My favorites of his would be “The Fountainhead”, “Sgt. York” and “High Noon”
My definition of a good actor is one who could effectively play a hero or a villain. By that standard neither Wayne nor Cooper qualify. Although I did like Wayne in “True Grit.” But I share your opinion of Cooper. He showed up on the movie set, recited his lines, and then went home. But people liked him so he became a big star. That’s the movie business.
“Bright Leaf” makes an interesting companion piece to “The Fountainhead” in the contrasts between the Cooper/Patricia Neal relationships in each film. In BL her character can’t stand Coop but FH she’s literally his love slave. Interestingly enough, Patricia Neal initially begged the studio to be cast in Lauren Bacall’s role instead but was turned down. It was the right decision in retrospect. The film wouldn’t have worked if the actress’ roles had been reversed.