Maniacal Charm: Best Villains of 2010

And thus we begin our Best of 2010 series with the Best Villains of 2010!

3. "Mother Gothel" from Tangled

Disney has always been a bountiful supplier of classic villains, and if their latest addition, Mother Gothel, doesn't quite reach the same heights as her competitors, there may be a reason for that. She doesn't quite have as much of a dark vision of evil, because she's trying to appeal to Rapunzel and as a kind mother. What makes her evil are not her looks, but her acts. She has no real magical powers at her disposal, but instead has her charming demeanor to her. She plants small seeds that won't truly come to fruition until later in Tangled, and then it makes sense to all of us. Even taking away all her scheming, look at what she does on the most basic level. She steals a beautiful little girl from her crib, keeps her locked away from the world, and then (SPOILER ALERT) kills Rapunzel's true love! She actually murders him and causes his death! What a b****!

2. "Voldemort" from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1

From the first time Ralph Fiennes appeared on screen in Goblet of Fire, out of thin air and smoke, my first impression was "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH HIS NOSE!" The lack of a nose already makes it such a disturbing vision. The way Fiennes carries himself on screen is absolutely fantastic. The first and most substantial scene we get with him had me nailed to my seat with suspense. You get the idea of how cruel and evil this guy is. His whole mob session is played with a charisma and easy seduction of his guests. They simultaneously idolize and fear him, and as he walks around in search of a wand, everyone cowers in absolute fright. His cruelty to all human beings, not the least of which is poor Charity Burbage, is second to only one this year. Remember that part in the book where he feeds Miss Burbage to his snake Nagini? He feeds her to his snake!!!!!

1. "Lotso" from Toy Story 3

The other two villains on this list may have a higher body count, but sheer menace can go a long way, and even further if it's in the form of a plush teddy bear. One of the most fantastic things about the final film in the Toy Story saga was the southern accented Lotso-Huggin-Bear who presides over the toys at Sunnyside Day Care. The fact that he turns out to be a villain at all makes this installment all the more shocking. He could've easily turned out to be another Stinky Pete, but instead his backstory was done with lovely hues and melancholy string melodies, not to mention the cruelty of the life of a toy. The choice of lighting in most of his scenes is absolutely breathtaking, and there's never been a character that's had such distinct texture to him. His fur is old and frayed in unique ways. As always, it's what he does that earns him his place here. Tricking our heroes into a life of imprisonment and slavery, and then condemning them to death is as cruel as it gets. On top of that, this is a kid's film. We grew up with most of these toys, and Lotso manages to make just as much of an impact in just one film. The menace he holds in his hunched figure dominates any other villain this year.

Film Review: Tangled

We're coming into the final stretch of the year, and most of the blank spots are filling themselves in quite nicely. This past month or so has, for the most part, delivered more than the films of this past Summer. This was definitely one of the films I was questioning, but the truth is that Disney has always delivered well out of this Thanksgiving frame. Tangled is no exception, offering everything that the studio has promised from the beginning, while adding a new spice into the mix. I can't call it original, because it's technically based on a preconceived story, but there were several points in which it felt like no other Disney princess film released before.

The film focuses on the story of Rapunzel, a princess who is kidnapped as a baby by the evil Mother Gothel who raises her as her own in order to take advantage of Rapunzel's magic hair. Yeah, it is kind of ridiculous, but that's one of the aspects the film plays up. Anyway, just when her evil (fake) mother tells her she can never leave the tower, she blackmails a handsome and cunning thief named Flynn Rider to help her on her adventure. You get the deal, and there is quite a bit of fun action thrown in along the way, along with marvelous comedy.

Diving into the Disney aspects of the film, it's a musical, which is something I couldn't be happier about. While it's true that none of these songs will leave a forever lasting impression like the classics have, it works as something of a fun throwback, and I enjoyed it. As for the characters, they're pretty awesome. Flynn Rider is the sort of guy that any girl would enlist for an adventure, and comes off a bit as Barney Stinson (How I Met Your Mother) with a heart. Rapunzel is a strong female character, which animated films always seem obligated towards embellishing because they don't want to seem sexist like the helpless Disney princesses of the past have been perceived as. Mother Gothel works as a fantastic villain, though never truly terrifying, but she does get props for having no magical powers at her disposal, and still coming off as evil.

And of course they have to throw in some quirky animal characters into the story, and they come in the form of Pascal the chameleon and Maximus the horse. Everybody is going to prefer the horse, because he gets so much more to work with, and he's just hilarious. There are some hilarious moments that seem like they have something of a modern twist, but at heart, it's still a cute and lovable Disney princess film. Therefore, each of the characters look absolutely adorable. The colors in this film are beautiful, and I was much sadder to be dropped out of that world than the world of Avatar. I'm not going to become clinically depressed over it, because I'm not an idiot. Overall, Tangled may not go down as a classic, but I loved it for most of the duration, and would happily see it again. However, it's not the sort of film you have to see in 3D. 2D will work just fine.

A-