Good guys gone bad

Once in awhile, those actors known for their selfless and good-hearted characters get down and dirty with the bad boys. And we just love it, don’t we?

The latest good guy to fall is Denzel Washington in Training Day. Yes, that’s right, the same good guy who bravely fought in the Civil War in Glory and coached a ragtag football team to glory in Remember the Titans. This time around our hero plays a corrupt cop who gets just as deep in the dirt as the criminals he encounters.

We’ll bet Washington enjoyed every minute of it.

Most actors agree it’s infinitely more fun playing a truly devious character than a straight shooter. When cinematic heroes are offered an opportunity to stretch their legs a little, no doubt they jump at the chance.

Here’s a handful of actors who have done just that. Let’s see how they fared as bad guys.

Movie: What Lies Beneath (2000)
Character bio: Ford plays Dr. Norman Spencer, a seemingly perfect husband until his wife Claire (Michelle Pfeiffer) is haunted by a mysterious woman and discovers a nasty secret he has been hiding.
Most dastardly deed: Anesthetizing his wife and trying to drown her in the bathtub.
Best quote: “The first time I met you, all I wanted was to spend the rest of my life with you. [shakes head] Not gonna happen now.”
Was he convincing? Actually, yes, but who knew Ford could be so mean? We are talking about Indiana Jones, Hans Solo and the president of the U.S., after all.
Overall rating (1-10) : 7

Movie: The Terminator (1984)
Character bio: In the role that put his name on the map, Schwarzenegger plays one tough cyborg from the future sent back in time to exterminate Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) before she gives birth to the human rebel leader who will win the battle against the bots in the future.
Most dastardly deed: Totally annihilating a police station.
Best quote: “I’ll be back.”
Was he convincing? Well, since Schwarzenegger hadn’t played any of his action heroes yet, his bad guy worked perfectly for us–all business, no talk. Of course, when he revisited his inner cyborg in Terminator 2, he got to be the good robot.
Overall rating (1-10) : 9

Movie: Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Character bio: The completely deranged but weirdly charming Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Hopkins) is imprisoned for his heinous crimes. When FBI agent Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) comes to him to ask for help in finding a serial killer on the loose, she gets much more than she bargains for.
Most dastardly deed: Biting the ear off one police officer and slicing off another cop’s face to wear as a mask to escape.
Best quote: “A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti.”
Was he convincing? Does winning an Academy Award say anything?
Overall rating (1-10) : 10

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Movie: The Jackal (1997)
Character bio: Willis takes on the role as the infamous terrorist/spy the Jackal, a man of many disguises who is hired to assassinate the head of the FBI. The only man who can recognize him-and perhaps stop him from accomplishing his task–is an imprisoned IRA terrorist (Richard Gere).
Most dastardly deed: Testing out a new high-powered weapon on a poor unsuspecting accomplice (Jack Black).
Was he convincing? Willis had the cold-hearted killer mentality down pat, but what we really wanted was for him to break out into his classic wisecracking hero and save the day.
Overall rating (1-10) : 6

Movie: Internal Affairs (1990)
Character bio: Dennis Peck (Gere) is your classic smooth-talking, corrupt cop-attractive, charismatic and highly manipulative, the kind of guy who can be your best friend or your worst enemy. He lives a pretty sweet life until Raymond Avila (Andy Garcia) from the department’s Internal Affairs division begins to investigate Peck’s dirty dealings and things get messy.
Most dastardly deed: Having sex with a man’s wife in front of him and then killing him.
Was he convincing? Yes, indeed. Actually, this was one the most compelling performances of Gere’s career-all Buddhist ideals aside, he obviously had fun playing the bad guy.
Overall rating (1-10) : 9

Movie: The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
Character bio: Tom Ripley (Damon) is an ordinary sociopath, with very little excitement in his life. Yet, he has the uncanny ability to, in his words, “tell lies, forge checks and impersonate almost anyone.” When he travels to Italy and meets the dashing Dickie Greenleaf (Jude Law), Tom suddenly finds a purpose in life.
Most dastardly deed: Bludgeoning Dickie to death in a rowboat-and assuming his identity.
Best quote: “Well, whatever you do, however terrible, however hurtful, it all makes sense, doesn’t it, in your head? You never meet anybody that thinks they’re a bad person.”
Was he convincing? Eerily so. It’s because Damon easily embodies a character that is so “nice guy” on the outside but who turns out to be a raving lunatic on the inside.
Overall rating (1-10) : 9

Movie: Interview with the Vampire (1994)
Character bio: Ah, the Vampire Lestat (Cruise)-an enigmatic bloodsucker who simply enjoys his work a little too much. Transforming the beautiful Louis (Brad Pitt) into a creature of the night is only the beginning of Lestat’s wicked acts.
Most dastardly deed: Toying with a frightened young girl before ripping her throat out.
Best quote: “Evil is a point of view. God kills indiscriminately and so shall we. For no creatures under God are as we are, none so like him as ourselves.”
Was he convincing? Well…as much as Cruise flexed his acting abilities in Vampire, he couldn’t quite shed that good-hearted fellow we’ve grown to love over the years.
Overall rating (1-10) : 4

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Movie: The Avengers (1998)
Character bio: Connery plays arch-villain Sir August de Wynter, who devises a diabolical plan to rule the world with a weather control machine. It’s up to British Ministry agent John Steed (Ralph Fiennes) and beautiful Dr. Emma Peel (Uma Thurman) to stop him.
Most dastardly deed: Creating an electrical storm that nearly destroys London.
Best quote: “Nothing is impossible, just mathematically improbable.”
Was he convincing? Connery’s character was more campy than anything else, so being seriously evil wasn’t the real intent.
Overall rating (1-10) : 2

Movie: Once Upon a Time in the West (1969)
Character bio: Frank is a hardened villain who works for the big bad railroad. After murdering a man and his three children for their land, he realizes he has to now deal with the man’s new bride, Jill McBain (Claudia Cardinale) who has just arrived from Italy.
Most dastardly deed: Shooting a kid in cold blood.
Best quote: “People scare easier when they’re dyin’.”
Was he convincing? Absolutely. Fonda was an actor of great range, but audiences at that time had a hard time believing the actor who played the endearing Mr. Roberts could actually kill a child.
Overall rating (1-10) : 8

Movie: Point Break (1991)
Character bio: Bodhi (Swayze) is an easygoing, risk-taking surfer who also happens to rob banks (of course no one gets hurt) to fund his gang’s surfing adventures. Johnny Utah (Keanu Reeves), a FBI agent, must go undercover to stop Bodhi before he goes too far.
Most dastardly deed: Kidnapping Johnny’s girlfriend (Lori Petty) to prove a point-but then letting her go.
Best quote: “It’s basic dog psychology. If you scare them and get them peeing down their leg, they submit. But if you project weakness, that promotes violence, and that’s how people get hurt. Peace, through superior firepower.”
Was he convincing? Not really. It’s obvious Swayze didn’t want to really hurt anyone, so his performance sorely lacked any menacing quality.
Overall rating (1-10): 3