The Best and Worst of Michael Pena

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 "Collateral Beauty" star Michael Pena.

Films starring Michael Pena that I've seen:
Crash
Million Dollar Baby 
Shooter
Observe and Report
Battle: Los Angeles 
The Lincoln Lawyer 
30 Minutes or Less
Tower Heist
End of Watch
Gangster Squad
American Hustle
Fury
Ant-Man
Vacation
The Martian 

Best Performance: End of Watch (2012)
Pena had been a serviceable character actor since the mid-2000's, but End of Watch marked the first time I was truly dazzled by his talent. In a film that features one of Jake Gyllenhaal's-who I firmly believe is the best actor working today-finest performances, Pena still manages to steal the show. His multi-faceted, charisma-filled turn as LAPD officer Marcus Zavala breaks new ground for the police procedural, which usually deals in nothing but hardened tough-guy archetypes. How the Independent Spirit Awards ended up being the only awards shows to recognize this tremendous performance is beyond me.    

Worst Performance: Battle: Los Angeles (2011)
Battle: Los Angeles is a relatively entertaining movie with a handful of great action setpieces, but holy hell does it feature some awful acting. As a father of three young kids that's found by a group of Marines (headed by the exaggerated line readings of Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez and Ne-Yo) during an alien invasion in Los Angeles, Pena puts in the type of overblown, melodramatic performance that would be excessive on a daytime soap opera.

Best Film: American Hustle (2013)
David O. Russell's electric con artist tale is the best film Martin Scorcese never made. The lack of action and style-over-substance formula pissed a lot of audiences off, but the sharp dialogue, phenomenal performances and wave of  '70's energy kept me riveted throughout.   

Worst Film: Observe and Report (2009) 
On paper, I should love the shit out of Jody Hill's work. His sense of humor is beyond morbid and he has a track record of collaborating with actors (Danny McBride, Seth Rogen, Craig Robinson) that I flat out love yet I've been underwhelmed by all of his projects outside of HBO's Eastbound & Down. His second feature film, Observe and Report, is easily his most puzzling misfire to-date. Despite featuring a handful of great gags and a brilliant premise(a security guard takes it upon himself to bring the flasher that's terrorizing the mall where he works to justice), Observe and Report ends up a being a mediocre film bogged down by several extended comedic dry spells and massive tonal inconsistencies.   

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 "Sing" star Reese Witherspoon.