Casey Affleck Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted related superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Casey Affleck-whose latest project "Slingshot" releases in theaters tonight.

Casey Affleck's Filmography Ranked:

19.Ocean's Twelve (D-)

18.The Finest Hours (D)

17.Interstellar (D+)

16.The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (C-)

15.Tower Heist (B-)

14.The Old Man & the Gun (B-)

13.Our Friend (B-)

12.Triple 9 (B)

11.Out of the Furnace (B)

10.Oppenheimer (B)

9.American Pie 2 (B)

8.Chasing Amy (B)

7.Ocean's Thirteen (B+)

6.American Pie (B+)

5.To Die For (B+)

4.Gone Baby Gone (A)

3.Ocean's Eleven (A)

2.Good Will Hunting (A)

1.Manchester by the Sea (A)

Top Dog: Manchester by the Sea (2016)

The brilliant, authentic writing from Kenneth Lonergan and a trio of powerhouse performances from Casey Affleck, Lucas Hedges and Michelle Williams transform this family drama from a potential soap opera into a devastating character study about the far-reaching permanent effects of grief and loss. While I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to muster up the stomach to sit through it again, Manchester by the Sea is a masterpiece and easily one of the best films of the 2010's.      

Bottom Feeder: Ocean's Twelve (2004)

Steven Soderbergh created something in Ocean's Twelve that is the total inverse of his Ocean's Eleven remake. Where Ocean's Eleven was breezy, Ocean's Twelve is lethargic. Where Ocean's Eleven was simple and efficient with its storytelling, Ocean's Twelve is needlessly drawn out and convoluted. Where Ocean's Eleven was effortlessly cool, Ocean's Twelve is buttoned up and completely disinterested in loosening up under any circumstances. Trying to make a sequel that didn't feel like a retread of Ocean's Eleven was an admirable thought, but the execution of Ocean's Twelve really couldn't have been much worse and the chilly reception it received almost certainly led to the shift back to a fun, laid-back vibe for Ocean's Thirteen.        

Most Underrated: To Die For (1995)

Nicole Kidman had already established herself in Hollywood by the time To Die For came out, but this may've been the first project she appeared in that showcased the full extent of her acting talent. Her performance as a New Hampshire-based television weather reporter that recruits a trio of degenerate teenagers (Joaquin Phoenix, Affleck, Alison Folland) to kill her husband (Matt Dillon) who she feels is more committed to his family's restaurant and starting a family than helping her pursue her dream of becoming famous is hilarious, horrifying and utterly mesmerizing. As sharply written and well-acted as it is across the board, To Die For wouldn't have had the same level of bite behind its dark comedy without Kidman at the center of it.     

Most Overrated: Interstellar (2014)

Honestly, I feel like everything Christopher Nolan has made post-Dark Knight trilogy with the possible exception of Dunkirk is overrated to varying degrees. Interstellar, however, is the only one of those films that I feel is overrated and bad. This movie is just a tedious slog full of comically tacky, overly sentimental melodrama, questionable acting from great actors (Matthew McConaughey, Anna Hathaway, Jessica Chastain) and middling setpieces that mostly lack Nolan's typical flare.