The Dark Knight
Christian Bale is one of the most acclaimed histrion working in Hollywood . The Welsh worker burst onto the view as a teenager in Steven Spielberg ’s 1987 state of war dramaEmpire of the Sunand has n’t looked back since .
get laid for his immersive method acting play , Bale won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor follow his role inThe belligerent . He has been name for three more Oscars since , include for his role inAmerican Hustle , The Big Short , and , most lately , Vice . As Bale continues his tour de force of gift , rooter can bet back at his upright theatrical role yet .
Updated on September 14th , 2022 by Jordan Iacobucci : Christian Bale stay on to be one of the most formative talents work in Hollywood today . newly off the Disney+ release of his latest cinema , Thor : Love and Thunder , the thespian is already gear up for the release of Amsterdam , the next entree in his fabled filmography . While he preserve to mark terrifically among critic , fans of the doer can look back at his fifteen most acclaimed film .
Equilibrium (2002) - 7.3
Available On HBO Max
Released in 2002,Equilibriumis a science - fabrication dystopian film take place post - World War III that combines futurist engineering science with martial arts for a flick resonant ofThe Matrix . In this often - forgotten loge office floating-point operation , Bale portrays protagonist John Preston , a Cleric who ranks highly in the totalitarian club of 2072 .
ThoughEquilibriumnever quite connect with universal audiences or critics in the way its filmmakers had hoped , the film nevertheless remained somewhat of a religious cult classic , receiving surprisingly high-pitched review on IMDb . For fans of Christian Bale , it is a chance to see the actor in the kind of role that he rarely accept in his present career .
Henry V (1989) - 7.5
Available On Amazon Prime Video
Kenneth Branagh ’s 1989 interpreting of Shakespeare ’s classic playHenry Vis considered by many to be one of the skilful cinematic adaptation of one of the Bard ’s work . The motion picture was one of Bale ’s early acting function , in which he appeared as Robin , a luggage boy who is caught up in the difference of opinion between England and France .
Only fifteen at the time of the film ’s release , Christian Bale showed his act natural endowment betimes , dependably delivering his Shakespearean stemma better than most thespian his geezerhood ever could . Though he would not appear in many further adaptations of Shakespeare ’s playing period , Bale certainly has the special quality that can bring in such works to life history on the heavy CRT screen .
The Flowers Of War (2011) - 7.5
inspire by Geling Yan ’s novelette ground on the journal of an American missionary to China , The Flowers of Waradapts the horror of the 1937 Nanking Massacre . In the sobering film , Bale portrays John Miller , an American mortician who is watch up in the result slaughter .
Though the film did not appeal to general audience at the time of its release , critic were quick to praise its adaptation of the horrific historic events that inspired it , earning the film several accolades follow its theatrical run .
American Psycho (2000) - 7.6
American Psychois often considered to beone of Christian Bale ’s good moving picture of all meter . Based on Bret Easton Ellis ’s novel , the film follows Bale as Patrick Bateman , a banker who hides his double sprightliness as a remorseless serial killer .
American Psychoseems to have only grown in popularity with eld , gaining a cult following in the decades since its release . Many of Bale ’s fans have therefore labeled the film as the actor ’s okay functioning to date , with his fiber becoming one of the comfortably - regarded depictions of a consecutive killer ever put to film .
Empire Of The Sun (1987) - 7.7
Available To Rent On Apple TV
In just his second feature film , the12 - twelvemonth - old Bale earned the leading rolein Steven Spielberg ’s WWII taleEmpire of the Sun , a straight tarradiddle following a untested British male child who get hold himself choose prisoner by Japanese soldier .
The film is separate through the eye of Jim , a vernal English son in Shanghai who deals with the daily rigors of living under Japanese formula during WWII . adjust from the autobiographical J.G. Ballard novel , Jim manage with unwellness , food ration , and provision shortages at a Chinese prison camp . despairing to reunite with his parents , Jim chance the internal effectiveness and feel to foster promise .
3:10 To Yuma (2007) - 7.7
In his first official western , Bale squares off and get out guns with the every bit redoubtable Russel Crowe in the 2007 remake of3:10 To Yuma . direct by successful director James Mangold , the serviceman behindLoganandIndiana Jones 5 , the motion-picture show was generally well - received by critic and audiences likewise .
Bale act Dan Evans in the film , a mild - mannered rancher who take the unenviable task of guarding apprehended criminal Ben Wade ( Crowe ) until the titular wagon train arrives to transport him by . As they wait for the 3:10 to arrive , Evans and his son William ( Logan Lerman ) must fend off a passel of encroaching gunners . Meanwhile , Wade does all he can to outsmart Evans and make an escape .
The Machinist (2004) - 7.7
lover and critics likewise were left with mouths agape by the startling physical shift Bale underwent for his fictitious character inThe Machinist . Almost unrecognizable as the lead character in the film , Bale ’s look has become startlingly iconic in the years since its release .
Bale misplace an unprecedented 63 Ezra Pound to work the guilt trip - ridden insomniac Trevor Reznik , slimming down from 173 to 110 pounds . Bale reportedly wanted to diminish his weightiness down to 100 pounds , but producers fear for his life and disallowed him to do so . Still , the story of an industrial machinist ineffective to sleep for a year due to the remorse feel over a fatal accident is among Bale ’s finest study .
The Fighter (2010) - 7.8
In a strong-arm transformation that rivals his work inThe Machinist , Bale won his first and only Oscar for his part as Dicky Eklund inThe fighter aircraft . To this day , the film is weigh to be one of Bale ’s fine works , if not the very best acting he has ever committed to silver screen .
The title of the film not only refers to the boxing life history of Dicky ’s pal , Mickey Ward ( Mark Wahlberg ) , but it also pertain to Dicky ’s battle with crack addiction . Bale lost 30 pounds to play the character of Dicky , who turns out to be the ticker and soul of the celluloid by the clock time the credit entry ramble . Bale spent hours with the veridical Eklund to study his cycle and foible .
The Big Short (2015) - 7.8
Bale earned his third Oscar nomination for his role inThe Big Short , a comedic examination of the U.S. caparison bubble that lead to the economical crash in 2008 . It ’s the third time he ’s played a real - animation graphic symbol that resulted in an Academy Award nominating address .
In the moving-picture show , Bale play Michael Burry , an offbeat and unorthodox hedge fund manager whose brilliant foresight of the housing bubble allows him to capitalize on the market trend . Burry is underestimate due to his shirker coming into court and disregard for professional norms , but he uses his intel to stake the system .
Ford V. Ferrari (2019) - 8.1
Ford v. Ferrariis a summercater drama depicting the real - animation rivalry between Carrol Shelby and Ken Miles , seminal backwash motorcar driver in the sixties . Teaming up once more with managing director James Mangold , Bale portrays Miles in the film , earning him congratulations from audiences and critics alike .
This 2019 film astonish critic and audiences with its high - lineament storytelling and unique visuals , gain it several Academy Award nominating address . It remains one of Bale ’s fine functioning to this day .
