20 Most Intense Movie Performances Of All Time

9. Richard (Paddy Considine) - Dead Man's Shoes

If there was any justice in the world, Paddy Considine would be a far more well-known name than he is at the very top of the film industry, Sure, he's had his moments in blockbusters and he makes films himself now, but he is an incredibly gifted character actor who deserves more attention.

His finest moment came in Shane Meadows' brilliant Dead Man's Shoes, which is so transformed by its heart-breaking twist that it offers two entirely different Considine performances. The first - watched without knowledge of the end - presents him as a twisted bad-ass, viscerally affecting and terrifyingly unhinged. He's the monster in a slasher movie and he's exactly as compelling and as intoxicating as the likes of Michael Myers and Jason Vorhees. You want him to win even "knowing" he's bad.

But then when the secret is revealed and his wounds become clear, the true horror of his behaviour is unveiled and your perception of the whole film changes. You don't just appreciate his dark cool any more, you live his trauma and it's incredibly affecting.