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Ranking Matt Reeves Films

Matt Reeves is one of my absolute favorite blockbuster directors. He is a man who’s made five genre movies from 2008 up until this moment and with the one exception, all of these movies are either very good or downright incredible. He tackled two important franchises for Hollywood and he elevated both of them in the process. This is my ranking of all five features that Reeves has directed so far.

5. Cloverfield

Cloverfield is a mediocre movie that benefits from some intense and memorable sequences and good effects, but it is for the most part an annoying exercise in found-footage filmmaking with some impossible to follow scenes, such a ridiculous and highly unrealistic concept to it and an absolutely obnoxious main character whom I hated immensely. This was the debut that put Reeves on the map as this incredible genre auteur and I respect it for what it did for his career, but it’s still my least favorite movie of his and the only one I genuinely don’t care for.

4. Let Me In

Let Me In was a 2010 remake of the original Swedish romantic horror that was released two years prior. Reeves tackled this material with a lot of maturity, nuance and professionalism. Chloe Grace Moretz and Kodi Smit-McPhee are both phenomenal here. However, the film is way too faithful to the previous story, resulting in this project feeling utterly redundant. It’s as good as American remakes of foreign movies can get, but it remains a pointless remake regardless.

3. The Batman

I really disliked what Nolan did for the Batman franchise, so I was hopeful that Matt Reeves would fix it. And here he comes and not only fixes, but makes what is quite possibly the best live-action Batman movie that we’ve gotten so far. This is a rare Batman entry that actually feels truthful to the character’s origins – it’s a detective story first and foremost. The villains all worked with Dano’s Riddler being unforgettable. The movie is both mature and nourish but also unquestionably a superhero flick due to incredible action scenes throughout. The superb blood-pumping score alone makes this film an instant classic of the genre.

2. War for the Planet of the Apes

With absolutely stunning special effects, many memorable set pieces, great direction, superb performances and such a beautiful Michael Giacchino score, War for the Planet of the Apes was a masterful film that thankfully concluded the greatest trilogy ever on a majestic note. Highly moving in emotion, sophisticated and well thought out in its storytelling ad exhilarating in its action, the film ended this incredible trilogy so well while wonderfully connecting it to the original 1968 film in the process. What Reeves did for the Apes franchise was truly astonishing.

1. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

But the number one movie in the Apes franchise and in Reeves’ filmography remains Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. This film is brilliant; there is no question about it. The entire Apes reboot trilogy is fantastic, but this second entry is the magnum opus as it’s the most sophisticated and the most epic. It has everything. It has phenomenal themes, in particular focusing on the roots of evil in civilization. It also has terrific action scenes and an unforgettable protagonist in Caesar. Dawn is sweeping, moving and utterly confounding in its greatness leading to what is one of the best blockbusters in the history of Hollywood.