# movies where the bad guy wins **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 13, 2002, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471 "2002-12-13T08:43:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cerebrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3da27b/32.png) [@cerebrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cerebrum)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/1 "2002-12-13T08:43:43Z")
the movie that immediately comes to mind is The usual Suspects. what other movies can you think of? ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/2 "2002-12-13T08:52:09Z")
Not too many that I’m aware of. Most of the time even when it’s adapted from a book where the bad guy wins the movie’s re-written so you walk out of the theatre feeling good. Devil’s Advocate is the first movie I think of where this happened. Alien 3 had the bad guys win but it doesn’t exist so it doesn’t count. ---
**Author:** ![Burnt\_Toast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba8739/32.png) [@Burnt\_Toast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Burnt_Toast)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 9:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/3 "2002-12-13T09:07:04Z")
In \*\* Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels\*\*, a bad guy won in the end. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/4 "2002-12-13T09:13:29Z")
_Malcolm_—Australian film, made about 15 years ago. Wonderful film. ---
**Author:** ![Silentgoldfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@Silentgoldfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silentgoldfish)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/5 "2002-12-13T09:18:30Z")
:smack: What am I thinking of? The end of Nightmare on Elm Street (and I think all of the sequels but the last one). A lot of 80’s horror movies had the bad guy win as a last shock to end the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Nader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Darth\_Nader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Nader)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/6 "2002-12-13T10:18:42Z")
_Invasion of the Body Snatchers_, both versions. _A Clockwork Orange_ _Chinatown_ (well, you know…) ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/7 "2002-12-13T10:24:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Silentgoldfish \* > \*\*Not too many that I’m aware of. Most of the time even when it’s adapted from a book where the bad guy wins the movie’s re-written so you walk out of the theatre feeling good. Devil’s Advocate is the first movie I think of where this happened. > \*\* I didn’t take that as Satan winning. Rather that now round 2 is set up between him and Reeve’s character. ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/8 "2002-12-13T10:26:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Darth Nader \* > \*\*_Invasion of the Body Snatchers_, both versions. > \*\* Well, the original one had the studio happy ending, you know, when they actually believe Kevin McCarthy and “Call the FBI”, so you really can’t say that the bad guy won. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/9 "2002-12-13T10:30:53Z")
Depending on who you consider to be the bad guy, Being John Malkovich ends with the bad guy winning. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Nader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Darth\_Nader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Nader)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/10 "2002-12-13T10:40:08Z")
Gah, my memory must be failing… I recall our hero seeing truckloads of pods moving in on the highway-- the end. Sorry about that. The remake scared the goobers out of me. (points and shrieks) ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/11 "2002-12-13T11:05:27Z")
_The Godfather series_ as I don’t think you can really see Micheal as a “Good Guy” and in #3 people worse then him really destory what was left of his life. _The Blair Witch Project_, if you consider the Blair Witch the bad guy. If you hated the kids, well, maybe she’s not. _Momento_ - The Ring \* - Uzumaki \* - Das Boot \*, considering you are supposed to sympathize with the german crew of the boat. - The Thing(1982) \* is debatable. - Fiddler on the Rooftop\* ends with everyone getting kicked out of their little village for no reason. Does that count? - Silence of the Lambs \* as they traded one serial killer on the loose for another. _Hannible_ definitely, considering Lecter was the only bad guy. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/12 "2002-12-13T12:49:02Z")
**1984** Especially the version actually _made_ in 1984. I’ve been told that in the _British_ release of the 1950s version (but not the American release) Winston Smith dies in a hail of gunfire while defying Big Brother, but that might be an UL along the lines of “Godzilla Wins in the Japanese version King Kong vs. Godzilla”. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/13 "2002-12-13T12:57:28Z")
One can make an argument for “carter” in th movie “Payback”. He was at least as villianous as the other evil bad guys. ---
**Author:** ![Amp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Amp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amp)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/14 "2002-12-13T13:03:12Z")
What about Swordfish? The Travolta character got everything he wanted and got away in the end. ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/15 "2002-12-13T13:13:46Z")
_The Last Seduction_ Linda Fiorentino has ice water for blood. Gets away with it all and still manages to be IMO one of the most sexiest characters I have ever seen in a movie. ---
**Author:** ![Earthworm\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f07891/32.png) [@Earthworm\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earthworm_Jim)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/16 "2002-12-13T13:16:40Z")
_Fallen_ - The demon wins. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/17 "2002-12-13T13:22:39Z")
There’s movie starring Michael Caine called _A Shock to the System_ that fits into this category. Great movie and darkly comic commentary on the business world today… ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/18 "2002-12-13T13:23:31Z")
You could make a case for _Wild Things_, but just about everyone was bad in that movie. ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/19 "2002-12-13T14:09:17Z")
Some would argue _Brazil_, but I’d argue right back. ---
**Author:** ![deathawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ed8c4c/32.png) [@deathawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deathawk)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2002, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471/20 "2002-12-13T14:10:10Z")
**Body Heat** with William Hurt & Kathleen Turner. One of the best _Film Noirs_ ever made. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-where-the-bad-guy-wins/142471.md?page=2)