Best Heel to Face character changes (bad guys turning good)
 

one of the best has to be Johnny in Karate Kid. Other thoughts?

This happens a lot with James Bond henchmen. Usually the penalty is death. Exception is:

Don't know if he counts as fully turning back face, but Darth Vader is the best one I can think of.

Ice in Top Gun

Albert Laurent in The Island

Both Apollo Creed and Ivan Drago. If I need to name the movies, or if you consider these spoilers, then you should consider suicide.


-Doc

Blonde chick in Revenge of the Nerds... she went from heel to face (from jocks to nerds) when she fucked Darth Vader on a funhouse trampoline

I think you just wrote my epitaph.

How about this change of heart in <i>Blade Runner</i>?



EDIT: Spoilerized for her pleasure. My bad.

Spoilers!

Isn't ;)


-Doc

I was going to put spoilers on mine, but it's an 'enter at your own risk' type of thread anyway.

Mongo in Blazing Saddles, he was just a pawn in the game of life.

I'd like to make a list. Two columns. On one column is Ed Harris's character in National Treasure 2. On the other column, is every other character in anything, ever. Consider those in the second column before you consider the first.

How about Arnold Schwarzanegger turning from a bad guy in Terminator to a good guy in Terminator 2: Judgement Day ????????

Sato from Karate Kid 2.

I like the pro-wrestling terminology in the thread title.

My favorite isn't necessarily "bad to good," more like "bad to bad on better terms," but it would have to be the Wild Bunch's Final Four vs. the whole damn Mapache army.

I know this is in the movie talk forum, but if we expanded it to television, there would be a wealth of characters to explore (the longer format obviously making possible more character development and wider arcs, if properly utilized).

With that in mind, I'd say Spike from Buffy and then Angel. A lot of people felt it nuetered the character, and I could see that. But I absolutely loved him as the good guy, yet still an ass in Angel's final season.


-Doc


Edit: Oh, and another, more realistic example would be from my personal favorite show, <b>The Wire</b>. While never a show to simply label anyone "Good" or "Bad", I think one could argue that Carver was on his way to being just another street-ripping, statistic-juking career cop, were it not for him starting out under Bunny Coleman and spending time under (and getting lectured by in a fantastic scene) Daniels. Subsequent seasons have shown just how good a cop Carver has become (community policing, trying to help the kids instead of just busting them) in contrast to his former partner, Herc, who is now just a bruiser with poor instincts climbing the ladder, more concerned with keeping his stripes than protecting a poor kid who snitched.

Harry (green goblin version 2.0) in Spider man 3

Dennis Franz in Die Hard 2.
(Although you have to wait til the last minute of the movie)

And who could forget Zangiff in the classic United Nations thriller, <b>Street Fighter</b>. Although to be fair, he wasn't so much "bad", as he was misled, simple soul that he was.


-Doc

You mean after she was raped in the funhouse.


How about Steven Williams from one of the Chuck Norris Missing in Action flicks.

Not the same guy.

huh?

Darth Vader wins this one hands down. Especially if you ignore the prequels and what a p-ssy he was in those movies.

If you count Ahnuld in T2, then that was one of the more inspired face turns I've seen.

Miss Tessmacher in Superman: The Movie. ;)

Do Inigo Montoya and Fezzik in The Princess Bride count?