Let’s Talk About Michael Keaton’s Best Movies and Attempt the Impossible Job of Ranking Them

Ranking Michael Keaton movies is hard because as a fellow Pittsburghian, he is our hometown glory. Everything he’s done is precious boy, and so, trying to figure out which of his movies are the “best” is challenging. As a kid, I loved things like Mr. Mom and Multiplicity, but I’ve gone on to love some of his other work just a bit more—so this is a ranking of Michael Keaton’s “best” movies taken with a grain of salt. That salt being that some classics are being left out to give the people what they probably want.

But Pittsburgh knows. There’s no bad Michael Keaton movie and even if there is a bad Michael Keaton movie, we just pretend like it is perfect because it’s Michael Keaton. So let’s get into this list of Michael Keaton’s best movies ranked by order in which I’d rewatch (the last being the one I would probably rewatch the most).

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

While Birdman is definitely a film that is reflective of Michael Keaton’s own career, it did get him an Oscar nomination for his work and rightfully so. The movie follows Riggan Thomson (Keaton) as he is getting ready to mount a play on Broadway, but he’s constantly followed by the superhero he once portrayed (so, you know, Keaton with his portrayal of Bruce Wayne in Batman and Batman Returns). It’s mind-bending, weird, and a wonderful movie to see just how talented Keaton is.

Batman Returns

Yes, this is the second Batman movie. No, I did not make a mistake. I think that Batman Returns, which brings me the reason I love BatCat so much, is a better movie than the 1989 Batman. Not that I think that Jack Nicholson’s Joker is bad or that the movie itself isn’t worth watching, I just think that Batman Returns is more worthwhile of your time and if you’re going to have to pick one, then this is the way to go.

Beetlejuice

I mean…come on. If you don’t know Michael Keaton from his role as Bruce Wayne then you definitely know him from Beetlejuice. The first time that Keaton worked with director Tim Burton, the film tells us the story of a spirit, Beetlejuice, who wants to be released from his place in the afterworld. The problem is that whoever releases him has to say his name three times, and when he does make his emergence into the world of the living, chaos follows him. This classic movie is a twisting story that has garnered its own musical on Broadway and a lot of love for the last 30+ years. And most of it boils down to Keaton’s performance as Beetlejuice.

Jack Frost

Yeah sure, you can tell me that you don’t like this movie but every time I hear the song “Landslide” I think of Jack Frost. The movie follows a family in the aftermath of the death of their father/husband (Keaton). When winter comes, the son makes a snowman in his front yard and through magic, the spirit of his father is alive in the snowman and he gets to spend more time with his dad. Boy oh boy did this movie wreck me as a child and continues to make me cry every time I rewatch it. It’s emotional and a good holiday movie.

Spider-Man: Homecoming

You guys had to see this one coming. Michael Keaton in a Spider-Man movie as Vulture? It’s like someone gifted Keaton as Adrian Toomes to me. The thing about Spider-Man: Homecoming is that I think it’s a perfect movie for Peter Parker. He’s a kid who suddenly has these powers and resources he never had, wants to prove himself to the Avengers, and then goes about it all in the wrong way, which is typical for Peter.

It’s the first time I saw Peter Parker as a kid and I felt like I was watching a teenager become Spider-Man in a way that just made me, as a lifelong Spidey fan, so happy. And it was made all that much better by having Michael Keaton there.

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Honorable mention? Morbius.

Nah, I’m just messing with you.

(featured image: Warner Bros.)