The Best Movie Psychopaths?

[lime]

The Psychopaths in movies are almost always great character, and an actors best performance.

Name some of the best for you?

For me:

Hannibal Lecter (The Silence of the Lambs) - Played by Sir Anthony Hopkins
Buffalo Bill (The Silence of the Lambs) - Played by Ted Levine
Patrick Bateman (American Psycho) - Played by Christian Bale
Jack Torrance (The Shining) - Played by Jack Nicholson
Anton Chigurh (No Country For Old Men) - Played by Javier Bardem
Annie Wilkers (Misery) - Played by Kathy Bates
The Joker (The Dark Knight) - Played by Heath Ledger

 

[The Morningstar]

One that a lot of people overlook, but who was terrifyingly awesome...

Berenger's SSGNT Barnes from Platoon.

"Death? What y'all know bout death?"

 

[Octoberist]

Anton wasn't a psychopath, he was a sociopath.

Both are similar but a psychopath can hide their insanity with their charm and charisma while a sociopath can't (antisocial, visibly weird)

 

[Figs]

Norman Bates

 

[nite-owl]

Frank Booth

 

[Prison Mike]

Patrick Bateman

 

[the amazing fro]

Are we using Psychopath in it's proper psychological term or just as a general term for violent or unpleasant nutters?

If the latter then Travis Bickle. An unbelievably fascinating character. And one that I oddly empathize with in a very strange way (Don't worry I'm not a nutter). Definitely not a proper psychopath though.

If the former then probably Alex Delarge. An absolute disgusting excuse for a human being with zero empathy for anything but he is also extremely charming and intelligent. Another fascinating character.

 

[November Rain]

can we get a clear definition from the thread starter on the term 'psychopath' please

 

[Sentinel X]

Anton wasn't a psychopath, he was a sociopath.

Both are similar but a psychopath can hide their insanity with their charm and charisma while a sociopath can't (antisocial, visibly weird)

Is this from the DSM-IV? because I thought a sociopath was someone who doesn't have feelings or emotional connections to people but isn't necessarily sadistic. Therefore all psychopaths are sociopaths but not all sociopaths are psychopaths.

Anyhow I don't think the thread is requiring a strict definition (the distinction between the two is even ambiguous in the psychology community); so my list:

1. Hannibal Lecter
2. Norman Bates
3. Anton Chigur
4. Amon Goeth (Schindler's List)
5. The Joker
6. Alex (A clockwork orange)
7. Frank Booth (blue velvet)
8.Buffalo Bill
9 John Doe (seven)
10. Idi Amin (Last King of Scotland)

 

[The Shape]

Patrick Bateman. The Joker. Michael Myers.

 

[the amazing fro]

Is this from the DSM-IV? because I thought a sociopath was someone who doesn't have feelings or emotional connections to people but isn't necessarily sadistic. Therefore all psychopaths are sociopaths but not all sociopaths are psychopaths.

Both Psychopaths and Sociopaths fall under the Antisocial Personality disorder. Psychologists cannot agree where the distinctions lie. I think they are working on it for the DSM-V

 

[Wesley Dodds]

Anybody ever see Cory McAbee's The American Astronaut? 'Cos if we're talking genuine Pschopaths in movies, Rocco Sisto's Professor Hess is one of the first character's that comes to mind.

 

[Why Are You Crouching Spock?]

Amon Goeth from Schindler's List.

 

[hopefuldreamer]

I don't know if this counts, but the one that always sticks in my head is this:

Don Logan (Sexy Beast)

He was just so convincingly mental, great great acting.

 

[Why Are You Crouching Spock?]

I don't know if this counts, but the one that always sticks in my head is this:

Don Logan (Sexy Beast)

He was just so convincingly mental, great great acting.

Ben Kingsley gets pretty much all the praise regarding the movie. But I think Ray Winstones passive performance was also just as good. Usually it's Ray Winstone playing the kind of big angry gangster man but in this movie he's a pretty convincing *****.

 

[kedrell]

Both are similar but a psychopath can hide their insanity with their charm and charisma while a sociopath can't (antisocial, visibly weird)

I always thought it was the other way around. Psychopath= insane

Sociopath= sane but no conscience

Norman Bates = psychopath

Tony Soprano = sociopath

 

[Why Are You Crouching Spock?]

Why not just make it psychopath or sociopath? It will save a 5 page quibble on the definition and stop people listing the wrong thing.

 

[the amazing fro]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antisocial_personality_disorder

This pretty much covers the whole sociopath vs psychopath.

I think we should take this thread to mean best movie insane people. Though the problem with that is the argument of what is "insane" or not comes into play...

 

[Blitzkrieg Bop]

Tommy DeVito and Nicky Santoro

 

[Jake Cassidy]

Everybody's insane. Some people are just more insane than others.

 

[hugekent]

A few of my favourites:

 

[November Rain]

surely it has to be v for vendetta

 

[Spider-Who?]

I don't know if this counts, but the one that always sticks in my head is this:

Don Logan (Sexy Beast)

He was just so convincingly mental, great great acting.

FANTASTIC choice (and film).

 

[DarthDaveBanner]

Ah just looking at a picture of Buffalo Bill sends shivers up my spine...

 

[hopefuldreamer]

Ben Kingsley gets pretty much all the praise regarding the movie. But I think Ray Winstones passive performance was also just as good. Usually it's Ray Winstone playing the kind of big angry gangster man but in this movie he's a pretty convincing *****.

That's always the way tho isn't it.

You get more hype for playing a good villain, than a good guy.

Though I wouldn't call him a ***** in the film. He'd just left that world behind him.

FANTASTIC choice (and film).

Can't really take the credit myself, as it's not a movie I'd have usually picked up.

Thank my ex housemate. The guy had a weird taste in films, but this one was a gem.