3. Matthew McConaughey Killer Joe
There was once a time when Matthew McConaughey was the poster boy for mediocre film-making starring in risible rom-com after risible rom-com, all he seemed to do was take his shirt off and make eyes at the womenfolk in the audience. Personally, I didnt mind a lot of actresses make their money from taking their clothes off when given the slightest opportunity, and were nothing if not supportive of equal opportunities here at What Culture. In fact, I dont think anyone though it as too great a tragedy he was staying in his wheelhouse, and that so happened to involve flexing to the camera. Yet strangely, this didnt appear to be what he was best at at all, and Killer Joe made this extremely apparent. Granted, hed already struck gold dramatically with The Lincoln Lawyer playing the titular car-dwelling character but people tended to see this one as a bye because all he was doing was playing yet another charming guy, but with a little more murder involved. Yet when Killer Joe rolled around, no-one could make that same judgement again. Simply put, he was gosh-darned terrifying, and it was made all the more disconcerting by the fact it was Mr. Charming himself in the lead role. Youve got to see it to believe it, but have to tip your hat to a performance which oozed malevolence and put you off chicken for life as well. If youve seen the film, youll know which scene I mean. Whats even better about this part is that it seems to have sparked a run of great roles for the actor, who now seems to be running shoulders with big beast directors such as Christopher Nolan and Martin Scorsese without seeming one bit out of place.