Every good story requires a hero and a villain. Even the ancient Greek plays had both and who won in the end decided whether the story was a comedy or a tragedy. This basic formula exists today and is also seen in most movies. Many movie villains are truly evil, Hannibal Lecter is one example, but many are simply bullies, and some are actually both. Here, in no particular order, are five antagonists who memorably fit the mold of a bully.
Johnny Lawrence
Johnny Lawrence was the high school jock with a hot girlfriend. When the new boy in town, Daniel LaRusso, started to become friends with Johnny’s girlfriend at a halloween party, Johnny beat Daniel to a pulp. This was, of course, the seminal moment in The Karate Kid leading Daniel to start training with Mr. Miyagi. The Karate Kid would not have been the same movie without a character like Johnny; he was someone everyone loved to hate.
Melvin Moody
Melvin Moody could only be called a thug. He and his gang would regularly take lunch money and in general terrorize whoever was weaker than them, including new kid, Clifford Peache. Clifford befriends the one person Melvin is afraid of, Ricky Linderman, and over time, Clifford and Ricky become good friends before Clifford finally fights and defeats Melvin in My Bodyguard’s climatic finish. Matt Dillon takes the role of Melvin and makes him a truly spiteful villain.
Kent
Kent was a mediocre lab assistant who had trouble with the sheer genius of the students around him, especially Mitch Taylor and Chris Knight. He launches many plans to embarrass them or to disrupt their chemical laser experiments. Finally, Mitch and Chris get the best of him when they make him think he’s able to speak to Jesus Christ. Real Genius was a fanciful comedy that depicted real fears of the 1980s Cold War. This movie would never have been as successful without the comic relief of bully Kent, played by Robert Prescott.
Chet Donnelly
The 1985 movie Weird Science was about two nerdy teenagers who come to grips with the bullies in their lives. The primary bullies in the movie are classmates Ian and Max, but without a doubt the scariest and most fiendish bully is Wyatt’s brother, Chet. Chet routinely extorts money from Wyatt and beats up him and and Gary. In the end, he is humiliated by Lisa, the supernatural, computer-generated woman, and at the end, Chet has transformed to a good guy.
Nurse Ratched
Perhaps the greatest movie bully has lent her name to American culture for an evil, abusive nurse, Nurse Ratched. Ratched commonly bullied the patients in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, especially the main character, McMurphy. Over the course of the movie, she depicts everything a healthcare professional should not do, and her evil and bullying were so severe that she has become the stereotype for an overbearing nurse.
Bullying is a common theme in fiction, especially movies. While many movies are centered around the bullying, more often than not, the antagonist takes the guise of a bully. Many times it is done so well that the character is remembered long after the movie was watched. These five bullies are some of those more memorable characters, all of whom lost in the end...except for the evil Nurse Ratched.
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About Today's Guest Writer:
School counselor Jen Dover has tried to make both parents and students more aware of the problem of bullying. While Jen often writes about bullying, she also writes about other issues children face within the school system. Jen was also honored to offer her input for the Top 10 Best Online School Counseling Degrees available for people interested in becoming a school counselor.
School counselor Jen Dover has tried to make both parents and students more aware of the problem of bullying. While Jen often writes about bullying, she also writes about other issues children face within the school system. Jen was also honored to offer her input for the Top 10 Best Online School Counseling Degrees available for people interested in becoming a school counselor.
