In Tom Cruise's long and illustrious career, we reckon you'd be hard-pressed to find too many roles better than Vincent, his cold and calculating contract killer in Michael Mann's Collateral. Vincent showcases Cruise's usual charisma, but with an underlying element of menace at all times. Vincent is a great talker, a silver-tongued devil who can convince Jamie Foxx's hapless taxi-driver Max to accept $600 to ferry him around the city all night, as he has five different stops to make. It turns out that these stops are each a hit that Vincent has to carry out, and the movie ratchets up the tension expertly, with each and every murder convincing Max that he has to do something to stop Vincent, by any means necessary. Cruise's look is one of the most memorable things about the film, with his silver hair and suit giving him a sleek, yet somewhat off-putting, appearance. Vincent is like a shark, drifting calmly through the night until he senses blood and attacks in a quick, expert manner. Witness a bravura scene in a nightclub, as Vincent stalks through the crowded dancefloor, taking out any poor soul who tries to stop him. Foxx is equally good, and the movie earned him a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award Nomination (ironically in the same year he actually won Best Actor for his role in Ray). The film is ruthless and efficient, just like it's lead character Vincent, and is one of Michael Mann's very best movies.
