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Tuesday, August 14, 2012

MY 3RD FAVORITE MOVIE VILLAIN

ANTON CHIGURH (JAVIER BARDEM)

FROM "NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN"

This is a villain who spreads nothing but chaos, not because he chooses too, it's because he feels like he has too. Every time you see him, he's either killing someone, causing damage, or is just acting plain creepy. What's so chaotic about him, well lets take a look.

WARNING: THERE WILL BE SPOILERS




The first time we see him, he gets arrested but once he's sitting in the officer’s office, he uses his handcuffs to strangle the cop to death. Just by looking at his face while he's killing the cop, he doesn't look like he's enjoying it, he looks like he's forced to do it out of his own free will. Just the image alone shows his insanity. He then breaks free from the cuffs and steals a police car to not just spread chaos but also recover the briefcase full of money with a hidden tracking device he put in the money case.






Anton carries a pistol and a shot gun with a silencer which he uses many times to spread chaos. Every time he uses them has to be one of the most violent killings to ever be put in cinema. He shoots two guys in the head after seeing dead bodies from an off screen massacre; he kills three thugs in a motel room; gets into a breath taking shoot out with one of the main characters; and even randomly shoots a bird while driving. One of my favorite creepy moments with Anton is when he sits in the shadows and has a conversation with a victim while holding out his gun. The interesting thing about those scenes is they ask him why he's doing this and his response is basically telling them that he has too. I think one of the many reasons why I found him so terrifying is his voice, it sounds dark, unpleasant and cold that every time he speaks I get chills.






Anton's preferred weapon of choice is a captive bolt pistol. The first time we seem him using it is when he pulls a stranger over while he's driving a stolen cop car. He tells the guy to get out and to hold still and shoots him in the head with it. Throughout the film we see him use it numerous times to kill people. He doesn't just use it to kill people; he also uses it to break into houses, hotel and motel rooms.


 


Another cool thing about Anton is he can sometimes be fair on determining someone’s fate by tossing a coin and telling his victims to "Call it". The best scene that shows it is when he's randomly talking to an owner of a gas station and during the conversation he flips a coin and tells him to "Call it", that scene is just plain suspenseful. Sure the Batman villain Two Face does it and has made it more memorable (Which oddly enough, one of the stars in this film is Tommy Lee Jones who previously played Two Face in "Batman Forever") but Anton just seems to make it a lot more terrifying.






Anton is also very smart and is a quick thinker who can track people down and find quick ways to heal himself. One of the best examples of him being smart is he blows up a car to distract the people and workers at the Pharmacy, so he can steal some stuff. Another great example is his last scene as he gets into a car accident and quickly talks to two boys of giving him a shirt to cover his broken arm with a bone sticking out. He then bribes the boys and tells them that they never saw him and leaves before the ambulance shows up. 




The main reason why I find Anton so scary is because he's unpredictable. You don't what he's thinking or what he's up too. Every time you see him you just get nervous. You don't know when he's either going to kill or leave a person alive. There are times when he encounters people and half of the time, we just cut to the next scene of him leaving and we never ever see the character again. It's a possibility that the person he encounters could still be alive but then again there's a chance that he just killed them off screen, after all he did kill one of the main characters off screen including a few others.

 Anton is a character that keeps you guessing and guessing even after the films over. You don't even know if he's just a poor soul or is just an insane killer. The truth is will never know which is what makes him a very scary villain. Javier Bardem won the Oscar for his chilling performance and the Nostalgia Critic put him as number three on his "Top 11 Scariest Performances" list, and in my opinion, he deserved it.

"This Is The Best I Can Do. Call It"
-Anton Chigurh

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