Violent Night, which sees David Harbour playing a shockingly unrestrained Santa Claus, is the latest major Christmas movie in theatres, and Harbor was the only choice to play Santa. According to director Tommy Wirkola, the actor was perfect for the role, and that’s clear on screen, as his brawn, stature, and hilarious stoic attitude are what makes this iteration of Kris Kringle so unique.
Harbour needed a successful lead role in a movie following the critically scathed Hellboy. But though it might simply be because he hasn’t had the chance to be the lead in more movies, Harbour shines in supporting roles. Between a magical but violent Santa, an out-of-shape Russian superhero, and a corrupt FBI informant, Harbour carries so many movies despite playing a supporting character.
10 Extraction (2020) – 67%
Stream On Netflix
Netflix has become the go-to streaming service for viewers who want switch-your-brain-off, entertaining action movies, and Extraction is one of the best examples of that. The film follows Tyler, a black-market mercenary, who is hired to rescue the son of a crime lord. And though Harbour would nail it as a crime lord, the actor plays a close friend of Tyler’s, Gaspar.
However, while Tyler offers Gaspar a place to temporarily hide, he isn’t all that good. Harbour often plays loud, brash, and imposing characters, but Extraction is a great example of him being quietly menacing. While it isn’t an amazing classic, it’s the best original Netflix action movie.
9 A Walk Among The Tombstones (2014) – 68%
Stream On Netflix
To say Taken is a seminal 2000s thriller movie with incredible action movies, it started a lot of bad trends in Hollywood. Along with several Taken sequels with each one being worse than the last, not a year goes by without a random thriller starring Liam Neeson, and in 2014, it was A Walk Among the Tombstones.
But A Walk Among the Tombstones is one of the better Neeson survival thrillers, as it follows a private detective, Matthew Scudder, whose newest client is a drug trafficker. But the reason for the film’s quality is the supporting cast, as the film features many familiar faces, including Harbour. Harbour plays Ray, a kidnapper that Scudder is tracking down, but it would have been great to see the actor play the same kind of scumbag character in a more accomplished film.
8 Thin Ice (2011) – 69%
Stream On Prime Video
Thin Ice is such a fun movie and a must-watch for fans of crime capers, as the movie follows an insurance salesman, Mickey, who tries to con an elderly man (Alan Arkin) into buying insurance even though he doesn’t have any money. Harbour plays Bob, another insurance salesman who accompanies Mickey to the old man’s farm.
Harbour only has a small role in the film, but it’s a great part in a hilarious ensemble piece that’s akin to Glengarry Glen Ross, especially as it’s about shady businessmen and stars Arkin. While it’ll never get mentioned in the same breath as other smart scam movies like The Sting, it’s still endlessly entertaining.
7 Violent Night (2021) – 71%
Not Available To Stream
It seems as if every actor wants their own John Wick-influenced action movie, and following the likes of the Charlize Theron-starring Atomic Blonde, the Bob Odenkirk-starring Nobody, and countless others, Harbour is the latest to get the treatment. However, where Nobody bore so many similarities to John Wick, Violent Night has a rather unique premise.
Harbour plays Santa Claus in the new, very violent action movie, and it isn’t just any mall Santa, which would be expected in a film like this. Instead, Violent Night is about the real, magical Santa Claus, and he expertly uses his magic in the most malicious and hostile ways in the new release. It might not be the instant classic holiday movie that audiences have been waiting for, but it’s a wildly entertaining 100 minutes, and it’s surprisingly wholesome too.
6 Black Mass (2015) – 73%
Stream On Tubi
Black Mass follows an FBI informant (Johnny Depp) who slowly becomes the most crooked gangster of them all, and that’s because of the corrupt FBI agents who led him down that path. Harbour plays John Morris, one of the FBI agents, and he soon realizes how deep he’s gone and tries to cover his tracks.
But in Morris’ case, crime does pay, as he is one of the few characters who get away unharmed and completely safe. While the film got a tepid response from critics (a 73% but an average rating of 6.7 on Rotten Tomatoes), Harbour’s performance is one of the most memorable. The role might not be as theatrical as Depp’s performance, but Harbour gives the character an intensity that feels real.
5 Black Widow (2021) – 79%
Steam On Disney+
Once again, Black Widow’s 79% score on Rotten Tomatoes might be a little misleading, as the film isn’t particularly loved by anyone, and it has an average score of 6.9. The “fresh” rating could be the result of Black Widow being the first MCU movie in years following the pandemic, and instead of the mythic “superhero fatigue,” fans actually missed it.
However, the Marvel movie is still rated “fresh” for a reason, as it finally details Natasha Romanoff’s long-talked-about upbringing, and that includes her father, Alexei Shostakov, a.k.a. Red Guardian (Harbour). The actor is fantastic as the tattooed, goofy superhero, he’s the best character in Black Widow, and he stole the movie from Natasha every time he was on screen. The character will return in Thunderbolts, and hopefully, fans may get to see his fight with Captain America at some point down the line.
4 State Of Play (2009) – 84%
Stream On Netflix
Harbour has seemingly become known for two vividly different types of characters. There are the over-the-top theatrical characters caked in make-up and ridiculous outfits like Red Guardian and Hellboy. Then, there are the roles in surveillance and political thrillers, and though Harbour doesn’t have a huge role in State of Play, the 2009 movie is a great example of the latter.
The thriller is a massively overlooked murder mystery, as it follows a journalist who attempts to uncover the murders of a Congressman’s assistant and mistress. Harbour isn’t the only recognizable actor in the film, as it has a stacked cast, including Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Helen Mirren, Rachel McAdams, and so many others.
3 End Of Watch (2012) – 85%
Rent On AppleTV+
While End of Watch is about two police officers, one of which is played by comedy actor Michael Peña, and is shot in the found footage style, it isn’t exactly the Let’s Be Cops-type comedy that some would expect. In fact, End of Watch is absolutely emotionally exhausting, as the two officers struggle to survive in a crime-ridden South Central Los Angeles.
The movie is incredibly morbid and hard to watch, and that’s especially the case when it comes to Harbour’s scenes. The actor plays another cop, Officer Van Hauser, and he suffers a fate that will have viewers watching through their fingers. Nevertheless, it’s still a must-watch, and given that director David Ayer has made tons of South Central LA-based cop movies, End of Watch is easily Ayer’s best.
2 Brokeback Mountain (2005) – 88%
Rent On AppleTV+
The romantic western drama Brokeback Mountain changed cinema forever, as the LGBTQ+ movie subverts the trope of macho, alpha male cowboys. The movie follows Jack Twist and Ennis Del Mar, two shepherds who share an intimate relationship, but that relationship becomes difficult when they marry their girlfriends.
It took Harbor years to become the well-known movie star he is today, so while he might be in one of the most talked about movies of the 2000s, it’s a minuscule role. Nevertheless, it’s still an important one, as he plays married man Randall Mallone, and it’s implied that he and Jack once had an affair, though it’s left ambiguous and up to the viewer to decide.
1 No Sudden Move (2021) – 92%
Stream On HBO Max
While HBO Max movies are quietly being removed from the streaming platform by Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav for money-saving purposes, there’s one crime drama that isn’t going anywhere. The Steven Soderbergh-directed No Sudden Move was a big win for HBO Max, as it’s an epic period crime drama with an all-star cast, and if any direct-to-streaming movie should have hit theaters, it’s this one, even if it isn’t full of spectacular effects.
The 2021 film is another gangster movie, but it has a unique premise, as a couple of two-bit crooks are hired to steal a special document that can be used in a blackmail scheme. Harbour plays the accountant who is forced by the crooks to bring them that document, and it goes horribly wrong for just about everybody.
