The Best and Worst of Ben Mendelsohn

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 "Darkest Hour" star Ben Mendelsohn.

Films starring Ben Mendelsohn that I've seen:

Killer Elite

The Dark Knight Rises

Killing Them Softly

The Place Beyond the Pines

Starred Up

Exodus: Gods and Kings

Slow West

Mississippi Grind

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Best Performance: Mississippi Grind (2015)

Atmospheric indie drama Mississippi Grind marks the only time I've ever been really impressed with Mendlesohn, who I find to be one of the most overrated actors in Hollywood right now, as an actor. His performance as a degenerate gambler who decides to embarks on a road trip with a down-on-his-luck poker player (Ryan Reynolds) he meets at an Iowa casino accurately captures the soaring highs, devastating rock bottoms and endless desperation of a person that's dealing with addiction.    

Worst Performance: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

Mendlesohn's work in Rogue One is a classic case of when overacting goes horribly wrong. His cartoonish turn as primary villain Orson Krennic seem like it came out of a completely different film than the overwhelmingly grim one everyone else in the cast (with the exception of the equally over-the-top Forest Whitaker and Donnie Yen) was in.  

Best Film: The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

While Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy is arguably the most celebrated movie franchise in recent history, I think that the final chapter doesn't get the love it deserves. A compelling story, tremendous action sequences and an apporoatiely epic scope helped this influential series of superhero films end on a near-perfect note.

Worst Film: Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014)

Ridley Scott is a cinema icon whose career is still in hyperdrive as he approaches his 80th birthday. After being exposed to the bloated biblical epic Exodus: Gods and Kings when it hit home video in early 2015, I (briefly) wished the legendry director had already retired. Exodus is the type of film that works better as a torture mechanism than a piece of entertainment. This large and particularly rank pile of shit is painfully dull, hilariously overacted and completely devoid of anything worthwhile. Thankfully Scott followed-up this unholy disaster with an excellent film (The Martian) that demonstrated he's still capable of blessing the world with solid art in his twilight years.    

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 "Wonder Wheel" star Kate Winslet.