What’s a good hero without an equally compelling villain? Of course, there are different types of villains the same way there are different types of heroes, whether it’s in terms of bulk or brains. A bulky villain is an intimidating presence in and of her or himself. For instance, Jaws inThe Spy Who Loved MeandMoonraker. That can certainly be intimidating enough to carry a film.
But what about the villain whose mind is three steps ahead of the hero? When that’s done right, it makes for an all-timer. And while these villains usually end up in the exact same position as their brawnier counterparts, they just give the hero a better run for their money. The smartest villains are, outside of goofballs like Jack Nicholson’s Joker, the most memorable, and what follows are the best of the best in terms of classic movies with whip-smart villains.
20Predator (1987)
Predator (Edit)
The first of three action classicsdirected by John McTiernan,Predatorstands as one of the most purely entertaining and quotable films of all time. The story follows a group of soldiers as they’re stranded out in the woods in search of another lost team. Soon, they learn exactly what happened, and it’s the last thing they’d expect.
Both physically formidable (and agile) as well as highly intelligent, the alien Yautja has exactly one goal. But, it will never go for an easy target, instead preferring a challenge. Call that one part bravery and one part rational confidence. Though, for this Yautja, he has the misfortune of going up against Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch.
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19Wall Street (1987)
Wall Street
One ofthe best films set in New York, Oliver Stone’sWall Streetis one of the ’80s' most quotable films. The plot follows Bud Fox, a young stockbroker hopeful who is taken under the wing of the experienced Gordon Gekko. But Gekko is no friend to Fox, even if the latter doesn’t see it at first.
Gekko is the ultimate money-obsessed character. His morals have long since gone out the window, and that’s part of what makes him so good at what he does. In fact, he’s probably the best, just as he’s the best at playing people until everything they once had is his.
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18Die Hard (1988)
The second of three action classics from director John McTiernan,Die Hardsomehow manages to topPredatorin the excitement department, and has gone on by many to be considered the greatest action film of all time. The expertly-assembled rollercoaster ride follows an NYC cop out of his element in LA. And, unfortunately for him, it’s not just tension with his estranged wife he has to worry about, but terrorists as well.
Hans Gruber makes for a formidable adversary. Sure, his gun-toting goons are intimidating in and of themselves, but there’s never a doubt in the mind of the viewer or McClane that it’s Gruber who is pulling the strings. He’s a blatant mastermind.
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17Goldfinger (1964)
Goldfinger
The definitive Bond film,Goldfingerfollows the superspy as he seeks to foil the plans of bullion magnate Auric Goldfinger. What are those plans? Break into and raid Fort Knox.
Goldfinger works as a villain because he’s not only smart and driven, but ruthless as well. If he brings someone in on a plan and they rebuke his ideas, they meet their death. He allows no chances for defeat…not that it works out for him anyway.
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162001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
2001: A Space Odyssey
2001: A Space Odyssey is one of Stanley Kubrick’s most well-known films. A science-fiction epic, the film tells the story of the journey of Discovery One, a spacecraft operated by a group of scientists, astronauts, and a sentient computer, on a mission to Jupiter to investigate a mysterious monolith. Considered one of the greatest films ever made, Kubrick combines sparse dialogue with the heavy use of scoring and ambiguous imagery to create something that eschews conventional filmmaking.
Stanley Kubrick’s ingenious2001: A Space Odysseyis, in a way, the story of life. The narrative visits several different time periods, but for the most part it focuses on the future, after the human race has discovered something mysterious buried within the Moon, and now they’re in search of its origins.
The HAL 9000 is the film’s central antagonist, an AI entity with desires of its own. Naturally, as AI is proving itself to be now, that’s a problem.
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15Superman II (1980)
Superman II
Superman (Christopher Reeve) foils the plot of terrorists by hurtling their nuclear device into outer space, but the bomb’s shock waves free the Kryptonian villain General Zod (Terence Stamp) and his henchmen Ursa (Sarah Douglas) and Non (Jack O’Halloran) from their imprisonment. Traveling to Earth, they threaten the planet with destruction at the same time that Superman decides to renounce his superpowers in order to live a normal life as Clark Kent with his new love, Lois Lane (Margot Kidder).
More or less afilm by two directors(the Richard Donner Cut, released years later, is definitive),Superman IIcontinues the story of the original film in a direct fashion. Specifically, that film introduced audiences to Zod and his two compatriots, but only briefly. The sequel gives them center stage, even arguably over Superman himself.
While General Zod is the main antagonist in the sequel, and the most intelligent one at that, his right-hand woman Ursa can easily hold her own onJeopardy!night. That said, for two geniuses who can escape crystallized captivity, they still need a brute, and that’s Non.
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14Blade Runner (1982)
Blade Runner
The original Blade Runner is a sci-fi neo-noir film set in 2019 in a dystopian cyber-punk society. Harrison Ford stars as Rick Deckard as a Blade Runner for the LAPD, tasked with hunting rogue replicants, genetically engineered humans designed to tackle tasks that human beings cannot. When four replicants go rogue and begin killing humans, Deckard is forced out of retirement to hunt them down and stop them - but the truth isn’t as simple as it seems. Deckard will have to reckon with the philosophical dilemma of what makes someone human.
Easily one ofthe best sci-fi movies of the ’80s, Ridley Scott’sBlade Runneris the compelling story of Rick Deckard, a cop tasked with taking out Replicants (realistic androids). But, after encountering Rachael, Deckard starts to question not only her humanity, but his own.
The main Replicant Deckard is hunting down, Roy Batty, is a combat model, but what he is moreso is a free thinker. He’s an android who wants to be flesh, not just possess the appearance of flesh. The fact that his mind could transcend programming is certainly telling of Batty’s smarts, but so too is his beautiful final speech.
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13Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan
The best of the first string ofStar Trekmovies (possibly even beyond that, depending on who you ask),Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khanis the epic tale of the USSEnterprise’s battle with genetically enhanced warlord Khan Noonien Singh.
The ultimateStar Trekvillain, Khan’s genetic tampering makes him more deadly than he already was (an experienced leader). And, with 15 years to plan revenge on Kirk and his crew, Khan has devised an elaborate plot that actually manages to cause theEnterprise’s moral some serious damage.
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12Star Wars Episode VI − Return of the Jedi (1983)
Return of the Jedi
Return of the Jedi, the weakest chapter of the originalStar Warstrilogy is still magical entertainment. The plot concludes the Rebels fight against the dreaded Empire, just as it concludes Luke Skywalker’s complex relationship with his father.
Thefilm’s Ewoks may be cute, but the true evil department is solely occupied by Emperor Palpatine, with Ian McDiarmid making his first appearance as the character (he was later added intoEmpire Strikes Back). When Luke takes on Vader for the final time, it’s not really Vader who is the true opponent. Because, like everyone else Palpatine has encountered, he’s been manipulated until he can’t recognize his own life anymore.
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11The Terminator (1984)
The Terminator
The Terminator, one of the most respected sci-fi films of all time, also functions as a horror and, of course, as an action film. The narrative follows Sarah Conner, a waitress with one heck of a future. But she’s not aware of that, and now a futuristic robot has arrived in the present to see that her future never comes to be.
James Cameron announced himself in a major waywithThe Terminatorwhich, for all intents and purposes, was his first time behind the camera for a feature film (he’s mostly distanced himself from 1982’sPiranha II: The Spawning). So did Arnold Schwarzenegger, who gives the T-800 a massive level of physical intimidation, but there’s also the machine’s inner workings…and they’re far more advanced than a human’s simple brain. In other words, it’s the perfect killing machine.
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