All Coen Brothers Movies Ranked by Tomatometer | Rotten Tomatoes

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All Coen Brothers Movies Ranked by Tomatometer

Since their 1984 neo-noir debut Blood Simple, brother directors Joel and Ethan Coen have danced amok across American cinema with mordant tales of wayward souls and their crimes and misdemeanors. Among their achievements include making a generation-defining comedy (The Big Lebowski), revitalizing the Western (True Grit), and winning Best Picture (No Country For Old Men). They even brought back bluegrass, achieved through cultural Trojan horse O Brother, Where Are Thou?.

Recently, the brothers have struck out on their own, with Joel adapting known Scottish play into The Tragedy of Macbeth, and Ethan making his solo debut with the twisty lesbian anthem Drive-Away Dolls.

#1

True Grit (2010)
95%

#1
Adjusted Score: 106329%
Critics Consensus: Girded by strong performances from Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld, and lifted by some of the Coens' most finely tuned, unaffected work, True Grit is a worthy companion to the Charles Portis book.
Synopsis: After an outlaw named Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin) murders her father, feisty 14-year-old farm girl Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) hires... [More]
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Barry Pepper
Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

#2

Blood Simple (1984)
94%

#2
Adjusted Score: 104325%
Critics Consensus: Brutally violent and shockingly funny in equal measure, Blood Simple offers early evidence of the Coen brothers' twisted sensibilities and filmmaking ingenuity.
Synopsis: "Blood Simple" was the first feature film from Joel and Ethan Coen. This is the newly restored and re-edited director's... [More]
Starring: John Getz, Frances McDormand, M. Emmet Walsh, Dan Hedaya
Directed By: Joel Coen

#3

Fargo (1996)
94%

#3
Adjusted Score: 101624%
Critics Consensus: Violent, quirky, and darkly funny, Fargo delivers an original crime story and a wonderful performance by McDormand.
Synopsis: "Fargo" is a reality-based crime drama set in Minnesota in 1987. Jerry Lundegaard (William H. Macy) is a car salesman... [More]
Starring: Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi, William H. Macy, Peter Stormare
Directed By: Joel Coen

#4
#4
Adjusted Score: 104839%
Critics Consensus: Bolstered by powerful lead performances from Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, and Tommy Lee Jones, No Country for Old Men finds the Coen brothers spinning cinematic gold out of Cormac McCarthy's grim, darkly funny novel.
Synopsis: While out hunting, Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) finds the grisly aftermath of a drug deal. Though he knows better, he... [More]
Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Woody Harrelson
Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

#5
#5
Adjusted Score: 98575%
Critics Consensus: Though possibly more notable for its distinctive style than an airtight story, this Coen brothers take on the classic gangster flick features sharp dialogue, impressive cinematography, and a typically quirky cast of characters.
Synopsis: When the Italian Mafia threatens to kill a crooked bookie (John Turturro), Irish mob boss Leo O'Bannon (Albert Finney) refuses... [More]
Starring: Gabriel Byrne, Albert Finney, Marcia Gay Harden, Jon Polito
Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

#6
#6
Adjusted Score: 105632%
Critics Consensus: Smart, funny, and profoundly melancholy, Inside Llewyn Davis finds the Coen brothers in fine form.
Synopsis: In 1961 New York City, folk singer Llewyn Davis (Oscar Isaac) is at a crossroads. Guitar in hand, he struggles... [More]
Starring: Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund
Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

#7
#7
Adjusted Score: 106154%
Critics Consensus: Led by a stellar Denzel Washington, The Tragedy of Macbeth strips the classic story down to its visual and narrative essentials.
Synopsis: Joel Coen's bold and fierce adaptation of "Macbeth," a tale of murder, madness, ambition, and wrathful cunning.... [More]
Starring: Denzel Washington, Frances McDormand, Bertie Carvel, Alex Hassell
Directed By: Joel Coen

#8

Raising Arizona (1987)
91%

#8
Adjusted Score: 96741%
Critics Consensus: A terrifically original, eccentric screwball comedy, Raising Arizona may not be the Coens' most disciplined movie, but it's one of their most purely entertaining.
Synopsis: An ex-con and an ex-cop meet, marry and long for a child of their own. When it is discovered that... [More]
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Holly Hunter, Trey Wilson, John Goodman
Directed By: Joel Coen

#9

Barton Fink (1991)
90%

#9
Adjusted Score: 95635%
Critics Consensus: Twisty and unsettling, the Coen brothers' satirical tale of a 1940s playwright struggling with writer's block is packed with their trademark sense of humor and terrific performances from its cast.
Synopsis: Set in 1941, an intellectual New York playwright Barton Fink (John Turturro) accepts an offer to write movie scripts in... [More]
Starring: John Turturro, John Goodman, Judy Davis, Michael Lerner
Directed By: Joel Coen

#10
#10
Adjusted Score: 101795%
Critics Consensus: The Ballad of Buster Scruggs avoids anthology pitfalls with a consistent collection tied together by the Coen brothers' signature blend of dark drama and black humor.
Synopsis: An anthology of six short films that take place in 19th-century post-Civil War era during the settling of the Old... [More]
Starring: Tim Blake Nelson, Willie Watson, David Krumholtz, James Franco
Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

#11

A Serious Man (2009)
89%

#11
Adjusted Score: 97843%
Critics Consensus: Blending dark humor with profoundly personal themes, the Coen brothers deliver what might be their most mature -- if not their best -- film to date.
Synopsis: Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg) is a physics professor at a 1960s university, but his life is coming apart at the... [More]
Starring: Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Fred Melamed, Sari Lennick
Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

#12

Hail, Caesar! (2016)
86%

#12
Adjusted Score: 103475%
Critics Consensus: Packed with period detail and perfectly cast, Hail, Caesar! finds the Coen brothers delivering an agreeably lightweight love letter to post-war Hollywood.
Synopsis: In the early 1950s, Eddie Mannix is busy at work trying to solve all the problems of the actors and... [More]
Starring: Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Alden Ehrenreich, Ralph Fiennes
Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

#13
#13
Adjusted Score: 86568%
Critics Consensus: Stylish but emotionally distant, The Man Who Wasn't There is a clever tribute to the film noir genre.
Synopsis: A dark tale of infidelity and murder, crime and punishment. Set in a small northern California town of the late... [More]
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Frances McDormand, Michael Badalucco, James Gandolfini
Directed By: Joel Coen

#14

The Big Lebowski (1998)
80%

#14
Adjusted Score: 92245%
Critics Consensus: The Big Lebowski's shaggy dog story won't satisfy everybody, but those who abide will be treated to a rambling succession of comic delights, with Jeff Bridges' laconic performance really tying the movie together.
Synopsis: Jeff Bridges plays Jeff Lebowski who insists on being called "the Dude," a laid-back, easygoing burnout who happens to have... [More]
Starring: Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore, Steve Buscemi
Directed By: Joel Coen

#15
#15
Adjusted Score: 88077%
Critics Consensus: With Burn After Reading, the Coen Brothers have crafted another clever comedy/thriller with an outlandish plot and memorable characters.
Synopsis: When a disc containing memoirs of a former CIA analyst (John Malkovich) falls into the hands of Linda Litzke (Frances... [More]
Starring: George Clooney, Frances McDormand, John Malkovich, Tilda Swinton
Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

#16
#16
Adjusted Score: 84120%
Critics Consensus: Though not as good as Coen brothers' classics such as Blood Simple, the delightfully loopy O Brother, Where Art Thou? is still a lot of fun.
Synopsis: Ulysses Everett McGill (George Clooney) is having difficulty adjusting to his hard-labor sentence in Mississippi. He scams his way off... [More]
Starring: George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman
Directed By: Joel Coen

#17
#17
Adjusted Score: 82413%
Critics Consensus: Though more mainstream than other Coen films, there are still funny oddball touches, and Clooney and Zeta-Jones sizzle like old-time movie stars.
Synopsis: Miles Massey (George Clooney) is an exceptional divorce lawyer who specializes in saving cheating husbands from having to pay expensive... [More]
Starring: George Clooney, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Geoffrey Rush, Cedric the Entertainer
Directed By: Joel Coen

#18

Drive-Away Dolls (2024)
63%

#18
Adjusted Score: 79522%
Critics Consensus: The appealing odd-couple chemistry between Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan helps Drive-Away Dolls power past its overly familiar screenplay and erratic execution.
Synopsis: Written by Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke, this comedy caper follows Jamie, an uninhibited free spirit bemoaning yet another breakup... [More]
Starring: Margaret Qualley, Geraldine Viswanathan, Beanie Feldstein, Joey Slotnick
Directed By: Ethan Coen

#19
#19
Adjusted Score: 66284%
Critics Consensus: Intriguingly strange and visually distinctive, The Hudsucker Proxy is ultimately almost -- but not quite -- as smart and absorbing as it needs to be.
Synopsis: Greedy executive Sidney J. Mussburger (Paul Newman) hopes to take control of the company he works for by purchasing a... [More]
Starring: Tim Robbins, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Paul Newman, Charles Durning
Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

#20

The Ladykillers (2004)
54%

#20
Adjusted Score: 60113%
Critics Consensus: Hanks' performance in the lead role is inspired, but this is a relatively minor offering from the Coen brothers.
Synopsis: Professor G.H. Dorr (Tom Hanks), a courtly Southern gentleman, arrives at the home of devout, elderly Marva Munson (Irma P.... [More]
Starring: Tom Hanks, Irma P. Hall, Marlon Wayans, J.K. Simmons
Directed By: Joel Coen