# Your Own Personal Tempter: Best & Worst Satans **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 22, 2005, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425 "2005-02-22T22:38:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/21 "2005-02-23T07:06:51Z")
> [@jeffh3000](#): > > One of my favorite Satan’s is John Glover as he portrayed it in “Brimstone” the tv series. That reminds me…the series The Collector - about a man who’s supposed to collect souls (because he is one himself) damned for making deals with the devil, but brokers another deal with Satan - to get a chance to help the poor schmucks redeem themselves before they can be forcefully dragged to Hell - has an interesting Satan. He appears in a different form every episode. He’s been a little girl, a cab driver (played by Blu Mankuma, much to my delight), a pizza delivery boy (white stoner looking kid), a vietnamese gangster, an old chinese lady, a 3-card monte dealer, and a bunch more that I can’t remember offhand. When dealing with Morgan (the Collector), he threatens, taunts, and otherwise annoys him. Occasionally when Morgan gets close to redeeming someone, he’ll occasionally pull something to mess it up - offering to extend the deal, or trying to convince them they can’t fix things, etc - sometimes he’ll just sit back and watch, or he’ll just try to make Morgan give up. Sometimes he’ll even appear to take it well when Morgan succeeds. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/22 "2005-02-23T07:52:55Z")
> [@lisacurl](#): > > Viggo Mortensen was a vicious and very pretty Lucifer in _The Prophecy_. Alas, it was a very small role. …but memorable. One of my favourites. I love that film…but it gets no respect, I tell ya. The other is Neil Gaiman’s Lucifer in _Sandman_ (Haven’t read the )_Lucifer_ spin-off so can’t say how well he’s done there) My worst is the devil in the Arnie movie _End of Days_ - not Gabriel Byrne, he’s cool, but the CGI satan at the end. Also cgi-Satan in Spawn. Maybe it’s CGI-satans generally? ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/23 "2005-02-23T07:59:54Z")
I think I’ll create a Best/Worst film AntiChrist thread. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/24 "2005-02-23T08:43:18Z")
[“Peaches”](http://www.jrj-socrates.com/Cartoon%20Pics/Nick%20Toons/Rocko/Satan-Peaches_300.gif) from _Rocko’s Modern Life._ ---
**Author:** ![Fortean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/96bed5/32.png) [@Fortean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fortean)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/25 "2005-02-23T12:31:31Z")
Everyone always seems to forget one of the greatest movie devils – Walter Huston as Mr Scratch in **The Devil and Daniel Webster**. Here’s a pic: [http://www.scottschirmer.com/devil-and-daniel-webster-scratch-with-webster-b.jpg](http://www.scottschirmer.com/devil-and-daniel-webster-scratch-with-webster-b.jpg) (He’s the one on the right!). He’s a great example – not exactly terrifying, but hellishly annoying and irritating, enough to make your skin crawl. ---
**Author:** ![SlyFrog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@SlyFrog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlyFrog)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/26 "2005-02-23T18:53:39Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I liked Bulgakov’s Satan (Woland) in _The Master and Margarita_ far better. Although Milton Satan is good, too. Wonderful book, wonderful choice. I’m not sure if it’s the best ever, but it’s the best I can currently think of as well. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/27 "2005-02-23T19:00:10Z")
> [@jeffh3000](#): > > One of my favorite Satan’s is John Glover as he portrayed it in “Brimstone” the tv series. His manner here is very"british like", well dressed, delights in his pure evil, with a wicked sense of humor. “The only person I ever loved was God, and that was a VERY long time ago!” Good call. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/28 "2005-02-23T19:01:52Z")
> [@Flipstrip](#): > > I was always rather partial to two “Twilight Zone” Satans, Burgess Meredith and Julie Newmar. Burgess just relishes the role, and Julie’s just ROWR! Julie’s cute little horns just get me every time! ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/29 "2005-02-23T19:19:22Z")
> [@The Scrivener](#): > > I think the female Satans have the advantage of surprise, insofar as everyone basically expects Satan to be a male figure. So, are you disappointed that they never released the remake of _The Devil and Daniel Webster_ with Jennifer Love Hewitt? ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/30 "2005-02-23T19:57:54Z")
> [@lisacurl](#): > > Was it a spoiler that Deniro’s character was Satan in _Angel Heart_? I remember being aware of it immediately. I mean, his name was a pretty big clue. The movie indeed treated it as though it was to be a surprise to the audience at the same time it was a surprise to Willis - towards the end. Regardless, do you pass judgement on all spoilers and then unspoil them in a duplicate post if you feel they don’t fit the criteria? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/31 "2005-02-23T20:11:53Z")
> [@Robot Arm](#): > > So, are you disappointed that they never released the remake of _The Devil and Daniel Webster_ with Jennifer Love Hewitt? How about a remake of _The Devil in Miss Jones_ with Jennifer Love Hewitt? ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/32 "2005-02-23T20:25:50Z")
In comics, The First of the Fallen in _Hellblazer_ (I’m thinking specifically of _Rake at the Gates of Hell_ here) and Lucifer in _Sandman_ (from _Season of Mists_ onwards) are both great favourites of mine. The First’s speech in _Rake at the Gates of Hell_ is one of my favourite sequences in comics ever. In film, Viggo Mortensen’s devil in _Prophecy_ was the one I came here to mention. Not much to add there. One thing many devil portrayals miss is that the devil isn’t nearly as scary if he’s repelling. He’s supposed to be beautiful. You’re supposed to be able to see the appeal. What I’d really like to see is a really handsome male movie-devil, physically strong but with slim rather than bulging muscles, moving like a cat, scarily intelligent, constantly smiling slightly as if he knows something you don’t, and just oozing sex from every pore. I’m thinking Jude Law with black hair. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/33 "2005-02-23T21:13:21Z")
**Priceguy** , the author Taylor Caldwell had the Devil portrayed as an attractive man in one of the short stories that make up the book Grandmother and the Priests. A priest experiencing a crisis of faith is confronted by Satan. Later, describing him, he says he wasn’t afraid because he reminded him of well-born friends from his days at university, young, well dressed, urbane, and so on. Actually, another story in the same volume had a similar Devil, and it’s his hearty, amused laughter that recieves prominent mention. Both of the men who faced these devils mentioned that if he appeared with horns, tail, and a pitchfork, we’d run screaming away, and so the evil one appears in the guise most appealing to us. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/34 "2005-02-23T22:24:56Z")
> [@Baker](#): > > … > > Both of the men who faced these devils mentioned that if he appeared with horns, tail, and a pitchfork, we’d run screaming away… . Or laughing ourselves sick. ---
**Author:** ![moonstarssun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@moonstarssun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moonstarssun)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/35 "2005-02-23T22:34:55Z")
Another vote for Viggo Mortenson in _The Prophecy_. ---
**Author:** ![lisacurl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/41988e/32.png) [@lisacurl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisacurl)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/36 "2005-02-23T22:39:11Z")
> [@Dooku](#): > > The movie indeed treated it as though it was to be a surprise to the audience at the same time it was a surprise to Willis - towards the end. > > Regardless, do you pass judgement on all spoilers and then unspoil them in a duplicate post if you feel they don’t fit the criteria? 😉 Willis? Do you mean Mickey Roarke’s character? I’m not going to argue it – it’s been a long time since I’ve seen the movie – I just didn’t consider the identity of a character whose name is a heavy-handed pun on Lucifer to be a spoiler. If the Devil’s going to get me for it, can he look like Viggo please? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/37 "2005-02-23T23:33:10Z")
From [Ebert’s Review](http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19870306/REVIEWS/703060301/1023) > [@](#): > > The De Niro character sets the tone, with his sharp, pointed fingernails and his elegant black suits. De Niro must have had fun preparing for the character: He uses a neatly trimmed black beard, slicked-back hair and tricks of lighting and makeup to make himself look uncannily like Martin Scorsese, his favorite director. Given what we eventually discover about the character, it’s a wicked homage. So it seems that the movie intended it as a secret, whether you figured it out right away or not. I did too, ftr, but with spoilers in Cafe Society I err on the side of caution. Example: Would you place what happens to Professor Lupin’s character in **Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban** in a spoiler box? I would. Not that it matters - I was mainly busting your chops about posting the same thing I did ten minutes later. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/38 "2005-02-24T01:21:24Z")
robert redford, twilight zone. ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/39 "2005-02-24T01:38:48Z")
I liked Jamey Sheridan’s take on Randall Flagg (who is basically an incarnation of The Devil) in _Stephen King’s The Stand_. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2005, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425/40 "2005-02-24T10:49:20Z")
Flagg is more Antichrist (Son of Satan) than Satan, IMHO, but Sheridan was good. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-own-personal-tempter-best-worst-satans/291425.md?page=3)