Paul Rudd Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted related accolades. This week, I'm profiling the work of Paul Rudd-whose latest project "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" hits theaters tonight.

Paul Rudd's Filmography Ranked:

28.Year One (D)

27.Monsters vs. Aliens (C-)

26.They Came Together (C)

25.Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie (B-)

24.Night at the Museum (B-)

23.Ant-Man and the Wasp (B)

22.Ant-Man (B)

21.Captain America: Civil War (B)

20.Our Idiot Brother (B)

19.Wanderlust (B)

18.Reno 911!: Miami (B)

17.The Fundamentals of Caring (B)

16.Clueless (B)

15.Dinner for Schmucks (B+)

14.The Perks of Being a Wallflower (B+)

13.This is 40 (B+)

12.Role Models (B+)

11.Sausage Party (A-)

10.Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (A-)

9.Avengers: Endgame (A-)

8.Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (A-)

7.Forgetting Sarah Marshall (A-) 

6.I Love You, Man (A-)

5.Knocked Up (A)

4.This is the End (A)

3.Wet Hot American Summer (A)

2.Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (A+)

1.The 40 Year-Old Virgin (A+) 

Top Dog: The 40-Year Old Virgin (2005)

The movie that started Judd Apatow's lengthy run as Hollywood's most influential comedic figure remains his finest piece of work as a filmmaker and maybe even the finest project he's ever been involved with period (Superbad, which he produced, is the other top contender). Apatow's script seamlessly blends laugh-out-loud raunchy humor with a really pure, potent heart and the cast from Steve Carrell as the shy, nerdy protagonist all the way down to the then-largely unknown supporting cast (Rudd, Seth Rogen, Romany Malco, Jane Lynch, Elizabeth Banks, Leslie Mann, Jonah Hill, Mindy Kaling) hit every note their character was intended to. 

Lowlight: Year One (2009)

Even without having the chance to see it yet, it's evident that honoring the memory of the late Harold Ramis-who passed away back in 2014-is a massive part of Ghostbusters: Afterlife. When reflecting on Ramis' career like Rudd and the surviving members of the original Ghostbusters team (Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, Ernie Hudson) did during their late night show appearances earlier this week, you  eventually arrive at the sad realization that his final directorial effort was Year One. While it's hardly uncommon for industry icons to end their careers with a whimper, Year One is that special kind of inexplicable bad movie that acts as an eternal stain on someone's resume. Seriously, how did the guy who made Caddyshack and National Lampoon's Vacation get an ensemble cast headlined by Jack Black and Michael Cera to make a Biblical spoof and churn out something so thoroughly unfunny? It makes even less sense in practice then it does on paper and it's really a shame that Ramis never got the opportunity to go out on a note that was more fitting of his legendary stature.    

Most Underrated: Sausage Party (2016)

Sausage Party might be the only mainstream R-rated comedy of the past 15 years that got good critical reviews and was absolutely loathed by audiences. While I get why people hated it so much, I really admired that it was a really smart and brutal takedown of organized religion that just happened to be packaged into a silly, gleefully envelope-pushing animated comedy that ends with a bunch of food items having a massive orgy in a grocery store.  

Most Overrated: Captain America: Civil War (2016)

While Marvel has made plenty of films that are much worse than Captain America: Civil War, it's undoubtedly their most frustrating. Civil War actually displays the courage to dip its toes into the muddy waters of bleak storytelling and moral ambiguity with pretty interesting results, only to abruptly pull them out at the start of the final act and get its divided house back in order before the credits roll. Given the strength of the action sequences, new character introductions (Black Panther, Tom Holland's Spider-Man) and dramatic moments prior to the "let's hug it out" climax, this could've really been something special if its flirtation with emotionally tricky material proved to be something other than an inconsequential tease.

Top Cult Classic: Wet Hot American Summer (2001)

What do you get when you cross a cast that boasts a mix of future superstars (Rudd, Amy Poehler, Bradley Cooper) and 90's favorites (David Hyde Pierce, Janeane Garofolo, Molly Shannon) with a niche spoof premise (80's teen sex comedies)? An absurdist comedy masterpiece that has held up better than 99% of the other comedies from its era.