The Best and Worst of Mark Ruffalo

The "Best and Worst" series profiles the best and worst work of an actor starring in one of the week's new theatrical releases. This week I take a look at the filmography of "Now You See Me 2" star Mark Ruffalo.

Films starring Mark Ruffalo that I've seen:
Windtalkers
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Zodiac
Shutter Island
The Kids Are All Right
Date Night
The Avengers
Now You See Me
Begin Again
Foxcatcher
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Infinitely Polar Bear
Spotlight

Best Performance: Foxcatcher (2014) 
This performance was the moment I realized just how gifted of an actor Ruffalo truly is. His turn as former Olympic champion wrestler David Schultz-who reluctantly decides to move into the estate of wrestling benefactor John du Pont (Steve Carrell) to help his younger brother Mark train (Channing Tatum) for the Olympics- is a masterclass in powerful, understated acting. When his character becomes a major cog in the story around the halfway mark, Ruffalo commands the screen and steals the spotlight from the similarly brilliant Carrell and Tatum with his powerful presence and raw, subtle emotion. If it wasn't for J.K. Simmons' electric performance in Whiplash, Ruffalo would've been the clear choice for Best Supporting Actor at the 87th Academy Awards.

Worst Performance: Begin Again (2014)
This is a textbook case of weak writing killing an actor's chances of giving a quality performance. Ruffalo plays a by-the numbers, stock character (a one-time successful music producer is reduced to a booze-and-depression-fueled slump until he unexpectedly stumbles upon a talented young singer that rejuvenates his creativity and passion for music) and despite his undeniable gifts as an actor, he just can't overcome the parade of cliches he was given to work with.

Best Film: The Avengers (2012)
The quality of the films in the vast Marvel film cannon is all over the place, especially since they started controlling the content of a majority of their films with the launch of Marvel Studios in 2012. The Avengers marks one of the handful of times where the comic giant absolutely nailed it. The Avengers is basically superhero film nirvana with its array of interesting characters, grand-scale action sequences, an excellent sense of humor and a great villain (Tom Hiddleston's Loki). Marvel is going to have an extremely difficult time making a film that matches or tops the level of fun and pure spectacle this film so effortlessly achieved.

Worst Film: The Kids Are All Right (2010)
The Kids Are All Right is one of those films that I feel got praised by critics and award shows simply because it's an indie movie that focuses on a lesbian couple. Yes it may have a nice message about equality and show sheltered and/or ignorant people who have never encountered a gay couple in their lives that they're relationship dynamics, issues, etc. are exactly the same as straight people's, but that doesn't mean it's an enjoyable piece of art. A majority of the characters are extremely unlikable, the acting from everyone besides Ruffalo and Julianne Moore is well below average and the ending is cornier and less organic than most of the movies that come out of mainstream Hollywood. For my money, this is one of the weakest films to be nominated for Best Picture during the 2010's so far.

Thank you for reading this week's installment of "The Best and Worst of". Next week, I'll take a look at the best and worst work of "Finding Dory" star Idris Elba.