Chaos Hour

Top 10 Cult Film Anti-Heroes

Maniacs, Murderers, And Monsters, Oh My! Check Out Our Top 10 Cult Film Anti-Heroes

The Cult Film anti-hero has long been a staple of the tradition for quite some time. Maniacs, murderers, monsters and transvestites; these are the heroes cult film audiences look to and, on occasions, base themselves on. Cult audiences are a niche and we are a very weird bunch at the best of times; and the following ten characters only serve to evidence that. So in no particular order, here are ten cult film anti-heroes to give you an idea of who exactly we are.

10. ‘Babs Johnson’ in John Waters’ Pink Flamingos

Because John Waters is one very sick puppy and his favourite star, Divine, not an awful lot better; Babs Johnson is a disgusting creation, even by Waters standards. Should you feel the strange urge to watch Pink Flamingos with family or close friends, prepare to spend the remainder of the year alone wondering what on earth possessed you to show them the film in the first place. Bear in mind, throughout the film Divine eats freshly excreted canine feasces, orally pleasures her son and hides fresh meat in her loins. The rest of the cast are not quite as pleasant but Divine does leave you with a feeling of having been visually assaulted.

9. Alex De Large in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange

Singin’ in the Rain was never the same after Malcolm McDowell sang it, ever so joyously, as he indulged his taste for ultra-violence in Kubrick’s controversial masterpiece. If Alex doesn’t disturb or frighten you in some way, you’ve some serious problems. When he’s not raping or fighting Alex is stabbing and cutting to classical music. A horrifying vision of the future without 50 Cent scored mayhem.

8. Professor Frank N Furter in Jim Sharman’s Rocky Horror Picture Show

The second transvestite on our list and perhaps the most musically gifted and sexually ambiguous. Crossing Frank N Furter leads to numerous hilarious outcomes, if you happen to be Meat Loaf he’ll cut you with an axe, if you’re lucky enough to be Susan Sarandon he will happily eat you out and then try to murder you and your husband. He also sings quite a bit and is arguably the best transsexual transvestite from Transylvania you’ll ever encounter on this list.

7 Seth Gecko in Robert Rodriguez’s From Dusk ‘Till Dawn

With Clooney’s effortless charm and undeniable good looks, Gecko was a sure choice to be on this list. Whatever remained of his ER role is left firmly in the blood spattered dust in Rodriguez’s mid 90’s classic. Clooney shoots, stabs and kicks ass through a crazed vampire hoard that would make even Stephenie Meyer run screaming to the hills. Bear in mind this is pre-glittering vampire days too, Clooney surely had his work cut out for him.

6. Patrick Bateman in Mary Harron’s American Psycho

Before Christian Bale dressed up as a bat and fought crime in Gotham City he was but an innocent Wall Street executive with a penchant for cannibalism, sexual abuse and the odd axe attack. Bateman is a monster pure and simple, he listens to Phil Collins, murders the homeless, listens to Phil Collins, eats prostitutes, listens to Phil Collins, shoots the police and if that wasn’t bad enough he also listens to Phil Collins!

5. Charles Bronson in Nicholas Winding Refn’s Bronson

Tom Hardy gives an hilarious performance as career criminal Charlie Bronson who, having been sentenced to a year in prison for robbing a post office in the early 80’s, still resides in the British prison system to this day. Britain’s most expensive and dangerous criminal, Bronson is a self proclaimed superstar and Hardy plays him with such dedication that you cannot help but feel pure admiration for the character and the actor.

4. The Driver in Nicholas Winding Refn’s Drive

Nicholas Winding Refn’s filmography is a very interesting one to say the least. In 2011’s Drive, Ryan Gosling plays the eponymous anti-hero who takes it upon himself to wage a one man war on the gang that have killed those closest to him. Ultra violent, ultra cool and ultra something else, Drive and its hero are almost hypnotic to behold.

3. Leon in Luc Besson’s Leon

Back in the nineties when Luc Besson’s films were still good and Liam Neeson didn’t threaten and shoot French Nationals, Jean Reno was murdering those who he felt truly deserved it, for a price. Leon’s ethos - no women, no children - makes him France’s cuddliest hitman and the world's most dangerous baby sitter.

2. Tyler Durden in David Fincher’s Fight Club

If I were to talk about this, I would of course be breaking the first rule of Fight Club. Now that my self-referential bit is out of the way, I can recommend the film and Brad Pitt to anyone who happens to have read this far already. Anti-consumerist icon Durden is everything you want to be. He looks like you wanna look, f**ks like you wanna f**k and is smart and capable; and, most importantly, free in all the ways we are not. Damn hippie.

1. Travis Bickle in Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver

DeNiro gives a career best performance as insomniac cabbie Travis Bickle. Lost, alone, racist and angry, Bickle directs his anger to the one place he feels it would make a difference: at the pimps and low lives of New York City. In a society as corrupt as Bickle’s it takes a man with no boundaries to actually make a difference.