Ranking Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s 5 Best Movies
By Josh.0
NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 25: Actors Seann William Scott and The Rock make an appearance on MTV’s Total Request Live to promote the new film ‘The Rundown’ at MTV Studios September 25, 2003 in New York City. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Getty Images)
5. The Rundown
If nothing else, The Rundown gets points for originality. It is not a sequel and it’s not an origin story. It didn’t launch a franchise and certainly wasn’t a big budget action thriller. This was The Rock’s second opportunity as a leading man and the first test of his box office potential. The film garnered rave reviews thanks to Peter Berg’s unique directing style and the fantastic on-screen chemistry between Johnson and his co-star, Sean William Scott, who was also looking to crawl from beneath the Stifler shadow cast by his American Pie films. The $85 million budget gave The Rundown a pretty steep hill to climb and audiences weren’t yet sold on Rock as an automatic box office success.
The film is about a bounty hunter who dreams about retiring, going legit and opening up his own restaurant. Before he can start this new life, he is hired by a mob boss to bring his son back from Brazil. The contract leads him to a small mining town being run by slave labor and criminal control by the always-entertaining Christopher Walken. As always, Walken brings equal parts gravitas and snarling menace to his role as a ruthless and greedy authoritarian. Despite his appearances in more sophomoric ventures, Scott is extremely likable as the estranged mobster’s progeny who wants nothing to do with his father’s illegal activities. It turns out that he is in Brazil in search of a mythical artifact worth a fortune that would allow him to escape his father’s control.
Peter Berg is exceptional behind the camera so the action sequences are done beautifully and the character development moves along at just the right pace. The film ultimately made $80 million worldwide but has developed a cult following in the years since. As an early film in Johnson’s career, it is interesting to watch his performance with the benefit of hindsight. He proved to be a capable and physical actor but I also understand the audience hesitation. The action hero torch isn’t passed lightly and fans weren’t ready to crown Johnson as the next heir to the throne.