50 Movies Where Evil Won

Plot: Arrogant defence attorney Martin Vail (Richard Gere) defends altar boy Aaron Stampler (Edward Norton) when he's accused of killing an archbishop who was abusing him. 

Sometimes, evil winning can rescue an entire film - just ask Primal Fear. 

Prior to this twist, Primal Fear was a fairly straightforward legal thriller, one which would've probably been forgotten long ago were it not for its ballsy, beautifully executed gem of an ending, in which Edward Norton delivers an acting masterclass that launched his entire career. 

Throughout the first half of the film, it seems unlikely that the mild-mannered, stuttering Aaron could be the killer, and then, a second personality emerges. He's seemingly suffering from split personality disorder and doesn't remember the killing. Vail ultimately succeeds in getting him acquitted of murder on grounds of insanity. 

However, just when he thinks he's won, Vail is brought right back down to earth when Stampler mentions something that happened when he was supposedly in his other personality, nicknamed Roy, and Stampler smugly reveals that the entire split personality was an act. It also turns out that, alongside the archbishop, he also murdered his own girlfriend. 

Vail says, "So there never was a Roy?" to which Stampler, wearing a chilling grin, replies, "There never was an Aaron." He was stringing Vail along the entire time, and the previously overconfident attorney, brought down to earth in the most brutal way imaginable, leaves court in a devastated trance, which mirrors how many audience members will be feeling.