Casey Chong ranks the filmography of director Darren Aronofsky…
The term “playing safe” isn’t in Darren Aronofsky’s filmmaking vocabulary, especially when it comes to his body of work. His movies are often thought-provoking and, at times, polarizing and even controversial – and that makes his works all the more interesting and worth checking out. Aronofsky’s recurring themes of life, death, obsession and religion can be seen from his stellar black-and-white debut in Pi, to his breakthrough Requiem for a Dream and the big-budget Noah. With his long-awaited latest movie, Caught Stealing [read our review here], arriving in theatres, here are Darren Aronofsky’s first eight films, ranked from worst to best…
Noah (2014)
Paramount gambled on Darren Aronofsky and granted the maverick director a whopping $125 million to helm the biblical epic, Noah. But instead of remaining faithful to the widely recognized Noah’s Ark myth, Aronofsky, who also co-wrote the screenplay, took a lot of creative liberties in re-structuring his story that blends epic mainstream style with the director’s indie-film sensibilities. The latter is especially true with the contemplative second half of the movie as it focuses more on the character-driven drama, emphasizing the conflicted Noah, played by the solemn Russell Crowe, battling his conscience between fulfilling God’s mission and sparing the lives of Shem’s (Douglas Booth) wife’s (Emma Watson) newborns.
Aronofsky’s attempt to get personal here suffers from the heavy-handed melodramatic tone and erratic pacing. Noah works best primarily in the first half, despite the introduction of the stone giants called the Watchers that look like they are straight out of The Lord of the Rings’ assembly line with a large-scale battle scene, engrossing visuals and some palpable stakes leading to the titular ark’s voyage during the Great Flood. Noah went on to become Aronofsky’s highest-grossing movie in his career so far, grossing nearly $360 million worldwide.
The Whale (2022)
Brendan Fraser’s award-winning 300-pound prosthetics and heavy make-up to play a grossly overweight English professor in The Whale got him the much-deserved Oscar for Best Actor. His sympathetic performance anchors most of the movie here in The Whale, a chamber drama that takes place in and out of Charlie’s (Fraser) residence. His severe obesity comes from his eating disorder after the death of his partner, and he’s on the verge of dying. Not that he cares or needs saving, despite the arrival of a persistent New Life missionary played by Ty Simpkins. Charlie has heart disease, and the last thing he wants to do is to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter, Ellie (Sadie Sink). The Whale is melodramatic, but it’s hard not to root for Fraser’s subtle lead performance, coupled with solid support from Hong Chau as Charlie’s nurse and best friend, as well as Sink and Simpkins.
The Fountain (2006)
Aronofsky’s $35 million sci-fi romance boasts an ambitious setup interweaving three parallel stories set in 16th-century Spain and Central America, the 21st-century United States, and the 26th-century outer space – all of which are led by Hugh Jackman in not one but three different roles. He plays the bearded Spanish conquistador Tomas, an eager research scientist Dr. Tommy Creo, and space traveler Tom to subtle and melancholy results. He pairs well with the stunning Rachel Weisz, and their soulful on-screen chemistry is the reason that carries the weight of this otherwise uneven story of everlasting love and mortality.
The Fountain could have benefited from a longer runtime since the movie’s theatrical 93-minute length compromises Aronofsky’s lofty vision of a story spanning centuries. Blame it on Warner Bros. which got cold feet in granting him the initial $70 million budget, forcing Aronofsky to rework his movie with only half the cost. But even with the budget cut, Aronofsky manages to turn this into a visually stunning knockout. The special effects are top-notch with excellent technical showcases coming from Clint Mansell’s atmospheric score, Renée April’s lush costume design, and James Chinlund’s arresting production design.
Mother! (2017)
Here’s a movie that you either love or hate, as the ever-rebellious filmmaker Darren Aronofsky pushes his allegorical storytelling to a wildly frustrating but undeniably ambitious, one-of-a-kind cinematic experience. In Mother!, he thrusts his viewers straight into the psyche of the titular mother played by Jennifer Lawrence, who spends time looking as perplexed as we (the viewers) do. Interestingly, the movie takes place predominantly in the remote house with Matthew Libatique’s fluid camerawork following the protagonist around as Lawrence’s character tries to make sense of everything that’s happening.
More characters are soon introduced, notably the characters billed only as “Man” and “Woman” played by Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeiffer. The movie plays like a deliberate slow burn of a psychological horror, exploring everything from the religious-heavy motif to the environmental theme of climate change. Mother! is best appreciated with repeat viewings, even with the polarizing nature of this movie that divided critics and audiences in the first place.
Pi (1998)
Aronofsky got his humble start with a micro-budgeted Pi, which was shot in a distinctly high-contrast black-and-white cinematography. The monochrome aesthetics perfectly reflect the overwhelming psyche of the movie’s protagonist, a number theorist named Max Cohen. Played by Sean Gullette to mesmerizing effects, we see his notoriously private character working around the clock, obsessing over cracking the numbers in his cramped apartment.
Aronofsky incorporates neo-noir elements with prominent use of Gullette’s voiceover narration, while delving deep into various subject matters from mathematics to science, mortality, and Judaism. Pi equally benefits from the director’s genre exploration of paranoid thriller and existential drama right down to the wistful finale. Aronofsky’s debut feature did well at the box office, grossing over $3 million on a measly $134,815 budget and won several awards, including the Sundance Film Festival’s Directing Award for Dramatic Features.
Requiem for a Dream (2000)
Aronofsky’s sophomore feature, Requiem for a Dream, proves that this indie wunderkind is no flash in the pan. This is the movie that puts Aronofsky on the map, establishing him as one of the most exciting filmmakers to watch for at the time. Moving away from the paranoia-heavy world of mathematics and numerical patterns seen in Pi, Aronofsky explores the fever dream and brutal consequences of drug addiction. And to mirror the intoxicating sensation of how a drug addict’s experience, he incorporates go-for-broke visual styles from split screens to match cuts, extreme close-ups and surreal imagery.
Themes of severe addiction, loneliness and self-destructive behaviors are thoroughly explored within the sorry state of the characters played by Jared Leto, Marlon Wayans, Jennifer Connelly and Ellen Burstyn. The latter particularly excels the most as the increasingly overwrought, stay-at-home mom obsessing over weight loss for her anticipation to looking good on television, resulting in a much-deserved Oscar nomination in the Best Actress category.
The Wrestler (2008)
Here’s a radical change of pace from Darren Aronofsky, whose stylish and contemplative visuals defined his first three movies (Pi, Requiem for a Dream and The Fountain), is replaced by a raw, stripped-to-the-essentials drama. The Wrestler is unlike anything he does up to that point, and no, he doesn’t sell his soul to mainstream Hollywood filmmaking. Instead, it’s an intimate character study that zeroes in on the (fictional) professional Randy “The Ram” Robinson’s waning days, played by Mickey Rourke.
Reflecting the actor’s own boxing career, casting Rourke is a nice move and he delivers the performance of his lifetime, which briefly revitalized his flagging acting career. And credits go to Aronofsky for bringing out the best in him – a result that earned Rourke an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. It’s hard not to root for his character’s journey of redemption, particularly in reconnecting with his long-forgotten daughter, Stephanie (Evan Rachel Wood). Aronofsky significantly toned down his usual visual aesthetics in favor of something more earnest and soulful.
Black Swan (2010)
The numero uno for the best Darren Aronofsky movie to date still goes to… Black Swan, a psychological horror that explores the cutthroat world of ballet dancing, echoes the sinister works of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s The Red Shoes back in 1948. The movie is notable for Natalie Portman in her best acting performance as Nina Sayers, a twenty-something New York City ballet dancer who has been practising hard in the hope of nailing the coveted role of the Swan Queen.
More than just the inner workings and exploration of ballet dancing, Aronofsky subtly delves into the psychological and thematic depth of paranoia, claustrophobia, along with the blurred line between reality and imagination. Not to mention the significant theme of duality, mirroring the dual sides of Swan Queen between the angelic White Swan and the darkly seductive Black Swan.
Portman’s unhinged portrayal won her the coveted Oscar for Best Actress, and kudos also go to Aronofsky for maximizing the deeply agitated effect of the movie’s subject matter with Matthew Libatique’s frequently handheld camerawork, extreme close-ups and macabre visuals influenced by David Cronenberg’s body-horror tropes and Roman Polanski’s deeply psychological undertones.
What do you make of this ranking? How would you rank Aronofsky’s movies? Be sure to let us know on our social channels @FlickeringMyth…
Casey Chong
