5. Bradley Cooper - Wet Hot American Summer
CNN.comThe year is 2001. Howard Bernstein sets out to make a film about a fictional Jewish summer camp, set in 1981. The year is now 1981. Ok, enough of the never-ending story, but Wet Hot American Summer (which definitely does not sound like a porn film, no matter how much you snicker at the name) is a film more akin to National Lampoon's Vacation than American Pie. Although a decent comedy if you're expectations are suitably low, the film (directed by David Wain) is remarkable for only one reason. Well, ok, a few reasons. Paul Rudd, Molly Shannon, Elizabeth Banks, Zak Orth, A.D. Miles and Amy Poehler all make appearances in the film, becoming something of a ring-every-friend-you-have sort of a project. It is, however, the masterful acting of one Bradley Cooper as Ben that catches our collective eye, and self satisfied sneer. His part is very small, and the man who would go on to launch a thousand quiet crushes come the premier of The Hangover is remarkably different here. He is not the lothario that we know and love. He was not then the sunglasses wearing, suit donning master actor who rose through the ranks of James Lipton's The Actor's Studio. But he did put in his time, appear in rubbish films and now he's very rich and famous, so who are we to pick on his earlier roles? Come to think of it, is he even think he's Jewish?