Joey Magidson
Denzel Washington is one of Hollywood’s shining stars. Not that anyone would want to try, but you can’t deny that Washington is an icon and one of this generation’s great actors. Another legend with a pair of Academy Awards on his mantle, Washington has gold, box office glory (no pun intended), and respect. So, whether it’s an Oscar vehicle or not, anything he does comes with a bit of extra cache. With Highest 2 Lowest about to hit theaters, it seemed like a good time to look at some of Washington’s best work.
In my review here of Highest 2 Lowest, I said the following about Washington’s turn:
Denzel Washington is positively giddy to be playing this role for Lee, and it shows. Washington is able to convey David as both powerful and powerless, loving and cold, wise and foolish. It’s to his credit that you can see him doing it all so effortlessly, with the viewer reaping the benefits. He gets to go big at times, and have some real fun, so it’s a full meal for the legend.
Below, you can see how the best of Washington stacks up for me this year. I actually have one of his more underrated turns in Philadelphia as my top pick, but basically all of the top ten is unimpeachable. Whether you gravitate towards Flight, Glory, Malcolm X, Training Day, or any of his other Oscar nominated or winning turns, you really can’t go wrong. Where does Highest 2 Lowest rank for him, if at all? Find out next…
Here now is how I’d rank the ten best Denzel Washington performances so far:
Honorable Mention: American Gangster, Crimson Tide, Cry Freedom, Fences, Gladiator II, and The Tragedy of Macbeth
10. Highest 2 Lowest
9. Training Day
8. Inside Man
7. The Siege
6. Flight
5. The Hurricane
4. Glory
3. He Got Game
2. Malcolm X
1. Philadelphia
What are your favorite Denzel Washington performances? Let us know!
Comments
Loading…