"Am I here to amuuz you?" Joe Pesci once menacingly asked in Goodfellas. Well, yes you are, to be honest.

It's hard to admit it, but we are always very entertained by sociopaths in movies. Maybe it's something in our DNA which finds nutters fascinating.

Now, at Hecklerspray we deplore violence. But, as we said before, violence in films is fine – because it's not real. As anyone who has been on public transport will testify, we all sometimes wish we were Tony Montana or Tony Soprano.

Somebody pushes past you without apologising? You hit them over the head with a fuck-off axe while shouting "You Goddamn cock-a-roach!" Someone cuts you up on the road? You pull him out of your car and kick the crap out of them.

Now, you would never actually do such a terrible thing. But, let's face it, we've all thought it. You haven't? What are you, a fucking boy scout? Anyway, the point is we have all thought of mindless violence in our head, but would never actually dream of doing it.

The sociopaths below, of course, would. And that's why we actually quite admire them.

Oh, and they shoot people and say cool things. So, say hello to our leetle friends!!

8. Hannibal Lector, Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Why do we like Anthony Hopkins' portrayal of a doctor who likes to eat his patients so much? Well, women like him because he is charming, a good cook, and, well, he's a doctor, which their mothers would approve of. And men like him because he is full of useless information (good for pub quizzes and chats) and can handle himself in a fight.

7. Harry Powell, Robert Mitcham in Night of the Hunter (1955)

Robert Mitcham is simply terrifying as the bible-bashing, misogynist preacher desperate to rid the world of 'perfume smelling things'. Imagine having him as your Sunday School teacher.

6. Begbie, Robert Carlyle in Trainspotting (1996)

The scary thing about Robert Carlyle's portrayal of Scottish nutcase Begbie is that it is clearly borne out of experience.If you like to go out for a drink with your mates in town quite a lot, chances are you have bumped into a Begbie. You know who we mean. He's the annoying bastard that pushes into you in the pub queue, and then demands you buy him a pint back. And if you don't, well, he'll glass you.

5. Tommy DeVito, Joe Pesci in Goodfellas (1990)

The clown prince of sociopaths, Joe Pesci's Tommy is as funny as he is terrifying. One moment he is making you laugh, the next he's gone totally nuts and shot you in the face. Does he amuuz us? Well, yes. Does he scare the shit out of us? Absolutely.

4. Tony Montana, Al Pacino in Scarface (1983)

Why do we like Al Pacino's portrayal of the Cuban sociopath Tony Montana so much? It's because he basically could not give a fuck about anyone or anything. Of course, polite society demands these people get their comeuppance, which Montana certainly does in a thrilling, blood-soaked finale. But there is something about him that we respect. Even when faced with having his limbs chopped off with a chainsaw he does not flinch. He sees a girl he likes; he gets her. Simple.

3. Han Gruber, Alan Rickman in Die Hard (1988)

Only Alan Rickman could make such a merciless and cold-bloodied killer so charming. He's so good, he almost upstages Bruce Willis – almost.

2. Anton Chigurh, Javier Bardem in No Country For Old Men (2007)

Forget the dodgy haircut, Javier Bardem's contract killer Anton Chigurh is possibly one of the scariest sociopaths ever to appear on the silver screen. He is calculating, creative, ruthless and, what makes it worse, he gets away with it.

1. Jack Torrance, Jack Nicholson in The Shining (1980)

It's the shit-eating grin appearing though the door and shouting 'here's Johnny' that really sets Jack Nicholson apart from the rest. Chilling!

Honourable mentions:
Paddy Considine in Dead Man’s Shoes
Animal Mutha in Full Metal Jacket
Kathy Bates in Misery
Francis Dollarhyde in Manhunter
Don Logan from Sexy Beast