We've all waited for that scene with anticipation. That moment when our intrepid hero is trapped over a pool of acid/sharks/your favorite modus operandi of death, and the villain strolls in. Suave, debonair, and entirely confident that he (or she), will win the day. He then details exactly how he shall bring the world to its knees, and bow before his superior might and intellect! That's not happening so much anymore, is it? After seeing how The Mandarin is portrayed in Iron Man 3, I've noticed a distinct trend going on in our favorite films. We no longer see our favorite masterminds striving for the gold standard of "I will be the master of all I survey". Instead, we seem to be transforming comic's greatest (and not so much) villains from dictators to terrorists. Not so much conquer all, more "let's see the world burn". Let's look at recent history. The Mandarin. Complete Chinese overlord, always wishing to demonstrate his superiority through conquest. Now, recent trailers saw him as a "brutal educator" of Iron Man, taking a big leaf out of Nolan's tried-and-true methods. All of our beloved comic villains seem to be forsaking their true natures for terrorism.
Bane. Once a mercenary-for-hire/antithesis and rival of Batman. Now "Gotham's Reckoning."
Green Goblin had some psychopathic tendencies, but he had always been out for number one. Conquer everything, in any manner possible. Now he's just another man driven insane by his own intelligence.
...Okay, this guy's always been about blood and carnage. But we are now a culture that cares more about men and women ending the world, than conquering it. Most of the biggest comic-book flops have had villains that wanted to "rule the world", or whatever corner of it they happened to inhabit. Ghost Riders 1 & 2 made everyone shudder, while Daredevil was the only film that made me cringe when I saw Michael Clarke Duncan. And who could forget this guy?
No one, no matter how hard we tried. Our films are showing how we as a society view society, and specifically evil. We do not care about the evil dictator anymore. If any ruler really becomes a problem, we send the Expendables, not Batman. What comic book villains are doing nowadays is proving how much of a problem the man who wants nothing truly is. Iron Man 3 is out (and most likely going to dominate the box office yet again), but we need to see why we care about villains again. We have once again found ourselves at the crossroads of populace appeal. Why don't we care about dictators anymore? And will there ever come a time when they will rise again?