Ethan Hawke is a unique actor, writer, and director in Hollywood. He’s been an indie darling for most of his life, while also making some bigger, flashier, big studio box office successes, showing that the “one for me, one for them” motto can still work, as has been part of iconic indie films like Before Sunrise, horror movies that became franchises like The Purge, and is part of the MCU, thanks to his role as Arthur Harrow in the Disney+ TV series, Moon Knight, where he worked alongside Oscar Isaac.
If you watch or listen to any interview with Hawke, you’ll understand he’s a smart man, who values his art, and wants to keep improving, while also loving a challenge. That’s why he’s also directed film and theater, written plays and novels, and has played many iconic roles, from Jesse in the Before trilogy to Troy in Reality Bites, Mason Sr. in Boyhood, or Jake in Training Day. Here are his 10 best movies, according to Rotten Tomatoes score.
10 Born to Be Blue (2015) - 88%
Born to Be Blue is a musical biopic about jazz trumpeter Chet Baker (Hawke), a pioneer in his world who was also a heroin addict, and had many demons. So much so, that even if other jazz greats like Dizzy Gillespie (Kevin Hanchard) or Miles Davis (Kedar Brown) wanted to work with him, he couldn’t quit his bad habit for long, as he believed it helped with his music.
What Makes It Great
Hawke’s performance as Baker is amazing, as the character doesn’t speak much, and it’s all thinking, watching, and playing, a challenge for an actor as loquacious as him. Here, he’s able to show all the angst, suffering and doubt, that the trumpeter is feeling with his posture, how he looks at things, and his movements, making for an incredible portrait of one of the most talented musicians of the 20th century
Stream on AMC+
9 A Midnight Clear (1992) - 88%
During World War II, a group of six army men found a group of German soldiers who decided they would rather surrender than get killed, and started an unexpected relationship between the two crews. That’s what A Midnight Clear is all about, adapting the novel of the same name, written by William Wharton.
What Makes It Great
This was one of Hawke’s earlier performances, when he had already had his breakout role in Dead Poets Society and had been the lead in White Fang. Here, he’s part of a young ensemble that has kept working in Hollywood, that includes Peter Berg, Kevin Dillon, Gary Sinise, John C. McGinley, and Frank Whaley, proving he always shines in supporting character roles.
Stream on Fubo TV
8 Maudie (2016) - 89%
Maudie is a biographical drama about folk artist Maud Lewis (Sally Hawkins), and her life in Nova Scotia while painting while having arthritis. It is in that community that she meets Everett Lewis (Hawke) and they have a romantic relationship, even if he doesn’t believe in the artistic aspirations of his wife.
What Makes It Great
Sally Hawkins is what makes this movie great. She’s the heart and soul of it, and her performance alone makes the film worth a watch. It looks like Hawke understood that too, as he plays the supporting role to create contrast between the characters, while giving her all the spice possible to shine. He does all this while creating an unlikable character who feels realistic, and understated once you learn of his childhood.
Rent on Apple TV
7 Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead (2007) - 89%
ThinkFilm
Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead is the story of two brothers, Hank (Hawke) and Andy (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who decide to rob their parent’s jewelry store. Unfortunately, things go very wrong during the robbery, so much so, that it changes their lives forever.
What Makes It Great
This was Sidney Lumet’s last masterpiece, as the director and actor knew how to extract the best from the actors he worked with, and this is no different. Both Hoffman and Hawke are excellent here, and the Before Sunrise actor is able to hold up his own against one of the greatest talents of his generation, while creating an alcoholic, pathetic man-child, who isn’t as smart or conniving as he thinks. The actor has played an everyman in the past, but this is a great performance of someone who is so dumb, you can't help but feel bad for him. Hawke is able to switch from bravado to shame in seconds, as Hank is an absolute mess, who keeps spiraling out of control.
Stream on Peacock
6 The Northman (2022) - 90%
The Northman is all about Viking Prince Amleth (Alexander Skarsgård) and his quest for vengeance when his father, King Aurvandil War-Raven (Hawke) is killed by his brother. Robert Eggers keeps making better and better films, and this one is all about the spectacle, and the fights that Prince Amleth must have to avenge his father.
What Makes It Great
Hawke has always tried to work with unique, surprising, directors, even in small roles, so it makes perfect sense that he would want to appear in an Eggers film. Although his role is pretty small, his death is what gets the story going, making for an incredible moment at the start of the film. The actor is one more memorable in an incredible cast that includes Nicole Kidman, Willem Defoe, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Björk.
Rent on Apple TV
5 First Reformed (2017) - 94%
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First Reformed tells the story of Protestant minister Ed Toller (Hawke), a reverend who is struggling with his own faith and has some guilt. Written and directed by Paul Shrader, this is an unusual film, and that’s what makes it so interesting, giving Hawke a character like no other he's played before.
What Makes It Great
This is one of the best films with religious themes, and one of Hawke’s best performances, as he must show the many layers and sides of his character; someone full of contradictions, who is at the same time trying to be a leader, while being lost, hopeful but disillusioned, conflicted, and losing his grip on reality with every moment. Hawke conveys all those qualities, moments, and despair in a performance that’s very different from his most famous everyman roles, proving how good of an actor he is.
Stream on Max
4 Before Sunset (2004) - 94%
Before Sunset is the second installment in the trilogy, the one where Jesse (Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) meet in Paris nine years after their initial night together. Now, he’s a relatively famous author who published a book about their experience together in Vienna, and she decides to go see the book signing before they spend a few hours together.
What Makes It Great
For many, this sequel is better than the original, as it shows how both characters have evolved since their day together, how there are still the same characters, but life has extracted all their idealism about love, especially in Jesse, who is in a loveless relationship, and thinks his life is already decided, and he hates it. Every time he sees Celine, though, his complete posture and attitude change, becoming much more eager and lovely, as he might still feel something for her, showing how different and yet the same he is as a character. The ending with Celine singing her song, and telling Jesse he’s going to miss his plane is one of the most beautiful, you-can’t-help-but-smile moments ever made.
Rent on Apple TV
3 Boyhood (2014) - 97%
Boyhood tells the story of a normal family in five–10 minute scenes shot over 12 years, that show how the kid, Mason Jr. (Ellen Coltrane), grows from a six-year-old kid, into an 18-year-old man. The movie is an incredible experiment, where the passage of real-time is one of the most interesting characters.
What Makes It Great
This was a unique project for Linklater and the actors, as they met for a short period every year, and that gave Hawke one of his best roles, showing how his Mason Sr. changed and evolved over the years, while continually failing as a divorced dad and trying to amend his worst tendencies. The real-life time challenge helped the character grow and change, and the actor (who also helped with the writing), shows all the layers of himself, by continually changing and improving, creating a really compelling character arc in the process.
Stream on Fubo TV
2 Before Midnight (2013) - 98%
Before Midnight is the third, and, for now, last part of the Before trilogy, as Jesse and Celine have been together for a while, have two daughters, and are well past the honeymoon phase. Now they're in a real, long-term relationship with all its ups and downs, and for the first time, they might not be as in sync as we've seen them before.
What Makes It Great
This is the movie that’s all about what real commitment really is, how love becomes many more things than passion, and for the first time, after seeing the couple fall in love, audiences see what might be the end of it. Hawke and Delpy are excellent here, showing how all the things that made them fall in love are now exasperating, and how the only way to keep living together is by compromising, seeing each other for who they really are, and not trying to win every argument. Their confrontation at the hotel is as scary, and stressful, as a horror film, as for the first time, it might look like these two lovers aren’t going to make it, and both have valid arguments as to why it could end that way.
Stream on Max
1 Before Sunrise (1995) - 100%
Before Sunrise is the original film in the trilogy. Here is where Jesse and Celine first meet on a train and spend a whole day and night talking, laughing, connecting, getting to know each other, and falling in love in Vienna in a movie that's all about discovering that special someone with whom you could spend every hour of every day with, and still feel as if only a minute has passed.
What Makes It Great
The trilogy is still the most realistic story about love, and that’s because of the performances of both actors and their undeniable chemistry. This was the first of many times Hawke worked with Linklater, and it’s easy to see why the actor became the director’s alter-ego on screen. Hawke is smart, charming, and even funny at times, and in Delpy, he found the perfect match and companion, making this a unique film; one without a plot and that’s only talking, which shouldn’t be that interesting, engaging, and romantic, yet they make it work perfectly.
Rent on Apple TV
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