While this list in no way seeks to glorify violence, it does acknowledge the fact (one that often proves to be many a filmmaker's justification/excuse) that it is as much a part of life as it is the movies. And, as an inescapable part of our daily lives, we should expect to see it reflected back at us on the silver screen. Yet when this is the case, it is usually no less shocking. Like most things, there is an art (some may be so bold as to say 'beauty') to the presentation of violence- as it seems that it will never lose that raw, discomforting power over the viewer. It divides an audience. It demands attention. And it makes us sit up and listen, when, more often than not, we'd rather look away. Below are some of the most extreme examples; many giving credence to the much-used claim of 'once seen, never forgotten'. Contains spoilers...
10. The Untouchables
Brian de Palma's 1987 crime drama follows notorious gang leader Al Capone (played by Robert De Niro) as he smuggles liquour into prohibition-era Chicago. Upon discovering that not every cop can be bought, he instead turns to intimidation; threatening Agent Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner) and his family unless he drops his pursuit. Yet Ness persists, leading Capone to believe that one of his own men may have drawn him near. And so, having held a dinner for his sharp-suited subordinates, he starts proceedings by professing his enthusiasm for baseball. He then picks up a baseball bat and holds it aloft. As his men applaud, he circles the table and rolls out a speech laden with baseball metaphors.The message, he is clear to point out, is the importance of loyalty, of uniformity, of playing as a team. ''Baseball!'', he exclaims, ''A man stands alone at the plate. This is the time for what? For individual achievement. There he stands alone. But in the field- what? Part of a team. Teamwork. Looks, throws, catches, hustles; part of one big team'', to which the men mumble in agreement. But then Capone suddenly stops talking, takes a step back and swings the bat into the back of a gang member's head. The first blow knocks him flat out and the second splatters his blood across the table like spilled wine. The next two, presumably, are to make sure nobody missed the point. It is alleged that this scene is based on a real-life incident, in which Capone beat and then shot three men whom he believed to be conspiring against him.