The horror genre is so overabundant with idiots, it feels like a breeding ground for people who lack survival instincts. No matter how apparent the danger, the ensemble split up, fall over nothing, or scream helplessly while a serial killer plods towards them at a snail’s pace.
But if there’s one horror character that counterbalances this trope, it’s usually the villain. Whether it’s a mad scientist, a man-eating psychiatrist, or a savvy psychopath, the big bad is often ten steps ahead of everyone else, allowing them to outsmart their victims with ease. As such, they tend to be bested only after encountering their intellectual equal.
But on occasion, the baddie is defeated by their own incompetence. Even if they’re supposed to be a criminal mastermind or a certified genius, antagonists can be more responsible for their own downfall than anyone else. A lot of baddies waffle on about their evil scheme long enough for the good guys to escape. More often than not, the villain doesn’t finish off the hero when they have the chance. And other times, the adversary doesn’t realise their dastardly scheme is really, really stupid.
In Land of the Dead, a zombie outbreak causes modern society to collapse, with one of the last remaining cities being run by the tyrannical Paul Kaufman, who doesn’t care how many die to safeguard his legacy.
After the flesh-eating creatures develop the ability to think and follow a leader, they successfully infiltrate Kaufman’s domain. Rather than prepping a retaliation, Kaufman abandons his guards, leading to them being zombified, including his commander, Cholo.
With Kaufman moments away from escape, he’s stopped in the parking lot by an undead Cholo. Assuming Cholo is alive, Kaufman plugs his former right-hand man with three bullets. Before Kaufman can make a run for it, Cholo grabs him, giving another zombie enough time to kill him.
Although Kaufman couldn’t see his former employee in the dark, he should’ve recognised he was no longer among the living. Cholo didn’t speak a word, nor did he react when he was blasted with the first two slugs. Also, he was shambling towards Kaufman like a zombie!
Even if Kauffman wasn’t sure, he should’ve played it safe by pumping a bullet in Cholo’s skull.
