The Best and Worst of William Fichtner

“The Best and Worst of” series chronicles the career highlights and lowlights of an actor starring in one of the week's new theatrical releases. This week, I take a look at the filmography of “Traffik” star William Fichtner.

Films starring William Fichtner that I've seen:
Quiz Show
Contact
Armageddon
The Perfect Storm
Pearl Harbor
Black Hawk Down
Crash
The Longest Yard
Ultraviolet
Blades of Glory
The Dark Knight
Date Night
Drive Angry
The Long Ranger
Elysium
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Independence Day: Resurgence

Best Performance: Drive Angry (2011)
Like many character actors, a good chunk of his work comes in B-movies. The clear peak of his genre movie resume came with his turn as a close confidante of Satan that's tasked with tracking down people that have broken out of Hell and bringing them back to suffer for eternity in Patrick Lussier's straight-up insane grindhouse throwback Drive Angry. When someone goes toe-to-toe with Nicolas F'n Cage in the overacting department, you know they did damn good work.

Worst Performance: Independence Day: Resurgence (2016)
A good (albeit wordy) alternate title for Independence Day: Resurgence would be "Watch talented veteran actors waste away in one of the least entertaining blockbusters of the last 20 years". Unlike many of his co-stars, Fichtner plays it straight and ends up looking like he's moments away from falling asleep the entire time he's on screen.

Best Film: The Dark Knight (2008)
While I don't enjoy it as much as most people, The Dark Knight is still a pretty great movie. Christopher Nolan's decision to structure the film as a crime drama instead of a traditional superhero movie is bold and effective and Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker is a horrifying tour-de-force that will live forever in the annals of film history.

Worst Film: Pearl Harbor (2001)
I've defended the work of Michael Bay on dozens of occasions, but I couldn't possibly think of anything complementary to say about Pearl Harbor. This wildly inept attempt to replicate Titanic's "stage a fictionalized three hour soap opera against the backdrop of a historical tragedy "features enough poor acting, sappy dialogue and shameless emotional manipulation to fill thousands of Nicolas Sparks adaptations.

Thank you for reading this week's edition of “The Best and Worst of”. The next victim of my praise and ire will be “Avengers: Infinity War” star Elizabeth Olsen.