, bright, trusting fairy turns into a
villain to be feared. Watch the movie, if you haven’t already!
2. Severus Snape: We’ve all had terrible teachers, but have
any of them been as awful as Snape? Not only did he hate Harry from the moment
he laid eyes on him, he was Harry’s teacher for seven years! Most of us, at
least in the States, haven’t had to endure dreadful teaching for that long! To make matters worse, Harry, Ron and Hermione had ample evidence suggesting Snape was a Death-Eater on the side of Voldemort. So why did Hagrid and Dumbledore persist in defending Snape? As
any of you who have read the Harry Potter
series know, these questions and more aren’t answered until Book 7. As
Harry learns more about Snape’s past, we start to be empathetic and
realize there are reasons Snape acts the way he does. 
1.Darth Vader: Like Elizabeth, my all-time favorite villain is from Star Wars. However, mine is definitely Darth Vader. Just
hearing the theme music with him breathing in the background sends chills down
my spine. I’m older than a lot of you, but I think he was the first true “bad
guy” I had ever seen in a movie. With all the extra movies (Episodes I-III), we
understand a lot of his motivations. Darth Vader is a complicated character,
and I can’t help liking him.
Who do you like best? Leave a comment and let me know!
Erin
Attributions:
Maleficent: http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/Maleficent/Gallery
Severus Snape: http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Images_of_Severus_Snape
Darth Vader: http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/Darth_Vader/Gallery
Sorry for the confusing wording in the Maleficent section. : ) Working on getting it fixed! Thanks for your patience! Erin
ReplyDelete: ) Ah, success! Hopefully this makes more sense now! Thanks! : )
ReplyDeleteSnape would've definitely made my list, too! I think by the end he's the most intriguing character of the entire Harry Potter series. But if I were to be a villain I would totally want Darth Vader's theme music - it's just so dark, yet awesome :)
ReplyDeleteWhen my youngest was a toddler, if my husband played the Darth Vader music on the piano, she would say, "No, no. It's too scary for me." : )
DeleteLOL, how cute!
DeleteVillains make or break a book/movie. They have to be a worthy opponent for the protagonist as well as being intriguing in their own right. I loved Marissa Mayer's portrayal of Queen Levanna in "Fairest." Even though Queen Levanna is so bad, I found myself sympathising with how she ended up where she was. Mayer did an excellent job portraying all the complexities of a great villain!
ReplyDeleteThanks! My kiddos have me scheduled to read the rest of the Cinder series, so I will have to add Fairest. Thanks for the recommendation!
DeleteThese are great villains, Erin. I especially love the Maleficent portrayed in the movie you mention.
ReplyDeleteThanks! I know. . .I'll never be able to watch the cartoon version without feeling sympathetic towards her again! Thanks for reading!
ReplyDeleteI love a good villain. This definitely makes me interested in seeing Maleficent.
ReplyDeleteSnape was marvelously complex, though I do have my doubts about whether he's truly a villain. This seems a timely post, since Alan Rickman (the actor who portrayed Snape) passed away last week.
I was so sad! I had written the post earlier, in order to proof it, and was so surprised to hear the news about Mr. Rickman. And, I love his Col. Brandon in Sense and Sensibility. It took me the first 3 HP movies to get used to hearing his voice as a villain! Maybe because it took me so long to read the entire series, I still think of him as one of the bad guys. : )
DeleteOh yes, Sense and Sensibility is the first thing I remember him from. I had to get used to his drastically different role as well, but he did such an amazingly good job with it. My husband was familiar with him as the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, so I think it was easier for him to picture him as a villain.
DeleteI got a really late start on that series, not reading it until the final book was out. Then I read the entire series in about three weeks. It never occurred to me how much impact that must have on my view of him as a character, but I am sure it makes a big difference.
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ReplyDelete: ) I keep forgetting to hit "reply" instead of "comment." Sorry! : )
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