Here are all of the late Joel Schumacher's movies, ranked from worst to best. Joel Schumacher ed away on June 22, 2020 in his New York home at the age of 80. Over the course of nearly 50 years, Schumacher carved out a fascinating and oft-misunderstood career in cinema. He began work as a costume designer in films such as Woody Allen's Interiors before moving into screenwriting movies like Car Wash and The Wiz. In 1981, he moved behind the camera for the first time and worked consistently in film, television, and even music videos until 2013. A reliable studio hand, he directed a huge variety of genres, from comedies and dramas to musicals and war movies and more.
Schumacher has often been a divisive director and one whose work was frequently subjected to the label of, to put it bluntly, “trash.” His two Batman movies are still the subject of fandom hatred and the Razzies couldn’t get enough of him. Still, his work symbolized a particular strain of Hollywood that is seldom afforded the legitimacy of respect of the auteurs at the top: The reliable studio hand who gets the job done. Oft-overlooked is Schumacher's range. He could go from the stifling nihilism of crime thrillers to the high camp of musicals and everything in-between. He also had a keen eye for casting, bringing burgeoning stars like Colin Farrell and the Brat Pack of the ‘80s to the forefront.
Few major directors managed to command the sheer grandeur of camp that Schumacher did, often to his own detriment but seldom in a manner that audiences could ignore (in hindsight, this was especially sharp given that Schumacher was one of the few openly gay directors working at that level in the business). He also made some of the best director commentaries, as anyone who has ever heard his hilarious Batman and Robin one can attest to. Perhaps Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian put it best in his celebration of the director: "By the end of the 90s Schumacher himself was a film-maker who resembled a kind of Batmobile, becalmed in the Batcave: huge, sleek, impressive, technocratic, immobile, but capable of a colossal burst of speed when treated correctly." To celebrate a much-discussed and oft-misunderstood director, here's how all of his feature films stack up.
23. The Number 23
Jim Carrey has proven himself time and time again to be an actor capable of deftly complex and emotional dramatic work in movies like The Number 23, however, feels like a hackneyed parody of a comedic actor trying to go serious. Indeed, the entire movie is a misguided thriller that manages to take itself far too seriously. Nothing about this story of a tortured man obsessed with the 23 enigma makes much sense and the end result is a clumsy piece of work that fails to engage on almost every level.
22. Twelve
Schumacher helped to define the teen movies of the 1980s but that magic didn't carry over to 2010 for Twelve, adapted from Nick McDonnell's novel of the same name. Gawker Media gave it the honor of being "the worst movie in the history of Sundance." Twelve couldn't help but seem dated or behind-the-times in the age of The Hills and Gossip Girl, and its take on young rich teens experimenting with drugs is nowhere near as edgy as it believes it is.
21. Tres
The final feature film of Schumacher's career came and went with a tiny limited release and next to no buzz, despite its starry cast that includes Nicole Kidman, Nicolas Cage, and Ben Mendelsohn. The performances help to lift Tres above The Number 23 but not by much. The home invasion thriller centers on a diamond dealer and his wife who are held captive by a group of thieves, and while it has its moments, the overall viewing experience is ugly and aggressive in a way that isn’t particularly entertaining. Schumacher made far better thrillers than this.
20. Dying Young
In 1991, Julia Roberts was one of the biggest stars on the planet, an A-Lister of stratospheric proportions who could make any movie a hit. Dying Young was a serious box office success at the time and Roberts is strong in the role of a woman hired to be the caretaker of a rich man living with leukemia. The movie itself isn't quite up to her level, although its saccharine romance, accompanied by a Kenny G musical score, is perhaps the most 1991 thing committed to celluloid.
19. D.C Cab
This comedy starring Mr. T and Gary Busey was only Schumacher's second spin behind the camera but it made a big enough impression to get Hollywood's wider attention. It's a dizzying and often confused movie that benefits greatly from a strong cast, a kick-ass soundtrack composed mostly of Giorgio Moroder-produced songs, and a vibrant cinematic take on Washington D.C. that isn't focused entirely on politics as many movies set in the city are. The main problem is that, for a movie, it’s often not very funny.
18. Bad Company
Chris Rock and Sir Anthony Hopkins in a buddy comedy thriller: Together at last? This odd-couple pairing is simply too ill-matched to succeed and it simply cannot compare to other similarly plotted movies like Rush Hour, 48 Hrs, and, of course, Lethal Weapon, from which it borrows heavily. Bad Company does, at least, have that Jerry Bruckheimer touch to keep the action engaging enough, but every time Rock and Hopkins try to banter, the startling lack of chemistry drives proceedings to a complete halt.
17. The Incredible Shrinking Woman
Schumacher made his directorial debut in 1981 with a pastiche on the sci-fi classic The Incredible Shrinking Man that existed mostly as a big-screen comedic platform for the skills of Lily Tomlin. It’s Tomlin herself who drags The Incredible Shrinking Woman to the level of entertaining through the sheer force of her talent. Written by Tomlin's regular collaborator Jane Wagner, the script certainly plays to her strengths but is oddly low-key given the high concept of the story. It doesn't really gel and it's clear that Schumacher is ing the dots (he stepped in at the last minute to replace John Landis) but the end result still has its moments.
16. Blood Creek
Schumacher got down and dirty with this 2009 horror film that introduced audiences to a young Henry Cavill and an up-and-coming Michael Fassbender. The director, cast, and screenwriter David Kajganich, who would later go on to pen the Suspiria remake, have the time of their lives with this gruesome tale of Nazi occultists that features some great set-pieces and a fascinating villain courtesy of Fassbender. While the script could have used some polish, Blood Creek is a solid choice for your next midnight movie viewing.
15. Batman and Robin
Once upon a time, Batman and Robin received. The studio wanted a kiddie-friendly extended toy commercial and you can’t say that Schumacher didn’t deliver on those orders. Still, with the age of time, it’s safe to say that Batman and Robin really isn’t that bad. Is it one of the best Batman movies? Of course not, but it’s a delightful slice of trash with some stunning production design and some hilarious one-liners that wouldn’t sound out-of-place coming from Adam West’s mouth. A campy caped crusader is just as legitimate a Batman as a scowling tortured grimdark anti-hero.
14. 8mm
Screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker followed up the critical success of his script for Se7en with, perhaps fittingly, 8mm, another grimy thriller with a dark twist. 8mm, however, didn't quite reach the same peaks at David Fincher's drama. Schumacher is highly adept at capturing a smothering level of griminess and the true ugliness of the criminal underworld, particularly in this story of a detective hired to discover the origins of a snuff movie. Roger Ebert, one of the film's biggest defenders, described 8mm as "a real film. Not a slick exploitation exercise with all the trappings of depravity but none of the consequences." Watch it for an early comedic performance from a blue-haired Joaquin Phoenix.
