All Tony Scott films ranked

It started off as an accident, a few random Tony Scott rewatches because I was going through a Denzel phase and wanted to see how I felt about Unstoppable and Crimson Tide years later. Then I decided to see how a few older Tom Cruise movies aged, so I did a Top Gun/Days Of Thunder double. Well, before I knew it I had seen a good chunk of Tony Scott's filmography and found myself enjoying all of them even more the second time watching them. At that point I was committed. In his lifetime, Scott directed 16 features, and I was going to watch (or rewatch) all of them. And now that I've done this, what do I do with it? Make a list, of course. So I'm gonna rank all of his directorial efforts from least-favorite to most-favorite. Keep in mind these are all pretty fresh in my mind and I don't have a nostalgic connection to almost any of them at all, so I'm just gonna be coming at this whole list essentially as a new convert -- someone who wasn't a fan of Tony Scott who has become a very big fan in a very short period of time. 

I guess I'll get started now so as not to become like an online recipe where you scroll past 80 pages of anecdotes and the history of cooking before finally seeing how much flour to put in a cake. My least favorite Tony Scott movie and the first on my list is, unsurprisingly...

16. Domino, 2005

If you were to ask any number of casual Tony Scott fans what the worst movie he made was, I'd bet close to half would name Domino. And while I didn't actively hate the movie, I found it mostly difficult to watch. He's a very stylistic director, but he didn't usually go so heavy in style that it felt like a genuine replacement for good characters or storytelling. Domino is the flashiest kind of bland movie around, and while I'm always excited to see the likes of Delroy Lindo and Mickey Rourke, the material they're given doesn't do much to distract from the coke-inspired aggression of the editing that loosely holds the whole thing together. Keira Knightley was alright in the lead, but nothing about her performance really jumped out to me. It's not my cup of tea for sure, but I felt obligated to watch it as I reached the end of his filmography, and it's handily my least favorite he ever did. Maybe a rewatch would change my mind, but somehow I doubt that.

15. The Taking Of Pelham 1 2 3, 2009

This one is a problem for me for two major reasons, both of which aren't necessarily Scott's fault. Issue one, the original (which I've only watched for the first time within the past year or so) is a far superior movie with greater sense of character, tension, and much needed humor and payoff that I found infinitely more satisfying than what this remake gave. And issue two, John Travolta's performance in this movie is among the worst I've ever seen from him. He's so over the top and unconvincing to me, which I get to a degree is my fault for not wanting to see a character that was played with such subtlety and menace by Robert Shaw to be turned into a hokey cartoon train robber, but it just took what could have worked as a tense and stylish thriller and turned it into something much more difficult for me to become invested in. That said, I do still enjoy the look and feel of the movie, and Denzel brings it as he always does, so I did still enjoy the movie in spite of my issues with it.

14. The Fan, 1996

While every movie he made before and after this have had a certain amount of edge and kineticism to their look and feel, I see this movie as being the first where he went really hard with the editing style that he implemented more in 2000s that I personally don't care much for. It's a very aggressive editing/cinematography style with flashes and cuts, quick camera movements, and odd angles, but this isn't the hardest he ever went with this approach. It may be a bit much at times, but the problems with this movie lie in how that particular method feels contrary to the very dark and moody material. It's like Tony Scott is trying to make a sexy movie about a sad, baseball-obsessed middle aged lunatic, which just feels tonally off. Still, it's an interesting movie and both De Niro and Snipes give pretty strong lead performances. I didn't love this one, but it really does have some great stuff to offer.

13. Enemy Of The State, 1998

There isn't anything particularly wrong with Enemy Of The State, but there isn't much here for me to sink my teeth into. This is a pretty straight forward paranoid action thriller with an alright Will Smith lead performance (though I admit I've not been a fan of his for many years now), hampered slightly by how basic it all really is. While it's got some slick camera work and the editing and story keep the pace up, this is too long of a movie (130 minutes isn't Titanic, but it's still pretty beefy) that doesn't feel like it has more to offer than some solid action set pieces, a pretty typical narrative, and a fun final act payoff. All this is to say it's really not a bad movie, but feels very much like a lazy Sunday movie you'd pick up 30 minutes in on TNT and enjoy just fine. It's funny to me that an action movie (with some legitimately good action, mind you) could be maybe the most boring film Scott ever made, but that just says a lot about how good he was at making some pretty exciting stuff. Oh, and Hackman is pretty great in this, feeling sort of like a return to his character in The Conversation.

12. Beverly Hills Cop 2, 1987

I'm gonna sound like a real hypocrite right now, since I've spent so much time complaining about Tony Scott's style-over-substance abuse issues, but this is a movie that ultimately doesn't have too much of the look and feel I really hope for from his movies. While that is by no means a bad thing, and I do find the movie quite entertaining (and even very visually striking at times), this is probably the least "Tony Scott" movie he ever made. Which makes sense, it is a sequel to a hugely successful movie with one of the biggest movie stars of the '80s front and center, they weren't gonna let Scott go totally wild with style. But in a way I think that does help the movie to a degree, it stays focused and does what it needs to do while still affording Scott opportunities to dazzle and make the whole movie feel slick and cool. It's a fun movie, but not one of Scott's very best.

11. Days Of Thunder, 1990

I shouldn't have watched this movie directly after Top Gun, as it really is just an inferior version of the same thing. But while it is a downgrade and I can't deny that, I do feel like if you were to watch this movie in a vacuum you'd enjoy it quite a bit. I know I did. It just carries with it the weight of being designed from the ground up as the NASCAR version of Top Gun. Still, I love the way this movie is shot, it's got a great sense of speed to it, and it's able to get you really invested in the hastily thrown together relationships between the characters, which really helps add some weight to the final act. I fully acknowledge that this movie is derivative, but it's such an entertaining and unabashedly over-the-top speed demon of a movie that I can't help but to admire it both for its craft and its straight-forwardness. Tom Cruise and Michael Rooker are a lot of fun to watch in their scenes together, and you've got suitably strong support from Robert Duvall. It may be a total guy movie, but I'm a guy, and I like movies. Perfect fit.

10. Spy Game, 2001

It's sharp, it's cool, it's filled with great character moments and has one of the best late-career Redford performances, but I still can't put it much higher than this on the list. That's a testament to how great Tony Scott was at making super slick films that give the audience exactly what they want, that something as objectively good as this can't make the top half of this countdown. But here we are. Many of the movies he made around this time were so drenched in style that the stories and characters almost took a backseat, but this is a definite exception to that. While it doesn't sacrifice the sense of cool, and there are more than a couple badass moments, this is a lot more focused and does a great job at building the relationships and making you really root for both Redford and Brad Pitt...oh, did I forget to mention Brad Pitt is also in this and is super cool? Cool is the word for this movie, and I really dig it.

9. The Last Boy Scout, 1991

While I know some people who would call it borderline insane by putting it so low, I do quite like this movie. Just not enough to put it in the top half of his filmography. With Bruce Willis at his Bruce Williest, and Damon Wayans taking a step or two back from his usual overtly comedic type of performance, you've got a really solid buddy cop pair, just not one of the best we've seen from writer Shane Black, who I feel tackles his own material best in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and The Nice Guys. Still, this is a highly entertaining action comedy with more than one moment that got me to audibly scream "YEAHHHHH!!" and "LET'S GOOO!" at the screen like someone's drunk uncle. And while I am in fact an uncle, I was not drunk, this movie just brings the party out of me in the best ways possible. It's not overly stylized, but still looks good and places the appropriate amount of emphasis on character and story. A definite crowd-pleaser.

8. Revenge, 1990

I'm slightly torn with this movie, as I seem to be with several others that land around this spot, because it's one I genuinely think could wind up landing much higher when I rewatch it, but based solely on my one viewing of it I'm still somewhat distracted by the Costner of it all. He's just not a good actor, I've never got it with him, and this movie relies very heavily on its central performances to sell it. That being said, he isn't terrible here, just his usual bland self, which only takes some away from the overall effect. Madeleine Stowe and Anthony Quinn, however, are both excellent, and I feel they more than make up for any other issues in the casting. This is a very dark movie about forbidden love that is bound to not click with a lot of people, or just be flat-out forgotten. I don't think that's fair, as this was one of the biggest surprises of his filmography for me, and the style he infused in this film was the perfect blend of his signature cool and classic noir. I'm a big fan of noir, so seeing Scott lean so heavily into this particular subgenre was a real treat for me, and I can only imagine a rewatch or two will bump this movie even higher up.

7. Man On Fire, 2004

I've really went back and forth and struggled over what to do with this movie. When it works, this is the best movie of Scott's career. But when it doesn't work, it REALLY doesn't work. And I think a large part of that is due to the "You Wouldn't Steal A Car!" early-2000s aesthetic that feels like it's been vomited all over this movie during the entire editing process. That, and the slightly bloated second act, of course. But in the end I feel like the central relationship between Denzel and Dakota Fanning's characters is so perfect and so pure that I can't help but to love the movie in spite of the negatives. All that just circles back around to me not knowing what to do with this movie. So I'm plopping it here, because I'll feel bad about where it lands either way. 

6. Deja Vu, 2006

Probably the biggest surprise of all of Scott's films, I honestly went into Deja Vu expecting something at the level of Domino, but walked away feeling very strongly about what I'd just seen. Everything about this movie just clicked with me, from the performances to the story and the sci/fi concepts behind it. It's a pretty tight movie with some big ideas and set pieces that made for a very good genre thriller. Denzel gives a typically solid performance, Jim Caviezel is a very effective villain, and Paula Patton does a great job as well. I think a big part of what makes or breaks this movie is in how well you can buy into the science fiction of it all, but I had no problem accepting it outright, which I can only partially blame on my personal tastes since I think the writing is just good enough to sell the idea without feeling like it's trying too hard to blow your mind. It's just a really fun action movie with some big stakes and a solid payoff.

5. True Romance, 1993

When someone like Quentin Tarantino writes a script, it almost feels like a given that the director would essentially morph their own style to match the tone of that script. We saw Oliver Stone do this (to a degree) with Natural Born Killers, but Tony Scott never loses his identity with this one. Serving as a perfect marriage of Scott and Tarantino, True Romance is loads of fun and never feels like anything less than a true Tony Scott film. It's got the slick camera angles and edits, his signature lighting style, and operatic violence. Not only that, but this movie features some genuinely amazing supporting performances by Christopher Walken, Dennis Hopper, and Gary Oldman. While I've never been the biggest Slater and/or Arquette fan, they're perfectly matched not only for each other, but for their roles. The music used in this movie is very odd and memorable, and gives the whole thing a playful atmosphere, even amidst the darkness and danger the characters are fully submerged in. I never used to be a big fan of this movie before this most recent rewatch, but I'm very glad to have it this high on the list now. 

4. Top Gun, 1986

I gotta admit, when I first watched Top Gun I kind of hated it. All style, no substance, they wouldn't stop playing that Berlin song, sweaty beach volleyball was definitely an odd choice, the pro-war sentiment is a little too pro for my taste, and I just didn't get into the characters. And honestly, I wasn't too big on the 2022 sequel either, so I almost just didn't bother doing this one again. But I just felt like giving it a second try, and all of a sudden almost every negative opinion I had on it flipped. This movie sucked me in from the beginning, I loved the way it was shot, I got invested in the relationships, and found the story as a whole very exciting and satisfying. Maybe this movie is pro-war propaganda designed to make impressionable teens want to sign up for the military, but its success in that field proves how effective it is as an action, romance, war, and buddy film. I really enjoyed it this time around, and now think of it with great fondness.

3. Crimson Tide, 1995

What do you get when you have a great director make a claustrophobic submarine movie about mutiny and the chain of command led by two of the greatest actors of all-time? Obviously you can guess by how high I put this movie that I'm a pretty big fan of it, as this was just a pure thrill the entire way through. The tension and stakes of this movie were almost oppressively high, and your ability to see and understand both sides of the Denzel/Hackman struggle make it all the more effective as a character drama. Both sides are unbending and determined to do what needs to be done to save the lives of their crew, as well as countless more outside of the sub, but their methods, impulses, and rationale couldn't be further apart. It makes for an incredibly tense movie where you aren't necessarily able to root for both sides (Denzel is clearly the hero of the movie, after all), but you can at least get the sense that, although Hackman is the antagonist, he isn't some mustache-twirling psycho hellbent on violence without reason. I loved this movie, it's beautifully shot, well-acted, and a pure adrenaline rush.

2. The Hunger, 1983

Here's another movie I really didn't like the first time around, and yet again I find the current me struggling to understand why. With an incredible goth aesthetic and a fairly simple albeit effective story, this vampire movie isn't a shock horror type, but instead gets under your skin in a more existential sort of way. The fate of certain characters leave you feeling more horrified than any kind of visual ever could, but that's not to imply this film doesn't work on a visual level. This might be the most striking movie of Scott's career, with its stark blue visuals contracting beautifully with the use of deep red blood. Cool and sexy are two words that apply to a lot of what Tony Scott movies strive to be, and that pairs incredibly well with vampires, which are basically the supernatural distillation of the two. I know a lot of people probably consider this a lesser Scott film (I recall seeing a list or two with it sitting at the very bottom, which is absurd to me) but it was a really close race between this and my #1 for that top spot. Oh, and before I forget to mention the trio of lead performances by Deneuve, Sarandon, and Bowie are all terrific. Wouldn't want to forget that.

1. Unstoppable, 2010

Like I just mentioned in my last snippet, picking #1 was really tough for me, but I think deep down I always sort of knew Unstoppable would be at the top. For all of my complaints about how overly stylized some of the later-period Scott movies are, this is a case that it really doesn't bother me, as I feel the adrenaline and kineticism of its visuals ultimately add to what the movie is at its core. Now, in gonna use a few words that might on the surface feel disparaging, but I only mean them here with love. Unstoppable is pretty much a perfect dumb movie. It's filled with ridiculous decisions that I can't help but to applaud, and makes the whole rush of a movie fly by in very satisfying and crazy ways. Watching these people try to come up with often illogical and bizarre ways of dealing with this runaway train makes for a massively entertaining action thriller, and it's all held together by Denzel Washington and Chris Pine, who are never less than a blast to watch together. This is one of the most unabashedly entertaining movies of the 2010s and this most recent rewatch only confirmed that for me. It's a Tony Scott movie through and through, and as he never directed another film after it, it was ultimately a perfect movie to cap off his career. 

Usually with these kind of posts I find myself feeling overwhelmed and it turns more into work for me than it really should, but this wasn't the case here. I loved going through Tony Scott's career as a director and writing a little about each of these movies came pretty naturally. So overall, this was just a positive experience for me across the board. To anyone who read this (or skimmed, I'm very guilty of that too), thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a lovely day.