British director, writer, and actor Kenneth Branagh has been making films for decades. These are his 10 best movies according to IMDb.
Kenneth Branagh is one of the rare filmmakers who has directed, written, produced, and acted, and he has done so for decades. Since his first film as director (Henry V in 1989), he has been hailed as a talented and versatile filmmaker. Though he is best known for his Shakespeare adaptations, Branagh has also worked on mysteries, thrillers, action movies, superhero movies, sci-fi, and even a remake of a classic Disney animated film.
Branagh isn't slowing down, either. His newest film, Death On The Nile, has just been released in theaters, and his semi-autobiographical film, Belfast, received seven Oscar nominations (including three for Branagh himself). While waiting to see which of these awards he might win, it's a good time to look back on his other great movies.
10 Death On The Nile (2022) 6.6
Branagh's 10th best film is also his most recent, Death On The Nile. Nile is Branagh's second adaptation of an Agatha Christie mystery novel after 2017's Murder On The Orient Express, and the film sees Branagh return to the role of Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot.
Audience reception to the film hasn't been particularly enthusiastic - a theaters-only release, it has so far earned only $80 million worldwide on a $90 million budget. Critics did, however, praise the old-fashioned, nostalgic feel of the film, its lush production value, and Death On The Nile's likable cast of characters. Sara Michelle Fetters of Movie Freak writes that "from a directorial standpoint, Branagh has tightened things up considerably this time around, while his performance as Poirot continues to be excellent."
9 Dead Again (1991) 6.9
A tie with his eighth-best movie in terms of audience reception, Dead Again is Branagh's second film as director, which has elements of romance, thriller, and neo-noir. It also features Branagh in the lead role, alongside some of his closest collaborators: Sir Derek Jacobi and his then-wife, Emma Thompson.
Dead Again was a moderate box-office success and received glowing reviews from critics, who started to compare Branagh to great directors like Orson Welles and Alfred Hitchcock. Legendary critic Roger Ebert wrote, "I do not suggest Branagh is already as great a director as Welles and Hitchcock, although he has a good start in that direction. What I mean is that his spirit, his daring, is in the same league. He is not interested in making timid movies."
8 Cinderella (2015) 6.9
Cinderella is a live-action remake of Disney's 1950 classic starring Lily James, Richard Madden, and Cate Blanchett. It is also one of Branagh's few projects aimed primarily at families and younger audiences. Nowadays, live-action Disney remakes are commonplace, but at the time of the release of Branagh's Cinderella, it was one of the only films of its kind.
Audiences enjoyed the film (it earned over $500 million worldwide, making it Branagh's highest-grossing movie). Critics admired it for its updates on the original story and characters, its earnestness, its performances, and its production value. Branagh's version remains one of the best live-action Cinderella movies to date.
7 Peter's Friends (1992) 7.0
Another tie in score, after starting his directing career off with a Shakespearean epic and a neo-noir thriller, Branagh went in a very different direction for his third film, 1992's Peter's Friends.
Peter's Friends is a simple, low-budget comedy-drama about the reunion of six friends, years after their college days. The ensemble cast features several actors who had previously worked together, including Branagh, Emma Thompson, Stephen Fry, and Hugh Laurie (the latter two famously worked together on the TV show Jeeves and Wooster). Critics describes Peter's Friends as not particularly revolutionary, but a sweet, entertaining, and endearing movie nonetheless.
6 Thor (2011) 7.0
After a number of critical and/or box-office disappointments, Branagh made something of a comeback with his biggest film to date, Marvel Studio's 2011 blockbuster Thor. Though the Thor fans know now has perhaps been influenced more by Taika Waititi's comedic sensibilities, Branagh was critical in bringing him into the MCU. The first Thor film shied away from campiness and leaned heavily into a grand, serious, and even Shakespearian tone (something Tony Stark makes reference to in The Avengers).
Critics and audiences responded positively to Branagh's take on the character, and though he eschewed working on the sequels in order to focus on other projects, he did have a fitting voice cameo in Avengers: Infinity War as the Asgardian distress caller heard in the opening moments of that film.
5 A Midwinter's Tale (1995) 7.2
One curious note about Branagh's best movies that rank in his top 5 by audience score is that they are all movies that he both directed and wrote. One of his lesser-known films, 1995's A Midwinter's Tale (titled In the Bleak Midwinter in the UK) is a comedy-drama about a group of less-than-stellar actors putting on a production of Shakespeare's Hamlet.
Like one of his later films, All Is True, in which he plays William Shakespeare, A Midwinter's Tale is a movie that shows the viewer just how much Branagh loves and reveres the Bard. James Berardinelli of Reelviews writes that the film "succeeds as a comedy, a satire, and even, to a certain extent, as a mild melodrama about choosing between a paycheck and the nourishment of the soul."
4 Much Ado About Nothing (1993) 7.3
For his fourth film, 1993's Much Ado About Nothing, Branagh returned again to Shakespeare, this time with a more light-hearted and easy-going romantic comedy. Branagh starred in one of the lead roles alongside, again, Emma Thompson, as well as Denzel Washington, Kate Beckinsale, and Keanu Reeves.
Critics appreciated the ensemble cast and the lush production value (the movie was shot entirely in Italy), and it became one of the most financially successful Shakespeare adaptations ever made. It's also a great Shakespeare movie for beginners. Robert Faires of Austin Chronicle wrote that "Kenneth Branagh's return to Shakespeare captures the Bard's captivating comic romance at the peak of flavor."
3 Belfast (2001) 7.4
Before Death on the Nile, Branagh's most recent film was 2021's Belfast. The black-and-white film set in 1960s Northern Ireland, has been described as the director's most personal and autobiographical work as well as Branagh's best movie ever.
Led by newcomer Jude Hill, the film focuses on a family living amidst the cultural and political upheaval of "The Troubles" in Belfast. Viewers loved the performances, cinematography, pace, and tone of the movie, and awards shows across the world have been eager to heap praise on it. Branagh also made Oscar history with Belfast - after previous nominations in five separate categories (Director, Actor, Supporting Actor, Adapted Screenplay, and Live Action Short Film), he now has nominations for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay, a new record for most individual categories.
2 Henry V (1989) 7.5
Kenneth Branagh's debut as a film director is his 1989 adaptation of Shakespeare's Henry V, which, though not the only major adaptation, is perhaps the best-known and most popular. Anyone who has directed a period war epic like Henry V would say that this was a monumental undertaking for a first-time director, and Branagh seems to have triumphed in every conceivable way.
The film looks and sounds gorgeous, and Branagh began working with actors that would go on to be some of his most frequent collaborators - Emma Thompson, Derek Jacobi, and Dame Judi Dench. The film also features a young and then-unknown Christian Bale. Audiences loved the film, and it remains to this day one of Branagh's most excellent works.
1 Hamlet (1996) 7.7
If anything could top the heights of Branagh's debut Henry V, it could only be his version of Shakespeare's Hamlet almost a decade later. Branagh's 1996 film is an epic in every sense of the word. Unlike the dozens of other film or television adaptations of the same play, Branagh's version uses the complete unabridged text, thus making the movie just over four hours long.
The movie was filmed on 70 mm film, which became a rarity shortly after the movie's release. The ensemble cast is huge and includes Branagh (as Hamlet), Kate Winslet, Derek Jacobi, Julie Christie, Robin Williams, Billy Crystal, and Judi Dench. Though not a box-office success (perhaps due to its massive length), the movie was and still is loved by critics and audiences, many of whom consider Branagh's Hamlet one of the finest Shakespeare adaptations ever made.
Next: 10 Agatha Christie Works That Deserve The Death On The Nile Treatment
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