One of my five favorites. He’s a big star now, but I like that he’s using his fame to balance these fun blockbuster projects with more serious adult fare as well. For every Bond or Cowboys & Aliens there’s a Defiance or Dragon Tattoo. The impressive thing is that he can dominate the screen when given the material in something like Defiance, but even when the depth isn’t quite there on the page he can still bring this complexity and emotion to a portrayal that I don’t think most actors could. The tormented, brooding quality that he brought to Bond was heartbreaking and paved the way for one of my favorite films (and performances) of all time in Casino Royale.

I was a huge fan of his pre-Bond though and I think that period of his career is where you can most see his tremendous talent. In films like The Mother and Love Is The Devil, you see this pain in him that makes you sympathize with even the most despicable of characters. He’s so handsome and so masculine, which makes the vulnerability that he brings to these kind of roles all the more wrenching. The guy has a handle on pain that few others can compare to, so when he’s internalizing it in films like his Bond features or letting it all out, you can feel everything that haunts these fragile men he takes on. Ranking his performances:

EXTRAORDINARY
01. Casino Royale
02. The Mother
03. Road to Perdition
04. Infamous
05. Love Is The Devil
06. Defiance
07. Enduring Love
08. Quantum of Solace
GREAT
09. Layer Cake
10. The Jacket
11. Munich
ADEQUATE
12. The Invasion
13. The Golden Compass