Top 10 (Plus Two) Movie Villains

It's really hard narrowing these categories down to 10 or under, so I cheated a little again. There are plenty of iconic movie villains to choose from. Here are my top 10+ in no particular order. Several won the Academy Award for their amazing performances. Again, they are all so good, it's too difficult to rank them. Let me know what you think of the list, and please share some of your favorites.

11. General Zod - played by Terence Stamp in Superman (1978) and most notably in
Superman II (1980).

10. Annie Wilkes - creepily played by Kathy Bates in Misery (1990).

9. Joan Crawford - as portrayed by Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest (1981) "No... wire... hangers. What's wire hangers doing in this closet when I told you: no wire hangers EVER?"

8. Max Cady - played equally well by Robert Mitchum (1962) and Robert DeNiro (1991) in
Cape Fear.

7. Nurse Ratched - played by Louise Fletcher in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975). Her level of realism and believability is astounding.

6. Norman Bates - hauntingly played by Anthony Perkins in Psycho (1960).

5. The Wicked Witch of the West - played by Margaret Hamilton in The Wizard of Oz (1939). Gave me nightmares!

4. The Joker/Jack Napier of Batman (1989) and Jack Torrance of The Shining - both brought to life so effectively by Jack Nicholson.

3. Darth Vader - voiced by James Earl Jones in the Star Wars original trilogy (1977-1983) and briefly in Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005). A Classic!

2. Hans Gruber - meticulously played by Alan Rickman in Die Hard (1988).

1. Dr. Hannibal Lecter - I can say this is the 'Number One Movie Villain' for me! Played flawlessly by Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs (1991).

My Top 10 Original Film Scores

Here is a list of 10+ of my favorite original film scores. They are not really in any order, because they are all so good, it's almost impossible to rank them. They cover a fairly wide range of styles and sound. Plus, i'll cheat a little for #1. I have to give the highest praise to John Williams and Jerry Goldsmith. Both have had incredible careers as composers of countless film and television scores. Without their film scores, many of our favorite movies would not have had the same impact.

10. Batman - Danny Elfman (Beetlejuice, Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Darkman)

9. Halloween - John Carpenter (The Fog, Christine, Escape from New York)

8. The Untouchables - Ennio Morricone (The Good, The Bad and The Ugly)

7. Back to the Future - Alan Silvestri (Also Parts II and III, Forrest Gump, Predator)

6. Sherlock Holmes - Hans Zimmer (Pirates of the Caribbean, The Dark Knight)

5. National Treasure - Trevor Rabin (Remember the Titans, The Guardian)

4. Blade Runner - Vangelis (Won the Academy Award for Chariots of Fire)

3. Robocop - Basil Poledouris (Starship Troopers, The Hunt for Red October)

2. Rocky - Bill Conti (The Right Stuff, North and South, The Karate Kid)

1. John Williams (Star Wars, Superman, Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jurassic Park)
Jerry Goldsmith (Planet of the Apes, The Omen, Patton, The Mummy, Alien)

There are plenty of other composers and amazing film scores I thought of, so this is not to exclude any. It was tough narrowing it down to these. Let me know some of your favorites.

My Top 5 Vigilante Movies

5. The Limey - Most don't include this on their list, but it's one of my personal favorites. Terrence Stamp (General Zod in the original Superman series and the lead role in The Collector ) stars as a father who travels to America to investigate the death of his daughter. He systematically finds those responsible and exacts his revenge, without hesitation. Simple, effective and wonderfully directed by Steven Soderbergh. Grade: A

4. Harry Brown - This one stars Michael Caine as a very unlikely vigilante. He is a widowed Royal Marines veteran living in a London housing estate. The neighborhood is quickly declining due to drugs and youth crime. Many residences are senior citizens and are easy targets for the criminals. Once Harry's friend is murdered, he takes the law in his own hands. Intense, well-acted and compelling. Grade: A

3. The Crow - Brandon Lee stars as a rock musician who is murdered. His fiancee is beaten and raped and also dies. One year later he is revived from the dead to avenge both of their deaths. Although, considered a supernatural action movie, I still think of it as purely in the vigilante genre. I like this movie for its originality, its look and style and as a tribute to Brandon Lee, who was accidentally killed during the production.
Grade: A

2. Mad Max - This is the movie that launched the Mad Max series; so it all started as a simple vigilante movie. Mel Gibson played Max, and Australian highway police officer. As Earth's oil supply is being exhausted, law and order is breaking down. Motorcycle and hot rod gangs take over the highways. Max's partner and family are victims. Losing so much, he seeks justice however possible. The sequels deal with post-apocalyptic world after these events, but this one is pure vigilante. Grade: A+

1. Death Wish - This is widely considered the best vigilante film, and I totally agree. Charles Bronson stars as Paul Kersey, a New York architect whose wife is brutally murdered and daughter is attacked by a drug-crazed gang. Realizing that the police won't be able to help, Kersey begins his quest for revenge. With crime and drugs rampant in the city, he becomes a vigilante bringing swift justice to any offenders he feels are deserving. As the public embraces the vigilante, the police are on his trail. It all brings up some interesting moral questions. Grade: A+

Review: 3 Days to Kill

Well, this Kevin Costner spy thriller is superficially very similar to Liam Neeson’s Taken, but the overall plot is a little different. Here’s the summary: Costner is a dangerous international spy and trained assassin, who is determined to retire to finally build a closer relationship with his estranged wife and daughter. But first, he must complete one last mission, even if it means juggling the two toughest assignments yet: hunting down the world's most ruthless terrorist and looking after his teenage daughter for the first time in ten years, while his wife is out of town. Hailee Steinfeld of True Grit plays his daughter and Amber Heard plays his over-the-top sexy boss. It has some light moments and comedy mixed in, decent action and the required car chase, but somehow it just doesn’t all come together. Kevin Costner still has a powerful onscreen presence, but if you need to fill your Costner fix, I’d go with his classic hits like The Untouchables, No Way Out,
The Bodyguard, Dances with Wolves, or the more recent The Guardian. OK for seeing at the movies, but probably more suitable as a rental, cable viewing or other media choice. Grade: B-

Oscar's Most Overlooked Working Actor





There has been a lot of talk recently about Leonardo DiCaprio being overlooked as an actor, particularly by The Academy Awards. Well, he is an amazing actor, and has delivered many magnificent performances. Although, he has not won an Oscar to date, he has been nominated for 4 acting awards, by The Academy. Legendary actors like Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson and Harrison Ford not only have never won an Oscar, but have all only had ONE Oscar nomination each in their entire careers! Very hard to believe; all great character actors and leading men. However,  I feel that Oscar's MOST overlooked working actor is Dennis Quaid. He has NEVER been nominated for an Academy Award! If only considering his flawless performance, as Jerry Lee Lewis, in Great Balls of Fire, it would be a tragedy. He has been appearing in movies since the mid 1970s. He has delivered impeccable and emotional performances in Frequency, Savior, Everybody's All-American, The Right Stuff, Enemy Mine, Postcards from the Edge, Far From Heaven, Wyatt Earp, The Rookie, The Alamo, Vantage Point, Traffic and The Big Easy. There are several others, but these particular roles are completely appropriate to have been Oscar-nominated. I'm not sure why this is. Hopefully, he will not continue to be overlooked, and will not have to settle for one of those Lifetime Achievement Awards. Let's get Leo one of those statues soon too! Way overdue for both! 

Don't Always Listen to the Critics......

Here are two movies that were universally panned by critics: The Raven (2012) and After Earth (2013). The Raven starred John Cusack, as Edgar Allan Poe, in this ficticious crime thriller. When someone, apparently inspired by Poe's material, begins committing gruesome murders, a young Baltimore detective, played by Luke Evans, recruits Poe to help him with his investigation. The danger increases as Poe's love, played by Alice Eve, becomes the madman's next target. I thought it was a thrilling and original concept for a movie, and it delivered. After Earth is a sci-fi action movie starring Will Smith and his son, Jaden. It was directed by M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense, The Village, Signs and Devil). While the plot is simple, intensity and emotions run high. It takes place 1,000 years after humans have abandoned the planet. Animals are now the dominant species. A spacecraft crash lands on Earth, and only a father and son survive. The father is seriously injured, and his son is their only chance for rescue. He must embark on a dangerous journey to reach the location where he can signal for help. Both movies are visually stunning and are loaded with outstanding performances. As an amateur critic, I give them both a Grade of 'A'. Aside from the review, I was truly entertained by both movies. I think they are worthwhile to seek out and decide for yourself.

Review: Non-Stop

Liam Neeson's career has been NON-STOP since he starred in Taken in 2008. This movie is no exception; opening at #1 this past weekend. The actor has been reinvented as an action star, from his late 50s until now, when he is in his early 60's. No plans to stop either; Taken 3 has just been announced. Sean Connery pulled off the same trick; he was still going into his early 70s, as an action star. Non-Stop is a fun popcorn movie, with plenty of action, suspense, stunts and effects. Neeson is believable again as an ordinary guy caught in extraordinary circumstances. He plays a US Air Marshall, and someone on the plane threatens the lives of all those on the plane, unless funds are transferred into an account. He has to work fast to find out who is responsible, while protecting others and himself. All while high above the Earth, on a transatlantic flight. The PG-13 rating makes it suitable for most. It's not very graphic, it just gets fairly intense at times. Hey, it's not The Godfather, but as far as action movies go, it's a good one!

Grade: B+