Soprano deja vu...

It's really weird when you watch a movie you've seen before and then notice that one of your favourite actors had a role in it before he was famous...And that you forgot he was in it!

Because my wife had never seen it before I rented True Romance, Quentin Tarantino's first script and a good little "caper" movie. Before we knew each other, my wife's friends would bug her about never seeing this movie, considering almost all of her favourite leading men are in it: Kilmer, Oldman, Walken. I remember seeing this movie about 10 years ago when it came out and I always remember the visceral shock of the scene where Patricia Arquette is beaten to within an inch of her life by mafia-hood Virgil before she fights back.

This time, to my shock and amazement I notice who is playing Virgil: It's freaking James Gandolfini!, better known as Tony freakin' Soprano!

So now the scene is totally different as I'm watching psycho-Tony Soprano getting down to violent business with pretty young thing Arquette. Now instead of some anonymous goombah, the mob-guy is an actual character for me and the scene is that much nastier and feels riskier, even though I know the result.

Talk about a head-smack!

I'm wondering if there are any other examples that could deliver such a shock?