Thor: Ragnarok
Taika Waititi’sJojo Rabbitis the author / director ’s sixth lineament film , but ranking it against his previous movies is n’t well-to-do . Originally from New Zealand and born of half Māori , half Jewish ancestry , Waititi ’s distinct storytelling style and quirky humor realise him acclamation first as an indie film producer and later with his breakout fizgig directingThor : Ragnarok .
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Taika Waititi ’s filmography includes romantic comedy , mockumentary filmmaking , and more than one come - of - long time adventure - all served up in a packet that is unambiguously Taika . With humor that often ramble into the absurd and a real knack for hitting audiences in the feels , Waititi ’s movies are all enjoyable for one rationality or another . Still , some entries must stand up above the others . Here ’s how we rank Taika Waititi ’s movies , from the goodness to the better and unspoiled .
6. Eagle vs Shark (2007)
This oddball rom - com is Taika Waititi ’s very first characteristic movie , and as a start period for a filmography , Eagle vs Sharkis moderately great . Frequently compared toNapoleon Dynamite , the film is brimming with way-out characters and absurdist liquid body substance . It also includes several stop - motion vignette , adding to take ’s unique flavor . Eagle vs Sharkstars Loren Horsley as Lily , a shy songwriter with a crush on Jarrod ( Jermaine Clement ) , a video recording secret plan store employee who throws an beast costume - themed company during which Lily impresses him with her fighting game skills . Soon , Lily is meeting Jarrod ’s equally flaky friends and family as the two embark on a romanticism that ’s as precious and awkward as they come .
Eagle vs Sharkis less refined and lacks the more poignant worked up beats of Waititi ’s recent employment , but it still balances its comedy with the striking reveals - a soon to become touch of Waititi ’s . The film is both written and directed by Waititi from a tarradiddle he develop with then - girlfriend , Horsley . Waititi also appears in picture in the very pocket-sized role of Jarrod ’s brother , Gordon ( a trend he ’ll only continue).Eagle vs Sharkis a very enjoyable , unequalled rom - com that frequently surprises , but being that it ’s from a writer / director who is still get his own expressive style , it just is n’t as compelling a picture show as those that come later on .
5. Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Jumping from Taika Waititi ’s first picture show to the one which made him in a menage name , Thor : Ragnarokis what carry Waititi mainstream . In join the Marvel Cinematic Universe , he fetch his now very well - show filmmaking style to a across-the-board consultation . Though Waititi only directedRagnarok(the script was handled by the squad of Eric Pearson , Craig Kyle , and Christopher L. Yost ) , he still managed to fetch his sense of bodily fluid to the God of Thunder - somethingstar Chris Hemsworthabsolutely relished , eager to in conclusion make Thor funny . Waititi also deftly handledRagnarok ’s deeper themes of menage and plate , feel a means to puzzle out the drama in amid the picture show ’s prominent action mechanism sequences . Ragnarokwas not only a critical and fiscal hit , it all reinvigorate the Thor brand and landed Waititi the writing and directing job for its extremely promise sequel , Thor : Love and Thunder .
Still , for as great of an MCU picture show asThor : Ragnarokis , it does n’t quite measure up with the rest of Waititi ’s movies . For all the bluff additions Waititi was able to make to the MCU - the good being without a doubt Korg , the role he himself brought to life through motion seizure -Ragnarokis still very much a pic in the Marvel Studios mould , and for that , it finds itself nearer the bottom of this list of Waititi ’s work .
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4. Jojo Rabbit (2019)
Taika Waititi ’s latest film isJojo Rabbitand it is another substantial offering from a writer / director who does n’t shy aside from bold choices . In the case of this film , it ’s the selection to make what Waititi dub the " anti - hate irony " . Set in Nazi Germany , Jojo Rabbituses a storyabout a young male child , Jojo ( Roman Griffin Davis ) and his fanciful Quaker , Adolf Hitler ( Waititi ) to examine both fanaticism and prejudice head - on . Jojo Rabbitis largely successful in that respect , uproariously pairing the naive Jojo with a cartoonish Hitler while also exploring the growing friendship between Jojo and a Jewish girl , Elsa ( Thomasin McKenzie ) , hiding in his domicile .
Jojo Rabbitincludes many of the themes found in much of Waititi ’s work , like wanting father and found families . The film also openly address how rabid belief can take hold and warp a guild , exposing both the absurdness of the situation and the very real danger it baffle . In many way , Jojo Rabbitbears all the influence of Waititi ’s former moving-picture show , but its daring subject matter does n’t always make for the easiest of transition between the amusive and the abhorrent .
3. Boy (2010)
Boyis only Taika Waititi ’s second feature film , but much of what is now considered to be the author / managing director ’s distinctive style can be traced back to this one . It is about a untested boy ( James Rolleston ) whose father ( Waititi ) returns by chance in hunt of bury treasure he forget behind when he first split . As they reconnect , it becomes well-defined his father is not the stone star topology explorer he always imagine and is instead just a junior-grade criminal and unsuccessful person . Over the course of the film , past family trauma is unearthed and the boy ’s eccentric Father of the Church is made to face his own shortcoming before , finally , the whole family fall together to bring around .
Boyis both hilarious and core - wrenching , striking that balance which Waititi will only bear on to hone in his later moving-picture show . It also include many surreal divagation , be they the male child ’s fantasies of his Father-God ’s exploits or his brother ’s imagined superpowers , that keep Waititi ’s work from becoming predictable . Boyis also Waititi ’s most personal moving picture , reflecting much of his own bringing up in his native New Zealand . BothJojo RabbitandHunt for the Wilderpeopleare the instinctive successor to a film likeBoy , and for that , it ’s must - see for fans of Waititi . It also include a traditional Māori Haka rendering of Michael Jackson ’s " Thriller " with Waititi in the role of the famous popstar that is just too in effect to draw up .
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2. What We Do In The Shadows (2014)
Of all of Taika Waititi ’s films , What We Do in the Shadowsis by far most purely comedic of the mountain . Co - written and co - manoeuver withFlight of the Conchords ' Jermaine Clement , this mockumentary is theSpinal Tapof lamia movies , lampooning the many tropes the parentage - sucking literary genre has gained over the centuries . It follows a group of vampire survive together in a flat in Wellington , NZ , including Waititi ’s foppish Viago , Clement ’s tyrannical Vladislav the Poker , and Jonathan Brugh ’s 183 - year - old Deacon , the " young rebel " of the radical . Together , they fecklessly pilot Wellington ’s nightlife looking for meals and have regular run - ins with a local werewolf gang moderate by Rhys Darby .
What We Do in the Shadowsbegan life as a myopic film before Clement and Waititi resurrected the idea for a feature film . The film has also inspired two spinoffs , theNew Zealand seriesWellington Paranormaland FX’sWhat We Do in the Shadows(on which Clement , Waititi , and Brugh briefly reprise their undead persona ) . rumour of asequel focusing on Darby ’s pack of werewolvescontinue to mobilize , but nothing has ever been reassert . Regardless , What We Do in the Shadowsremains a pitch perfect comedy that exact rewatching in order of magnitude to catch and revalue all the ways it fondly mock vampire story both newfangled and very , very sometime .
1. Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
Landing at the top smirch is Taika Waititi’sHunt for the Wilderpeople , a film encapsulating everything that makes Waititi ’s body of work so charming . Like much of the writer / director ’s filmography , Wilderpeoplefollows a young male child and his newly get father figure on a lunatic but finally heartwarming adventure . It star Julian Dennison ( Deadpool 2 ) as Ricky Baker , a delinquent orphan who ’s been ricochet from one surrogate menage to another , and Sam Neill as his reluctant PCP , Hec .
hound for the Wilderpeopleeffortlessly weaves in real heartache amid the lunacy of Ricky and Hec ’s month - longsighted trek through the New Zealand George Bush , and it profit greatly from the fantastic interpersonal chemistry between its curious couple lede . It also asterisk many of Waititi ’s frequent partner , with Rachel House ’s small fry upbeat proletarian , Paula , as a notable scene thief . And while his native New Zealand often features in Waititi ’s films , here its raw wonderment gets specially celebrated by the film ’s beautiful filming . William Holman Hunt for the Wilderpeoplehas everything that makes Waititi ’s films such a joyfulness - eldritch but endearing characters , uproariously ludicrous scenarios , and touching moments of genuine emotion that all combine into one wonderful movie .
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