Kiefer Sutherland was first known as the son of Donald Sutherland, but he soon made a name for himself with his acting in 80s movies that we still remember. The role most people know him from is: 24‘s Jack Bauer, one of our first anti-heroes in one of the most exciting, exhausting shows ever. Whether it was the good guy, the bad guy or something in between, Sutherland’s performances were always memorable and unique. Here are Kiefer Sutherland’s best performances, ranked:
8/8 Flatliners (1990)
Five medical students conduct secret experiments to investigate the science of the afterlife: they stop their own hearts and are brought back by their friends. But those experiments have consequences. Sutherland was the protagonist of this film with an incredible cast: Sutherland, Julia Roberts, Kevin Bacon, Oliver Platt and William Baldwin, and directed by the one and only Joel Schumacher. Sutherland’s performance is haunted and lost as they come, as he not only dies and comes back to life, but also has some underlining traumas from his childhood, leaving his character scared and even haunted. Sutherland has always nailed dark performances, but this role allowed him to perform the fallout from some of those acts. Flatliners was a success, to the point where they even made an unnecessary reboot with Sutherland’s character in it.
7/8 A Few Good Men (1992)
Military lawyer Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) must defend two Marines accused of murder. What he discovers is much more frightening. Some good men is an incredible film that everyone found in it at their peak: both Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson, as well as director Rob Reiner and writer Aaron Sorkin. Sutherland plays 2nd Lt. Jonathan Kendrick, the commander of the soldier who is eventually killed. It’s a small role, but one that resonates as Sutherland, in his short time in the film, creates a despicable character that we love to hate; arguably the worst person in the entire movie: a real villain. And Sutherland makes a meal of it in the few scenes he shares with Cruise and Demi Moore.
6/8 Dark City (1998)
John Murdoch (Rufus Sewell) wakes up with no memories in a room with a dead sex worker covered in strange symbols. While escaping the police, he discovers the real strange world he lives in. dark city has been compared to the matrixx and Start (it precedes both), for there is an eerie underworld that only a chosen one can see through. Sutherland plays Dr. Daniel Schreber in one of his most bizarre performances ever: he’s creepy, strange, eccentric and unreliable, but his acting shows us that there’s something more to it, and throughout the film we discover what it is. Sutherland has said this is his favorite of all his movies, and one that deserves a reboot.
5/8 Young guns (1988)
young guns tells the story of Billy the Kid and his group of gunmen trying to avenge the murder of the rancher who had become their benefactor. Another movie where Sutherland is part of an incredible cast such as Sutherland, Emilio Estevez, Charlie Sheen, Lou Diamond Phillips, Jack Palance and Terence Stamp. Sutherland plays Doc Scurlock, a faithful gunman with a beard. Sutherland did this movie to show his reach as he was typecast in mean, intense roles, and this performance showed he could also make light, fun movies and be one of the good guys (see also his Athos in The three Musketeers).
4/8 The Lost Boys (1987)
A family moves to the seaside town of Santa Clara, and the oldest son hangs out with a group of strange teens who are also vampires. The Lost Boys is one of the best vampire movies of the ’80s and was also one of the first times we associated vampires with punk rock and being cool as an outsider. Sutherland’s performance as David is a big part of that feeling, as he’s a charismatic, dangerous, creepy, fun, unique vampire leader in one of the ’80s cult classics, and one that shows the strange brilliance and artistry of director Joel Schumacher. to see .
3/8 Telephone box (2002)
Publicist Stuart Shepard (Colin Farrell) gets trapped in a pay phone while talking to a blackmailer who will kill him if he leaves. Phone booth has a simple concept that only works because of the performances by Colin Farrell (one of his best ever), and Sutherland as the scary voice of The Caller. His performance is almost all voice acting, but he steals the show. He relays to us how sinister, dangerous and deranged his character is, doing all these horrible things while being very calm and composed, which makes him even scarier. He steals the show at another Schumacher romp.
2/8 Stand by Me (1986)
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A writer recounts a childhood journey with his friends to find the body of a missing boy. Stay with me was a generation film that is still in the zeitgeist. It had the story of Stephen King, directed by Rob Reiner and a group of very young actors who started their careers: Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O’Connell and Sutherland as the bully Ace Merrill. This character was one of the first to make Hollywood aware of who Sutherland was, as his character is as hateful as it is memorable. So much so that for years Sutherland was characterized as a bad boy. about his character, Sutherland told The Guardian: “Rob and I both agreed very strongly that there was no slack in this man [villain Ace Merrill]. This is a hole in the marrow of his bones; unfortunately every city seems to have one. He was a bully and the only way to make the character work was if you hated him.”
1/8 24
24 was the show that many remember Sutherland from, as his performance as Jack Bauer was outstanding in a TV series with a unique format: each episode was an hour of the life of Bauer and the rest of his team living in one way or another. tried to stop a terrorist attack necessitated (even torture). Sutherland solved all the different acting challenges the show sent him: he was tough, scary, resilient, irritable, loyal, patriotic, kind, and even sweet to those he loved. He was traumatized, dangerous, tired and every emotion in between as the plot got weirder and weirder with each season of the show. 24 only worked because of his achievements and commitment.
Is 24 ever come back? Kiefer Sutherland told Variety: “I’ve learned that you’re just better off not being definitive about whether or not you’re going to do something. I love playing that character. I believe the story is not resolved. If something was written that made sense to me and that I thought would contribute to the franchise, I’d be behind it, even though my participation would be limited.”