The Best and Worst of Rebecca Ferguson

“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 “Doctor Sleep” star Rebecca Ferguson.

Films starring Rebecca Ferguson that I've seen:
Hercules 
Mission-Impossible: Rogue Nation
Florence Foster Jenkins
The Girl on the Train
Life
Mission-Impossible: Fallout
The Kid Who Would Be King
Men in Black: International

Best Performance: The Girl on the Train (2016)
Ferguson was still relatively unknown to me prior to 2016. She was solid enough in Mission-Impossible: Rogue Nation, but the acting in those movies are secondary to the remarkable stuntwork/action sequences. That all changed after I watched The Girl on the Train. The quiet intensity and depth she brought to her role as Anna, a real estate agent who becomes a central figure in the missing person investigation that drives this psychological mystery thriller, established her as an intriguing talent to watch. Ferguson has since gone on to establish herself as a versatile actor that tends to be among the strongest elements of every project she stars in.

Worst Performance: Life (2017)
A sparse, generic plot about a hyperintelligent alien lifeform wreaking havoc on the crew of an international space station prevented anyone from Life's stellar cast (Jake Gyllenhaal, Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds) from giving a performance that was up to par. As the captain of the vessel, Ferguson's character basically just tells everybody to calm down until she realizes (far too late) that this intergalactic entity is going to kill everyone and starts screaming in a frenzied manner until the movie reaches its mediocre doomsday conclusion.

Best Film: Mission-Impossible: Fallout (2018)
While I'm not quite on board with the "its one of the greatest action movies ever made!" take, Mission-Impossible: Fallout is a great movie that is deserving of the constant high praise its received since it was released last summer. Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie made an exciting, often jaw-dropping blockbuster spectacle that managed to raise the bar even higher for a franchise that continues to deify the odds by getting better as time goes on.

Worst Film: Florence Foster Jenkins (2016)
To be completely fair, Florence Foster Jenkins isn't a bad movie at all. It's a competently made and acted biopic about a dying New York socialite (Meryl Streep) that pursues a career as an opera singer despite her distinct lack of singing ability. The problems I have with Florence Foster Jenkins entirely lie with my lack of interest in the subject matter. Opera is a niche genre of music that has always grated on me and despite the pretty accessible way its approached here, that lack of appreciation prevented me from connecting with Florence's story.
    
Thank you for reading this week's edition of “The Best and Worst of”. The next victim of my praise and ire will be “Ford v. Ferrari” star Matt Damon.