10 Movie Villains Who Were Clearly Just Misunderstood

2. Senator Stern €“ Iron Man 2

Stern I€™m sure I€™m not the first person to mention this, but if you really analyse Iron Man 2 you can get a pretty good argument about the merits of objectivism, the philosophy popularised by thinkers such as Ayn Rand. Objectivism €“ which also inspired Bioshock €“ holds that man is the master of his fate, and should not be held back from being all he could be by external forces, be they religion, government or political systems. As a billionaire who refuses to share the world-changing technology of his super-suit, Tony Stark embodies this principle pretty much to a tee. He€™s a singular man who won€™t give up his secrets for his nation, because dammit, they€™re his secrets. For many things, I could get behind that logic. Yet the Iron Man suit is not €˜many things€™ €“ it effectively gives Tony the right to lord it over his country, with the entire military relying on his efforts. Now, the film showcases the government officials attempting to get Tony to part with his designs as massive buzz-kills and douchebags, because they€™re going up against Tony Stark, and Tony Stark is awesome. Yet try look at it from their perspective. The fact that their last resort defence before nuclear warheads is in the hands of a single man would scare anyone, and when that man is a known unstable narcissist, this just ramps up the urgency all the further. So really, what€™s wrong with what Senator Stern€™s doing? He may not like Stark personally, but the only reason he€™s been thrown into close contact with the man is so he can protect his country, and by extension, millions of lives. If you ask me, that seems like a pretty noble goal.
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Contributor

Durham University graduate and qualified sports journalist. Very good at sitting down and watching things. Can multi-task this with playing computer games. Football Manager addict who has taken Shrewsbury Town to the summit of the Premier League. You can follow me at @Ed_OwenUK, if you like ramblings about Newcastle United and A Place in the Sun. If you don't, I don't know what I can do for you.