# Truly evil characters in film and literature **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 28, 2011, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988 "2011-02-28T22:56:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![katie1341](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/91b2a8/32.png) [@katie1341](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/katie1341)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/121 "2011-03-08T02:19:53Z")
Hans Beckert in “M”. “Big Jim” Rennie in “Under the Dome”. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/122 "2011-03-08T04:36:04Z")
> [@Typo\_Knig](#): > > Soze didn’t stop at killing the people who threatened him and his family. He killed the entire gang, their relatives, indirect business associates - total scorched earth. > > “Verbal Kint” controls all information to Agent Kujan other than corpses. Either Soze really did kill his own family, and every other person involved in the incident, or he wants Kujan to believe that Soze is that cold blooded, and bloody-minded.. Yeah, I’m aware. I was just referring specifically to someone else’s post with that last little bit. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/123 "2011-03-08T06:43:49Z")
Senator Endicott in [Michael P. Kube-McDowell’s _Alternaties_](http://www.alternities.com/html/alternities.htm). I haven’t read it since 1988 and his torture and murder of a woman still sticks in my brain. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Excellent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@Mr.Excellent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Excellent)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/124 "2011-03-08T15:14:49Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Mephistophilis in Marlowe’s [_Doctor Faustus._](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_Faustus_%28play%29) Why? He does only that which the Doctor requests, and even _warns_ Faustus that damning his soul is a bad idea. What more could you ask of the fellow? ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/125 "2011-03-08T15:34:50Z")
> [@Mr.Excellent](#): > > Why? He does only that which the Doctor requests, and even _warns_ Faustus that damning his soul is a bad idea. What more could you ask of the fellow? I was basing it on the way Mephistophilis gloats, at the end, over Faustus’ damnation. He’s obviously in love with Faustus (Marlowe was gay, remember) – but in his case “love” expresses itself as the desire to have Faustus’ soul suffering with him in Hell forever. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Bredin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@John\_Bredin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Bredin)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/126 "2011-03-08T20:03:19Z")
> [@katie1341](#): > > Hans Beckert in “M”. (Checks entry for “M” in IMDB) 🙂 Peter Lorre’s character, the murderer?! He’s a serial child killer, but I thought a clearly insane one. It’s been years since I’ve seen it, but as I recall he’s shown in the last scene of the underworld “trial” to be a somewhat pitiable character, not the face of true evil. I thought the point of the end of the last scene, where he’s rescued from the “trial” by the police, wasn’t that he’d merely get a proper trial but the help he needed, a mental hospital until he is cured (even if that turns out to be never), rather than the hangman’s noose. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/127 "2011-03-08T23:55:25Z")
Mrs. Iselin (Angela Lansbury’s character) in The Manchurian Candidate (1962). She is absolutely chilling in the ruthless way she schemes to reach her goal of absolute power. Plus more than a little sick in her relationship to her son, but that’s just a cute foible compared to the rest of her behavior. She doesn’t care who has to die to put her in power. “We’ll be swept into office with such powers that will make martial law look like anarchy!”. Naked, hungry greed for power. Roddy ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/128 "2011-03-09T00:07:11Z")
Livia from _I Claudius_ would win in a match of vengeance or brutality with Don Corleone. She emotionlessly recalls as an old woman how her son and grandson both died of natural causes but she’d already marked them for death, though she admits killing her husband of 50 years was somewhat hard. Most of her kills are in-laws and step-relatives. (I never watched _The Sopranos_ but I know that Tony’s mother was named for this character and evidently resembled her a bit.) ---
**Author:** ![Precambrianmollusc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/precambrianmollusc/32/63_2.png) [@Precambrianmollusc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Precambrianmollusc)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/129 "2011-03-09T00:25:03Z")
Denis Hoppers character Paris Trout in the film Paris Trout Nasty nasty man. Not a happy film to watch either. There was a discussion here about a film called A Serbian Film, I made the mistake of reading the wiki link and really wish I hadn’t. I’d bet that a fair few characters in that film would be in the running. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/130 "2011-03-09T00:32:29Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > Senator Endicott in [Michael P. Kube-McDowell’s _Alternaties_](http://www.alternities.com/html/alternities.htm). I haven’t read it since 1988 and his torture and murder of a woman still sticks in my brain. Yeah, the Senator’s a piece of work. I’ll add “The Happy Man” from Jonathan Lethem’s story of the same name. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/131 "2011-03-09T00:41:45Z")
If ever a jerk was sadistic and evil enough to justify having his head sliced in two with a lawnmower blade, it was Doyle Hargraves of _Sling Blade_. God, I hated that bastard. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/132 "2011-03-09T00:46:44Z")
> [@John\_Bredin](#): > > (Checks entry for “M” in IMDB) 🙂 > Peter Lorre’s character, the murderer?! He’s a serial child killer, but I thought a clearly insane one. > > It’s been years since I’ve seen it, but as I recall he’s shown in the last scene of the underworld “trial” to be a somewhat pitiable character, not the face of true evil. I thought the point of the end of the last scene, where he’s rescued from the “trial” by the police, wasn’t that he’d merely get a proper trial but the help he needed, a mental hospital until he is cured (even if that turns out to be never), rather than the hangman’s noose. There’s also the point he raises at the “trial” itself – who is more evil, him (driven by urges he doesn’t want and can’t control) or the underworld people (who freely chose crime instead of honest work)? ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/133 "2011-03-09T00:48:36Z")
> [@Gray\_Ghost](#): > > Xykon, from Order of the Stick. Not that he isn’t funny as hell while being utterly evil. Seconded. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/134 "2011-03-09T00:50:13Z")
> [@Precambrianmollusc](#): > > Denis Hoppers character Paris Trout in the film Paris Trout > > Nasty nasty man. Not a happy film to watch either. He was very closely based on an [actual person](http://unionrecorder.com/features/x155354675/Marion-Stembridge-murders-rocked-1950s-Milledgeville)who if anything was probably worse. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/135 "2011-03-09T01:47:29Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > Mrs. Iselin (Angela Lansbury’s character) in The Manchurian Candidate (1962). She is absolutely chilling in the ruthless way she schemes to reach her goal of absolute power. Plus more than a little sick in her relationship to her son, but that’s just a cute foible compared to the rest of her behavior. She doesn’t care who has to die to put her in power. “We’ll be swept into office with such powers that will make martial law look like anarchy!”. Naked, hungry greed for power. > Roddy Kinda like Lady M-- . . . Lady Scottish-Play, if she were the real brains and Lord Scottish-Play were a doofus-puppet. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/136 "2011-03-09T01:54:43Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Livia from _I Claudius_ would win in a match of vengeance or brutality with Don Corleone. She emotionlessly recalls as an old woman how her son and grandson both died of natural causes but she’d already marked them for death, though she admits killing her husband of 50 years was somewhat hard. Most of her kills are in-laws and step-relatives. (I never watched _The Sopranos_ but I know that Tony’s mother was named for this character and evidently resembled her a bit.) Tony’s mother is cold and selfish and manipulative and not someone you’d want to be around – Tony’s shrink, based purely on his descriptions, diagnoses her with [Borderline Personality Disorder](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borderline_personality_disorder) – but she’s not actively malicious or scheming. She has nothing of Empress Livia’s brains or determination. In Empress Livia’s case, she seems to be absolutely convinced everything she does is for the Greater Good. The Empire is better than the Republic – look how the Republic ended! – and Tiberius (about whom Livia has no illusions, and for whom little affection) is better suited to keep it going than Agrippa or Marcellus or any of Augustus’ other favorites. In the book, Claudius (who knows the worst about her) considers it entirely appropriate that she should be made a goddess. It makes a kind of sense – she lived and planned on such a godlike plane. ---
**Author:** ![MacCat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maccat/32/216_2.png) [@MacCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacCat)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/137 "2011-03-09T02:13:33Z")
> [@Shawn1767](#): > > I’ve tried to read all the posts, but I don’t think anyone’s mentioned Nurse Ratched from “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” yet. That’s the one I was looking for and saw rachelellogram did on page 2. In reading all, Sampiro’s post reminded me of Shelley Winters truly evil character in A Patch Of Blue. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/138 "2011-03-09T02:54:33Z")
M/Sgt. McKinney (Martin Sheen) in _Cadence_, who witnesses a triumph of human nature, teamwork, and dignity, and responds by shooting his own men dead. Capt. Finlander (Richard Widmark) in _The Bedford Incident_, an officer with flashes of human decency, who nonetheless manages to overcome them with an inhuman discipline that brings disastrous results. ---
**Author:** ![Lucky\_13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucky_13/32/13209_2.png) [@Lucky\_13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_13)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/139 "2011-03-09T05:04:33Z")
Sousuke Aizen in _Bleach_. He acts like a nice guy until his whole evil scheme is discovered. He fakes his own death and frames his lieutenant for it, knowing she is in love with him and breaking her heart. He also allows Rukia to be condemned to execution, aware that she carries the Hogyoku, takes it from her as her friends help her escape, and runs away to take over Hueco Mundo. Later he takes Orihime prisoner by having Ulquiorra emotionally blackmail her into coming to Las Noches, so that her friends will rescue her; he’s aware of her emotional vulnerability and knows her feelings of guilt at seeing her friends sacrifice for her will break her. BTW I haven’t read or seen the “Turn back the Pendulum” arc. If anyone here has, please answer: Did Aizen have a hand in the exile of Urahara and Yoruichi? Also, did he sell Shinji (then his captain in the 5th division) out? I don’t know, but I suspect he had something to do with the creation and exile of the Vizards (Visoreds? That sounds wrong). ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988/140 "2011-03-09T05:18:07Z")
What about Kevin, played by Elijah Wood, in _Sin City_? From the film’s [wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_(Sin_City)#Male_antagonists) page: “Kevin is a mute serial killer who resides at “The Farm”, a shadowy retreat owned by the powerful Roark family. Though he is never shown speaking a single word, his erstwhile protector Cardinal Roark claims that he has the voice of an angel. He kills prostitutes, mounts their heads on a wall like hunting trophies, and cannibalizes their remains, giving the leftovers to his pet wolf. He is sheltered by Cardinal Roark, to whom he supposedly confessed being tormented by guilt over his crimes. Being close with Cardinal Roark, he is also well known to the family and is good friends with Roark Junior. He appears as a small, shadowy figure with occasionally glowing glasses and razor-sharp fingernails that he uses as weapons. Kevin is preternaturally quick and silent, and ferociously skilled at martial arts. Marv laments that Kevin is the only person to have ever successfully snuck up on him, and is also the only person to successfully beat him in single combat. Portrayed by Elijah Wood in the film adaptation.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/truly-evil-characters-in-film-and-literature/572988.md?page=8)