Top 25 Paul Giamatti Films
by brusty1 | created - 03 Oct 2015 | updated - 3 months ago | PublicI've seen 39 of his films. He's one of the best actors out there. These are my favorites, in order.
- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. Saving Private Ryan (1998)
R | 169 min | Drama, War
Following the Normandy Landings, a group of U.S. soldiers go behind enemy lines to retrieve a paratrooper whose brothers have been killed in action.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Tom Hanks, Matt Damon, Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns
Votes: 1,496,520 | Gross: $216.54M
2. 12 Years a Slave (2013)
R | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History
In the antebellum United States, Solomon Northup, a free Black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery.
Director: Steve McQueen | Stars: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Kenneth Williams, Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt
Votes: 741,317 | Gross: $56.67M
3. American Splendor (2003)
R | 101 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
An original mix of fiction and reality illuminates the life of comic book hero everyman Harvey Pekar.
Directors: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Shari Springer Berman, Harvey Pekar, Chris Ambrose
Votes: 52,362 | Gross: $6.00M
4. The Hawk Is Dying (2006)
Not Rated | 112 min | Drama
When stricken with a family tragedy, George becomes obsessed with taming a wild, red-tail hawk. In a tour-de-force performance he locks himself into a battle of wills with a fierce creature that would rather die than succumb.
Director: Julian Goldberger | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Michelle Williams, Michael Pitt, Rusty Schwimmer
Votes: 1,288 | Gross: $0.01M
5. Sideways (2004)
R | 127 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Two men reaching middle age with not much to show but disappointment embark on a week-long road trip through California's wine country, just as one is about to take a trip down the aisle.
Director: Alexander Payne | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen, Sandra Oh
Votes: 204,277 | Gross: $71.50M
6. The Holdovers (2023)
R | 133 min | Comedy, Drama
A cranky history teacher at a prep school is forced to remain on campus over the holidays with a grieving cook and a troubled student who has no place to go.
Director: Alexander Payne | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Dominic Sessa, Carrie Preston
Votes: 138,128
7. Private Parts (1997)
R | 109 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
The autobiographical story of Howard Stern, the radio rebel who is now also a TV personality, an author and a movie star.
Director: Betty Thomas | Stars: Howard Stern, Mary McCormack, Robin Quivers, Fred Norris
Votes: 39,199 | Gross: $41.20M
8. Deconstructing Harry (1997)
R | 96 min | Comedy
Suffering from writer's block and eagerly awaiting his writing award, Harry Block remembers events from his past and scenes from his best-selling books as characters, real and fictional, come back to haunt him.
Director: Woody Allen | Stars: Woody Allen, Judy Davis, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Stephanie Roth Haberle
Votes: 47,813 | Gross: $10.69M
9. Man on the Moon (1999)
R | 118 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
The life and career of legendary comedian Andy Kaufman.
Director: Milos Forman | Stars: Jim Carrey, Danny DeVito, Gerry Becker, Greyson Erik Pendry
Votes: 137,485 | Gross: $34.58M
10. Safe Men (1998)
R | 88 min | Comedy, Crime
Two bad singers are mistaken for top safe-crackers at a bar; a gangster boss orders them to break into three safes or else.
Director: John Hamburg | Stars: Sam Rockwell, Steve Zahn, Michael Lerner, Paul Giamatti
Votes: 3,561 | Gross: $0.02M
11. The Truman Show (1998)
PG | 103 min | Comedy, Drama
An insurance salesman discovers his whole life is actually a reality TV show.
Director: Peter Weir | Stars: Jim Carrey, Ed Harris, Laura Linney, Noah Emmerich
Votes: 1,196,532 | Gross: $125.62M
12. Win Win (2011)
R | 106 min | Comedy, Drama, Sport
A struggling lawyer and volunteer wrestling coach's chicanery comes back to haunt him when the teenage grandson of the client he has double-crossed comes into his life.
Director: Tom McCarthy | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan, Jeffrey Tambor, Bobby Cannavale
Votes: 55,263 | Gross: $10.18M
13. Donnie Brasco (1997)
R | 127 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
An FBI undercover agent infiltrates the mob and finds himself identifying more with the Mafia life--at the expense of his regular one.
Director: Mike Newell | Stars: Al Pacino, Johnny Depp, Michael Madsen, Bruno Kirby
Votes: 332,278 | Gross: $41.91M
14. The Illusionist (2006)
PG-13 | 110 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
In turn-of-the-century Vienna, a magician uses his abilities to secure the love of a woman far above his social standing.
Director: Neil Burger | Stars: Edward Norton, Jessica Biel, Paul Giamatti, Rufus Sewell
Votes: 389,675 | Gross: $39.87M
15. Love & Mercy (2014)
PG-13 | 121 min | Biography, Drama, Music
In the 60s, Beach Boys leader Brian Wilson struggles with emerging psychosis as he attempts to craft his avant-garde pop masterpiece. In the 80s, he's a broken, confused man under the 24-hour watch of shady therapist, Dr. Eugene Landy.
Director: Bill Pohlad | Stars: John Cusack, Paul Dano, Elizabeth Banks, Paul Giamatti
Votes: 42,613 | Gross: $12.55M
16. Pretty Bird (2008)
R | 120 min | Comedy
A comic tale of three would-be entrepreneurs who set out to invent a rocket belt. The clash of their mismatched personalities soon dissolves the business into a morass of recriminations and... See full summary »
Director: Paul Schneider | Stars: Billy Crudup, Paul Giamatti, David Hornsby, Kristen Wiig
Votes: 1,189
17. All Is Bright (2013)
R | 107 min | Comedy, Drama
While out on parole, Dennis reluctantly takes a job selling Christmas trees with his old buddy Rene in order to make enough money to buy his estranged daughter the piano she's always wanted.
Director: Phil Morrison | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Paul Rudd, Sally Hawkins, Amy Landecker
Votes: 6,945 | Gross: $0.00M
18. Saving Mr. Banks (2013)
PG-13 | 125 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Author P.L. Travers reflects on her childhood after reluctantly meeting with Walt Disney, who seeks to adapt her Mary Poppins books for the big screen.
Director: John Lee Hancock | Stars: Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Annie Rose Buckley, Colin Farrell
Votes: 170,044 | Gross: $83.30M
19. Singles (1992)
PG-13 | 99 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
A group of twenty-something friends search for love and success in grunge-era Seattle.
Director: Cameron Crowe | Stars: Bridget Fonda, Campbell Scott, Kyra Sedgwick, Sheila Kelley
Votes: 32,672 | Gross: $18.47M
20. Mighty Aphrodite (1995)
R | 95 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance
When he discovers his adopted son is a genius, a New York sportswriter seeks out the boy's birth mother: a ditzy porn star and prostitute.
Director: Woody Allen | Stars: Woody Allen, Mira Sorvino, Pamela Blair, Rene Ceballos
Votes: 42,807 | Gross: $6.70M
21. Duets (2000)
R | 112 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
A professional karaoke hustler reconnects with his daughter and a bored suburban businessman turns outlaw karaoke singer, among other plotlines.
Director: Bruce Paltrow | Stars: Huey Lewis, Gwyneth Paltrow, Paul Giamatti, Andre Braugher
Votes: 10,057 | Gross: $4.73M
22. Lady in the Water (2006)
PG-13 | 110 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
Apartment building superintendent Cleveland Heep rescues what he thinks is a young woman from the pool he maintains. When he discovers that she is actually a character from a bedtime story who is trying to make the journey back to her home, he works with his tenants to protect his new friend from the creatures that are determined to keep her in our world.
Director: M. Night Shyamalan | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jeffrey Wright, Bob Balaban
Votes: 103,775 | Gross: $42.29M
23. The Negotiator (1998)
R | 140 min | Action, Crime, Drama
In a desperate attempt to prove his innocence, a skilled police negotiator accused of corruption and murder takes hostages in a government office to gain the time he needs to find the truth.
Director: F. Gary Gray | Stars: Samuel L. Jackson, Kevin Spacey, David Morse, Ron Rifkin
Votes: 154,964 | Gross: $44.48M
24. The Ides of March (2011)
R | 101 min | Drama, Thriller
An idealistic staffer for a new presidential candidate gets a crash course on dirty politics during his stint on the campaign trail.
Director: George Clooney | Stars: Paul Giamatti, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ryan Gosling
Votes: 230,760 | Gross: $40.96M
25. Barney's Version (2010)
R | 134 min | Comedy, Drama
The picaresque and touching story of the politically incorrect, fully lived life of the impulsive, irascible and fearlessly blunt Barney Panofsky.
Director: Richard J. Lewis | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Rosamund Pike, Jake Hoffman, Macha Grenon
Votes: 26,249 | Gross: $7.50M
Tell Your Friends