A Cinematic Top Ten... Er Seven: Christopher Nolan Edition

I have found in my cinematic travels through Middle Earth, Oz, and beyond that I thoroughly enjoy movies with ambiguity amongst the protagonists and antagonists. At times, this confusion bleeds into moral ambiguity. I prefer the former over the ladder, because discussions of morality get too intense and off the point. I like when traditional "bad" or "good" characters are not necessarily as they seem.

The example I most often use to illustrate this point is one of my top, if not favorite, characters in film history: Hannibal Lector. He is obviously a deplorable human being full of violence, cannibalism, and severe psychological problems. But in the Silence of the Lambs, he acts as a guide for the protagonist, though with heavy pseudo-sexual overtones that not only confuses Clarice Starling, but the audience as well. While he is disgusting and horrific, he is still an essential piece in finding and killing Buffalo Bill, a serial killer on the loose. Hence the protagonist/antagonist line blur.



I bring up this blurring of characterization lines because I believe it is directly related to my unhealthy level of liking for director Christopher Nolan and his current directorial resume. Each of the seven films he has directed (in just 12 brilliant years) explore the ambiguity of good and evil between their characters. It is this ambiguity I enjoy watching unfold on-screen because it makes you ponder their actions and the following consequences. I find movies that make you think more enjoyable and than those that do not which is probably why I enjoy the often cerebral approach that Nolan so heavily exerts in all his films.

With this in mind, I am going to (begrudgingly) rank his first seven efforts, in order of how much I enjoy watching the film, with a brief explanation of the good/bad ambiguity. I will attempt to stay away from major plot spoilers because I would encourage anyone reading to watch any of these seven films as they are, in my opinion, very well done and very interesting.

Once again, we start in descending order with these stats in parenthesis (year released, Metacritic score = MC, Rotten Tomatoes score = RT, Top Critics at Rotten Tomatoes score = TRT, IMDB rating = IMDB, Movie level according to my system of ranking movies = ML)

7. Following (1998, MC = N/A, RT = 76%, TRT = N/A, IMDB = 7.7, ML = Dodgeball: An Underdog Story)

This short (69 minutes) first effort, shot in black and white, is a story of a man who harmlessly follows other people. After a meeting with a stranger, however, he delves further into more harmful criminal activity. The ambiguity of good and evil is prevalent because the stranger's reasoning for his actions are often more psychologically inquisitive than physically harmful. While the movie was made on a minuscule $6,000 budget, the acting and storyline are more than serviceable, especially considering it was the first foray into feature film for Nolan. The ending is a bit of a twist, which is another device often employed by Nolan, but not so much that it is cliche. Though I rank it last on this list, I still enjoyed watching this film because the style was unique and the plot engaging enough to carry the lack of production costs. Just because it is last on this list does not make it a bad film but it is definitely Nolan's most amateur work.

6. Memento (2000, MC = 80, RT = 93%, TRT = 94%, IMDB = 8.7, ML = Ocean's Eleven)

One of the most intriguing and well-done non-linear narratives in cinematic history, it gardnered two Oscar nominations for it's inventive approach to story telling (Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing), which included telling the story in reverse while simultaneously telling the past in a normal linear fashion, and having the two narratives meet in the middle. The movie has been called one of the ultimate mind-benders and is definitely most enjoyed watching wide awake, with your full attention on the film. While we think we know the protagonist and believe his mission is a noble one, things begin to get a little more ambiguous as the story lines begin to make sense and converge. I will avoid saying too much because this movie is better watched completely unspoiled but Guy Pierce delivers an excellent performance as the main character, Leondard Shelby, and is complement by solid support roles from Carrie-Ann Moss and Joe Pantoliano. This movie established Nolan as a director with vision and narrative innovation.

5. Insomnia (2002, MC = 78, RT = 92%, TRT = 94%, IMDB = 7.2, ML = Ocean's Eleven)

This remake of a Norwegian thriller was probably the most celebrated cast Nolan has ever directed. With three Academy Award winners at his disposal in Al Pacino, Robin Williams, and Hilary Swank, this psychologically disorienting film is probably the least known of Nolan's films besides his debut. Two detectives from the LAPD are called upon to investigate a murder of a teenage girl in Alaska, where the sun seemingly never sets. While I believe this film is carried by the actors and the story isn't original, I believe Nolan did a fantastic job making the film match the physical and psychological stress the main protagonist (Pacino) is experiencing. And the lines of good and evil are further blurred (once again) when the viewer no longer knows who is a murderer and who is not.

4. Batman Begins (2005, MC = 70, RT = 84%, TRT = 69%, IMDB = 8.3, ML = Remember the Titans)

Nolan's first of three Batman films (The Dark Knight Rises will be out July 20th, 2012) was a reboot for a franchise that needed to wash out the seriously bad taste of Joel Schumacher's awful previous two efforts. And Nolan delivered a box office success that changed the game that is the super hero genre. Using a bit of a darker tone, and throwing in the moral ambiguity of the "teacher of Batman," the plot was a direction change from the traditional approach to the Batman franchise. The movie is still intense and engaging, yet successfully utilized villains that the casual movie goer probably didn't know (Scarecrow, Ra's al Ghul). This was Nolan's first "blockbuster" type film, but he didn't compromise his vision and style for the sake of selling tickets.

3. The Prestige (2006, MC = 66, RT = 75%, TRT = 57%, IMDB = 8.4, ML = Remember the Titans)

I believe this is the Nolan movie I have seen the most times (possibly 8). Whenever I am bored and sitting on my computer, I tend to look through movies to watch and land on this one for some strange reason. It has some sort of hold on me. Since it is a book adaptation, it loses some of the "Nolan mystique" because he tends to be heavily involved in the writing process. The great thing about this movie is deciding who is bad and who is good. Obviously, through the reactions of the supporting characters and the tone of the movie, you are supposed to dislike Angier slightly more than you might dislike Borden. But can you really blame Angier for his anger and obsession? The lines, are again, blurred. The ending is a bit of a mind-crunch and I know a lot of people who think it's a bit of a sell-out but it always intrigued me. It makes you think a great deal and, as previously stated, I enjoy that.

2. Inception (2010, MC = 74, RT = 86%, TRT = 91%, IMDB = 8.9, ML = The Dark Knight)

I've heard this movie get called an "over glorified heist movie." If that is the case, why didn't you (anonymous commenter on a movie blog) come up with the idea? As many know, I thought this deserved the nod for Best Picture. While I though DiCaprio went into his "mentally distraught middle aged man due to dark past" mode, I was very pleased with the rest of the cast, especially the subtitles of the supporting characters. Furthermore, I enjoyed that though the movie had a blockbuster feel and blockbuster effects, it made the audience think for itself (ambiguous ending involving a totem). Most of all, I love the fact that there is such a compelling story line without an antagonist. Fischer? Well, he's hardly the bad guy is he? Saito? Doesn't he help Cobb? Cobb? He's more victim of circumstance. It made me think, it left me speechless the first time I saw it, and I saw it three times in theaters. That's the mark of a good movie.

1. The Dark Knight (2008, MC = 82, RT = 94%, TRT = 91%, IMDB = 8.9, ML = The Dark Knight (duh))

Metacritic (the most harsh of the movie rating systems cited in this post, besides mine obviously) rates The Dark Knight as Nolan's best work. So do the morons who vote on IMDB (tied with Inception). And so do I. The questions posed about human psychology and morality throughout the movie are probably the most in-depth human analysis ever done in a super hero movie. Not only was Heath Ledger's depiction of The Joker breath taking, but the questions The Joker poses are so thought provoking, you have to wonder where he got his Ph D. I just thought that the narrative, while formulaic, was able to do so much in such a seemingly normal frame work. And the antagonist, while very similar to a lot of evil doers, was also very different. Meanwhile, rather than the protagonist positively influencing people, you have the antagonist making people question their moral code, and driving them to become agents of murder (and chance).


So there you have it. The ranking of all the movies that have come from the genius that is Christopher Nolan, his brother (sometimes contributes to screenplay), and his wife (always co-produces his directorial works). His works are just so interesting. I really don't have the words to describe them properly. But, I mean, that's just, like, my opinion man.