#These Movies Are Told From the Villain’s Perspective

It may come as a surprise to audiences when a film deviates from the conventional narrative structure. It’s common to follow a protagonist in a film, even if they may be an antihero, and audiences expect to like or root for the main character. However, a different form of storytelling can often resonate with the audience and leave a substantial impact. Point of view is perhaps one of the basic elements of story structure that gets introduced in any narrative.
Within the first few minutes of a film, we could gather an idea as to who our protagonist and antagonist are. The story will have the protagonist be the heart and driving force of the story; their goals and wants to become ours as we latch onto their journey through the duration of the movie. The antagonist is there to stop the goal of the protagonist and add stakes to the story. This structure is streamlined and a basic part of the three act structure. The fight between hero and villain is clear. However, what if the roles were reversed?
An ambitious way a film could present itself is by having its point of view be that of the villain, the one who would be the antagonist of a streamlined story. It is a bold technique, but there are movies that have proven it could work. The villain’s story makes the villain the protagonist, and not just some antihero we end up rooting for, because these villains largely stay villainous while they act in antagonistic ways. According to common definitions of story structure, though, if the villain is the character with the overarching desire and want in a film, then they are the protagonist, and the characters who oppose that goal or purpose become the antagonists. The reverse psychology and unconventional style makes the following list of movies from the villain’s perspective stand out.

9 A Clockwork Orange

Stanley Kubrick is a filmmaker who takes his time and allows the audience to get inside the mind of his characters. A Clockwork Orange is set in a dystopian world, where all morality seems to be in the hands of ‘the droogs.’ The narration from Alex (Malcolm McDowell) forces the viewer into his mind, so that we are seeing the world through his eyes. Alex’s obsession with ultra-violence becomes his biggest challenge when he’s face to face with any kind of acceptance from the audience. It’s difficult, but for a man who has done so much wrong and caused myriad chaos, we somehow feel for him. His childlike tendencies and silliness, along with the torture he receives in the last act, allow for a serious look into his mind and a real test of the audience’s empathy. This dark comedy is one of Kubrick’s best and will remain a staple of film history.

8 American Psycho

Christian Bale’s portrayal of Patrick Bateman in American Psycho allows for an even further discussion of the duality of good and evil. The character presents himself to the audience and to the professionals around him as a well-spoken businessman; his speech is soft, and his mannerisms are polished. However, there is a vicious darkness to him that releases every bit of anger and hostility at the moment of violence. By hearing his thoughts, the audience is allowed to speculate as to why this character is the way he is. While we never get full access into this demented, Jekyll-and-Hyde serial killer (perhaps because there is nothing to access, just a deep void of emptiness inside him), but as an audience are tethered to him and his life, and we are just along for the ride.
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7 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Revenge is one of the most classic plot elements of storytelling, allowing characters to do awful things while still retaining the audience’s sympathy because of how they were wronged. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street tells the story of Benjamin Barker (played brilliantly by Johnny Depp), who returns to London seeking vengeance for those who ruined him and his family. We truly understand why he has this goal, but he almost loses himself under the gallons of blood lost in his bloodlust. He may have clashes with Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter) over morals and right and wrong, but what Tim Burton executes so beautifully is how the characters’ morals and decisions become their ultimate downfall. Taking from the Ancient Greeks, his fatal flaw leads the hero far from riches and toward true villainy.

6 Despicable Me

Lighthearted in its presentation, Despicable Me is about a washed up villain on a quest to be the best… at being a villain. Steve Carell truly brings the character of Gru to life. The character has the whimsical nature of a child, but the ambition of an evil mastermind. Those two dispositions clash when his adopted daughters try to force a morality change. Gru is a character who just wants to be accepted, and the film does a great job of having us understand why, redefining the concept of a villain along the way.

5 Monster

Charlize Theron embodies the psyche of Aileen Wuornos, making Monster an incredible but brutal film, one not for the faint of heart. Wuornos is fully realized as a character, with her killing spree explained, and her motivations interrogated and deconstructed for all to see. That might not be an easy story element for an audience to experience, but this biography is her story, and the film pulls no punches when telling it from beginning to end.

4 Nightcrawler

The character of Louis Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal) is fueled by his obsession for success. He is determined, brilliant, and well-spoken. However, though characters like Bloom (and the aforementioned Patrick Bateman) present themselves as professional, a film like Nightcrawler explores just how much darkness lurks within them in isolation. His explosions of rage create this uneasiness when he’s in a professional setting, and the character’s arc delves deeper and deeper into the discomfort. However, with the brilliance of Gyllenhaal’s commitment to the role, Bloom is wholly believable when he presents himself as reserved, while climbing up the ladder to success and doing whatever he can to keep the momentum going. He’s so disturbing because he’s everywhere in society and the corporate world, the villain deep in the heart of not just capitalism but success itself.

3 The Suicide Squad

James Gunn was able to utilize the villains introduced in the lackluster first installment of Suicide Squad, then bring them together with new characters as well. The ways in which The Suicide Squad finds brilliance lies in the execution of its tone. Combining comedy with off the wall action sequences makes for epic entertaining, and the newer casting choices (John Cena as Peacemaker, Idris Elba as Bloodsport, and of course Sylvester Stalone as King Shark) all coalesce perfectly with established characters such as Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) and Colonel Rick Flag (Joel Kinnamin). The dynamic tone, combining Gunn’s wicked sense of humor with his genuine interest in ethics and character development, sets this super-villain flick above most hero-driven films.
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2 There Will Be Blood

To understand the madness, we must first understand the man. There Will Be Blood is entirely character-driven, a structure Paul Thomas Anderson is proficient in. It is an exploration of Daniel Plainview’s succession and his depression into insanity. Daniel Day-Lewis portrays Plainview’s trials and tribulations with utter perfection; audiences don’t want to root for the manipulative man so much as they can’t resist watching him, he’s so magnificently magnetic. He comes face to face with religion, in the form of a priest played by Paul Dano, and what results of their encounter is a fight for moral superiority that (as the title suggests) will end in blood; the failure of the film to stay in a binary between good (the priest) and evil (the oil baron) is partly why the film is a masterpiece, exposing the villain in everyone.

1 Avengers: Infinity War

We’ve come to know The Avengers as Earth’s mightiest heroes ever since the first time they’ve assembled in 2012. They’ve had solo films of character development and an entire catalog of source material, chronicling the various adventures of these epic heroes. So it will come as a surprise to see that Thanos is essentially the protagonist of Avengers: Infinity War. He is the character with the goal, that being ascertaining the infinity stones; his murderous plot is certainly destructive and even horrific, but like he says, “Fun isn’t something one considers when balancing the universe.” While his quest may seem villainous, his justification is wholly virtuous (his goal is ultimately to prevent overpopulation and its ensuing wars and famines, the kind of ‘bigger-than-yourself’ quest on any hero’s journey). The Avengers are the ones who are trying to oppose that goal, but ironically hold the film’s title. Thanos embarks on trials and tribulations, making decisions that cost him everything, like any protagonist. The film belongs to Thanos and everything that happens is because of his decisions, making it a surprising $2.7 billion-grossing movie from the villain’s perspective

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