Adam McKay Directed Movies Ranked
2. Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
Is there a greater Will Ferrell film? Probably not.
The work Adam McKay and team did on delivering Anchorman was something close to miraculous. For a comedy so ridiculous in its premise and bonkers in its delivery to have such a mass appeal and cultural impact is simply a phenomenal achievement by all involved. Could anyone have imagined the countless quotes, memes and references that would come from this one movie?
Anchorman has reached a point as a comedy whereby other comedies are now openly referencing it. If that’s not a sign of legendary status then I don’t know what is.
The point here is that everything Anchorman set up and delivered in 2004 was funny to the point of being game changing. There was a time in comedy before Anchorman and after Anchorman, and while the debate will rage on about whether this film changed the industry for better or worse, the fact remains that it did indeed change the industry; a feat not many comedies or comedy filmmakers can boast.
1. The Big Short (2015)
5 Oscar nominations including 1 win. Could anyone have seen this coming from a director so intimately linked to off-kilter comedy throughout the rest of his established career?
The Big Short was a game changer for Adam McKay but also an incredibly important moment in mainstream American cinema in how it brought the politics of the financial crash and worldwide recession into view, critiqued it and delivered a damming statement on how the aftermath was dealt with, all the while remaining vastly entertaining, incredibly creative and at times downright moving.
McKay and company took an incredibly modern approach in telling this serious and potentially insensitive story through a pseudo-documentary style in which particular characters would address the viewer directly with brief intervals of Margot Robbie in a bath explaining the ins and outs of information that was deemed too difficult to understand. This unusual means of presentation truly made the film stand out in a pack of high-end Oscar nominees in 2016 (including Spotlight, The Revenant and The Danish Girl); a point proven by its Adapted Screenplay Oscar win and 8 total nominations across the BAFTAs and Golden Globes.
If there was to be a film that most clearly summarised McKay’s comic sensibilities and talents as a critical artist, it would be The Big Short, truly the greatest film of Adam McKay’s hugely impactful career to date.
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But what do you think? Do you think we were maybe unfair to push the likes of Anchorman and Step Brothers down the list in favour of The Big Sick? What would your order be? Let us know in the comments!
