ROTTEN TOMATOES: Total Recall: Robert Downey, Jr.'s Best Movies

Total Recall: Robert Downey, Jr.'s Best Movies

by Jeff Giles

Page | 1 2 3 4

95%

2. True Believer

Downey's first major forays into dramatic territory were greeted with mixed critical results; neither 1987's Less Than Zero nor 1988's 1969 lived up to expectations, and for a time, it looked like he'd end up consigned to movies like The Pick-Up Artist and Chances Are indefinitely. With 1989's True Believer, however, Downey finally had his chance to flex his dramatic muscles in a critical winner; though he played second banana to James Woods, Downey's idealistic legal clerk was integral to the film, both in terms of advancing the plot and providing fuel for character development. The late '80s were full of legal thrillers, and True Believer wasn't one of the more commercially successful entries in the genre, but it earned plenty of critical respect from writers such as Time's Richard Shickel, who praised Woods' "angry energy" as "clarifying as well as terrifying," saying "the effect is to focus our attention where it belongs, not on a suspense story but on the mysteries of human behavior."

95%

1. Richard III

1995's Restoration was neither a commercial hit nor one of Downey's best-reviewed films -- but it did introduce him to Sir Ian McKellen, and their on-set friendship led to Downey's involvement in Richard III, the collaboration between McKellen and director Richard Loncraine that transplanted Shakespeare's play into a fascist nightmare version of 1930s England. McKellen and Loncraine's script took some liberties with the source material, both with the updated setting and its streamlined cast of characters; Downey appears as Earl Rivers, an amalgamation of three roles from the play. His scenes as the character he described as "kind of like the Roger Clinton of the royal family" were few, but they gave Downey a break from forgettable stuff like Danger Zone and One Night Stand, as well as a bit of the reflected critical glow from writeups by critics like the San Francisco Chronicle's Mick LaSalle, who praised Richard III for combining "a shrewd understanding of Shakespeare with a healthy, low-brow approach to cinema."

Don't forget to check out Robert Downey, Jr.'s complete filmography, as well as the rest of our Total Recall archives.

Finally, here's Downey's first-ever film appearance, in a NSFW scene from his father's film, Pound:

Page | 1 2 3 4

(1-20 of 35 posts) | Reply

Solonik -. writes:
on Apr 22 2009 04:14 PM

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang was hilarious.

(Reply to this)

jokerboy1991 writes:
on Apr 22 2009 04:39 PM

In reply to this comment (#2435821)
Yeah it was great, I have actually always really liked Chaplin which not enough people seem to like.

(Reply to this)

Trufire writes:
on Apr 22 2009 06:07 PM

I had heard of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang before but never really knew what it was about. Now that I have seen that trailer, it is definitely going on my netflix que. :) Looks hilarious!

(Reply to this)

ledawg1138 writes:
on Apr 22 2009 06:19 PM

Uhh, I haven't heard of the top four. But I've heard of many the rest, and seen most.

(Reply to this)

rt_hire_me writes:
on Apr 22 2009 06:20 PM

Glad to see Back to School on the list. Funny, funny flick. And watching Zodiac, it was obvious the difference an actor like Downey can make. Every time he was on the screen the movie suddenly became really interesting.

Seen U.S. Marshals? I hope he and Tommy Lee Jones were well paid because that was a complete embarrassing waste. A boom mic actually appears top of frame when they are on the plane.

(Reply to this)

sunsaz writes:
on Apr 22 2009 08:41 PM

Since he plays supporting roles in most of these films (especially the top ones), would've been interesting to see his best feature roles.

(Reply to this)

Dario Z. writes:
on Apr 22 2009 09:29 PM

If you're gonna include on the list movies in wich he appears 5 minutes on screen why not also give us chaplin where he is absolutely fantastic

(Reply to this)

Dario Z. writes:
on Apr 22 2009 09:32 PM

now i see why chaplin isn't there, it only score 65%. A ridiculous score if you ask me...

(Reply to this)

ledawg1138 writes:
on Apr 22 2009 10:16 PM

In reply to this comment (#2436119)
Yes, I've seen "US Marshalls". Let's just leave it at that.

(Reply to this)

Jeff F. writes:
on Apr 22 2009 10:44 PM

Let us not forget his role in Natural Born KIllers. You actually wanted him to get killed in the end!!

(Reply to this)

Sheephouse writes:
on Apr 23 2009 12:24 AM

Why isn't "Less Than Zero" on here. I always thought that was one of his finer roles. Or if "Back to School" is on there...then "Weird Science" should be also. Haha.

(Reply to this)

Kobo B. writes:
on Apr 23 2009 04:01 AM

This article is a sham. Any list without Chaplin is a bogus list. Give us Downey's best movies, not "the best movies Downey happened to be in". For the record,I'd add Restoration in here too.

(Reply to this)

collex writes:
on Apr 23 2009 07:59 AM

This is what also bug me in RT list about an actor best movie: they don't pick the best movie of an actor, they pick the best movie an actor appeared in. I mean, I don't consider a movie in which RDJ happened 5 minutes to be one of the RDJ best movie. If I'm an extra in a movie that has 100% on the tomatometer, does that mean it's my best movie?

On the other hand, this young RDJ clip was awesome.

(Reply to this)

JamesEarl writes:
on Apr 23 2009 04:20 PM

I was hoping that A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints would appear on this list. I thoroughly enjoyed that film.

(Reply to this)

Rackon writes:
on Apr 23 2009 07:22 PM

I can;t take this list seriously either, especially when it leaves out several of his best performances: Less Than Zero, Chaplin, Restoration and Natural Born Killers.

Less Than Zero was a breakout movie for Downey as a dramatic actor. Downey showed astonishing range in his Academy Award nominated role in Chaplin, and went on to prove his versatility, dramatic chops and charm as Merivel in Restoration. He is out-of-his-mind good in Natural Born Killers, which is admittedly a hard movie to watch - but RD is brilliant in it.

I'll agree with Zodiac, True Believer, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,Iron Man and Tropic Thunder. (Nice to see some love for True Believer.)

But I would much rather watch his comedic turns in Chances Are than Back To School or Weird Science - MUCH. And much as I love John Sayles, Downey is barely in Baby It's You.

(Reply to this)

vitajex writes:
on Apr 24 2009 08:37 AM

I watched Chaplin last night, just because I'd been watching his old movies lately.

Downey was absolutely brilliant in that film and I still feel that it's a shame that he didn't win Best Actor.

I think in 25 years, most people will say that his performance was better than Al Pacino's in "Scent of a Woman". I like Pacino and I like 'Scent', but Downey played 60 years of Chaplin's life.

What I found odd about 'Chaplin' though was that there was no mention of the Hearst incident.

(Reply to this)

Wendy H. writes:
on Apr 24 2009 10:31 AM

His performance in Chaplin was incredible and I think it's crazy you didn't post it in his top ten! What were you thinking? Definitely Oscar worthy. The one time I thought the Academy really got it wrong. Everyone should see him in Chaplin if you haven't already!

(Reply to this)

Barbara M. writes:
on Apr 24 2009 10:49 AM

I was sure that the number one movie on this list would be Chaplin and was stunned to see it omitted. RT has lost all credibility with me.

(Reply to this)

filmmaniac123 writes:
on Apr 24 2009 01:37 PM

I loved Iron Man (my fave movie tied to Dark Knight) and Tropic Thunder. Zodiac is good, and Chaplin was Oscar- Worthy. He would be my favorite actor if he made more good movies. He's my second favorite next to Daniel Craig. Downey's awesome though.

(Reply to this)

filmmaniac123 writes:
on Apr 24 2009 02:04 PM

yeah

(Reply to this)

2. True Believer

1. Richard III

Related Links

Iron Man

Related Articles

Most Discussed

Latest News

Latest Interviews

Latest Features

Sponsored Links