Well folks, we finally made it! We have arrived at the Top Ten Matt Damon Movies of All Time, according to some random guy with an internet connection and too much time on his hands. These last few movies on the rankings are truly something special – every single one has a valid argument to be number one on the list. These movies are the culmination of great directing, writing, acting, cinematography, casting, costumes, scoring, and so much more. They have really interesting plots but, true to the rest of Matt Damon’s career, remain diverse and unique from each other. In one movie we seem him reprise his role as Jason Bourne, while in another we see him as an astronaut stranded on Mars; in one movie we see him as a young con artist galivanting around Europe, while in another we find him once again in Europe, but this time as a World War II Army Private. It’s a true testament to Damon’s skill as an actor to pull off such different roles and have all of them be considered top-tier movies. I could spend so much more time gushing about Matt Damon and the movies he’s been in, but we’ve already spent three weeks doing that so without further ado, I present to you my Top Ten Matt Damon Movies of All Time.
10. Ocean’s Twelve
- Release date: December 10, 2004
- Budget: $110 million
- Box office: $362.9 million
- Letterboxd rating: 3.3 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 4.0 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 55% (Rotten)
Probably the most controversial placement on this entire list, but it’s my list, and I love this movie. I truly believe that a lot of people just don’t get this movie; they don’t understand the comedy and satire that entrenches it, they don’t understand Steven Soderbergh’s quirks as a director, and they don’t understand the appeal of meta-commentary. And guess what, that is fine! I don’t blame them or hold it against them, there are plenty of movies (you could make the case for any Scorsese film) that I myself don’t fully understand, but you won’t ever find me saying that they are bad, or were poorly made. If it’s not for you, that is fine. But don’t yuck someone else’s yum just because it’s not tailor-made to your liking. On a side note: I would pay good money to see a thirty minute Livingston Dell standup special.
9. The Bourne Ultimatum
- Release date: August 3, 2007
- Budget: $110 million
- Box office: $444.1 million
- Letterboxd rating: 3.7 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 4.5 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 92% (Certified Fresh ?)
My favorite installment of the franchise. It felt like the coming together of the editing, fight/stunt choreography, set pieces, directing and acting. Obviously the $400+ million in the box office seems to agree with me as well. It’s just a great action thriller from start to finish.
8. Ocean’s Eleven
- Release date: December 7, 2001
- Budget: $85 million
- Box office: $450.7 million
- Letterboxd rating: 3.9 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 5.0 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 83% (Certified Fresh ?)
This is a top ten most rewatchable movie of all time – perfectly cast, perfectly paced, and it managed to age pretty well for a movie from 2001. Just a pure joy to watch every time. Brad Pitt and George Clooney are the absolute definition of “cool”, Damon is hilarious as the nervous and awkward pick-pocket, Casey Affleck and Scott Caan have uncanny chemistry as on-screen brothers, Carl Reiner is the highly respected OG both on and off screen here and the rest of the cast nail their roles (I don’t need to waste more of both of our times listing out how great each actor was in their individual roles). The soundtrack is one of my all-time favorites here from David Holmes and complements the action, swagger and charisma of what you are watching so so well. I love this movie so much so that I’m pretty sure I watch it 3-4 times a year.1
7. The Martian
- Release date: October 2, 2015
- Budget: $108 million
- Box office: $630.6 million2
- Letterboxd rating: 3.7 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 4.5 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 91% (Certified Fresh ?)
Another top ten most rewatchable movie of this century, and hands down a top five most rewatchable movie of all time for me. It’s Cast Away, but in space. I would say that Matt Damon’s performance equals that of Tom Hanks’ in Cast Away, but the cover version doesn’t exist without the original. Props to all involved for really making me feel like I was trapped on Mars with Mark Watney, and making it basically the entire way through the film before we got to a sequence that didn’t feel realistic (I’m sorry but that Iron Man glove thing would simply never happen). Harry Gregson-Williams adds to a long list of great soundtracks in Matt Damon movies, but this one also adds extra flair with all of the ABBA needle drops that somehow work every time. The casting in this movie deserves special shoutout, with a special place in my heart for the Donald Glover role.
6. Saving Private Ryan
- Release date: July 24, 1998
- Budget: $65-70 million
- Box office: $482.3 million
- Letterboxd rating: 4.2 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 4.5 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 94% (Certified Fresh ?)
I really could have done without the first and last five minutes in this movie. They felt out of place, forced, and jarring to see in the context of the rest of the film. That being said, this is one of the best war films ever made. The ugly, infuriating, and heartbreaking realities of WWII are captured arguably better than any other movie and don’t rely on Hollywood cliches to communicate that. The Omaha beach scene is rightfully lauded as one of the best of all time and was nerve-racking to get through as a viewer. Overall, this is a fantastic film that deserves a watch from anyone remotely interested.
5. The Talented Mr. Ripley
- Release date: December 25, 1999
- Budget: $40 million
- Box office: $128.8 million
- Letterboxd rating: 3.8 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 4.5 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 85% (Certified Fresh ?)
I think it’s time we finally start asking ourselves: is Matt Damon better at playing a bad guy than a good guy? He does such a great job getting us to cheer for him in movies like The Bourne Identity, The Martian, and Ocean’s Eleven, but I think he does a better job of getting us to root against him in movies like The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Departed, and School Ties. Either way, this movie is something special, and the cast blew me away with their performances. With the new Ripley Netflix series now available to stream, it feels more timely than ever to be talking about this movie and how under-the-radar is seems to go in regards to the best movies of Matt Damon’s career. While it only makes it to number five on this list, I would say that this tops the list of best performances of Damon’s career – it truly is that good. If you can handle some psychological drama, this is an absolute must-watch.
4. The Bourne Identity
- Release date: June 14, 2002
- Budget: $60 million
- Box office: $214 million
- Letterboxd rating: 3.7 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 5.0 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 84% (Certified Fresh ?)
Perfection. The casting, directing, editing, soundtrack, writing, on-location filming, action sequences, the car chase, the Matt Damon. All of it. One of my favorite movies of all time, and I will never tire of watching it. I can listen to the score and pick out exactly what scene is occurring and see it happen in my head from start to finish. Truly one of those instances where you think something was tailor-made just for you.
3. Good Will Hunting
- Release date: December 5, 1997
- Budget: $10 million
- Box office: $225.9 million
- Letterboxd rating: 4.3 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 5.0 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 97% (Certified Fresh ?)
This film just never gets old. It might be predictable, but that’s what makes it so rewatchable – it’s a feel-good story that takes you on a ride from start to finish. Damon’s performance is inspired, and Robin Williams was deservingly awarded for his own performance. I think what pulls this together though is the less-admired performances of Casey and Ben Affleck. They bring the heart of the story to the forefront, and force to you feel a part of their crew and want the best for Will – which is to leave Boston behind. I also can’t say enough about Minnie Driver’s performance; gives real meaning and oomph to the phrase “I can fix him.” Can’t wait to rewatch this again soon.
2. Interstellar
- Release date: November 5, 2014
- Budget: $165 million
- Box office: $731 million
- Letterboxd rating: 4.3 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 5.0 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 73% (Certified Fresh ?)
Honestly, I don’t care what anyone else thinks about this movie. It’s one of my favorites of all time, and nothing you say (or complain about) will change my mind. Every single actor understands their role and what they need to bring to the table. Hans Zimmer with one of his biggest “I’m him” performances of his career, along with Hoyte van Hoytema cementing himself as my favorite cinematographer of all time. Damon isn’t in this movie for too long, but he plays such a crucial role that really drives the story forward just when you felt like it may have been slowing down. Just an awe-inspiring, stunning, gorgeous film to watch every single time. Never gets old (just like Coop).
1. Oppenheimer
- Release date: July 21, 2023
- Budget: $100 million
- Box office: $964.6 million
- Letterboxd rating: 4.2 ★
- My Letterboxd rating: 5.0 ★
- Rotten Tomatoes: 93% (Certified Fresh ?)
I drove to two different movie theaters, both of which are an hour away from me (welcome to living in the Adirondacks), to see this movie on a big screen. It was so incredibly worth it. It got me to sit down and read the longest book I’ve ever read (American Prometheus), which then only made my next rewatch (this time at home) even more joyful. Like Interstellar, Matt Damon isn’t the central role in this movie. But he plays his role so well and complements what Cillian Murphy is doing excellently; there was a real chance that someone else in the role would have done too much with it or outshone what the character actually called for. Leslie Groves was the owner of the team that Robert Oppenheimer coached; they weren’t always going to get along and Oppenheimer would be taking the flak for anything that went wrong, but he was the real reason behind the team’s success. Groves could blend into the background sometimes, but that was exactly what would happen in real life (and sometimes much to the chagrin of Groves). I catalogued each viewing of this on Letterboxd, so I will put those reviews here, in order of when I saw it, so you can see the hold this movie had over me from the jump.
- First Viewing (July 29, 2023): “A true cinematic masterpiece. Nolan cements himself among the greatest filmmakers of all time with this one.”
- Second Viewing (August 13, 2023): “Upon a second viewing in the theater, I can firmly say this movie is just absolutely incredible with elite level performances from every department.”
- Third Viewing (March 9, 2024): “First time watching after having read American Prometheus and ho boy, it made it so much more enjoyable of a watch. Added so much context to so many facets of the film, and made me appreciate even more how stellar of a job Cillian Murphy did in this. Gosh, what an achievement this movie is. I love it! I love film!”
And there you have it folks – a complete Matt Damon career retrospective in it’s entirety. I’m sure there are quite a few placements on here that you disagree with, and I welcome you to voice those with me. I myself made several changes to this list while writing each part, including the Top Ten! But that is what I love so much about art, and about cinema in particular – it is entirely subjective, and there are no wrong opinions. Beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder, and what one person finds moving, another may find boring; what one person finds to be trivial, another may find to be life-changing. I hope you enjoyed going through this journey with me, because this was a real treat for me. Matt Damon has been my favorite actor for quite some time now and I’m grateful that you took the time to support my slightly insane endeavor here.
