Jeremy Renner is no Matt Damon – a point made painfully clear in 2012 after an attempt to revive the Bourne franchise with the spectacularly dull spinoff The Bourne Legacy. Damon’s dialogue as Bourne is often thin on the ground, and his work in the hit trilogy is easy to underestimate. This week, he returns to play the nifty assassin in Jason Bourne, directed by Paul Greengrass. Reviews may be mixed, but Damon is still a capable and engaging action hero – a surprise given how he started out.
The actor, producer and Oscar-winning screenwriter’s career has had many high points. And with forthcoming roles in Alexander Payne’s Downsizing and Suburbicon, scripted by the Coen brothers, there may be many more to come. What have been his best performances?
Good Will Hunting
Damon was impressive in the 1996 film Courage Under Fire (ticking the box for the “role that involves extreme weight loss” early in his career). But it was his work as screenwriter and lead actor in Gus Van Sant’s Good Will Hunting that turned him into a star. As an arrogant but troubled genius, he was an expertly controlled ball of fury and smarts.
The Talented Mr Ripley
Anthony Minghella’s take on the dark thriller by Patricia Highsmith gave Damon his greatest challenge yet: playing a sociopathic chameleon who struggles with his sexuality and identity. He managed to turn Tom Ripley into a tragic lost-boy figure while also making him a frighteningly devious antihero. The role was played by John Malkovich and Barry Pepper in subsequent film adaptations, but Damon’s performance remains the one to beat.
The Bourne Identity
His buddy Ben Affleck fell straight into action mode after Good Will Hunting. Damon, however, didn’t seem like a fit for the genre. The troubled shoot and delayed release of Doug Liman’s spy thriller, adapted from Robert Ludlum’s novel, hinted at a disaster. But audiences loved Damon’s action-ready amnesiac in this 2002 film, and the role opened up new opportunities.
The Informant!
Damon wasn’t solely focused on different ways to flex his acting muscles: he gained weight – and an entirely unflattering new look – for Steven Soderbergh’s underrated corporate comedy. His performance, as a real-life whistleblower whose staggering ineptitude causes a catalogue of unbelievable problems, is a minor comic masterpiece. The role showcased Damon’s total lack of vanity and, yet again, his ability to give depth to often pathetic characters.
Behind the Candelabra
Working for the sixth time with Soderbergh, Damon again changed tack dramatically in this impeccably acted Liberace biopic. Starring with a career-best Michael Douglas, he was astonishing as the unravelling boyfriend of the famous entertainer.
