Line #46 TheUnfettered/Film


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9	!!Animated
10	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Coco}}'': [[spoiler:Ernesto de la Cruz]] will resort to murder if it means being able to [[spoiler:seize his moment.]]
11	* ''WesternAnimation/Frozen2013'': [[spoiler:Prince Hans of the Southern Isles]] turns out to be an evil, manipulative and remorseless fiend who shows no moral qualms regarding his goal to become king of Arendelle, even if he has to resort to ''murder''.
12	** Deconstructed in the TieInNovel ''Literature/AFrozenHeart'', which reveals [[spoiler:Prince Hans's]] backstory, and how [[FreudianExcuse it shaped]] him into becoming the "frozen-hearted" villain he is today. Though [[spoiler:he [[UsedToBeASweetKid started out as a decent person]] who opposed his father's brutal regime, the time he spent as the king's gofer and his brothers' constant bullying made him [[LoveIsAWeakness cynical about love,]] combined with stubbornly pursuing a nigh-impossible goal of [[WellDoneSonGuy winning his heartless father's respect at all costs]].]] By the end of the story, he's so desensitized that he has no qualms using methods [[spoiler:he once hated]] in order to become the king of Arendelle.
13	* Judge Claude Frollo from ''WesternAnimation/TheHunchbackOfNotreDameDisney''. He doesn't start out as this, but he ends up focusing so much on Esmeralda that he no longer cares about how the people of Paris perceive him or fears the church and God.
14	* ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'': Scar ''really'' wants to be king. He gets his wish far more quickly than most other Disney villains by being willing to [[WouldHurtAChild have his nephew killed]] and, when that fails, [[SiblingMurder murdering his brother instead]]. He's got no respect for the Circle of Life, [[CombatPragmatist no appreciation for honourable combat]], [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder no loyalty to his allies]], and no moral qualms whatsoever.
15	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}}'': Unlike Metro Man, Titan/Tighten has absolutely zero qualms against trying to kill Megamind outright. It's only the first sign of the monster Megamind has created.
16	* The Director from ''WesternAnimation/Nimona2023''. She will do anything, no matter how reprehensible, in order to protect the kingdom from monsters. She voices her resolves right after personally running a sword through Gloreth's last living descendant, Sir Goldenloin—or, at least, someone who took on his form.
17	* "Big" Jack Horner from ''WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish''. Nothing will stop him from getting the wish in his POV. Nothing.
18	* [[BigBad Madam Gasket]] from ''WesternAnimation/{{Robots}}''. She has no qualms to murder Bigweld to solidify her son's rule over Robot City, and she even threatens to hang Ratchet next to his father for hesitating on the plan.
19	* Jenner from ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretofNIMH''. He takes completely insane extremes to make sure the rats hold their post in the thorn bush, refusing to budge even from claims against their survival if they stay. When Mrs. Brisby tries to warn them that NIMH will come for them, he resorts to trying to physically silence her.
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21	!!Live-Action
22	* Standard in [[ExploitationFilm revenge films]]: ''Film/DeathWish'', ''Film/MadMax'', ''Film/RollingThunder'', ''Film/HighPlainsDrifter'', ''Film/OrcaTheKillerWhale'' (that's right, [[WrongGenreSavvy to us it's]] a ''Film/{{Jaws}}'' ripoff, but the Orca thinks he's in ''Film/{{Irreversible}}'', and his rampage [[HumansAreBastards is justified]]), ''Film/ISpitOnYourGrave'', etc. etc., all feature a protagonist who is singlemindedly bent on revenge to the exclusion of all else. And that "revenge" can be assumed to mean "death", which may be disproportionate to the original offense, ''Film/MassacreAtCentralHigh'' being a notable example. Presumably, they bother to eat because they need to so they can gain revenge, but a character on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge will not often be seen doing any basic daily maintenance activities, much less enjoying themselves at anything. Unless it's [[Literature/VenusInFurs a Jess Franco film]], in which case RuleOfSexy applies, and may even play into the revenge.
23	* Major Henry West from ''Film/TwentyEightDaysLater''. He'll do anything to repopulate the country and to prove that there is a future for his men, to the point that he's blinded himself to the possibility that there's no point in repopulation.
24	* ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'':
25	** [[MegaCorp Weyland-Yutani]]. The company wants to control the xenomorph for profit and to increase their wealth/influence. To this end, they sacrifice their own employees, doom an entire squadron of soldier or destroy entire civilizations. One only need look at their agents/executives (Ash, Burke, Bishop...etc).
26	** [[RoboticPsychopath David]] from ''{{Film/Prometheus}}'' and ''{{Film/Alien Covenant}}''. As evidenced by his famous question "How far would you go to get your answers". For David, the answer is however far it takes. He even remarks to Shaw in Prometheus that once his creators aren't around to program him anymore, he'll be "free", which was likely a factor in leading Weyland to his demise.
27	* Colonel Walter E. Kurtz in ''Film/ApocalypseNow''. He gives a monologue to Captain Williard as to why he admires the Vietnamese enemy. He speaks of how, when he was with the US Special Forces, he went on numerous humanitarian aid missions to foster good will towards the common people of Vietnam. When things changed for him was when, during one of these aid missions, the enemy came into the village after they left and massacred everyone; especially disturbing was that they mutilated the arms of the children and threw them into a pile as a trophy, mocking the Americans. At first Kurtz was traumatized, but given time to think about it, he marveled at the genius of tactics like that; the enemy was going to win the war, not because they had a superior military, but because they were willing to do '''whatever''' it took to win. If America had that much dedication, he said, as few as 10 divisions could win the war.
28	* Thanos turns out to be this in ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar''. Following the loss of all life on his homeworld due to overpopulation, he becomes capable of doing ''anything'', no matter how monstrous, to prevent other worlds from suffering a similar fate. His pursuit of the Infinity Stones is entirely because being able to do so everywhere at once with the snap of a finger is far more efficient than having to go from world to world. [[spoiler:He eventually murders his daughter Gamora to acquire the Soul Stone.]]
29	* The titular ''Film/BlackAdam2022''. Dwayne Johnson considers a defining trait of the character to be a lack of restraint.
30	* Erik Killmonger from ''Film/BlackPanther2018''. Erik will do anything to get to his goals. Anything. An example is how he handles his two allies: When Klaue is holding Erik's lover hostage, he just [[ShootTheHostage shoots them both]] — his lover because she was unimportant, and Klaue because he was a means to an end. He unflinchingly makes split-second, violent decisions with no remorse, all for the sake of reaching his goal. And, as he says in this section's quote — all the killing and lying he did was so he could reach this point.
31	* Vampire Overlord [[BigBad Eli Damaskinos]] from ''{{Film/BladeII}}'', When asked by a subordinate how many of his people he was willing to sacrifice for his goals, he replies "Everyone." [[spoiler: As it turns out, even his own family isn't safe.]]
32	* Leilah from ''Film/Bright2017''. Leilah will do anything to get her Wand back so she can resurrect the Dark Lord. This includes murdering innocent civilians, police officers, and even Tikka, her own sister.
33	* Captain Louis Renault from ''Film/{{Casablanca}}''. Very little, if anything, checks Capt. Renault's goals or decisions.
34	* ''Film/{{Collateral}}'' gives us [[Creator/TomCruise Vincent]], the [[PsychoForHire hired killer]] who's as [[AffablyEvil charming]] as he is [[NietzscheWannabe terrifying]].
35	* Baron Victor Von Frankenstein from ''Film/TheCurseofFrankenstein''. Absolutely nothing will stop Frankenstein in his quest to create new life, not societal expectations, the lives of his friends or even his own safety.
36	* [[spoiler: Talia al Ghul]] from ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises''. Kill innocent people, die herself, construct a years-long deception and alternate identity to infiltrate Gotham's elite, seduce the man who killed her father, allow her closest friend and protector to die... nothing is beyond her if it means Gotham is ashes in the end.
37	** Her father, [[spoiler: Ra's al Ghul]], also qualifies. He stops at nothing to achieve his goal of [[spoiler: destroying Gotham City]].
38	** Bane, as well. Like Ra's al Ghul before him, Bane allows nothing to stand in the way of the destruction of Gotham.
39	** To say nothing of The Joker.
40	---> '''Joker''': [[Franchise/{{Batman}} You]] have [[TheFettered all these rules]], and you think they'll save you. ''[...]'' The only sensible way to live in this world is ''without'' rules.
41	* Hans Gruber from ''Film/DieHard''. Looks like nothing can stop him from trying to achieve his goal. If he has to kill someone or sacrifice his own men if that would mean putting his hands on the millions then so be it.
42	* Ma-Ma from ''{{Film/Dredd}}''. Willing to obliterate an entire level of Peach Trees with military-grade weapons just to kill a lieutenant she knows will talk if Dredd gets him out.
43	* Paul Atreides becomes this in ''Film/DunePart2'' following the events of ''Film/DunePart1''. After learning he is a Harkonnen, Paul concludes that they will survive only by being like the Harkonnens. He abandons all his previous fear of the dark future he foresaw and instead embraces it, becoming a ruthless DarkMessiah who steamrolls over the Baron and Shaddam, and, having claimed the throne for himself, stands ready to do the same to the rest of the Imperium.
44	* Colonel Jessep from ''Film/AFewGoodMen''. Don't believe it? [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hGvQtumNAY Just listen to his speech]] and see for yourself.
45	* In ''Film/FightClub'', Tyler Durden (and eventually [[spoiler:the narrator]]) count.
46	* [[BigBad The Kurgan]] from ''Film/{{Highlander}}'', an ancient Immortal from the Russian steppes who only cares about one thing: claiming the Prize. He will attack any Immortal, anytime and nearly anywhere. The [[TruceZone tradition of not fighting on]] HolyGround is just about the only law he respects. Apart from that, he is a deranged savage.
47	* ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'': The human BigBadWannabe [[Characters/MonsterVerseApexCybernetics Walter Simmons]] is a [[ManipulativeBastard manipulative]], ruthless, {{narcissist}}ic CorruptCorporateExecutive in the vein of the ''James Bond'' villains below, who will do absolutely ''anything'' to get what he wants [[TheSociopath without moral restraint or remorse]]. Though Simmons believes he's establishing humanity as the dominant species, in truth he's motivated to satisfy his own ego before anyone else can rob him of the glory he feels he deserves: and to that end, he sacrifices and intentionally endangers millions of people [[LackOfEmpathy without shame]], he commits {{corporate conspiracy}}, and resorts to all kinds of other underhanded acts; to say nothing of how he hasn't taken away any [[GreenAesop lessons from the previous films' events that might contradict his objective]] in ten years. Simmons doesn't even seem to care much that he's sending his own daughter on a life-threatening mission that will further his agenda. He finally refuses to back down from his decision to infuse the GreenRocks [[spoiler:into Mechagodzilla]] [[UnfinishedUntestedUsedAnyway immediately]] in Hong Kong, [[DetrimentalDetermination which is what seals his fate]] and [[SelfDisposingVillain ruins his plans]]. The novelization says that Simmons knows his decisions are putting his own life at stake, yet he can't and won't back down.
48	* The High Evolutionary from ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol3''. Played for horror. He goes about his quest to 'perfect the galaxy' blissfully untroubled by questions like 'is this ethical', 'how much will this cost', 'is this likely to work', and 'is this on any conceivable level a good and useful idea'. In the end, he's mostly responsible for making the galaxy worse, not better.
49	* In ''Film/TheHustler1961'', Eddie wants to beat Minnesota Fats at pool and be recognized as the best player ever. But the only way he can do that is to become The Unfettered, no matter what he has to sacrifice along the way.
50	* ''{{Film/Interstellar}}'': NASA deliberately seeks out people like this for the mission; people with no connection to Earth or a willingness to make any sacrifice if it means getting the job done. [[spoiler:This backfires horribly with Dr. Mann, as it turns out that the reason he's unfettered is because he has no priority higher than ''keeping himself alive''. He proceeds to jeopardize the whole mission by falsifying data and betraying the ''Endurance'' crew in a desperate attempt to [[DirtyCoward save his own skin]] after the planet he was supposed to explore turned out to be inhospitable.]]
51	* Pick any villain in the ''Film/JamesBond'' franchise. Many of them are first-rate sociopathic {{Diabolical Mastermind}}s and/or {{Corrupt Corporate Executive}}s. They're determined to achieve their EvilPlan by any means necessary, be it murder or kidnapping. In more extreme OmnicidalManiac cases like Ernst Blofeld, Karl Stromberg, or Hugo Drax, ''[[TakeOverTheWorld they'll hold the entire world at gunpoint]]''. To them, the ends justify the means in succeeding at their goals, and they'll do anything ''and'' everything to get the job done, even if it's underhanded.
52	* ''Film/{{The Jungle Book 2016}}'': Shere Khan. The reason everyone [[TheDreaded fears]] him is not just his [[LightningBruiser vast power]], but his perfect willingness to [[TheSociopath violate]] the jungle law when it suits him.
53	* Clyde Shelton in ''Film/LawAbidingCitizen''. After his family is murdered and the D.A. cuts an insanely inadequate deal with the culprit, he becomes singularly focused on the goal of not only getting justice, but bringing down the broken, flawed, and corrupt justice system that he believes failed his family.
54	* Faora-Ul from ''Film/ManofSteel2013''. She remains stoic and glacial even when it comes to annihilate an entire population in order to take a planet away from them.
55	* Denzel Washington in ''Film/ManOnFire''. To save one young girl and get revenge for her kidnapping, he kills dozens of people. He gives no regard to his own life or that of anyone around him. He tortures and kills anyone who has a connection to the kidnapping and kills anyone who gets in the way, at one point blowing up a whole building -- possibly with many innocents inside -- without any remorse. Finally, he [[spoiler:sacrifices himself in a trade for the girl]]. Admittedly, he was already suicidal, but he used his suicidal feelings to strip himself of all remaining inhibitions.
56	* [[MorallyBankruptBanker John Tuld]] from ''Film/MarginCall''. He is utterly ruthless and committed to a singular vision, even when it becomes clear that the decision (seemingly made over a span of just a few hours) will radically impact his company's reputation on the stock market, if not outright destroy it. It's notable that in his final scene, he's shown casually enjoying a steak dinner after the fire sale and nonchalantly tells Sam that he "feels better" about the whole thing, because it will all be water under the bridge soon enough.
57	* A heroic example is Neo from ''Franchise/TheMatrix'' series. In becoming [[EnlightenmentSuperpowers The One]], Neo was, effectively, Choice Incarnate, able to do what he wanted in the Matrix. Being the One and being Neo were different things, however. [[spoiler:While the Architect was able to limit the choices of his predecessors]], it was Neo's specific love for Trinity that allowed him to TakeAThirdOption throughout the series and not constrain himself fully to what the Matrix, its machine denizens, or even the humans of Zion wanted or expected him to do -- [[spoiler:even at the risk of genocide of the human race if he were to fail]].
58	* [[BigBad Solomon Lane]] from ''Film/MissionImpossibleFallout''. Through SanitySlippage, there is nothing Lane isn't willing to do to achieve his goals, even if those goals are just hurting Ethan. He's even perfectly happy to trade his own life to do so.
59	* The antagonist Kurt Hendricks from ''Film/MissionImpossibleGhostProtocol'' is willing to go to any lengths to ignite a global nuclear war for the sake of "peace." This includes destroying the Kremlin in Russia to make off with the nuclear launch codes and putting the blame on the IMF, kidnapping the family of a nuclear code expert so he would cooperate with their schemes before dying when he was [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness no longer useful]], and even jumping out of the top floor of a vehicle assembly factory and mortally wounding himself to keep the launch control device from Hunt's hands.
60	* Louis Bloom from ''Film/{{Nightcrawler}}''. Lou is willing to cross any lines necessary to ensure he gets the best footage and allows his business to take off.
61	* In ''Film/NoCountryForOldMen'' we have Anton Chigurh, a ruthless and nearly emotionless PsychoForHire, with a set of rules that only he understands.
62	--> '''Anton Chigurh''': (About to kill a fellow hit man) Let me ask you something. If the rule you followed, brought you to this, [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech of what use was the rule?]]
63	* ''Film/TheOne'': The [[FallenHero former interdimensional law enforcer]] Gabriel Yulaw has devoted himself to becoming [[AGodAmI the One]] by killing all alternate versions of himself and gaining power through their energies. He isn't bothered by the fact that there's more than one hundred of them, what kind of collateral damage he causes (like fighting [[spoiler:and killing]] his [[WeUsedToBeFriends former friend Roedecker]]), or that it's not even sure if he actually becomes the most powerful being in existence or causes the entire multiverse's destruction if he kills Gabe, the last version of himself. He's that single-minded in his goal. [[spoiler:Once he's imprisoned in a PrisonDimension, he merely decides to become the one most powerful fighter around.]] [[TellMeHowYouFight His fighting style (Xing Yi Quan) even reflects this trope]]; he prefers attacking with straightforward punches even when there's plenty of room around. [[spoiler:This proves to be his undoing against the Baguazhang style his GoodCounterpart Gabe utilizes.]]
64	-->'''Yulaw:''' The shortest distance between two points will always be a straight line.
65	* Robert Angier in ''Film/ThePrestige'' will do anything to destroy Alfred Borden and expose the secret for his "Transported Man" trick, from [[spoiler:shooting Borden's fingers off, to throwing his fortune at lightning experiments, to framing Borden for murder]]. At first, it seems to be retribution for Borden accidentally killing Angier's wife, but it eventually goes way beyond that:
66	-->'''Olivia (his mistress):''' It won't bring your wife back.
67	-->'''Angier:''' I don't care about my wife. I care about his secret.
68	* The Operative from ''Film/{{Serenity}}''.
69	** Interestingly played in that Mal defeats the Operative by fettering him: [[spoiler:showing the man the recording from Miranda broke his conviction and put him up against a moral objection he couldn't overcome]].
70	* Alejandro Gillick from the ''Film/Sicario'' duology. Doesn't care who gets hurt as long as Fausto is out of commission. His hatred and vengefulness has twisted him into a monster who doesn't care who he hurts as long as he gets what he wants.
71	* ''Film/SodomAndGomorrah'': It's made clear that Queen Bera and other Sodomites see no limits placed on gaining pleasure. Whether it be killing people, incest or whatever else, anything goes in their eyes.
72	* [[BigBad Dr. Ivo Robotnik/Eggman]] from ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'' and ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog22022''. Robotnik does whatever he wants, whenever he wants, and has no concern for the consequences.
73	* The Green Goblin from ''Film/SpidermanNoWayHome''. What ultimately makes him as dangerous as he is. No matter what the situation is, he gives his all and shows absolutely zero restraint, and his belief that he is above human morality coupled with his open disgust for weakness means that there does not seem to be a single line he's averse to crossing.
74	* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
75	** Qui-Gon Jinn is the OldMaster kind of unfettered: 'I do what I must.' Without remorse, without regret. Not coincidentally, many Star Wars fans consider Qui-Gon to be a good movie example of a Gray Jedi -- that is to say, [[GreyAndGrayMorality a Force-user that doesn't necessarily believe in the Light/Dark duality of the Force]]. The fact that he serves the Jedi as opposed to the Sith is inconsequential.
76	** Interestingly enough, true Gray Jedi make use of [[CombatPragmatist both Force abilities]]. Since they aren't restricted to one teaching or another, this potentially could grant mastery and insight into the Force, beyond any normal Jedi or Sith. However, it is rare to encounter such individuals, since they're an [[ImpartialPurposeDrivenFaction extremely reclusive faction]].
77	** Mandalorians are especially [[TheDreaded feared]] for this trope alone. Other than the Sith, the Mandalorians were another of the Jedi's greatest rival organizations. However, in the more recent lore, most Mandalorian clans were purged to near-extinction. Though this makes them even less common than the Sith, a few surviving clans managed to escape.
78	** The Sith are always The Unfettered, to contrast the Jedi being TheFettered.
79	--->'''The Code of the Sith:''' Peace is a Lie, there is only Passion.\
80	Through Passion, I gain Strength.\
81	Through Strength, I gain Power.\
82	Through Power, I gain Victory.\
83	Through Victory, My Chains are Broken.\
84	The Force shall free me.
85	*** The Dark Side itself is very often [[DarkIsNotEvil misunderstood]] in this way. Yes, it can be and has been used for evil purposes, but at its core, it is merely a direct and destructive power. But abusing it comes at a cost of both [[DrunkOnTheDarkSide sanity]] and [[EvilMakesYouUgly grim deformation]].
86	** Many typical Bounty Hunters (most famously Boba Fett and Cad Bane) are as [[OnlyInItForTheMoney unfettered]] as one can get in this universe. Since they can be bought off (most of the time), it's rare to see these types fully invested in their employer. This can spell big trouble for anyone willing to cross them, friend or foe.
87	** Grand Moff Tarkin, in spades. He criticizes the Jedi for being TheFettered in a time of war. He takes this viewpoint further in his service to the Empire, blowing up a planet just to set an example.
88	* In ''Film/{{Taken}}'' we have the father (who happens to be a CombatPragmatist) to boot) who will go to any length, including torture and shooting his friend's wife, in a frighteningly unhesitating fashion, to get his daughter back.
89	* [[spoiler: Sentinel Prime]] in ''Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon'' is revealed to be one of these. Over the course of the film and the events preceding it, he [[spoiler: betrays the Autobots who trusted and followed him, makes a pact with Megatron, brutally murders Ironhide, attempts to enslave the human race, murders countless innocent people, and nearly kills Optimus, to whom he had been a mentor and father figure. All of which proves that there was no depth that Sentinel was unwilling to sink to for the sake of restoring Cybertron and returning to a time where he was revered as a god]].
90	* Mattie Ross in both versions of ''Film/TrueGrit'', but played harder in the new adaptation. Offputting because she's just a teenage girl, but she is utterly obsessed with killing [[DirtyCoward Tom Chaney]].
91	* "[[NoNameGiven H]]," an interrogator who specializes in ColdBloodedTorture, in ''Film/{{Unthinkable}}''. After he is set to work on a terrorist who claims to have planted nuclear bombs in several American cities, at several points he tells his handlers that it is important that his subject believe that he "has no limits." As it turns out, he [[MoralEventHorizon really doesn't]].
92	* Keyser Soze from ''Film/TheUsualSuspects''. ''Nothing'' can stop him once he decides he's going to do something. ''Nothing''.
93	-->''Söze looks over the faces of his family. Then he showed these men of will what will really was.''
94	* Terence Fletcher from ''Film/{{Whiplash}}''. : There is no low Fletcher will avert from to succeed, as he is even [[spoiler: willing enough to use the suicide of a former pupil to fabricate a sob story to motivate his students, knowing that his destructive behavior may have been a factor to his students demise]].
95	* In ''Film/TheWolverine'', none of Shingen’s evil acts really faze him. Not once does he take a step back and think that maybe, just maybe, trying to [[spoiler:murder your daughter]] is a bit evil.
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Context TheUnfettered / Film