Cinema's Unlikable Movie Characters?

[Toby Frost]

Is that the 90s one about the invisible guy? I'd completely forgotten that it existed!

 

[Margaret Note Spelling]

I'm truly chagrined. If anyone was offended by the video, I apologize. I meant nothing.

 

[tinkerdan]

I'm a bit baffled by this thread.
I think unlikable characters could be well done yet unlikable.
Such as Hannibal Lecter--there is no way I could ever like that character, yet he works for the part and the plot.

What I see being highlighted here are characters that somehow manage to ruin the experience for some of the audience.

I'd envision the thread to be looking more for things like:

In the movie Jackal with Richard Gere and Bruce Willis I could never like that character played by Bruce Willis--However Bruce did a great job making him so unlikable.

 

[KGeo777]

Star Wars was always "SJW" -- the original film stripped away some traditional adventure narrative elements like the self-reliant hero. Luke uses technology and magic to succeed more than natural strength or ability. But if you look at the poster art for the original film--Luke is depicted as a muscle-bound he-man. Also, in the Marvel comics cover art--Luke is shown as a kickass kind of guy--on the second issue cover he is depicted fighting the aliens in the cantina which as we know is the exact opposite of what happens.

In the OT I think the only characters who are depicted as natural achievers are Wedge and Lando. Han Solo is more of a trickster--using luck and tricks not adventure hero behavior.
And the negatives were cranked up over time.
By the end of ROTJ Luke is begging his father to save him from the Emperor and even after he cremates his body he is still feeling mopey until the ghosts appear to reassure him.
The central theme of the prequels is failure (we did not know in 1977 that Obi Wan Kenobi failed as a teacher-we assumed he was an old wise wizard-type character in voluntary exile), so it is no surprise that the sequels would continue this trend.

Where the head scratching comes is that Rey is not presented as a failure character but the opposite and people can pick up the difference in handling--but that is in keeping with the trajectory too--the leader of the Empire was a man (no women around in fact) while the leader of the rebellion was a woman.
These things were ignored because people had been razzle-dazzled by the pioneering visual effects but now we are immune to that, the non traditional story and character aspects stand out. Having a woman has a warrior is not the issue, it is the type of woman-she is more of a Mary Poppins than a Xena or Ripley in attitude. It seems less believable or counter to expectations.
If Lucas had made the sequels I suspect the story would have gone much the same way generally speaking. The Other would have been a woman--if not Leia than someone else.

But there's an expectation that Luke is a successful hero (like the poster and comic art depicted). Hamill expected to be doing a 1977 kind of Kenobi "passing the torch" part in the new films but that is because he had assumed Star Wars was following a traditional kind of adventure story framework--but it doesn't and never did.
I am not defending the new films, just pointing out that the way it was heading was inevitable since the previous trilogies were on the same thematic track.

 

[BAYLOR]

Is that the 90s one about the invisible guy? I'd completely forgotten that it existed!

That was the film . Directed by Paul Verhoeven and staring Kevin Bacon and Elizabeth Shue .

 

[Dave]

That was the film . Directed by Paul Verhoeven and staring Kevin Bacon and Elizabeth Shue .

I bought that DVD from a charity shop. It is the dullest film that I own on DVD.

 

[BAYLOR]

I bought that DVD from a charity shop. It is the dullest film that I own on DVD.

Inspire of the negative reviews , It actually made money at the box office.

 

[BAYLOR]

The Razors Edge Isobel Bradley.

 

[Phyrebrat]

I’ve never understood the obsession with the craptastic Boba Fett. His fandom was made redundant within moments of Jango’s introduction.

Also Eve Harrington as I have similar experiences with a ‘friend’ like that

pH

 

[Vince W]

I’ve never understood the obsession with the craptastic Boba Fett. His fandom was made redundant within moments of Jango’s introduction.

Also Eve Harrington as I have similar experiences with a ‘friend’ like that

pH

Boba was like that guy you knew as a teenager that had cool clothes and a cool car. As long as you kept your distance he stayed cool. The minute you got to know him even a little bit he was revealed to be an incompetent idiot.

 

[KGeo777]

In TESB Boba Fett was kind of a Man with No Name, but was turned into a feeble character by the third film (for that matter-did any character in Star Wars not end up the same way? Darth Vader, Luke, Han Solo (a lousy smuggler--he is the kind of character in a gangster movie who isn't smart enough to avoid getting on the bad side of a mob boss and ends up getting worked over in the back alley).

 

[thaddeus6th]

Palpatine.

 

[Starbeast]

And now for something completely different...........

My mothers most hated character in science fiction, is from the 1960's TV series, LOST IN SPACE. That would be, the late great actor, Jonathan Harris's character, Dr Zachary Smith.

She thought he was thee most untrustworthy, scheming rat, ever to walk on two legs. "He was greedy, self-centered, wasteful, braggart, unreliable, lazy, thief, uncaring, lying, no-good etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc. AND, he would trade all his friends (including the robot), for a ride back home to Earth (from any stranger), without blinking an eye. TOTALLY DESPICABLE!!!!!!!"

She was correct.

However, I looked at Dr Smith like a child who's stuck in a man's body. He needed guidance, because he isn't used to nice people who are trying to help him. His young friend Will Robinson, was like a mentor toward him. Teaching the doctor about life and consequences that were taught to him by his father, John Robinson. Will, always tried to strengthen the good qualities he saw within Dr Smith. But Zachary, like an innocent child, was always lured by temptation.

There are a few well written episodes that centered on Dr Smith, that were heart-warming. Even bringing a tear to my eye. I enjoy watching Dr Smith change from being a wicked person, to someone who would look inside their self and think, "I want to do the right thing. I have a wonderful family that loves me. I want to be a better person!"

 

[BAYLOR]

And now for something completely different...........

My mothers most hated character in science fiction, is from the 1960's TV series, LOST IN SPACE. That would be, the late great actor, Jonathan Harris's character, Dr Zachary Smith.

View attachment 57742​

She thought he was thee most untrustworthy, scheming rat, ever to walk on two legs. "He was greedy, self-centered, wasteful, braggart, unreliable, lazy, thief, uncaring, lying, no-good etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc. AND, he would trade all his friends (including the robot), for a ride back home to Earth (from any stranger), without blinking an eye. TOTALLY DESPICABLE!!!!!!!"

She was correct.

However, I looked at Dr Smith like a child who's stuck in a man's body. He needed guidance, because he isn't used to nice people who are trying to help him. His young friend Will Robinson, was like a mentor toward him. Teaching the doctor about life and consequences that were taught to him by his father, John Robinson. Will, always tried to strengthen the good qualities he saw within Dr Smith. But Zachary, like an innocent child, was always lured by temptation.

There are a few well written episodes that centered on Dr Smith, that were heart-warming. Even bringing a tear to my eye. I enjoy watching Dr Smith change from being a wicked person, to someone who would look inside their self and think, "I want to do the right thing. I have a wonderful family that loves me. I want to be a better person!"

Based on the back story we got in the series , Smith's family life was truly horrific so, it's understandable that he was the way he was and made the choices that he did. By the time Smith met the Robinsons , he was a ruined man and all but dead inside . I think that when got to know the Robinsons better , he saw in them everything that he wished he was and never got the chance to be growing up . Knowing them and loving them, made him want to change. There are moments when he would rise to the occasion and you could see that there was in truth great good in Zachary Smith . You couldn't help but root for him.

 

[KGeo777]

Guy Williams felt that the focus on Dr Smith killed the show's potential and I think he is right. The first season was pretty good-some interesting SF stories---but for the most part, the other two seasons focused only on Smith and while he did amuse, they went overboard a fair bit--"the Great Vegetable Rebellion" comes to mind.

 

[BAYLOR]

Guy Williams felt that the focus on Dr Smith killed the show's potential and I think he is right. The first season was pretty good-some interesting SF stories---but for the most part, the other two seasons focused only on Smith and while he did amuse, they went overboard a fair bit--"the Great Vegetable Rebellion" comes to mind.

Making the series campy was a huge mistake.

 

[Star-child]

Making the series campy was a huge mistake.

Camp is probably the only reason a low budget SF show like that lasted at all.

 

[BAYLOR]

Camp is probably the only reason a low budget SF show like that lasted at all.

I think that sped up the demise of those shows more then anything. The problem is that when you do camp its novelty value quickly dissipates audiences , especially so if the writing is bad.

 

[Starbeast]

@KGeo777 The final season should have been titled, "The Doctor & Will Show." featuring the Robot and a few likable characters.

However, as a little kid (me) watching the show, I loved all seasons. A carrot man............cool.

@BAYLOR It was a different time back then in the 1960's. When BATMAN became a TV show. it doomed many other shows, because many viewers loved camp.

Then slowly, eventually, sitcoms returned. And guys like me ended up watching reruns of science fiction and strange tale TV shows.

 

[Star-child]

I think that sped up the demise of those shows more then anything. The problem is that when you do camp its novelty value quickly dissipates audiences , especially so if the writing is bad.

Camp isn't a good thing, but "Swiss Family Robinson In Space" is also all novelty when it comes to episodic writing. There are just so many stories to write about people stuck in one place before you're repeating yourself or presenting the absurd. The reason modern SF series seem to work at all is their mini-series format with an overall story arc to hold audience attentions.