The Best and Worst of Anton Yelchin

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 the late"Star Trek Beyond" star Anton Yelchin.

Film starring Anton Yelchin that I've seen:
Alpha Dog
Charlie Bartlett 
Star Trek
Terminator Salvation
Like Crazy
The Beaver
The Smurfs
Fright Night
Star Trek Into Darkness
Green Room

Best Performance: Charlie Bartlett (2007)
Yelchin's first true leading role (he co-lead Alpha Dog with Emile Hirsch and Justin Timberlake) ended up being the moment where Hollywood realized that he was going to enjoy longevity in the industry. This Ferris Buller-inspired comedy centered around the title character's (Yelchin) unlikely rise to popularity after becoming the resident therapist to the student body of his high school largely works because of Yelchin's performance. He gives the type of magnetic performance here that makes you overlook the by-the-numbers quirky comedy vibe and story structure and just enjoy the ride for what it is.

Worst Performance: Like Crazy (2011)
I don't know if it was because of the poor material he was handed or it was simply a case of an actor phoning it in, but Yelchin's performance in Like Crazy was inexplicably terrible. He played this role with the lack of conviction and effort that you don't usually see out of a talented, established actor. Like Crazy is an epic stinker on Yelchin's otherwise very impressive resume.

Best Film: Star Trek (2009)
J.J Abrams worked his cinematic magic to the fullest extent with his 2009 reboot of Star Trek. Abrams pulled off the unbelievable feat of making the Star Trek franchise more accessible to the masses without dropping the complex, epic feel that hardcore fans have become accustomed to over the series' 50-year run. This version of Star Trek raised the bar for modern blockbuster entertainment and is by far the best large-scale pure sci-fi film to be released since The Empire Strikes Back.

Worst Film: Like Crazy (2011) 
2011 marked the year where I made my deepest exploration into the world of cinema to-date by seeing about 80-85% of the notable mainstream and independent films that were released theatrically in the United States. Of the 153 films I saw from that year, none was worse than Like Crazy. Every single character is a vile human being, the dialogue is cringe-worthy and the plot is nowhere to be found. Like Crazy is a deadly cinematic bomb full of pretension and hollow observations about modern romance that shouldn't be experienced by anyone that's not a fan of inflicting immense torture on themselves.   


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 "Bad Moms" star Kathryn Hahn.