Welcome to 5 Favorites. Each week, I will put together a list of my 5 favorites (films, performances, whatever strikes my fancy) along with commentary on a given topic each week, usually in relation to a specific film releasing that week.

This week, Noah Baumbach’s critically acclaimed Marriage Story releases to cinemas with Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver in the lead. While Driver hasn’t had a lot of films to consider, Johansson has done plenty in her two-decade career. As such, I’m going to look at my favorite films starring Johnsson. This is Johanssons’s second film this year after Jojo Rabbit, so to be fair I will not consider either film for this list.

While these may not be the all-time best Scarlett Johansson films or performances or everyone’s agreement on the best, these five are among my favorites. Here they are in order of release.

The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001)

Since and including Fargo, I’ve seldom been impressed by the Coen Brothers, but The Man Who Wasn’t There is a terrific, atmospheric film that feels almost unlike anything they have done before or since. That may be one of the reasons I enjoy it.

Johansson has a small roll in the film as a talentless teenage pianist who attempts to give Billy Bob Thornton sexual gratification. While certainly not her greatest performance, it’s probably one of the best films she’s ever been in.

Lost in Translation (2003)

Her best performance might well be in Lost in Translation, Sofia Coppola’s biggest hit to date as a director. Johnasson stars alongside Bill Murray in the film. Murray plays an actor in Tokyo for a job who finds himself lonely and isolated. He strikes up a conversation with Johansson and together they while away the days intimately, but they are ultimately just two ships passing in the night.

Coppola’s film was a staggering achievement with heady themes explored honestly and effectively. Both Murray and Johansson deliver career-high performances in the film and Coppola has simply never been better. Johnasson was wrongly snubbed by the Academy for her performance.

Match Point (2005)

A rival to her performance in Lost in Translation, Match Point gives her a bit more
to chew on as an actor. The film stars Jonathan Rhys Myers as he marries into a wealthy family only to risk it all by having an affair with Johansson’s character. Woody Allen’s twisty psychological thriller was one of the best films he made during his post Bullets Over Broadway slump.

Johansson subtly maneuvers around Rhys Myers as he commits crime after crime in order to cover up his exposure. The film is an entertaining ride and although Johansson is only a small part of this noteworthy ensemble, she was certainly deserving of consideration for an Oscar nomination for this film.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

While the vast majority of entries into the Marvel Cinematic Universe share a similar structure and resolution, Captain America: The Winter Soldier is one of the few that had an underlying theme that spoke to our modern political climate.

In the second individual outing for Captain America (Chris Evans), we find our hero faced with exploring a conspiracy in his organization, S.H.I.E.L.D. The film is a pensive and exciting adventure, one of the very best the MCU has ever produced. Everyone involved, including Evans, Johansson, and more, are terrific for what could have simply been just another garden-variety Marvel movie.

Sing (2016)

Sing might seem like an odd film to make this list, but in spite of its rather simple story, the film packs a lot of heart and a lot of promise. It promotes to the audience the idea that no matter your background and no matter what you look like, your talent can be celebrated.

Situated around a talent competition to revive a failing theater, Johansson’s role in the film isn’t a minor one as she plays an anthropomorphic porcupine who really knows how to rock. It’s an infectious and engaging film that is so incredibly fun that it’s easy to paper over the more mediocre elements.