Laurence Fishburne's 9 Best Movies

 

From child actor to Tony and three-time Emmy-winner teen and Oscar nominee to Hollywood A-lister, Laurence Fishburne has a career that many thespians would kill for. The Augusta, Georgia-native's film career has spanned 47 years and 76 movies (with four on the way). It's safe to say that many of Fishburne's iconic characters will never be forgotten by movie fans. With that in mind, we here at MTV Is Dead decided that it was high time that we spotlighted the best of the man's cinematic resume.

9. Othello

Fishburne brings the title role to life in the first cinematic adaptation of the Shakespearean tragedy to be released by a major studio. Othello, a Venetian general and military prodigy, becomes the target of envy and malice not only because of his status as the only Moor in such a high-ranking position in Italy, but also due to his interracial marriage to a powerful senator's daughter.

8. Assault on Precint 13

In Ethan Hawke's second film about a naive police officer who finds himself surrounded by dirty cops, Laurence Fishburne portrays Detroit crime boss Marion Bishop, who turns out to have more integrity than the "peace officers" gunning for himself, Hawke's Sgt. Jake Roenick and everyone else in the titular precint's station. 

7. The Cotton Club

Fishburne's Harlem gangster Bumpy Rhodes frequents the legendary titular nightspot, clashing with his white counterparts and enjoying privileges routinely denied to his fellow African-Americans. 

6. Deep Cover

Still the best film about an undercover law enforcement agent who undergoes an identity crisis, this neo-noir preceded Donnie Brasco, Infernal Affairs and The Departed. Veteran African-American actor Bill Duke weaves a sinister tale of nefarious political dealings, police corruption and the fallacies of the War on Drugs in just his third directorial offering.

5. Boyz N the Hood

Boyz N the Hood juxtaposes Trey Styles' (who is raised by a single father) adolescence with that of his best friends, Ricky and Doughboy (brought up by a single mom). Trey's dad, Furious (portrayed by Fishburne), gives him chores, insists he address him as "sir" and gives him practical advice about sex. By the end of the movie, Trey's headed to Morehouse College and both Ricky (a teen father) and Doughboy (a murderer and drug dealer) are dead.

4. Mission: Impossible III

When head of counter-intelligence operations, Fishburne's Director Theodore Brassel, suspects a mole within the ranks, he doesn't give anyone a pass -- not even veteran agent Ethan Hunt.

3. Batman v. Superman

As editor-in-chief of the Daily Planet, Fishburne's Perry White gives intrepid journalist Lois Lane her marching orders as well as reading Clark Kent the riot act in the second-best take on the Last Son of Krypton of all time.

2. School Daze

Fishburne's student activist Dap is the conscience of this look at life on the campus of an HBCU as he protests Apartheid, runs afoul of the school administration and tries to keep his younger cousin from falling under the sway of  questionable Greek influences.

1. Man of Steel

The buck stops with Fishburne's Perry White at Metropolis news organization The Daily Planet. He calls the shots for both Lois Lane and Clark Kent in the best take on the Last Son of Krypton of all time.