Denzel Washington's Top 20 Best Films Ranked

Denzel Washington is one of the all time leading men in films today, having made some stunning films over his 30+ years in the business. so we have collected the scores from IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic and Letterboxd to get a true average score.....

20 – Courage Under Fire (1996)

Directed by: Edward Zwick

A MEDAL FOR HONOR. A SEARCH FOR JUSTICE. A BATTLE FOR TRUTH.

While serving in the Gulf War, Lieutenant Colonel Serling accidentally destroys one of his own tanks during a confusing night-time battle, killing his friend, Captain Boylar. The US Army covers up the details and transfers Serling to a desk job.

7.06 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

19 – The Manchurian Candidate (2004)

Directed by: Jonathan Demme

EVERYTHING IS UNDER CONTROL.

A psychological thriller in which a career soldier, Army Major Bennett Marco, grows suspicious about his experiences in Desert Storm after Squad Sergeant Raymond Shaw, son of the powerful Senator Eleanor Shaw, becomes a candidate for Vice President.

7.08 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

18 – Unstoppable (2010)

Directed by: Tony Scott

1,000,000 TONS. 100,000 LIVES. 100 MINUTES.

A runaway train, transporting deadly, toxic chemicals, is barreling down on Stanton, Pennsylvania, and proves to be unstoppable until a veteran engineer and young conductor risk their lives to try and stop it with a switch engine.

7.11 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

17 – Devil In a Blue Dress (1995)

Directed by: Carl Franklin

PRIVATE DETECTIVE EASY RAWLINS HAS BEEN CAUGHT ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE MOST DANGEROUS SECRET IN TOWN.

Denzel Washington stars as Ezekiel “Easy” Rawlins, a decorated war hero who returns home to the segregation of post-war America and is hired to find a missing socialite, and gets mixed up in a murderous political scandal.

7.24 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

16 – Flight (2012)

Directed by: Robert Zemeckis

Commercial airline pilot Captain William “Whip” Whitaker Sr. who is fighting trauma and a substance abuse problem, manages to avert certain disaster by making a daring crash-landing when his plane malfunctions. However, his heroic actions are later brought into question when an investigation into the incident reveals his secrets.

7.34 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

15 – Cry Freedom (1987)

Directed by: Richard Attenborough

THE TRUE STORY OF THE FRIENDSHIP THAT SHOOK SOUTH AFRICA AND AWAKENED THE WORLD

A dramatic story, based on actual events, about the friendship between two men struggling against apartheid in South Africa in the 1970s. Donald Woods is a white liberal journalist in South Africa who begins to follow the activities of Stephen Biko, a courageous and outspoken black anti-apartheid activist.

7.36 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

14 – Antwone Fisher (2002)

Directed by: Denzel Washington

ANTWONE FISHER IS AT WAR… WITH HIMSELF.

A sailor prone to violent outbursts is sent to a naval psychiatrist for help. Refusing at first to open up, the young man eventually breaks down and reveals a horrific childhood. Through the guidance of his doctor, he confronts his painful past and begins a quest to find the family he never knew.

7.45 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

13 – The Great Debaters (2007)

Directed by: Denzel Washington

WHEN THE NATION WAS IN NEED, HE INSPIRED THEM TO GIVE US HOPE.

The true story of a brilliant but politically radical debate team coach who uses the power of words to transform a group of underdog African-American college students into a historical powerhouse that took on the Harvard elite.

7.47 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

12 – Remember The Titans (2000)

Directed by: Boaz Yakin

BEFORE THEY COULD WIN, THEY HAD TO BECOME ONE.

After leading his football team to 15 winning seasons, coach Bill Yoast is demoted and replaced by Herman Boone – tough, opinionated and as different from the beloved Yoast as he could be. The two men learn to overcome their differences and turn a group of hostile young men into champions.

7.48 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

11 – He Got Game (1998)

Directed by: Spike Lee

THE FATHER, THE SON AND THE HOLY GAME.

Jake Shuttlesworth is in prison serving time for killing his wife in a violent family feud. He is released on parole, but with one condition – he must persuade his son, genius basketball player Jesus to sign with the governor’s alma mater university, Big State. And Jake only has a week to do it.

7.54 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

10 – Crimson Tide (1995)

Directed by: Tony Scott

DANGER RUNS DEEP

In post-Soviet Russia, civil war erupts as a result of the ongoing conflict in Chechnya. Military units loyal to Vladimir Radchenko, a Russian ultra-nationalist, take control of a nuclear missile installation and are threatening nuclear war if either the American or Russian governments attempt to confront him.

7.64 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

9 – Fences (2016)

Directed by: Denzel Washington

SOME PEOPLE BUILD FENCES TO KEEP PEOPLE OUT, AND OTHER PEOPLE BUILD FENCES TO KEEP PEOPLE IN.

In 1950s Pittsburgh, a frustrated African-American father struggles with the constraints of poverty, racism, and his own inner demons as he tries to raise a family.

7.69 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

8 – The Hurricane (1999)

Directed by: Norman Jewison

HIS GREATEST FIGHT WAS FOR JUSTICE.

The story of Rubin “Hurricane” Carter, a boxer wrongly imprisoned for murder, and the people who aided in his fight to prove his innocence.

7.75 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

7 – Philadelphia (1993)

Directed by: Jonathan Demme

NO ONE WOULD TAKE ON HIS CASE… UNTIL ONE MAN WAS WILLING TO TAKE ON THE SYSTEM.

Two competing lawyers join forces to sue a prestigious law firm for AIDS discrimination. As their unlikely friendship develops their courage overcomes the prejudice and corruption of their powerful adversaries.

7.76 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

6 – American Gangster (2007)

Directed by: Ridley Scott

THERE ARE TWO SIDES TO THE AMERICAN DREAM

Following the death of his employer and mentor, Bumpy Johnson, Frank Lucas establishes himself as the number one importer of heroin in the Harlem district of Manhattan. He does so by buying heroin directly from the source in South East Asia and he comes up with a unique way of importing the drugs into the United States. Partly based on a true story.

7.80 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

5 – Inside Man (2006)

Directed by: Spike Lee

IT LOOKED LIKE THE PERFECT BANK ROBBERY. BUT YOU CAN’T JUDGE A CRIME BY ITS COVER.

When an armed, masked gang enter a Manhattan bank, lock the doors and take hostages, the detective assigned to effect their release enters negotiations preoccupied with corruption charges he is facing.

7.81 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

4 – Training Day (2001)

Directed by: Antoine Fuqua

THE ONLY THING MORE DANGEROUS THAN THE LINE BEING CROSSED, IS THE COP WHO WILL CROSS IT.

A police drama about a veteran officer (Denzel Washington) who escorts a rookie (Ethan Hawke) on his first day with the LAPD’s tough inner-city narcotics unit.

7.85 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

3 – Much Ado About Nothing (1993)

Directed by: Kenneth Branagh

ROMANCE. MISCHIEF. SEDUCTION. REVENGE. REMARKABLE.

Young lovers Hero and Claudio, soon to wed, conspire to get verbal sparring partners and confirmed singles Benedick and Beatrice to wed as well.

7.99 out of 10 (Click here for more details)

2 – Malcolm X (1992)

Directed by: Spike Lee

A tribute to the controversial black activist and leader of the struggle for black liberation. He hit bottom during his imprisonment in the ’50s, he became a Black Muslim and then a leader in the Nation of Islam. His assassination in 1965 left a legacy of self-determination and racial pride.