Today's post will probably cause some controversy, especially with some of the top names in the business being left out (i.e. Michael Mann, Stanley Kubrick, Robert Altman, David Fincher, Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson, Danny Boyle, Mel Brooks (these last two almost made this list), and Clint Eastwood). It isn't that these guys aren't great directors. They are. What gets you on this list, though, is the "I HAVE to see it!" mentality. All of the above directors have made fine films that are some of the best of their respective genres, but have also made movies that just weren't my cup of tea. Granted, a few of the below list are in that category as well,
but they also have made at least one of my top movies of all time, defined a genre, and/or defined film-making itself for generations. So let's hear your arguments in the comments if you don't agree.
Oh, and I decided to use their pictures instead of their works because it is sad that many people don't know who makes their favorite movies. These are also in order from least to most favorite.
On with the show:
10. Sam Raimi (The Gift, The Evil Dead, A Simple Plan)
I know, I know, a week ago I was singing his praises, and I still do, however when you look at the auteurs above him on this list, you kinda see why. In all honesty, with the group that was left out, he's pretty lucky to be in this company at all with "Spider-Man 3" under his belt lol. Sure, I liked the first two Spider-Man movies, but I like his smaller movies (like the ones listed by his name) much, much better. Mr. Raimi suffers from a common problem among small independent film-makers who suddenly have a big budget to work with, they struggle to be innovative and creative when not under budgetary constraints. He seems to have gotten over that with "Oz", but there are some odd things in that too. Still, this is the man who created the Deadites and (Spoiler Alert) didn't shy away from the task of killing hs main character in "Drag Me To Hell".
9. Alfred Hitchcock (Suspicion, To Catch a Thief, Dial M for Murder)
Anyone who doesn't have this man in his top 10 is a complete idiot. This man changed film forever and is still referenced by most people in the film industry as one of their main inspirations. Why doesn't he rank higher on the list then? For every "Suspicion" there is a "Rope", for every "Dial M for Murder" there is "The Wrong Man". Which in its own right is a feather in his cap; the man wasn't afraid to experiment and fought long and hard with the studios to get his movies made. He wouldn't back down from his vision which is what tempered many of his contemporaries and led to many of the men above him to do their amazing work. Watch "Suspicion" and "Dial M for Murder" and you'll understand the moniker "Master of Suspense".
8. Martin Scorsese (Goodfellas, Casino, Shutter Island)
Anyone who knows me personally might question why this man is so low on my list. "Goodfellas" may be my favorite movie of all time (and by all rights
should have won him the Academy Award) and I LOVE most of his work, but, alas, he's made a few blah movies over the years and I can't say that I rush out to see a Scorsese film just because it is Scorsese. That isn't to say that the movies aren't well made, because they are. The choice of subjects ("Hugo") is what often dissuades me or that he sometimes miscasts as well ("Gangs of New York"-Cameron Diaz as an Irish prostitute...really Marty? Really?). There's no denying that the man is possibly the most talented filmmaker in Hollywood, I think sometimes he just gets wrapped up in an idea and won't let go when he should.
Geez, most of these have been kinda negative so far, I just feel the need to persuade you as to why these low 3 are that way. The next ones will be positive. Promise.
7. Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Amelie, A Very Long Engagement, Alien: Resurrection)
Hands down the least known on this list. The bright and colorful "Amelie" which centered around the sublime
Audrey Tautou was his breakthrough into the mainstream (for a foreign film anyway), but his previous works like "The City of Lost Children" and "Delicatessen" are art house favorites. I love all his works since they kind of twist and turn around under you, look beautiful doing it, and have this wry sense of humor and style that is very much his own. He breathed new life into the "Alien" franchise after the disastrous "Aliens 3" by doing something a little more quirky and "low-budget" with it, much like the first "Alien". If you've never seen any of his stuff, you should seek it out.
6. Guy Ritchie (Lock, Stock, & 2 Smoking Barrels, Snatch, Sherlock Holmes)
The man who made Jason Statham a star! LOL. Seriously, other than the better-than-everyone-said-it-is "Swept Away" (which was made to make his wife happy, I'm sure and she probably wouldn't let him do it the way he wanted), Ritchie makes a quick, witty, and stylish film. Say all you want about how "Sherlock Holmes" wouldn't be as witty without RDJ, and I say look at the rest of the man's work and say it again with a straight face. I quote "Snatch" all the time ("5 minutes, Turkish"!) because of the sharp writing. The thing that makes him stand out is that you KNOW you're watching a Guy Ritchie film. Even if I'd never seen it before and you didn't tell me, I'd know (which can be said for everyone from 7 and on, really). He spawned countless imitators that just couldn't get it right.
5. Guillermo del Toro (The Devil's Backbone, Pan's Labyrinth, Hellboy)
I've followed del Toro since "The Devil's Backbone" and then went back in his catalog and watched "Cronos" ("Mimic" actually is pretty good too). No matter how big he's getting in Hollywood, he still manages to put out a smaller foreign language film from time to time (and dammit he deserved an Oscar for "Pan's Labyrinth). You can see how much he is influenced by Lovecraft and how he gets swept up in the details, but always manages to put out some of the most creative films out there. Even when he is using someone else's work as a basis ("Hellboy" or "Blade II") he still manages to make it all his own. I just hope he doesn't spread himself too thin. He writes a book series, has a video game in the works, 3 big screen movies coming soon, a tv movie and series in the pipeline,
and is producing several movies as well...geesh.
4. Ridley Scott (Alien, Gladiator, Blade Runner)
Ok, here might be a point of contention for some because this man made "A Good Year", "Black Rain", "Hannibal", and "Thelma & Louise" (which aren't bad movies at all). Those may be true, but he also made
"Blade Runner", "Alien", "Legend", "Gladiator", "American Gangster", "Black Hawk Down", "Prometheus", "Kingdom of Heaven", etc. Some of the best movies of the last almost 35 years were helmed by this man. A visionary with little equal, he has a vision and sticks to it. Here's a man that will get me to buy a ticket even if the subject doesn't interest me much. I just know I'm in for a visual feast. He defined (and continues to define) different genres for generations of filmmakers with ease. And on a side note, "Robin Hood" was WAY better than anyone gives it credit for.
3. Joel & Ethan Coen (Fargo, O Brother Where Art Thou, No Country For Old Men)
You can't have one without the other. I have every movie these guys have made (have you ever even heard of "The Man Who Wasn't There?", I thought so), even the one (notice I said
one) in their almost 30 year, 15 movie careers (ask me what it is if you want to know, it probably won't be the one you think. These guys do dark, twisted humor like no one else. They also can do serious drama with such pacing and grace. No one makes filmmaking look so effortless
especially when two people are doing all the writing, directing, and producing. They've done the entire thing on their terms with relatively low budgets for what they're making ("True Grit" was made for a paltry $38 Million).
2. Christopher Nolan (Insomnia, The Dark Knight, Prestige)
"In Nolan we trust" has been a mantra of late. You can see why when you look at some of his casting choices in the last few movies: Heath Ledger, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and recently Anne Hathaway. When they were announced there was a collective "WHAAAAA!?!" and then we saw the result. The man sees something in people we've never seen before. THAT is the definition of a visionary. I love that he still does as much as possible in the old fashioned way. Very little CGI and with
film. Here's also a man that doesn't have the same issue as Raimi, he uses his bigger budgets to be as inventive as possible. Who doesn't remember the truck flipping in "The Dark Knight" or the weightless fight scene in "Inception", sure they weren't necessarily a brand new technique, but he did them memorably which cannot be said for most movies these days.
1. Quentin Tarantino (Jackie Brown, Inglorious Basterds, Django)
Honestly, Tarantino was almost #2. I couldn't decide. Here's the thing though. None of these directors has grown like this man. Sure his basic stories are rooted in his adolescence: blaxploitation, Shaw Brother's films, and cheesy spaghetti westerns. He's taken them and elevated them to an art form unto themselves. Not only that, but rather than just make a shocking movie with the tightest dialogue ever seen, he's adding biting social commentary to the mix. Every movie takes place in a different world and a different time, but still feels very much like Tarantino's imagination. That's a feat unto itself. I can't wait for him to do a space movie. THAT should be interesting.
Before I go, there are a couple of honorable mentions that just haven't done enough in their careers yet and may as of yet creep into this list:
Rob Zombie - when he does original work, it's amazing--I hope "The Lord's of Salem" brings him back
Brad Bird - Having only done cartoons (although "Incredibles" and "Ratatouille" are some of my favorites of all time) until recently, "MI:Ghost Protocol" was such a great thrill-ride and return to form for the series that he's definitely one to watch.
Ben Affleck - Three movies. All superb. He's turning into a better director than an actor (among a long line of them). If #4 is as good as his first 3, he'll supplant someone on this list.
