Ranking the Films of Rod Lurie

There are few filmmakers who I find more underrated than Rod Lurie. Now, do I happen to love that he went from being a film critic to a filmmaker? Sure. However, even before I knew about that, I knew his work, and his movies are consistently entertaining, well made, and thought provoking. We’ve spoken here and here previously, and any conversation with him is also as enjoyable as it is insightful. With his latest film Lucky Strike now in theaters, I wanted to highlight the man and his work by giving a ranking of his filmography so far, which in my humble opinion, has yet to have a misstep.

In my Lucky Strike review (here) last week, I praised Lurie’s filmmaking like so:

Co-writer/director Rod Davis Lurie crafts his most visual work yet. Alongside co-writer Mark Frydman, Lurie keeps the fairly straightforward plot easy to follow, allowing his direction, as well as Eastwood’s work, to shine through. There are some flourishes with the camera here that are very impressive. Lurie has always had terrific scripts to his films, especially something like The Contender (as well as Nothing but the Truth, his most underrated movie), so this is him flexing a whole other muscle behind the camera.

Below, you can see how I think Lurie’s career stacks up. Again, even the title that comes in at the bottom here I still believe to be a quality work. So, while I may rank The Senior or his remake of Straw Dogs lower than the others, I still very much enjoyed them. In fact, with the former, my review last fall here is quite positive. That being said, The Contender remains his crowning achievement and an absolute masterpiece. Nothing But the Truth is easily Lurie’s most underrated flick, too, as it has an all-time gut punch of an ending. Plus, while Deterrence is certainly under-seen, it’s as impressive a debut movie as it gets, so I highly recommend seeking that one out as well. Where does his new film Lucky Strike land on this list? You can found out next…

Here now is my ranking of the films of Rod Lurie. Behold:

9. Straw Dogs

8. The Senior

7. The Last Castle

6. Resurrecting the Champ

5. Deterrence

4. Lucky Strike

3. The Outpost

2. Nothing But the Truth

1. The Contender

What is your favorite Rod Lurie film? Let us know!