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Who Are Your Favorite Film Directors?
Simple thread idea; list your favorite film directors, and feel to free to detail why and list favorite works from them. I'll start with my own Top 10:
1. Steven Spielberg
For some, the sentimentality of his films is off-putting, but I guess that doesn't bug me since I'm a sentimental person. I love Spielberg; I own 20 of his movies, and most see regular rewatches in my house. Favorites: Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Hook, Jurassic Park
2. Stanley Kubrick
There's nothing like watching a Kubrick film. He's offered several epic, immersive experiences that must be seen by all film lovers. He's ever so slightly below Spielberg in my list, if nothing else than for the fact there are so many darn Spielberg movies I love, and Kubrick only got to make 13. Favorites: Paths of Glory, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, The Shining
3. Tim Burton
Yeah, he's been meh to bad in recent years (with the exception of Big Eyes), but I absolutely love most of Burton's movies. His bizarre, off-beat style just clicks with me. Favorites (excluding The Nightmare Before Christmas): Beetlejuice, Batman, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, Big Fish
4. Hayao Miyazaki
The man is a genius. The master of anime - practically animation, period. He made 11 full length films, but not one of them bad - and most amazing. Favorites: The Castle of Cagliostro, My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, The Wind Rises
5. Alfred Hitchcock
Hitchock gave us a lot of treasured classics. Singling out my favorites from him isn't hard though, because they have become some of my favorite films period. Favorites: Rebecca, Strangers on a Train, Rear Window, Vertigo, Psycho
6. Martin Scorsese
Great director, with some edgy classics under his belt. It'll be depressing when he stops making films. Favorites: Taxi Driver, The King of Comedy, After Hours, Cape Fear, The Aviator
7. Robert Zemeckis
Zemeckis is a name I don't hear a lot mentioned among favorite directors. It's s shame, because he has a lot of great ones in his filmography. Favorites: Back to the Future, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, Forrest Gump, Cast Away, Allied
8. Francis Ford Coppola
Though I only love a handful of his films, the ones I love are truly sensational. Always will have a secure legacy for his amazing works in the 70s. Favorites: The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, The Conversation, Apocalypse Now, The Rainmaker
9. Christopher Nolan
Must be included on my list, if nothing else than for the fact he directed my all-time favorite movie - The Dark Knight. Also has some other solid movies, but a few overrated as well IMO. Favorites: Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, The Prestige, Interstellar
10. Ridley Scott
Like Nolan and Coppola, just a few of his films I truly love, but they are so good when they're good. This guy has some good ones on his resume. Favorites: The Duellists, Alien, Blade Runner, Gladiator, Matchstick Men
What about all you guys? Which directors do you list most?
1. Steven Spielberg
For some, the sentimentality of his films is off-putting, but I guess that doesn't bug me since I'm a sentimental person. I love Spielberg; I own 20 of his movies, and most see regular rewatches in my house. Favorites: Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Hook, Jurassic Park
2. Stanley Kubrick
There's nothing like watching a Kubrick film. He's offered several epic, immersive experiences that must be seen by all film lovers. He's ever so slightly below Spielberg in my list, if nothing else than for the fact there are so many darn Spielberg movies I love, and Kubrick only got to make 13. Favorites: Paths of Glory, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, The Shining
3. Tim Burton
Yeah, he's been meh to bad in recent years (with the exception of Big Eyes), but I absolutely love most of Burton's movies. His bizarre, off-beat style just clicks with me. Favorites (excluding The Nightmare Before Christmas): Beetlejuice, Batman, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, Big Fish
4. Hayao Miyazaki
The man is a genius. The master of anime - practically animation, period. He made 11 full length films, but not one of them bad - and most amazing. Favorites: The Castle of Cagliostro, My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, The Wind Rises
5. Alfred Hitchcock
Hitchock gave us a lot of treasured classics. Singling out my favorites from him isn't hard though, because they have become some of my favorite films period. Favorites: Rebecca, Strangers on a Train, Rear Window, Vertigo, Psycho
6. Martin Scorsese
Great director, with some edgy classics under his belt. It'll be depressing when he stops making films. Favorites: Taxi Driver, The King of Comedy, After Hours, Cape Fear, The Aviator
7. Robert Zemeckis
Zemeckis is a name I don't hear a lot mentioned among favorite directors. It's s shame, because he has a lot of great ones in his filmography. Favorites: Back to the Future, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, Forrest Gump, Cast Away, Allied
8. Francis Ford Coppola
Though I only love a handful of his films, the ones I love are truly sensational. Always will have a secure legacy for his amazing works in the 70s. Favorites: The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, The Conversation, Apocalypse Now, The Rainmaker
9. Christopher Nolan
Must be included on my list, if nothing else than for the fact he directed my all-time favorite movie - The Dark Knight. Also has some other solid movies, but a few overrated as well IMO. Favorites: Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, The Prestige, Interstellar
10. Ridley Scott
Like Nolan and Coppola, just a few of his films I truly love, but they are so good when they're good. This guy has some good ones on his resume. Favorites: The Duellists, Alien, Blade Runner, Gladiator, Matchstick Men
What about all you guys? Which directors do you list most?
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Comments
I would be erring if I didn't add the legendary John Huston to this discussion, with The Maltese Falcon and Treasure of the Sierra Madre being just two examples of all he brought to cinema, the former classic being his directorial debut of all things! He and Bogie were a match made in heaven, one of the all-time great actor/director partnerships.
I'd also like to include Roman Polanski simply because of Chinatown alone. Only a man who had seen the worst of the Holocaust and lost his wife, child and friends in a grizzly murder could render such a cold and unforgiving world of tragedy as that film portrays. To create darkness effectively, one sometimes must experience that darkness themselves, and out of pain Polanski made one of the all-time greatest pieces of art that represents the same helplessness he himself must have been feeling while shooting it.
Absolutely. A man who could make magic in every genre, from comedy clear up to film noir.
Dario Argento (favourite = Tenebre)
Michelangelo Antonioni (favourite = La Notte)
Ingmar Bergman (favourite = Persona)
Stanley Kubrick (favourite = 2001: A Space Odyssey)
Got me well and truly hooked on movies with seminal classics like, Carrie, Sisters, Dressed To Kill and Blow Out
Michael Mann
Just love his visual style and use of music. Very intelligent director. Manhunter, Thief, Heat, Last of the Mohicans, Miami Vice and Collateral[/b. All excellent]
Steven Spielberg
Made going to the cinema so exciting growing up with Jaws, Raiders and ET. Then two completely different masterpieces, Jurassic Park and Schindlers List
John Carpenter
One of my all time favourite directors. Dark Star, Assault On Precinct 13, Halloween, The Fog, Escape From New York and The Thing
Walter Hill
Great action director. The Warriors, Southern Comfort, 48HRS, Streets Of Fire
Stanley Kubrick
What can one say? Paths of Glory, 2001, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket and Eyes Wide Shut
Martin Scorcese
Taxi Driver, King of Comedy, Raging Bull, Goodfellas and Casino
Quentin Tarantino
Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, Kill Bill and Django Unchained
Dario Argento
Has made some crud, but his early stuff....Deep Red, Suspiria, Inferno and Tenebrae
Ridley Scott
Made some of my favourites. Alien, Blade Runner, and Gladiator
David Cronenberg
Shivers, The Brood, Scanners, Videodrome and The Fly
James Cameron
The Terminator, Aliens, The Abyss, T2, True Lies and Avatar
Alfred Hitchcock (North by Northwest, Psycho, Rope)
Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger (A Matter of Life and Death, Black Narcissus, The Red Shoes)
Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, Apocalypse Now)
Ingmar Bergman (The Seventh Seal, Persona, Through a Glass Darkly)
Pedro Almodovar (Live Flesh, All About My Mother, Volver)
Stanley Kubrick (2001: A Space Odyssey, Barry Lyndon, Lolita)
Martin Scorsese (Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas)
Michelangelo Antonioni (Blow-Up, Zabriskie Point, L'Avventura)
Sergio Leone (Once Upon a Time in the West, A Fistful of Dollars, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly)
Christopher Nolan (Following, Memento, Inception)
Eric Rohmer (The Green Ray, My Girlfriend's Boyfriend)
John Ford (The Searchers, My Darling Clementine, Who Shot Liberty Vallance?)
Paul Greengrass (Captain Phillips, The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum)
Ridley Scott (Gladiator, Bladerunner, Alien)
Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Revolutionary Road, Road to Perdition)
Steven Spielberg (Bridge of Spies, Jaws, Munich)
Carol Reed (The Third Man, Odd Man Out, The Way Ahead)
Oliver Stone (Platoon, JFK, Natural Born Killers)
Quentin Tarantino (Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown)
Michael Haneke (The White Ribbon, Amour)
1. David Fincher
2. Steven Soderbergh
3. Hitchcock
And then comes...
4. Nolan
5. Mendes. I would have placed him here even if he hadn't done Bond.
6. Spielberg: he's hit and miss with me, and I think he overplays his fixation on aliens just a tad too much, but the guy is a stud.
And a few forgotten names...
7. Alexander Payne: every one of his films is a delight
8. Clint Eastwood. I hate his politics, but the guy has made some brilliant films, going back to the 70s.
9. Curtis Hanson. RIP
10. Sophia Coppola
On the fence, now...
11. Jason Reitman. I loved Juno, Up in the Air, and Young Adult. But his last two films have been really bad.
Fallen off big time (used to be a fan):
12. Cameron Crowe: Almost Famous is a masterpiece. Had some great films until Elizabethtown.
13. Oliver Stone
14. David Lynch. Not that he's done anything wrong; I've just moved away from his style.
David Fincher (Zodiac, Gone Girl, Seven, Fight Club)
Jaume Comet-Serra (Run All Night, Non Stop, Unknown)
Chad Stahelski (John Wick)
Johnnie To (PTU, The Mission, Breaking News)
Jee-woon Kim (The Good The Bad The Weird, I Saw the Devil, A Bittersweet Life).
Clint Eastwood (Gran Torino, Letters From Iwo Jima, Unforgiven)
Mel Gibson (Bravehart, Apocalypto)
Michael Mann (Heat, Collateral, The Insider)
Peter Berg (The Kingdom, Deepwater Horizon, Lone Survivor)
Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, Shooter, The Equalizer, The Magnificent Seven)
Daniel Espinosa (Safe House)
Ben Affleck (Gone Baby Gone, Argo, The Town)
Living:
Tim Burton, Ridley Scott, Alfonso Cuarón, Wes Anderson
Dead:
Blake Edwards, Billy Wilder, Hal Ashby
The Coen Brothers should have been on my list. Made some brilliant films.
Agree with the ones you mentioned, I'd also add Raising Arizona and Millers Crossing to the list
John Huston
Michael Curtiz
Howard Hawks
Hitchcock
James Whale
Charles Barton
Nicholas Ray
Terence Fisher
Dennis Dugan
The guy who directed Bio-Dome
As an example, Rob Reiner directed When Harry Met Sally. Its easy to forget that this movie could have been spoiled by a poor director but is really is a classic IMHO, he also did Stand By Me, Misery, A Few Good Men and This Is Spinal Tap. There is an argument that such flexibility deserves more respect that sticking to one genre.
Eraserhead (A film that really gets under my skin)
Blue Velvet (One of my favourite films)
Lost Highway
Wasn't keen on his later films but I really liked his animated series, Dumbland
Chris Nolan
David Fincher
Denis Villeneuve
Alfred Hitchcock
Ridley Scott
Michael Mann
Clint Eastwood
Quentin Tarantino
James Cameron
Roman Polanksi
Ron Howard
Any of the living ones above directing will be enough for me to be there on opening night.
Rob Reiner does have some good ones. Misery is my personal favorite from him; love that movie a lot. Stand By Me and A Few Good Men are also great.
There are directers who have direct some great movies like Christopher Columbus and first two Harry Potter movies, Mrs Doubt Fire and Home Alone. Some others have big name, created some respect whyle i also have movies i have no intrest in like Steven Spielberg. But of course he is also a producer. Then there are one i hate and wil never watch a movie from and one who i hate but stil watch a movie from and mabey buying too.
On this moment i have 147 directers in list of directers who direct atleast 2 movies from my collection. 1 and 2 on this moment i own 15 of there 17 direct movies. For the number 3 there is difrence of 5 movies, collect 10 movies from him as directer. On this moment i only have 4 movies on my wishlist from him. One of them is written by those of 15 movie directers. Another one go about discrimation but Warner discriminate The Netherlands with not releasing the Dutch subtiteld Bluray in my country. With dreamworks returns to Universal i hope re-release BD from another movie with 2 extra's from dvd release. (Paramount using excuse Universal is owner of the bonusmaterial.) And animated movie direct by him and co produced by number 4 in list starring Daniel Craig voice.
Number 4 direct 9 movies (6 of them from same franchise.), number 5 direct 8 movies (2 more on this moment then his brother who died.) and number 6 direct 7 movies. Followd by 6 people who direct 6 movies include 2 Bond directers (John Glen and Martin Campbell. I have intrest mabey some day in Casino Royale or that movie Campbell made before Goldeneye.), Tony Scott who sadley wil not be update any more because he passing and i have all movies from him i whant and 1 directer who stil some titles in my wishlist and 2 directers i have not wishlist for.
There are a couple of directers who direct 5 movies that i collect and titles that i at between () are on my wishlist: Jon Favreau (The Jungle Book, The Lion King), Edward Zwick (Jack Reacher 2), Michael Bay (Transformers 6 and 7). 4 movie directers: Paul Greengrass (Jason Bourne), John Madden (The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel) 3 movie directers: Roland Emmerich (Independence Day 1 & 2 and New release of Godzilla 1998.), Chris Wedge (Epic 2), Jan the Bont (Speed 2) Francis Lawrence (Hunger Games movies), David Yates (Harry Potter prequels..), James Cameron (Avatar 2) and big mabey.. Nicolas Winding Refn (The Neon Demon).
On this moment i collect 2 of the 4 none Bond movies i whant from Sam Mendes. Road to Perdition is on my wishlist. With Dreamworks go back to Universal, i hope American Beauty wil get re-release BD with dvd bonusmaterial (Paramount using excuse Universal is owner of the bonusmaterial.). Also i hope on better releases of Skyfall and Spectre. From Tamahori i only whant BD re-release of Along Came a Spider with 2 extra's from dvd and in combopack with BD re-release of first movie ''Kiss The Girls''. From Roger Spottiswoode i whant to collect 6th Day, but a bit disapointed Audiocommentary is not taken over.
I wil not watch a movie from a directer i don't like his style, the gerne or person. That there end 3 movies from Madonna her ex and Nicolas Winding Refn who i never expect i buying a movie from and 2 movies direct by Ben Afleck (and possible 2 others i have intrest in..) special enough.
For what it worth, i collect movies from Danny Boyle (5 and 3 of them seen..), Martin Scorsese (4 and only have seen The Departed) Clint Eastwood (4) Mel Gibson (Braveheart, must stil see that movie again.. and have seen atleast 2 others movies direct by him.) Oliver Stone (1 movie who suprisly like..), Robert Redford (1 movie, who i not understand..) and Marc Forster (Only 3 none Bond movies and must stil see The Kite Runner), Michael Mann (2 of 3 i have seen), Tim Burton (3 include his Batman movies, the other one is Dark Shadows. 2 or maby more i have seen but not collect.), George Clooney (2 of the 3 i must stil see), Fernando Meirelles (2 seen both) and Ron Howard (2) too.
1. Akira Kurosawa
2. Ishiro Honda
3. Sergio Leone
4. David Lean
5. Stanley Kubrick
6. Steven Spielberg
7. Yoshiyuki Tomino
8. Fernando Poe, Jr.
9. Lejii Matsumoto
10. Yoshinobu Nishizaki
he is not a flashy director but always seems to get the best out of any project. From Parenthood to Rush..from Cocoon to Apollo 13. One common thread is that he places character at the centre of the movie. All his movies focus on people rather than action.
That's an excellent list.
I could swap Kurosawa and Honda though. Can't get enough of both!