With Ford v Ferrari now in theaters, what do you think are the best Matt Damon movies? Here are my five favorites.
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Matt Damon (born in 1970) is one of our finest actors. Year after year and movie after movie he continues to churn out interesting, nuanced, emotionally complex performances, no matter what genre the movie may be.
With Ford v Ferrari opening this weekend, let?s look back at the five best movies Matt Damon has appeared in?
5. The Departed (2006)
Matt Damon has worked with the best directors in the business. Paul Greengrass, Clint Eastwood, Gus Van Sant, Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg, Anthony Minghella, Steven Soderbergh, and lots more. In 2006 he teamed up with Martin Scorsese in the hugely successful The Departed, which finally earned Scorsese his Oscar. While the movie isn?t quite as successful as Goodfellas or Raging Bull, the movie has plenty of surprises and fine moments, and a great lead role for Damon.
4. The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
Featuring one of Damon?s most courageous and dark performances, The Talented Mr. Ripley is a fine piece of filmmaking, one that features exotic locations, big twists and turns, and an incredible cast that includes Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Cate Blanchett, and Phillip Seymour Hoffman.
3. The Bourne Supremacy (2004)
All three are great (the less said about the fourth one the better), but the one that seems to work the best in subsequent viewings is the second installment. While the first one was still trying to find its voice, and the third one starts to feel a tad redundant by the second half, the second installment is pure excitement from beginning to end, with a devastating opening, a handful of great fights, and an awesome supporting performance by Joan Allen.
2. Saving Private Ryan (1998)
Steven Spielberg?s enduring masterpiece still ranks as one of his finest efforts, and Damon?s title role performance is one of his best, coming in toward the end of the movie. Those mind-boggling opening twenty minutes to this day still feature some of the most raw, chilling images ever committed to celluloid.
1. Good Will Hunting (1997)
It?s the movie that gave Damon a career, and it still is his best. Written by Damon and his pal Ben Affleck, Good Will Hunting is one of those seminal 90s movies that has aged extremely well, featuring touching performances by Damon, Minnie Driver, and an Oscar-winning Robin Williams. Here?s hoping Damon has a few more screenplays in him. He?s clearly as good a writer as he is an actor.
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Brian Rowe is a writer, teacher, and constant dreamer. He received his MFA in Creative Writing and MA in English from the University of Nevada, Reno, and his BA in Film from Loyola Marymount University. He?s on Facebook and Twitter, and you can read more of his work at brianrowebooks.com.
