Revenge has always been one of the most prominent themes in movies. When it is justifiable? When do you turn from a person to a monster? But most of the time they don't even bother going philosophical and instead turn into cheerful murder sprees with the good guys and the bad guys clearly pointed out. Either way they are fun to watch and even more fun to analyze.
The Godfather
Vengeance is just part of The Godfather's brilliant storyline but it is an undeniable fact that the thirst for revenge gets the plot going. Michael Corleone transforms from an idealistic patriot to a ruthless Mafia Don during the course of the film, crushing everyone in his path, which is ok because there are hardly any innocents to be caught in the crossfire. Unfortunately the other two parts of The Godfather saga are not nearly as impactful as the first movie and despite its solid running time of three hour it definitely deserves to be seen by everyone.
Gladiator
There is not much to be said about Gladiator. It is the story of a man, who got wrongfully accused, his family dead, his home destroyed, who seeks revenge against the evil Emperor and thats about it. The story is a simple backdrop for the relentless action and boy, the film delivers in this regard. Great performances and epic battles in the arena are mixed up with breathtaking views from Ancient Rome. The Emperor especially, played by Joaquin Phoenix, is a wonderful bad guy, completely stealing the show from our bland but manly hero(Russell Crowe).
Memento
A weird movie this one. At its core it is the revenge story of a guy, chasing his wife's killer, but the presentation is literally backwards. We see the end, then we learn step by step what led the main character to his final predicament. The film is smart and filled with twists, which are compounded by the lead's very special medical condition, but the gist of it is that once you set your mind straight on killing someone as a revenge you can be easily taken advantage of. Emotions often take the better of us, unfortunately.
Kill Bill / Inglorious Basterds / Jango Unchained
Quentin Tarantino follows the same formula in all three films - select an acceptable group of evil people and exact revenge upon them in various glorious and nasty ways. What keeps them from being repetitive is the witty dialogue, the vastly different locations and of course the various methods in which our mains go about their revenge. All in all, the movies are fun to watch even though they go about portraying the bad guys in a very stereotypical way(for example all white people in Jango Unchained are racist jerks with the only good guy not even being American), just be prepared for some onscreen nastiness.
Oldboy
Oldboy is the most popular film from the Korean "Vengeance Trilogy" . All three movies explore revenge in disturbing depths and it is not a pretty sight to be sure. They and the also popular "I Saw The Devil", which came out later, paint revenge in the most negative light possible. People seeking it end up either with their lives completely destroyed or dead, there are no happy endings or hopeful spots. Asians once again show us how they can weave powerful stories into memorable masterpieces without being afraid to shock and disgust us.
The Killer
And now we are on the opposite side of the spectrum with some John Woo goodness. The Killer fits the so called "heroic bloodshed" film genre like a glove. Our heroes kill dozens and dozens of bad guys in various slow mo ways and its all completely justified as the right thing to do. Well, at least this film in particular did have a bad ending, but in its core the video game-like carnage is depicted as heroic through and through. Action lovers must seek this Asian offering at all costs, it is a no holds barred attack on each and every sense, which will leave you breathless.
Unforgiven
Clint Eastwood has a story of starring into Western revenge based films. Late in his career, when he was directing as well as playing, he made something different from the usual spaghetti. Oh yes, it is still a revenge Western alright, but this time the grittiness and realism are ramped up, showing The Wild West as a place with no romanticism left. His character is a retired killer, who once again picks up his guns for one last job, and things go completely wrong. He is no hero though, nobody in this movie is, and revenge by itself is nothing but the self satisfaction of people, who lost their empathy a long time ago.
V For Vendetta
Based on a comic book, V for Vendetta tells us the story of an anonymous guy, who decides to take revenge on his former captors and the system while he is at it. As a comic book story we can't expect much realism, but the coolness is off the charts. An avatar of The Freedom Fighter, V slices and dices through the forces of the oppressive government, inspiring a whole country to follow his lead. The performances are excellent, the action - magnificent and you can even get some social commentary out of it.
Taken
Sometimes I wonder why this film even had a beginning and an ending, it should have been all about Liam Neeson going on a rampage against the worst kind of people on Earth - human traffickers! Why he is doing it is nothing but a triviality (hint: his stupid daughter). The man has so much charisma you can't help but cheer for him all the way, even when he is torturing people and being a complete dick to uncooperative colleagues. The sequels are bad but the first film will remain as an action classic.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Who would have thought such a dark musical will be so popular. Tim Burton has a knack for creating heavy and macabre atmosphere, while Johnny Depp has a knack for playing quirky characters. The gist of it: after being wrongfully accused and losing everything he loves(yawn) Johnny Depp's character comes back with a vengeance as The Demon Barber. Lots of blood and ruined lives are on the line, all while the music and singing is cheerfully going on. It is unique, I give it that.
