Top 10 Movies Where the Villain Wins

Sometimes the good guys don’t win. The bad guys sometimes beat the hero. Today I am going to be looking at the movies in which the good guys lose and the bad guys win. In this list, by bad guy, I mean the villain, is the winner and the hero, the protagonist, is defeated. As with all of my lists, spoilers will be found in the list. I am only choosing from movies I have seen before and if there is a movie that you believe should be on this list, feel free to comment.

10. Reservoir Dogs- The Cops

They all wore the same thing!

Reservoir Dogs is Tarantino’s first film and one of his best. However, the criminals do not win. They are all killed in the diamond heist except Mr. White, who is arrested. It’s a great movie, but the cops win. They save the day and the heroes we have believed will somehow escape their situation do not make it. I guess Mr. Orange, although dead, won this one.

9. Rocky- Apollo Creed

He lost this fight, but he wins next movie!

My roommate and I had a long heated debate about this one and whether or not Apollo was a villain. I still believe he is and Apollo still won the match. Although Rocky gave him one heck of a fight and he took him to the end, but Apollo still got the win. Rocky didn’t go home unhappy, but do people still realize that Rocky lost his fight, he just happened to get his life on the right track.

8. Fight Club- Tyler Durden

I wouldn't use that soap!

This is again a controversial pick. The ending of fight club is ambiguous but with the facts at hand that the banks and credit unions are destroyed and Tyler’s master plan is completed, so he ultimately wins. I even speculate that Tyler has retaken control of Edward Norton’s character in the end, as Norton’s character watches calmly and grasps Marla’s hand. I believe Tyler has taken full control and he completes his plan.

7. Oldboy- Lee Woo-jin

Getting back at your high school bully...years later!

Yoo Ji-tae has held a grudge since high school. He blames Oh Dae-su for his sister’s death and he plans Oh Dae-su to make the same mistake that he made. He gets Oh Dae-su to sleep with his own daughter and he took 15 years of Oh Dae-su’s life. Oh Dae-su cannot undo what he has done, so Yoo Ji-tae is the ultimate winner. The hypnotism at the end may not even have worked, so Oh Dae-su may still know what happened.

6. Silence of the Lambs- Hannibal Lector

What did you hear Clarice!

Hannibal, whom I consider the greatest villain of all time, is the ultimate winner in Silence of the Lambs. He has demonstrated control of Clarice, he escapes his cell and confinement and the ending implies he will be taking revenge on Chilton. Hannibal also rips off the face of his captors and escapes in one of the most gruesome ways possible. The only reason this is not number one is Hannibal is not the main antagonist, Buffalo Bill is.

5. Saw- Jigsaw

These games don't look fun!

In a major twist in events, it ends up the man responsible for all the trauma and kidnappings has been there the whole time. The one corpse that has been the room the entire time was never a corpse, it was the Jigsaw killer. Everyone else is his victim and at the end, Jigsaw manages to walk out unscathed and leaves his victim Adam to die or kill himself in the warehouse.

4. No Country for Old Men- Anton Chigurh

Finders keepers doesn't always work...!

Chigurh walks away with the money that has been the central focus of the film. He is most definitely evil too. He has killed many Mexican cartel members in his search of the money. His relentless pursuit causes him to defeat the law and he is able to retain the two million dollars. However, he does get into a car crash, but he is still able to walk away from the crash with only a limp.

3. Star Wars Episode 5: The Empire Strikes Back- The Empire

So many bad guys on this cover!

In Episode 4, the Rebels have destroyed the Death Star and it seems as if they have won. However, the war is still raging. The Empire manages to defeat the rebels on Hoth, which the Rebels escape, they capture Han Solo, they cut off Luke Skywalker’s hand and they have captured the Millennium Falcon. The Rebels have gone from victors to on the ropes in this movie.

2. The Usual Suspects- Keyser Soze

One of them is badder than the rest!

It was the gimp. Verbal Kint, the only witness of the murders of his partners of fortune manages to tell the police what happened, is granted full immunity and walks out of the police station with no charges. However, Kint after getting made fun of for being too stupid to realize that Keaton was Soze got the last laugh. Kint is Soze and Kint just waltzed right out of a police station with full immunities and the police have seen their pride diminished.

1. Se7en- John Doe

You could have messed up the plan Mills, but you didn't!

Another Kevin Spacey role that sees the bad guy win, go figure. But John Doe takes the cake in winning. He completes his sadistic ritual and causing one death of each of the deadly sins. He turns himself into the police station with still two more deaths to finish the ritual. But actually, he is waiting for just one more death, he needs a death from Wrath. John Doe has actually committed the Greed death by chopping off Mill’s wife’s head and then putting it in the box. What’s in the box? Well, Mills kills Doe for in an act of wrath, which means John Doe won.