Jack Nicholson At 80: His 10 Best Performances

10. Frank Costello (The Departed)

Your starter at ten is Irish-American mobster Frank Costello, a character loosely based on real life Boston mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger.

The main plot of the film sees Costello training Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), who has been indoctrinated by the former at a young age, to become a mole within the Massachusetts State Police.

Yet they have their own plans to infiltrate Costello's criminal organisation, courtesy of Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio). In one scene, when Costello tells Costigan, "I got this rat, this gnawing, cheese eating f*ckin' rat" (Nicholson memorably imitates a rat), the look on Costigan's face, initially, is one of clenched terror in the face of the maverick mobster. Moreover, it looks as though Nicholson's eyes are slowly boring into DiCaprio's mind.

Throughout, Nicholson exudes vituperated outlandishness and a chillingly carefree callousness. It's obvious that Nicholson was given total freedom over the role - to the extent he pulled a real gun on DiCaprio. Even now, the director Martin Scorsese says he still shudders thinking about it.

When you think about it, it's surprising Nicholson hasn't portrayed more gangsters on screen beforehand.