Darren Aronofsky's 8 Best Movies, Ranked

Darren Aronofsky makes movies that leave you staring at the ceiling. We ranked his eight by movie.guru score. The order will start arguments.

Number one is quieter than the rest, and better than all of them.

1. 8
   Noah (2014)3.9

   Rock monsters on the ark, and audiences handed out a C.

   Critics went 75% on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences gave it a C CinemaScore. It made $359.2M worldwide on a reported $125 to 160M budget, and movie.guru lands it at 3.9.
2. 7
   Mother! (2017)5.1

   The most argued-about movie Jennifer Lawrence will ever make.

   Metacritic 76, IMDb 6.6, movie.guru score 5.1. Critics beat 68% of movies, audiences just 31%. Half the theater left confused, the other half left grumpy.
3. 6
   The Fountain (2006)6.1

   A gorgeous mess that audiences rescued from the critics.

   Rotten Tomatoes 52%, Metacritic 51, then IMDb voters gave it 7.1. Only $16.5M worldwide on a reported $35M. Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz made it a cult classic anyway.
4. 5
   Caught Stealing (2025)6.3

   Aronofsky finally had fun, and it's legit his breeziest film.

   85% on Rotten Tomatoes and a B CinemaScore. Austin Butler and Zoë Kravitz in a crime comedy from the Requiem guy. Just $33.3M worldwide on a reported $40M. Go find it.
5. 4
   The Whale (2022)7.7

   Brendan Fraser carries a stagey movie on his back.

   Audiences beat 93% of movies, critics only 51%. A reported $3M budget became $57.6M worldwide. Guru's Take is 6.8: Fraser is the reason, the one-room script is not.
6. 3
   Requiem for a Dream (2000)8.7

   The movie nobody wants to rewatch, and nobody forgets.

   988,612 IMDb votes at 8.3, the most of any film here. It made $7.4M worldwide on a reported $4.5M. Ellen Burstyn is devastating. Watch it once, carefully.
7. 2
   Black Swan (2010)8.8

   His one true critics-and-crowds smash, and still only second.

   $330.2M worldwide on a reported $13M budget. Rotten Tomatoes 85%, IMDb 8.0. Natalie Portman unravels beautifully. Guru's Take 9.0, and it still loses the top spot.
8. 1
   The Wrestler (2008)9.3

   Beats Black Swan, beats Requiem, beats all of them. Fight me.

   99% on Rotten Tomatoes, movie.guru score 9.3, the only Elite on this list. Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei on a reported $6M. No hallucinations needed, just a guy and a ring.

$1,457 says someone in the comments swears Requiem should be #1 and then admits they'll never watch it again.

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Current mood: ready to fight about it