The Iceman hits our screens this week and so it’s time to focus on those men (and women) who get paid to kill. So here’s my top ten contract killer movies.

10. The American (2010)

George Clooney heads to Italy for one last job in this slow burning, sometimes moody drama with a strong lead performance. Not the most exciting movie in the world but one that quietly works.

9. Kill List (2011)

Ben Wheatley’s shocking, brutal British thriller/ horror in which hitman Neil Maskell goes into a job thinking its a straightforward killing but turns into something much darker. A real shocker.

8. Looper (2012)

An impressive sci-fi thriller with Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a contract killer whose job is to murder those from the future but soon comes face-to-face with himself. Inventive, exciting and a real head scratcher.

7. Grosse Pointe Blank (1997)

Cracking comedy with John Cusack as a killer who is forced to face his past when a school reunion calls him home before he takes on his next job. A smartly funny script and terrific performances make this a cult classic.

6. Road To Perdition (2002)

The last person you’d expect to play a hitman but Tom Hanks does a masterful job in Sam Mendes’ impressive adaptation of the graphic novel as a son discovers his father’s dark secret.

5. Collateral (2004)

A change of character for Tom Cruise in Michael Mann’s digitally filmed thriller as cab driver Jamie Foxx takes Cruise around town while he kills. The look alone is worth checking out while the performances from the leads are brilliant.

4. The Day Of The Jackal (1973)

A tense and gripping thriller based on Frederick Forsyth’s best seller has Edward Fox as an assassin called “The Jackal” who plans to kill the French President, Charles De Gaulle.

3. Le Samourai (1967)

French classic with Alain Delon as a cold-hearted, calculating killer who finds his plans falling apart when he is has a witness and the more he tries the worst things get. Full of atmosphere and a top notch performance from Delon.

2. No Country For Old Men (2007)

The Coen Brothers’ hard-hitting thriller in which Josh Brolin goes on the run with a stash of drug money while psychopathic killer Javier Bardem goes on his trail. Bardem won an Oscar for his role as the killing machine in one of the brothers’ finest hours.

1. Leon (1994)

Luc Besson’s superb thriller with Jean Reno as the title character who takes young Natalie Portman under his wing while escaping twisted cop Gary Oldman. Full of style while at the same time with blisteringly excellent action sequences and Reno’s killer is one of his best performances.