Jason Bateman 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 Jason Bateman-whose latest project "Carry-On" debuts on Netflix tomorrow. 

Jason Bateman's Filmography Ranked:

28.Fool's Paradise (D)

27.This is Where I Leave You (D)

26.Identity Thief (D)

25.Juno (D)

24.The Change-Up (C-)

23.The Sweetest Thing (C-)

22.The Break-Up (C-)

21.The Switch (C)

20.Zootopia (C)

19.Thunder Force (C+)

18.State of Play (C+)

17.Office Christmas Party (B-)

16.Hit and Run (B-)

15.The Kingdom (B)

14.Hancock (B)

13.Bad Words (B)

12.Horrible Bosses 2 (B)

11.Extract (B)

10.Starsky & Hutch (B)

9.Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (B)

8.The Gift (B)

7.Up in the Air (B)

6.Central Intelligence (B+)

5.Paul (B+)

4.Air (B+)

3.Horrible Bosses (A-)

2.Smokin' Aces (A)

1.Game Night (A)

Top Dog: Game Night (2018)

Game Night isn't just arguably the best studio comedy of the 2010's, it's one of the best studio comedies of the 21st century period. The perfectly matched ensemble (Bateman, Rachel McAdams, Kyle Chandler, Jesse Plemons, Billy Magnussen, Lamorne Morris, Sharon Horgan, Kylie Bunbury) is on fire from start to finish, the direction from John Frances Daley and Jonathan Goldstein is super lively and stylish and the script's thriller/mystery undertones are expertly deployed to complement and heighten the comedy of the insane situation the characters find themselves in.   

Bottom Feeder: Fool's Paradise (2023)

As a big fan of Charlie Day, I'm still stunned by just how bad Fool's Paradise is. You could easily talk about how it doesn't work as a showbiz satire or Chaplin-esque slapstick piece, but the most succinct way to sum up its head-scratching failure is that it's simply not very funny. The only signs of comedic life in the whole damn movie come from Common and Glenn Howerton and neither of them are in it for long enough to meaningfully salvage this sinking ship. Hopefully Day gets another crack at directing someday because I still believe that he's capable of making a really great comedy.     

Most Underrated: Smokin' Aces (2007)

This is going to sound made-up, but I promise it's true: I walked out of the theater after seeing Smokin' Aces in January 2007 (I was 14 going on 15 at the time) believing that I'd seen one of the greatest movies ever made. At 32 going on 33, I'm not quite as high on Smokin' Aces but I still believe it's a special movie. Joe Caranahan effectively operates as a white trash Tarantino as he builds this manic, booze-and-cocaine-fueled world of assassins, sleazy magicians and sleazier law enforcement officials, which results in an exercise in vulgar excess that is exhausting and exhilarating in equal measure. It should be preserved in the Library of Congress ASAP.            

Most Overrated: Zootopia (2016)

This really just comes down to me not connecting with Zootopia in the slightest. The characters are kind of dull, the humor is inconsistent and the racism allegory that drives the plot is lacking anything beyond surface level resonance. We'll see if next year's Zootopia 2 will be able to sway me more towards side of the 'Topia faithful.