by Hayley Louise Charlesworth
With the release of Kill the Messenger, Jeremy Renner combines his two career paths (low-key ambiguous dramas and exciting action flicks) into one remarkable true story of drugs-trafficking, government secrets and constant peril. The two-time Academy Award nominee may be a part of three of the biggest franchises of the moment: the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Mission Impossible films and the Bourne series, but he has had a varied and inventive career, from the celebrated The Hurt Locker to the downright insane Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters. Here are some of his best.
Honourable Mentions: Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters, because while it may not be a great film, I’ve never before or since seen my dad cry with such joy at the sheer lunacy he was watching on screen. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, where via his small role he is able to show off his impressive vocal chops (write an Avengers musical, Joss Whedon!) Also the Angel episode “Somnambulist”, for being one of the most terrifying and sadistic characters in that show’s history.
With the release of Kill the Messenger, Jeremy Renner combines his two career paths (low-key ambiguous dramas and exciting action flicks) into one remarkable true story of drugs-trafficking, government secrets and constant peril. The two-time Academy Award nominee may be a part of three of the biggest franchises of the moment: the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Mission Impossible films and the Bourne series, but he has had a varied and inventive career, from the celebrated The Hurt Locker to the downright insane Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters. Here are some of his best.
Honourable Mentions: Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters, because while it may not be a great film, I’ve never before or since seen my dad cry with such joy at the sheer lunacy he was watching on screen. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, where via his small role he is able to show off his impressive vocal chops (write an Avengers musical, Joss Whedon!) Also the Angel episode “Somnambulist”, for being one of the most terrifying and sadistic characters in that show’s history.
The Hurt Locker
Winning the Academy Award for Best Picture, and earning Renner a nomination for Best Actor, The Hurt Locker now ranks amongst the greats of war cinema. Director Kathryn Bigelow crafts a nuanced but incredibly tense drama about bomb disposal experts that doesn’t come across as either Islamophobic or anti-American. In fact, the film reads as one of the least propaganda filled war films out there (in contrast to, say, American Sniper.) This is in part down to limiting the scope of the film to Renner’s character. Also starring Anthony Mackie and Guy Pearce, The Hurt Locker made history twice at the Academy Awards, earning both the first female win for Best Director, and being the lowest-earning Best Picture winner.
If you missed it, change that now.
If you missed it, change that now.
Dahmer
In Dahmer, Renner plays serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer to disturbing effect. Dahmer’s crimes were gruesome and horrific, but that isn’t quite what this film is about. In terms of gore, there is very little. Instead, we remain focused on the physical presence of Dahmer himself during his crimes, seeing things from his perspective and having the mise-en-scene and cinematographic choices reflect his psyche, with a colour palette that is awash with shades of red. Renner’s performance here is most exceptional when we see Dahmer after he kills. The way he worships the bodies of his victims is the most unsettling of all.
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
Known to students of Rennerology as the origin of the lunge (seeing Renner do this warm-up exercise, Tom Cruise insisted they include it in the film), Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol is a big dumb action movie that lets all of its stars have fun. The addition of Simon Pegg in the third film may have livened up an otherwise uninspired film, but adding Renner as a foil for Cruise’s protagonist creates a well-rounded spy team for adventures that don’t require a lot of thought but are a lot of fun to watch. Through the banter of the team (which also includes Paula Patton), Renner gets to showcase his sarcastic comedy chops that were so absent in the script for his character in Avengers Assemble (more on that shortly.)
American Hustle
The general consensus seems to be that, although the script of American Hustle is pretty poor, the performances are uniformly excellent. Given the least attention of the five leads, Renner plays the excellently quiffed mayor who becomes the mark of our conmen and women. In order to sell this part on what is such a poor script, Renner has to imbue the character with the perfect balance of smarm and genuine likability, so that the final payoff feels justified. Luckily, he succeeds just enough, as do the rest of the cast, to convince you that what you’ve just watched is better than it actually is.
Avengers Assemble
Okay, so Hawkeye was short-changed in Avengers Assemble, but Age of Ultron isn’t out yet so we’ll work with what we’ve got. Renner himself complained that, for the most part, he wasn’t even playing Hawkeye but a brainwashed minion of Loki’s. But for the brief moments we see Hawkeye-as-himself, Renner nails his snarky every-man comic book personality. In the comics, Hawkeye’s quips rival even Tony Stark and Peter Parker. We got hints at that in the final battle of Avengers Assemble, and hopefully there will be much more of it to come in the MCU. What we do get, however, is some stunning archery work (for the writer of this article is a huge archery nut), and in their few scenes together, excellent chemistry with Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow, which has left numerous fans clamouring for a backstory film about exactly what did happen in Budapest. With rumours also that Renner will appear in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. there’s certainly more of Hawkeye to come.
The Bourne Legacy
Many people criticised the continuation of the Bourne franchise without Matt Damon. I am here to respectfully disagree. While it is jarring to see any franchise carry on without the title character, The Bourne Legacy stands as a thrilling and intriguing action film in its own right, while the ties into the original trilogy are well handled and excellently interwoven, only adding to the story-building of this world. Director Tony Gilroy (who wrote previous Bourne films) tones down on the headachey shakey-cam, but the action sequences, particularly the motorbike chase through Manilla and a showdown between Aaron Cross and some wolves, are still exhilarating. The Bourne Legacy also gives its female lead, Rachel Weisz, far more to do than in any previous Bourne film. Renner does a fine job with his protagonist, with the main criticisms seeming to be that he isn’t Jason Bourne. But with the potential for a Bourne/Cross team-up in future films, that soon won’t be a problem.
The Town
Renner’s second Oscar nomination, for Best Supporting Actor, came in the second film of the Ben Affleck renaissance, The Town. This crime drama sees Renner play Jem, one of the four bank-robbing leads and lifelong best friend of Affleck’s Doug. Hailed as tense and smart, The Town was considered both confirmation of Affleck’s return to form and further evidence that Renner’s star was on the rise, leading to him starring in some of the planet’s biggest franchises while also continuing with interesting smaller-budget projects.
What Do You Think?
Are these the best movies from Renner?
Or are their better ones?
Kill The Messenger is out now!
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