Angela Bassett Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked"-where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted relevant accolades. This week, I'm profiling the work of Angela Bassett-whose latest project "Gunpowder Milkshake" arrives on Netflix on July 14th.  

Angela Bassett's Filmography Ranked:

19.Vampire in Brooklyn (D-)

18.Contact (C-)

17.Jumping the Broom (C-)

16.Green Lantern (C)

15.Mr. 3000 (C)

14.This Means War (C)

13.Chi-Raq (C+)

12.London Has Fallen (B-)

11.The Score (B-)

10.Olympus Has Fallen (B-)

9.Kindergarten Cop (B)

8.White Bird in a Blizzard (B)

7.Notorious (B+)

6.Bumblebee (B+)

5.Mission-Impossible: Fallout (B+)

4.Avengers: Endgame (A-)

3.Soul (A)

2.Boyz n the Hood (A)

1.Black Panther (A)

Top Dog: Black Panther (2018)

When Marvel brings in the right people then allows them to make something that isn't just an extended teaser for a future project, they're capable of doing some pretty special shit. Case in point: Black Panther. Ryan Coogler establishes Wakanda as this rich world with a complex history and the actors (Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Ny'ongo, Danai Guerra, Winston Duke, Letita Wright, Daniel Kaluuya, Bassett, Forest Whitaker) breathe so much life into both the power struggle that ensues in the wake of their king T'Chaka (John Kani) being killed in Captain America: Civil War and the traditional superhero beats that need to be hit that the strong emotional hook that this genre so rarely achieves is formed very early on. Continuing this franchise without Boseman at the forefront is going to be an exceptionally difficult challenge, but if anyone can pull it off, it's this team.

Lowlight: Vampire in Brooklyn (1995)

Vampire in Brooklyn is an age old Hollywood cautionary tale of how having high-end talent come together on a project doesn't always lead to high-end results. Horror icon Wes Craven, comedy legend Eddie Murphy and dramatic stalwart Bassett were all inexplicably out of their depths in this dreadful horror comedy that never establishes any real command over its tone, story or downright idiotic vampire mythology.   

Most Underrated: White Bird in a Blizzard (2014)

While the nonlinear, genre-bending plot leads to some choppy storytelling at times, the fearless conviction that drives Gregg Arakai's direction and Shailene Woodley's performance in the lead role are enough for White Bird in a Blizzard to conquer its narrative flaws.

Most Overrated: Olympus Has Fallen (2013)

The reliably gruff charisma Gerard Butler brings to Secret Service agent/one man untouchable killing machine Mike Banning is the only reason Olympus Has Fallen (and both of its sequels) rise above mediocrity. This film isn't really anything more than a pretty shameless knockoff of Die Hard that makes the avoidable yet not completely crippling mistake of taking itself super seriously while plowing through repetitive quick cut shootouts, silly plot twists and long moustache twirling-villain monologues.

Most Puzzlingly Unspectacular Star-Studded Heist Movie: The Score (2001)

I actually just saw this for the first time last month and my primary takeaway was how Robert De Niro, Edward Norton, Bassett and Marlon Brando-in his final role ever-ended up starring in something that is so basic from top to bottom. There's legimately not a single thing in this film from the planning of the heist to the back stories of the players involved to the eventual rapid chain of plot twists that take place during the heist itself that is anything above nondescriptly competent-which may be why none of the heavy-hitters in the cast come anywhere close to hitting their peak form as actors (particularly Brando-whose reported erratic behavior on set including refusing to take direction from anyone besides De Niro could explain his generally half-assed performance).