7 Great Mysterious Strangers in Movies

4. "Vincent" from Collateral (2004)

One of the finer Tom Cruise roles, the actor plays assumed hit man Vincent with a steely energy that comes off alarmingly warm and charismatic during some of Michael Mann's less tense scenes in his 2004 thriller. A man undeterred in his mission to kill and a master of dodging revealing questions, Vincent patrols the LA streets in the back seat of a taxi driven by Jamie Foxx's Max with murderous intent and shrouded mystery. A city-style, contemporary movie monster, Vincent becomes not just a terrifying mass murderer in the film's one night, but also becomes instrumental in the shaping of Max's new identity as a man who learns to think on his feet not just to live, but to survive any life he might be destined to end up with.

"There's no good reason. There's no bad reason to live or to die."