Christopher Nolan might now be known for his exceptionally huge budgets and grand, big-name thrillers, but once upon a time, his tightly wound genius stories came to audiences from a much more subtle place. Whether or not you like the modern, big-budget Nolan or the classic, intimate Nolan is a personal choice, but fans have spoken as to their overall preference via IMDb.
Using their rating system, fans can take a look at Christopher Nolan’s 10-film back catalog. Here are his five best films and the five worst.
BEST: Memento (8.4)
One of the greatest psychological thrillers of all time has ended up in a position where it is consistently overlooked, simply because Christopher Nolan went on to make so many bigger blockbuster hits so soon after.
The Memento one of his finest achievements.
WORST: The Dark Knight Rises (8.4)
The third in Nolan’s trilogy of The Dark Knight.
Still, Nolan managed to pull off a spectacular film full of big-name talent, which turned the superhero genre away from its campy roots and into the gritty underworld the genre so often wanders into these days.
BEST: The Prestige (8.5)
Another of Nolan’s twist-laden psychological thrillers that is overshadowed by some of his more grand works is The Prestige.
Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman are enthralling in the lead roles, while Nolan managed to get David Bowie himself to deliver an excellent performance as Nicola Tesla. Memento still wins, but The Prestige takes a close second in ‘best twists ever.’
WORST: Batman Begins (8.2)
The first and worst of Nolan’s Batman trilogy. Despite this, Batman Begins is far from a bad film.
It introduced Christian Bale as Batman, a role that not many expected him to be able to pull off with such poise, and it took us into the darker world that fans now associate with Batman way more than the half-comedies of the 20th century.
BEST: Interstellar (8.6)
Until work began on Tenet, Christopher Nolan’s journey into sci-fi garnered him his biggest budget yet. Working with almost $200 million, he was able to flesh out a world that took his characters to a wormhole near Saturn and made every shot look amazing.
Perhaps even more impressive, the film employed more practical effects and scale-models than it did digital effects. For Nolan to envisage a world of such grandeur and actually make it happen on screen is an impressive feat.
WORST: Dunkirk (7.9)
The approach that Dunkirk took has to be praised, as it was guaranteed a huge audience. Despite this, Nolan went for realism, with very little dialogue and extensive practical effects.
The film is a visual masterpiece that was stunning to look at on the big screen, but in of story, it just lacked the ambition and genius of much of his other work.
BEST: Inception (8.8)
Often considered the best film released in 2010 (and in the entire decade), Inception was nearly 10 years in the making. Nolan had conceived a horror film about lucid dreams back in 2002, before returning to it in 2009 and turning it into the sci-fi action film we know and love.
The fact that Nolan managed to make the sheer scale and complexity of the project work throughout (even if audiences didn’t quite get it) is a testament to his vision and skill as a director.
WORST: Following (7.5)
One of just two of Nolan’s films that aren’t incredibly famous is Following. Looking at the budget of Nolan’s later films, the fact that Following was made on just $6,000 is simply mind-blowing for most fans.
Following was rehearsed extensively and expenses were cut just about everywhere possible, including in lighting. Despite this, he managed to create a film that garnered a positive critical response and set him on the path that would give him Memento just two years later.
BEST: The Dark Knight (9.0)
This is the film that made people take superhero films seriously, realizing they could be dark thrillers full of action with the campy comedy left behind. On top of that, the film is centered on Heath Ledger’s portrayal of The Joker, which is considered to be one of the greatest acting performances of all time.
WORST: Insomnia (7.2)
Insomnia came just two years after Memento, but was the first of Nolan's films with the budget to attract huge stars - in this case, Al Pacino and Robin Williams.
The psychological thriller received great reviews and got Nolan off to the start that would eventually lead to his phenomenal modern-day career, but it pales in comparison to some of his other work.
