Okay this is excellent. Being able to link directly to the individual pages from the master list is a superb feature. Now you just need to bump Kurosawa 10 or 11 spots up the list and it’ll be perfect!
@Matt Harris– haha– yeah the links are a new thing here so bear with me on this continual work in progress. I have a few films to go to finish up the study but it does feel inevitable he’ll jump up when I reappraise the list.
Great list Drake! Is this the exact same list as before (when you used to release singular director pages) or did you make some slight changes? It looks pretty similar. Anyways. Great job!
Is it difficult to set up? Ideally the next level would be to be able to link to your individual film reviews from the director or actor pages, but I have no notion of how much work that would entail.
@Azman
I think I’ve stated here that Kurosawa is my choice for #1. I have no problem with anyone opting for one of Drake’s current top 2 though.
@Matt Harris– it isn’t difficult once I messed around with it. It’s just busywork– this was just hours today not reading or writing about cinema or looking for screenshots or anything fun like that. I’m going to start linking more often moving forward. There are just 1500 pages now so the idea of going back and doing it doesn’t exactly appeal. I’ll start updating the year by year archives with hyperlinks to the films though as I go.
No love for Tarkovsky?
Actually i thought that the ideal would be, linking in the top 500 reviews them, although i think there are not many, take a look at the top 100 and so far i have found 43.
Is there any other director besides Scorsese and PTA who has reviews for all his filmography?
Everyone he’s done a study of since launching the site. Ozu, Tarantino, Corbucci, etc. Soon Kurosawa and Fuller. Well all the archivable filmography anyway.
@Aldo– is the Tarkovsky comment for me? There are other directors with their entire filmography covered with reviews here for sure. Some of them just have a lot less films (Steve McQueen for example).
It was actually for @Matt Harris, but i forgot to mention it.
I hope you have seen my comment on Kalazatov’s page, on the YouTube channel where I am cuba is, there are other movies of him, hopefully they are good.
@mehmet- if you’re asking me — I still have work to do on Ceylan. I’ll admit that I’ve seen four of his films to date below- once a piece, and I didn’t find any to be worthy of a spot on the top 10 of their respective year. But I’d like to do a more exhaustive study- maybe I’ll have time for it in 2021.
2002- Distant
2006- Climates
2011- Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
2014- Winter Sleep
My list wouldn’t differ tremendously from Drake’s. I think GOAT status can be a little more clearly established for directors than for individual films, so I wouldn’t travel too far down that list before I’d have a problem with ranking someone higher than the three I listed.
As for the current directors… I could list so many put I’ll pare it down to the bare bones. Scorsese is the greatest living. PTA, Tarantino, Cuaron, Nolan are the greatest current. Malick, Lynch, Wong, Tarr, Coens are the greatest to emerge between those two epochs. Chazelle and Aster are the young guns that most excite me going forward. And I’m sure I forgot someone essential that I’ll kick myself for later.
Amazing! This really is much better than I envisaged. Gosh it puts things into perspective. Despite reading his page, PTA might be the most revelatory of the lot. Still, seeing names like Wong, Malick, the Coens, Jarmusch right alongside or above Dreyer, Ophuls, Visconti and Mizoguchi really shows your objectivity in ranking. Love it!
I feel I should have said this first, but the hyperlinks are fantastic. I’m raring to dive into the 75-150 directors’ pages haha.
I find the absence of Frank Darabont to be completely inexcusable. To me, The Shawshank Redemption has some really wonderful camerawork. You have it graded as only a Must-See, but there are some cinematically transcendent moments that stand out as masterpiece-worthy to me, such as the scene with the music on the speakers, and the famous escape sequence. Its narrative and screenplay are in the conversation with the best of all time, and Darabont is able to capture all of the necessary emotion.
And that isn’t his only well-acclaimed film: he also did The Green Mile.
@Graham– thanks for the comment. Completely inexcusable huh? I mean Shawshank is superb- and very well directed. Just out of curiosity, who are you moving off this list to make way for Darabont? I had him on my list here- just didn’t quite make the cut in the top 250.
Okay, I will agree “completely inexcusable” was a bit harsh. It was just very surprising for me that I didn’t see his name.
I am not nearly as knowledgeable about film as you, and I have not heard of a lot of the directors on the list, so I cannot say which ones exactly I am moving. I simply feel that of all the good movies I have seen, The Shawshank Redemption seems to stand out as superb filmmaking. I am not the only one who believes this; it is the number one IMDb movie, for starters.
@Graham — thanks again for the comment. Darabont would be somewhere between 250-300 if I kept going (and I do at some point). I’ll have to admit I do not pay much attention to the IMDB list. This is another really good list here worth sharing- http://www.theyshootpictures.com/gf1000_top250directors.htm – I’m not saying this is gospel truth (nor is my own list of course) but they also don’t have a spot for Darabont. There are just a lot of great directors out there.
Hi Drake, I’m a dear fan of your lists. The Lists are very informative & enjoyable. I know no one outside of India heard his name. But, Kasinadhuni Viswanath is a God of South Indian Cinema. His films are aesthetically brilliant & he is one of the few greatest filmmakers who manages style with substance and has very high respect for Arts like Classical Indian Music, Dance & Literature in Telugu Cinema (Not Bollywood). His Greatest Films are (we consider here):
1. Shankarabharanam (1980)
2. Sagara Sangamam (1983)
3. Swathi Muthyam (1986)
4. Swarna Kamalam (1988)
5. Swayam Krushi (1987)
Besides Satyajit Ray, there are many Great Filmmakers in India only if you want know more Indian Culture & Art:
1. K. Balachander (Apoorva Ragangal, Avargal, Maro Charitra & Rudraveena)
2. Guru Dutt (Pyaasa & Kaagaz Ke Phool)
3. Ritwik Ghatak (Meghe Dhaka Tara, )
4. Singeetam Srinivasa Rao (Pushpaka Vimanam, Aditya 369 & Michael Madana Kama Rajan)
5. K. Raghavendra Rao (Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari, Annamayya & Pelli Sandhadi)
6. Shekhar Kapoor (Masoom, Mr. India & Bandit Queen)
7. Maniratnam (Nayakan, Iruvar, Dil Se… & Kannathil Muthamittal)
8. Ram Gopal Varma (Shiva, Kshana Kshanam, Rangeela & Satya)
9. S. S. Rajamouli (Magadheera, Eega & Baahubali 2: The Conclusion)
10. Lijo Jose Pellisery (Angamaly Dairies, Ee Ma Yau & Jallikattu)
{ Majority of our Indian Films are combined with songs, melodrama & comedy. So, if someone gets used to it then, These Great Films are the right place to start in the Whole Wide World }.
@RAVI KIRAN- thank you for the kind works and for sharing this. I’ll keep this here and come back to it– I want to try to catch some of these films and filmmakers. I am actually planning to do a Guru Dutt study in 2021–I’ll be watching as many Guru Dutt films as I can find.
There’s a few in the lower sections of the list that would not make my own. I’d take an Adam McKay, Alex Garland, or Ben Affleck over Tom Hooper, Bennett Miller, or Kenneth Lonergan for instance, but I’m not that interested in arguing at the margins of a tremendous list.
If I were to make any “inexcusible” claims it certainly wouldn’t be for Darabont. Not when Tsai Ming-Liang, Kim Ki-Duk, and Raoul Ruiz are nowhere to be seen. But lists evolve and what we have here is pretty much as good a resource as there is. I’m not about to start making demands… other than Kurosawa jumping up of course. 😉
@Matt Harris- thanks for the comment- appreciate the praise — and I like that you offer some suggestions for those you’d swap. Some I’ve seen the work and they just didn’t quite cut it (like McKay, Garland, Affleck)– McKay and Garland were very close- I hadn’t really considered Affleck but maybe I should (I do love those helicopter shots). And others (Tsai Ming-Liang, Kim Ki-Duk, and Raoul Ruiz) I have work to do yet studying their films before I could put them on.
Since we are with objections haha, i was surprised not to have seen Parajanov have The Color of Pomegranates HR and Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors HR / MS, i have not seen any of them, but the images in the reviews are that exquisite, they certainly have surrealism in common.
What a great list and what a great feature for the site. Can’t even imagine how much work went into this. So many people to check out and get familiar with, so thank you for providing it all in one place.
I have some names I think should have made it though. Except Kusturica who we already talked about, I am surprised to see no Hirokazu Koreeda and Andrey Zvyagintsev on the list. Did they not make it or you didn’t study them yet? Also feel like Claude Chabrol could have made the lower half of the list.
@Chief Keef– thanks for the comment and the note here about the list and site– it means a lot. It was a lot of work– but I enjoyed doing it of course.
Yep- just haven’t caught enough of Kusturica to include him. I’ve seen three films a piece for both Koreeda and Zvyaginstev…. four for Chabrol. In each case just one time viewing of those films a piece. So it is sort of a combination of I didn’t study them enough and they just didn’t make the list. If I had been struck by them or blown away- surely they’d be on the list. But I don’t feel confident saying they definitively shouldn’t be on the list either if that makes sense– not until I’ve had a closer look.
This is great, thank you very much man. I think this is just your best feature on your archives and the most accurate list you have made, objectively speaking. I cannot think of a better list of directors. And each director page has something special. Thank you
I just thought of sort of an odd idea. Who is the equivalent of all these major auteurs as actors and vice-versa? In essence, who has a similar style of performance/direction? Actor-directors such as Welles, Chaplin, and Eastwood would be themselves of course, but besides them it’s interesting to think about. Some ideas to consider:
Kubrick is Daniel Day-Lewis. They don’t make movies very often and their genre/character is always different but they pack quite a powerful punch. Their performance/”cold” direction style is not “friendly” or accessible but quite interesting.
Wes Anderson is Charlie Chaplin (Of course, Chaplin as a director would be himself as an actor). They are whimsical and endlessly entertaining, but also surprisingly emotional, with a one-of-a-kind style/character that they follow every single time.
Fellini is Jack Nicholson. They are very energetic and always doing a version the same clownish worldview/character, but can become quite serious and forthcoming about human nature when it is necessary. Sometimes, narratives/characters finally get their sanity together by the end, while other times they wind up hopeless.
Capra is Henry Fonda. Often noted for moral rigidity, with a sly satirical element in their characters/movies that is not always noticed. Known for being collected and assertive, although they can burst into strong emotion easily as well.
Tarkovsky is Ryan Gosling. Plots/performances are very subtle and don’t quickly shift between events/emotions. Nothing is on the surface, and you must pay attention if you’d like to fully understand the message/character motivation.
Ozu is Ingrid Bergman. A master of subtle emotion, although not so subtle that we don’t understand the feelings portrayed, whose mise-en-scene/face is very beautiful. Foreign audiences may have difficulty grasping the style/voice at first but will become attached to the narrative/character after a short time.
Ophuls is Jimmy Stewart (this is probably not one you expected). The camera/he seem to be always moving and pacing around, making for an energetic ride for the viewer. Although their stylistic/slightly accented voice is very recognizable and unchangeable, they can be comedic, tragic, contemplative, and many other things.
Ingmar Bergman (perhaps David Lynch as well) is Maria Falconetti. Their performance/direction is very expressionistic and surreal. They seem somewhat grim and always obsessed with finding the truth about God. Very meaningful, although you must sift through the unusual character/movies to understand the messages,
Lumet is Leonardo DiCaprio. Prone to sudden bursts of anger, and when they become angry, they are shouting at the audience at loud as they can. Sometimes they have something big to say about the American system (political system, judicial system, corporate system) or about persevering through unexpected events.
Leone is Brad Pitt. Their characters are always trying to look cool, but often slow down for a minute or two at points to analyze their status in the plot/character development. Those who accuse them of constant sameness and being unrealistic can’t seem to notice how well they can adapt to different situations.
John Ford is Humphrey Bogart. They are tough and
Coppola is Gene Hackman. I’m mostly not going with collaborators but they did only one film together. They can be very contemplative but usually have moments of psychologically complex violent events/actions. Their top few movies/performances are all very close in (very high) quality.
Scorsese probably should be De Niro, but for non-collaborators I’d go with Marlon Brando. Their personal voice is very unique and carefully cultivated, but can be altered to whatever they find fits the narrative/character. They can become violent and angry, but are even more often personal and sensitive. Protagonists are often ordinary men who became unusually powerful due to plot circumstances.
Kurosawa probably would be Mifune, but outside of him I’ll say he’s Gloria Swanson. Emotions are heightened to a point of being purposefully urealistic, and characters often grow insane and delusional. They are prepared to show no mercy to people, but feel colorful even when their movies aren’t in color.
Are there any more ideas you’d add? Would any of the ones above work better as an equivalent to a different actor or director?
Wow, I didn’t realize how long that comment was and how many director-actor combinations their were until I posted it. I forgot to finish the Ford/Bogart comparison, though. Here is what I was going to say:
John Ford is Humphrey Bogart. They are tough but sensitive, and characters’ opinions often become clear in a concise shot/line. They claim that their only goal is to entertain, but are being humble about their true artistic merits. Sometimes, characters feel like they might just have to kills others to get what they want
@graham- very good interesting question. first id say that comparing gosling to tarkovsky is an insult to the soviet master. hmm. i’d say spielberg is jack lemmon for his humble gentleness, or ving rhames. dustin hoffman is hitchock for choosing studio films that explore his own personal ideas, howard hawks is harrison ford for making big studio films with great unrealized often films of artistic merit. de palma is jim carrey because they are both misunderstood greats (or adam sandler). marlon brando is orson welles for their poetic genius and tarantino is either robert pattinson or taylor lautner from twilight (maybe even bradley cooper).
Thanks and good additions. Gosling with Tarkovsky is, to me, certainly not an insult. Tarkovsky would certainly be ranked higher among diectors than Gosling among actors, but the later is one of the better subtle, often stone-faced performers in the tradition of Buster Keaton. Drake agrees, putting Gosling as the second-best of the 2010s,
Also, I’ll add another one: Herzog is Joaquin Phoenix. Kinski is the logical option, and there are many parallels between the two actors, but I think Phoenix actually works better. Herzog and Phoenix often explore people going mad, but their films/characters are very different in how they get to that madness. They also heavily deal with the theme of loneliness and feel sort of untouchable and unreachable, but interesting.
Haha this is very interesting @Graham, I wouldn’t put Gosling for Master Tarkovsky, for Lumet it would put Pacino, I will not say that your choices were wrong. some feel strange, but honestly it never would have happened to me.
Yes, I was thinking about Pacino going somewhere and Lumet was my first idea. DiCaprio may not seem very similar to Pacino, but I think he and Lumet work. All three (Al, Leo, Sidney) love to shout.
Who would you put with Tarkovsky, other than Anatoly Sonitsyn, the obvious (and perhaps more correct than Gosling) choice?
Makes no sense after number 5 (remove Hitchcock form 1)
David Barwinski
September 24, 2020 at 5:55 pm - Reply
Great list!
I agree with Matt Harris that Kurosawa should be much higher. Really it’s Kubrick, Kurosawa, Hitchcock. Take your pick.
I’d put Tarkovsky higher. He and Bergman are neck and neck.
Not sure about Ozu being so high. “Tokyo Story”, “Late Spring” are great, of course, but something about his static camera which just doesn’t quite work. Kind of like Dreyer’s and Bresson’s asceticism. Cinephiles adore these guys, though, so maybe it’s just not my style.
No love for Herzog? I would place Herzog much higher and Scorsese a bit lower. I think that the two of them are the greatest living, still relevant directors by far. They seem to have a lot in common, too. I’m surprised they don’t get compared much.
But overall, very nice job. Thanks for taking the time to put this together.
I feel like purely as a filmmaker, Herzog is ranked appropriately. However, if documentary work was also considered, Herzog would easily be one of the greatest of all time. Lessons of Darkness is absolutely gorgeous. Absolutely incredible. His other documentary work is also good.
However, based on all his films (Aguirre etc), a top 40 rank (at 40) is perfect for Herzog.
Drake, I’m just wondering; why don’t you mention Pressburger and Gene Kelly for the films they co-directed? I’m curious because Donen and Powell are mentioned on your list. Pressburger and Kelly helped out a bit while directing too.
I’m sorry for being picky Drake. This was something small I noticed.
Your list is mostly incredible and the directors are placed appropriately.
What are some of the best films you know of that are directed by multiple directors? Do you know if there’s a reason why most directors prefer directing on their own?
You’re right here Azman, why do the Coens count together and the others don’t? Blood Simple, Raising Arizona, Fargo, the Big Lebowski the credited director is Joel Coen, you still count those movies for both.
@Azman and @Aldo– you’re partially right and partially wrong. I should list them on the individual film pages (as I do here) http://thecinemaarchives.com/2020/04/10/i-know-where-im-going-1945-powell-pressburger/ and on the year by year archives (like I’ve done with some of Buster Keaton’s co-directors as I update the yearly pages. But Donen directed films Kelly didn’t and that’s why he’s on the 250 list and Kelly isn’t. Pressburger is well known as the financial side of the Powell and Pressburger tandem as I explain on the Powell page. http://thecinemaarchives.com/2019/05/14/the-35th-best-director-of-all-time-michael-powell/ . It is also well known that (up until now) the Coen brothers share their writing/acting/producing duties.
@Drake, Gene Kelly co directed Singin in the rain, Its always fair weather and On the Town with Stanley Donen.
Other movies he has directed or co-directed are:
Invitation to the dance
Happy Road
The tunnel of love
Gigot
A guide for the married man
Hello Dolly
The Cheyenne Social club
That’s entertainment part 2.
I don’t know if these ‘non-Donen’ films are archiveable, but Kelly had quite a big role with directing the musicals with Donen. He helped choreograph the dance scenes (especially in SIngin in the rain). Kelly decided some shots too and how to shoot them. Perhaps the most famous dance scene in cinema history was choreographed by Kelly and some shots too
Drake
September 24, 2020 at 7:57 pm
@Azman- Thanks–I’m aware. Happy with how I have things here.
This is crazy stat, I mentioned Lang with Metropolis and M, but we could well declare Anderson the best of all and close the book, the 14 directors in front of him have never given the best movie of the year more than 3 times the exception is Coppola, Anderson gave the best movie of the year 5 times
Hitchcock 3: 1935, 1951, 1958
Kubrick 3: 1968, 1971, 1987
Bergman 2: 1957, 1966
Fellini 2: 1960, 1963
Scorsese 3: 1976, 1980, 1990 although you could also give 2019
Coppola 4: 1972, 1974, 1979, 1983
Welles 1: 1941
Ford 2: 1940, 1956
Kurosawa 2: 1950, 1954
Truffaut 1: 1959
Renoir 2: 1937, 1939
Anderson 5: 1997, 1999, 2002, 2007, 2012
Tarkovsky, Ozu and Antonioni they add up to a total of zero, they never gave the best movie of the year
@Aldo- very interesting. Others are going to have different #1 films of the year (even I am going to make some changes as I update my year by year archives) but this is still fascinating. Thank you for compiling.
Well i did this based on the Archives by year section, taking the movie that appears in the cover, so i don’t know how much it changes when you update it, although i must confess Tarkovsky’s statistics makes me very sad.
What do you think is due to Anderson’s crazy 5 statistic, you mention that there is no one equal to his generation and i agree, do you think it’s because he has no competition? because for example Hitchcock had bad luck, you mention his crazy career 58,59,60 but only in one of those years was he the best, but this is due to the amount of good directors working, in 54 he lost to 7 samurai, very movies good / rare that hardly appear, also Stalker would be the best movie of the year in +90 times, the same Manhattan, but they are unlucky that Apocalypse now came out that year, in the 50s and 60s there were several directors of the same level Hitchcock, Kurosawa, Godard, Fellini, Antonioni, Truffaut, Anderson belongs to that group, but in an era where he is alone
@Aldo- I mean I find it interesting- but it isn’t a declarative statement about which filmmakers are the best. I’m doing 1932 next (after 1931 of course) and there isn’t a film on the level of 1931’s M (which came runner-up so to speak in 1931). I may have had Full Metal Jacket as the best film of 1987 but there are a number of films from 2007 or 1960 (just way stronger years) better.
As for Tarkvosky, I have Stalker in my top 10 of all-time. So don’t feel too sad. haha. And when I update 1983- Nostalgia will be #1 so he’ll have at least one year as #1.
As for PT Anderson- I do think he’s the greatest of his generation. But he has a ton of competition (from Cuaron, Fincher, Tarantino, Wes Anderson for starters) but I’m not sure any generation, before or after, can compare with the late 1950’s and early 1960’s at the top
Drake, i want to apologize sincerely if i made you feel like i don’t appreciate the site. this is specifically in reference to a comment i posted yesterday on your back to the future page where i wrote ‘why aren’t there more images on this review’ and you replied ‘whats wrong with THIS one.’ i apologize, as i did not mean to offend you. i and everyone else who visits this site respects or should the hard work you put into it. all the movies you watch, your knowledge of the art form, allowing civil discourse, it is all very appreciates and as i said i respect what you do. i will take a break from commenting for a long spell and i think just focus on growing, watching more films and such. i don’t want to offend anyone, certainly not anyone who is this dedicated hardworking and passionate.
A really wonderful list you have put together here, only outdone by the depth of study and focus you have done for each director on it. Any plans for what your next big ranking might be? I have seen a few ideas being tossed around in these comments like screenplays and directors ranked between 251-500, but do you know what you’re drawn to most yet?
@Declan- thanks for the kind words. I’m updating the year by year archives right now (last did it in 2017) and then I’m not sure after that. I do find myself drawn to the auteur/director aspect of things but people do love the actor rankings, too. We’ll see. I’m only on 1939 right now- doing 2-3 a week so this will take me some time to work my way through things and I can think about it
Chaplin directed amazing movies in silent era and after that.. For me, is on my top 5. He touches both eras as no director ever made, and directed great pics (Modern Times, the Great Dictator.. so many..)
You’ve mentioned a small number of films that you think could rightfully be called the single greatest of all time when examined thoroughly. How long do you think the list of directors is that you would accept as number one? How far down the list would it take until you think you could argue against a person’s choice? I know it must be a little farther than twelve, or else you would have parted ways with Matt Harris years ago (Although you’ve implied Kurosawa may be moving up now that you’ve finished your study). What about actors and actresses, or even some other occupations like cinematographers and writers?
@Graham- Interesting. I’m not sure there is a set number But I’d say if you get too far past 25 then either I’m missing something (which can happen- I was wrong or uninformed when it came to Ozu a few years ago) or we’re using different criteria (and at that point I’d disagree with the criteria being used). It may be a little deeper than that for actors and actresses.
I know this website is all about making lists- and hey- I love doing them, debating them— but to it is more about admiring the work from all of them and trying to be as specific as possible (sometimes down to the minute in a film or the frame from the film or a camera movement) as the the reason. Who is worthy of admiration and study and where do you start if you had to prioritize your time? It doesn’t get me too worked up debating Hitchcock vs. Welles or whomever. Why are they in the top tier? Who else is with them? and so on.
I completely agree, and thanks for responding. Admiring and enjoying cinema is much more about just that – enjoyment and admiration – than specificity and analytics. I couldn’t set such a number myself, anyway. Sometimes it is fun to pay attention to the specific moments and superiority of a person’s skills over another, and sometimes I just like to sit back and appreciate the majesty of the movies. That’s “There’s nothing else, just us, and the cameras, and those wonderful people out there in the dark.” And there can also be times of “All right, Mr. (or Ms.) DeMille (or Kubrick, or Coppola, or Hepburn, or Lubezki), I’m ready for my close-up (or filmography study)!”
@Graham- yep we’re on the same page. And I mean if you read my feelings on like director #199 or #228– I’m mean I’m pretty passionate about their work, filmography, style to study and admire. It isn’t like I spend the whole time on the page complaining why they aren’t Kubrick or Tarkovsky. That isn’t the point there. There are so many great directors to discover.
@Pedro – thanks for visiting the site and for the comment. So Resnais on the list- at #142. But your comment may be saying that he is underrated at #142. I did a quick study of Resnais’ available work in the spring of 2020 so if you search “Resnais” you’ll get my pages for a handful of films. He will be moving up the list the next time I update it based on this study.
Patrick Dunne
November 4, 2020 at 11:25 pm - Reply
Happy to see Hitchcock at the top spot, but why is Rob Reiner so low?
Drake, you’ve always maintained that your best actors lists are different than a “most talented actors” list because a less talented person may have a superb filmography and vice-versa. In theory, how would a most talented directors list for you look? Would that be the same as a list ranking “style-plus” directors? Who might be a rough top five for you on such a list?
@Graham- that’s interesting … The next time I update it I could see whose filmography is rated lowest in comparison with their overall landing spot on the list– that may tell me something. I don’t think I’d get outside of the top 10-20 though to get to those 5 for your list
It would not be something like Tati or Kalatozov that their films are unique but they do not have much depth of work.
Usually the best directors are not the most mediocre.
The ten most talented directors are the top 10.
Usually won’t find low-talented directors like Chaplin being the best, it just doesn’t make sense, to make many of the best movies you need to be the most talented.
You can make a very good movie like many, but you just won’t find the best movies made by untalented directors, just take a look at the top 20, almost all of them are made up of the top 10 directors, it’s called luck in some cases, but luck doesn’t strike many times as you can see with Stanley Donen
Here’s another interesting exercise I just envisioned. What can be considered the signature shot of each of these talented auteurs, or the one that most defines their work? This is not necessarily the same as their greatest shot. I will go in order mentioning the ones for which I have an idea.
Hitchcock – I think the iconic shot of Cary Grant running away from the crop duster epitomizes the master of suspense perfectly.
Kubrick – It is difficult to choose a single image. Perhaps the opening shot of A Clockwork Orange? Semi-symmetrical, unforgiving, and including that famous Kubrickian stare. Another is the pilot riding on the bomb as it falls in Dr. Strangelove.
Bergman – The dance of death is the most memorable, but the choice for Bergman must be some sort of arrangement of faces. I select the beautiful moment in Persona in which the two leads’ silhouetted heads lean together.
Ozu – Every shot in an Ozu film could be regarded as his signature shot. Ebert mentions a simple shot in Tokyo Story where two pairs of shoes are sitting in the hallway of the resort to which the elderly leads traveled to “rest” – perhaps his best “pillow shot.”
I will have more soon.
@Graham- love the exercise. So tough to pick just one. On my 250 individual director pages I’m obviously trying to do this (but I can pick 2, 3 and in some cases can’t help myself and get to 15-20- haha). Of course I could be missing some and some (tough increasing less and less) could be hard to find images of
Continued from the above comment:
Fellini – Any shot that satirizes life as a whole could suffice for this choice. The scene at the end of 8 1/2 where the characters dance around in a circus seems to embody this idea best, but Guido floating away from the sweaty traffic jam in the same film and Marcello wading into the fountain in La Dolce Vita are just as perfect.
Scorsese – The Copa shot in Goodfellas and the one that tracks over to the empty hallway in Taxi Driver are wonderful, but perhaps not the most characteristic of his style. I’ll go with the slow motion (very Scorsesian) moment in the final fight scene of Raging Bull where De Niro leans in waiting on the bars.
Coppola – The superimposed image of Sheen’s upside down head on the exploding forest constitutes my favorite opening sequence in cinema. Effective camera angles, dissolve editing, a contemplative protagonist, and superb openings are characteristic of Coppola.
Tarkovsky – The “candle shot” in Nostalghia of the poet walking back and forth for nine minutes is something absolutely no one but Tarkovsky would have the guts to do, but I think the choice must be the stunning wide shot of the room in Stalker with mounds of sand. Green-gray color scheme and the floor as an element of composition.
Ford – The doorway shot in The Searchers. Duh.
Kurosawa – The image of the swing through the jungle gym in Ikiru is an impeccable one and the old lord walking out of the burning castle in Ran is another, but I will lobby for what may be my favorite closing shot in cinema in Seven Samurai.
Truffaut – It’s pretty obviously the freeze frame that closes The 400 Blows. This gives us three in a row that are the final shot in a movie.
PT Anderson – The Master’s shot of Freddie lying above the sailors on the boat may be Anderson’s most beautiful, but I think Daniel being forced to recount his sins in the church in There Will Be Blood best epitomizes his thematic and visual style.
Ophuls – It must be an energetic tracking shot for Max Ophuls. Perhaps the opening of The Earrings of Madame de…?
Lynch – This one is not as obvious a choice. Perhaps the shot in Mulholland Drive’s Club Silencio where everything becomes dark blue? This incorporates Lynch’s dark, odd and haunting use of color and setting.
Dreyer – The shot to define Dreyer’s work must be a close-up with evocative mise-en-scene. How about the one of Joan praying with the cross behind her in The Passion of Joan of Arc?
Continued again:
Leone – One of Leone’s trademark extreme close-ups might seem better, but I think the frame near the beginning of OUaTitW where Frank’s three duelists square off with Harmonica may be a signature shot for him.
Wong – The saturated orangey image of Cheung and Leung standing by the wall of the hallway beautified by the shadows of bars in ITMFL seems to best illustrate Wong’s mood oriented color design and calm film structuring.
Malick – Any shot in a Malick movie, or at least any focusing on nature (a.k.a. any shot in a Malick movie) would suffice. Perhaps the terrific composition in Days of Heaven where the six silhouetted men are situated in the fields by the mansion watching the locusts rise above is my favorite.
Murnau – Either the shadow of Nosferatu creeping up the stairs or the Man in gazing at the moon by the lake (two in a row shots of silhouette men in fields looking at something above them) in Sunrise is perfect for Murnau. I will select the latter as I believe it includes Murnau’s wonderful gliding camera movement.
Allen – Do I really have to do this (sorry, that’s a reference to a film by the next director :)? It is certainly the iconic photography of Woody and Keaton sitting on a bench by the Queensboro Bridge.
Spielberg – There are many options, but the brilliant silhouette of E.T. and Elliott biking across the moon at night is impossible to resist. Quite Spielbergian.
Beginning here, the number of directors for whom I can decide becomes sparser. I will choose some random ones I can think of quickly for now.
Lean – The beautiful frame of Gasim staggering away into the sunset may be Lean’s most gorgeous shot, but one earlier in Lawrence of Arabia better illustrates his epic scope. It is the extreme wide shot of the dunes with two tiny figures in the distance that introduces us to Arabia.
Altman – Altman is known for his reliance on steady, calm zoom lens usage and his expansive amounts of characters. The shot of Tomlin in the back of the bar in Nashville incorporates both traits.
De Sica – I don’t believe that the moment where Antonio and his son hopelessly sit onto the curb in Bicycle Thieves is the film’s single greatest, but it is certainly the most iconic
Fincher – He is known for dark ligting and subtle color creation, both of which appear in nearly every shot. The final shot of Fight Club watching the effects of Tyler’s scheming may be the epitome of Fincher’s style.
Kieslowski – The choice here must be one with brilliant use of primary colors and fine-tuned formal significance. Any of the shots of the blue mobile in Blue embody these ideas quite well.
Griffith – The crane shot of the massive Babylon gate in Intolerance is the best choice here. Expansive and epic.
Sorry to be flooding the comments, but the site will not allow me to put it all in one entry.
Herzog – Kinski’s speech leaning against the tree in Aguirre is haunting, psychological, and minimalist. Very Herzogian (who says you can’t make an -ian out of every director’s name?).
Bertolucci – The shot of the many-windowed corridor in The Conformist is an immaculate composition and work of lighting like all of Bertolucci’s ouevre.
Mann – De Niro leaning on the post by the window in Heat is a justifiably iconic image. It includes Mann’s trademark use of dark blue as well.
Scott – Blade Runner has Ridley’s famous smoky shadows in all its shots. The one with Rachel holding the cigarette in her hand is a masterful use of lighting.
Peckinpah – Although Peckinpah is mostly known for editing, he slow walk of the four uncaptured members of the group to retrieve their kidnapped comrade is famous for other reasons.
Cuaron – Children of Men and Gravity have many perfect Cuaronian (as I said with Herzog, I’ll make any name an adjective if I like) moments, but the obvious choice is the tracking shot of the family hugging on the beach in Roma. Breathtaking photography and style.
W. Anderson – It must be something symmetrical with bold color design. Perhaps the shot of Monsieur Gustave smiling at the concierge dest of the Grand Budapest?
Tati – There is a composition in Playtime with a man walking down a long hallway in half the frame and two men having a conversation in another. It is a perfect mise-en-scenal (I can make adjectives out of other kinds of nouns, too!) creation.
Gilliam – The fisheye lens shot of the man wearing the baby mask in Brazil’s torture chamber is exactly the absurdism that make his movies so wonderful.
Chaplin – You must have more restraint than any other human on this planet if you have the ability to refrain from laughing at any point in City Lights’ boxing scene.
S. Coppola – The everlasting loneliness of Charlotte sitting next to the window in Lost in Translation is the easy contender here.
Demme – The Silence of the Lambs’ creative close-up shot of Clarice with Hannibal reflected on the glass next to her is the best illustration of Demme’s style.
That’s enough for now. Have I made the correct choices? What may be the signature shot for some of the auteurs I missed?
Have you seen films from Jean Marie Straub and Danielle Huillet ? If yes, what is your opinion ? I’m looking forward to get to them but I don’t think the films are easy to find.
@Cinephile- I have not seen them. I’ve been looking for them but yeah- not easy to find. You and others can probably teach me about finding stuff on YouTube. I know it varies by geography/region but aside from some public domain silent stuff in high quality I’ve stayed away from youtube as a resource. Perhaps I’m missing out
@Azman- well first off directors with really strong films between 2009-2020 (and newer) will climb. I used my top 500 as the main skeleton for my top 250 directors list and I have that 10 year moratorium. But beyond that- certainly it feels like Kurosawa will climb, definitely Visconti… I enjoyed the Jarmusch study but he will fall a little (certainly Visconti will go past him)– I’m not sure on others… I haven’t decided what to do next after I update the year by year archives (currently on 1951 so there is a ways to go).
@Cinephile- haha interesting- I haven’t heard the term in a few years- it was quite a topic (in cinephile circles) in 2012-2013 I think. I think it is just largely an extension of the normal auteur theory championed by the Cahiers Du Cinema critics and Andrew Sarris— they all saw themselves as finding consistencies throughout a directors work- regardless of genre, budget, popularity and championing those that deserved to be championed— I’d like to think that’s what I’m trying to do in my own little humble way as well (certainly not putting myself in the company of these giants)… what are your thoughts?
@Drake– I find the theory quite interesting. I think many cinephiles, me too when I finally got serious about cinema, have a bias against genres. It’s interesting since many of us cinema lovers, in the before-serious-with-cinema period, we loved the movies that fall into the vulgar auteurism category, then when we finally discover and watch Tarkovsky and Bergman, we become these snobbish pricks that all of a sudden are biased against the films that wouldn’t qualify as “serious” artistic achievements. But then, our cinephilia becomes more mature and we finally appreciate everything. Wow. Quite a journey–haha. I support vulgar auteurism. Especially here in Greece, the local critical community is incredibly skewed on the genres. I’m not saying that every “vulgar” movie must be championed, because many people, in their attempt to be these kinds of controversial or contrarian cinephiles go in the other side and find a masterpiece out of a bad movie. Every film is a craft and must be evaluated as such. To conclude, I’m beginning my journey with the “vulgar” movies, I’ll give them attention probably starting with Paul W.S. Anderson movies and we’ll see from there.
@Cinephile– happy near year to you as well– I agree with you here. But do you see a big difference between “vulgar” auteurism — and the auteur theory in general– I mean if you go back two decades before the phrase with what Tarantino was doing praising genre films, De Palma— or even further back the French critics praising Hitchcock and coining the phrase “noir” for B-movies after WW2? I don’t. I mean I have Refn’s Only God Forgives firmly in my top 100 of the 2010’s as an example— anyways- please report back if you find any films or particular directors worthy of a closer look
Cinephile
December 31, 2020 at 5:37 pm
@Drake– I fully agree here, you make a great point. Yesterday, I saw The Grey, which I’ve seen people categorize as vulgar auteurism. It’s great, the best film in the Neeson action persona in the last decade or so. Maybe I’ll go in the 2011 page and write more about it.
I Haven’t seen as many films as you’ve seen. But, According to me,
Top 10 Greatest Filmmakers of all Time are:
1. Stanley Kubrick
2. Ingmar Bergman
3. Alfred Hitchcock
4. Kasinadhuni Viswanath
5. Akira Kurosawa
6. Federico Fellini
7. Andrei Tarkovsky
8. Martin Scorsese
9. Jean-Luc Godard
10. Steven Spielberg
@RAVI KIRAN – thanks for visiting the site and for the comment here. This is a great list of filmmakers– I haven’t seen any films from Kasinadhuni Viswanath or heard of him– any particular film to start with if I can locate his films?
If a director were to make a brilliant style-plus film that was the best of all-time or at least on the level of 2001, Apocalypse Now, and such, but then never make another movie at all, where would they land?
@Graham- well it isn’t on the level of 2001 but Andrew Dominik with The Assassination of Jesse James may be the closest example…. he has a couple of other archiveable films (and a new one coming in 2021 that i’m excited about) but the other archiveable films don’t land in the top 20 of their year so this is pretty much it. I have him at 200 here– so certainly if someone made 2001 and that was it– I’d have him/her on the list, and higher than Dominik— I’m not sure how high I’d have to go– Carol Reed at #118?
How much does having a masterpiece or multiple masterpieces, rather than simply a great body of work, impact a director’s placing? If that question is too unspecific, imagine this hypothetical situation (all I seem to ask on this site are hypothetical situations haha): there is a director who has made 20-30 must-see films, but none that rise to the MP level. Using your filmography ranking scale, I would assume this director would land at or near the very top, but the lack work in the very top tier would seem concerning. Roughly where would this director fall on the general list? I know such a director would be unlikely to occur, but it is fascinating to consider.
I’m not Drake, but if you have a shitload of MSs that would mean you’re a great director, a reaaaaaally great director even, but if you don’t have at least 1-2 MPs than can you really be THE best director? Just a thought.
@Graham— I think 20-30 Must-See’s is what changes this. I think I have Fassbinder with 5 Must-See’s (I actually think he has at least one masterpiece now but that’s a different conversation) and he’s at #51 on my list. 20-30 is a crazy number– the last time I updated my top 500 Hitchcock had the most total films– so this hypothetical person would pass Hitchcock— even without a masterpiece I don’t see how you could keep them out of the top 10
If you ever get the chance, try to watch Nikos Nikolaidis’s films. One of the best filmmakers to come out of Greece. He makes a truly divergent cinema compared to other Greek movies. They never made films like his in the country.
Okay, this is great, thank you very much
Okay this is excellent. Being able to link directly to the individual pages from the master list is a superb feature. Now you just need to bump Kurosawa 10 or 11 spots up the list and it’ll be perfect!
@Matt Harris– haha– yeah the links are a new thing here so bear with me on this continual work in progress. I have a few films to go to finish up the study but it does feel inevitable he’ll jump up when I reappraise the list.
@Matt Harris. Who is the best director of all time in your opinion?
Great list Drake! Is this the exact same list as before (when you used to release singular director pages) or did you make some slight changes? It looks pretty similar. Anyways. Great job!
@Azman– it is the same order– just a master list page with links. Thanks again
@Drake
Is it difficult to set up? Ideally the next level would be to be able to link to your individual film reviews from the director or actor pages, but I have no notion of how much work that would entail.
@Azman
I think I’ve stated here that Kurosawa is my choice for #1. I have no problem with anyone opting for one of Drake’s current top 2 though.
@Matt Harris,
What are some other directors (apart from kurosawa, Kubrick and Hitchockc) that you think very highly of(possible GOAT status)?
Which current directors’ work do you like the most? Which current director’s work do you look forward the most to?
I just like learning about different opinions from other fellow cinephiles. This question is to all readers of the blog.
@Matt Harris– it isn’t difficult once I messed around with it. It’s just busywork– this was just hours today not reading or writing about cinema or looking for screenshots or anything fun like that. I’m going to start linking more often moving forward. There are just 1500 pages now so the idea of going back and doing it doesn’t exactly appeal. I’ll start updating the year by year archives with hyperlinks to the films though as I go.
Haha you need to hire staff.
@Matt Harris- Haha. in the words of John Wayne- That’ll be the day
No love for Tarkovsky?
Actually i thought that the ideal would be, linking in the top 500 reviews them, although i think there are not many, take a look at the top 100 and so far i have found 43.
Is there any other director besides Scorsese and PTA who has reviews for all his filmography?
Everyone he’s done a study of since launching the site. Ozu, Tarantino, Corbucci, etc. Soon Kurosawa and Fuller. Well all the archivable filmography anyway.
Personally I’m planning to do a Tarkovsky deep dive soon.
@Matt Harris- Exciting!
@Aldo– is the Tarkovsky comment for me? There are other directors with their entire filmography covered with reviews here for sure. Some of them just have a lot less films (Steve McQueen for example).
It was actually for @Matt Harris, but i forgot to mention it.
I hope you have seen my comment on Kalazatov’s page, on the YouTube channel where I am cuba is, there are other movies of him, hopefully they are good.
what’s your thoughts about Nuri Bilge Ceylan? he has to be on that list.
also thank you for your immense work. it helped me a lot.
@mehmet- if you’re asking me — I still have work to do on Ceylan. I’ll admit that I’ve seen four of his films to date below- once a piece, and I didn’t find any to be worthy of a spot on the top 10 of their respective year. But I’d like to do a more exhaustive study- maybe I’ll have time for it in 2021.
2002- Distant
2006- Climates
2011- Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
2014- Winter Sleep
My list wouldn’t differ tremendously from Drake’s. I think GOAT status can be a little more clearly established for directors than for individual films, so I wouldn’t travel too far down that list before I’d have a problem with ranking someone higher than the three I listed.
As for the current directors… I could list so many put I’ll pare it down to the bare bones. Scorsese is the greatest living. PTA, Tarantino, Cuaron, Nolan are the greatest current. Malick, Lynch, Wong, Tarr, Coens are the greatest to emerge between those two epochs. Chazelle and Aster are the young guns that most excite me going forward. And I’m sure I forgot someone essential that I’ll kick myself for later.
Thank you for your response. You are right. There are so many great directors working currently that listing all of them would take a long time.
Your list includes some great directors.
Amazing! This really is much better than I envisaged. Gosh it puts things into perspective. Despite reading his page, PTA might be the most revelatory of the lot. Still, seeing names like Wong, Malick, the Coens, Jarmusch right alongside or above Dreyer, Ophuls, Visconti and Mizoguchi really shows your objectivity in ranking. Love it!
I feel I should have said this first, but the hyperlinks are fantastic. I’m raring to dive into the 75-150 directors’ pages haha.
Great work !
@KidCharlemagne – thank you very much!
I find the absence of Frank Darabont to be completely inexcusable. To me, The Shawshank Redemption has some really wonderful camerawork. You have it graded as only a Must-See, but there are some cinematically transcendent moments that stand out as masterpiece-worthy to me, such as the scene with the music on the speakers, and the famous escape sequence. Its narrative and screenplay are in the conversation with the best of all time, and Darabont is able to capture all of the necessary emotion.
And that isn’t his only well-acclaimed film: he also did The Green Mile.
@Graham– thanks for the comment. Completely inexcusable huh? I mean Shawshank is superb- and very well directed. Just out of curiosity, who are you moving off this list to make way for Darabont? I had him on my list here- just didn’t quite make the cut in the top 250.
Okay, I will agree “completely inexcusable” was a bit harsh. It was just very surprising for me that I didn’t see his name.
I am not nearly as knowledgeable about film as you, and I have not heard of a lot of the directors on the list, so I cannot say which ones exactly I am moving. I simply feel that of all the good movies I have seen, The Shawshank Redemption seems to stand out as superb filmmaking. I am not the only one who believes this; it is the number one IMDb movie, for starters.
@Graham — thanks again for the comment. Darabont would be somewhere between 250-300 if I kept going (and I do at some point). I’ll have to admit I do not pay much attention to the IMDB list. This is another really good list here worth sharing- http://www.theyshootpictures.com/gf1000_top250directors.htm – I’m not saying this is gospel truth (nor is my own list of course) but they also don’t have a spot for Darabont. There are just a lot of great directors out there.
Hi Drake, I’m a dear fan of your lists. The Lists are very informative & enjoyable. I know no one outside of India heard his name. But, Kasinadhuni Viswanath is a God of South Indian Cinema. His films are aesthetically brilliant & he is one of the few greatest filmmakers who manages style with substance and has very high respect for Arts like Classical Indian Music, Dance & Literature in Telugu Cinema (Not Bollywood). His Greatest Films are (we consider here):
1. Shankarabharanam (1980)
2. Sagara Sangamam (1983)
3. Swathi Muthyam (1986)
4. Swarna Kamalam (1988)
5. Swayam Krushi (1987)
Besides Satyajit Ray, there are many Great Filmmakers in India only if you want know more Indian Culture & Art:
1. K. Balachander (Apoorva Ragangal, Avargal, Maro Charitra & Rudraveena)
2. Guru Dutt (Pyaasa & Kaagaz Ke Phool)
3. Ritwik Ghatak (Meghe Dhaka Tara, )
4. Singeetam Srinivasa Rao (Pushpaka Vimanam, Aditya 369 & Michael Madana Kama Rajan)
5. K. Raghavendra Rao (Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari, Annamayya & Pelli Sandhadi)
6. Shekhar Kapoor (Masoom, Mr. India & Bandit Queen)
7. Maniratnam (Nayakan, Iruvar, Dil Se… & Kannathil Muthamittal)
8. Ram Gopal Varma (Shiva, Kshana Kshanam, Rangeela & Satya)
9. S. S. Rajamouli (Magadheera, Eega & Baahubali 2: The Conclusion)
10. Lijo Jose Pellisery (Angamaly Dairies, Ee Ma Yau & Jallikattu)
{ Majority of our Indian Films are combined with songs, melodrama & comedy. So, if someone gets used to it then, These Great Films are the right place to start in the Whole Wide World }.
@RAVI KIRAN- thank you for the kind works and for sharing this. I’ll keep this here and come back to it– I want to try to catch some of these films and filmmakers. I am actually planning to do a Guru Dutt study in 2021–I’ll be watching as many Guru Dutt films as I can find.
Thanks again for putting this together.
There’s a few in the lower sections of the list that would not make my own. I’d take an Adam McKay, Alex Garland, or Ben Affleck over Tom Hooper, Bennett Miller, or Kenneth Lonergan for instance, but I’m not that interested in arguing at the margins of a tremendous list.
If I were to make any “inexcusible” claims it certainly wouldn’t be for Darabont. Not when Tsai Ming-Liang, Kim Ki-Duk, and Raoul Ruiz are nowhere to be seen. But lists evolve and what we have here is pretty much as good a resource as there is. I’m not about to start making demands… other than Kurosawa jumping up of course. 😉
@Matt Harris- thanks for the comment- appreciate the praise — and I like that you offer some suggestions for those you’d swap. Some I’ve seen the work and they just didn’t quite cut it (like McKay, Garland, Affleck)– McKay and Garland were very close- I hadn’t really considered Affleck but maybe I should (I do love those helicopter shots). And others (Tsai Ming-Liang, Kim Ki-Duk, and Raoul Ruiz) I have work to do yet studying their films before I could put them on.
Since we are with objections haha, i was surprised not to have seen Parajanov have The Color of Pomegranates HR and Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors HR / MS, i have not seen any of them, but the images in the reviews are that exquisite, they certainly have surrealism in common.
What a great list and what a great feature for the site. Can’t even imagine how much work went into this. So many people to check out and get familiar with, so thank you for providing it all in one place.
I have some names I think should have made it though. Except Kusturica who we already talked about, I am surprised to see no Hirokazu Koreeda and Andrey Zvyagintsev on the list. Did they not make it or you didn’t study them yet? Also feel like Claude Chabrol could have made the lower half of the list.
@Chief Keef– thanks for the comment and the note here about the list and site– it means a lot. It was a lot of work– but I enjoyed doing it of course.
Yep- just haven’t caught enough of Kusturica to include him. I’ve seen three films a piece for both Koreeda and Zvyaginstev…. four for Chabrol. In each case just one time viewing of those films a piece. So it is sort of a combination of I didn’t study them enough and they just didn’t make the list. If I had been struck by them or blown away- surely they’d be on the list. But I don’t feel confident saying they definitively shouldn’t be on the list either if that makes sense– not until I’ve had a closer look.
This is great, thank you very much man. I think this is just your best feature on your archives and the most accurate list you have made, objectively speaking. I cannot think of a better list of directors. And each director page has something special. Thank you
@Alejandro- you made me feel great here- thank you for the comment.
I just thought of sort of an odd idea. Who is the equivalent of all these major auteurs as actors and vice-versa? In essence, who has a similar style of performance/direction? Actor-directors such as Welles, Chaplin, and Eastwood would be themselves of course, but besides them it’s interesting to think about. Some ideas to consider:
Kubrick is Daniel Day-Lewis. They don’t make movies very often and their genre/character is always different but they pack quite a powerful punch. Their performance/”cold” direction style is not “friendly” or accessible but quite interesting.
Wes Anderson is Charlie Chaplin (Of course, Chaplin as a director would be himself as an actor). They are whimsical and endlessly entertaining, but also surprisingly emotional, with a one-of-a-kind style/character that they follow every single time.
Fellini is Jack Nicholson. They are very energetic and always doing a version the same clownish worldview/character, but can become quite serious and forthcoming about human nature when it is necessary. Sometimes, narratives/characters finally get their sanity together by the end, while other times they wind up hopeless.
Capra is Henry Fonda. Often noted for moral rigidity, with a sly satirical element in their characters/movies that is not always noticed. Known for being collected and assertive, although they can burst into strong emotion easily as well.
Tarkovsky is Ryan Gosling. Plots/performances are very subtle and don’t quickly shift between events/emotions. Nothing is on the surface, and you must pay attention if you’d like to fully understand the message/character motivation.
Ozu is Ingrid Bergman. A master of subtle emotion, although not so subtle that we don’t understand the feelings portrayed, whose mise-en-scene/face is very beautiful. Foreign audiences may have difficulty grasping the style/voice at first but will become attached to the narrative/character after a short time.
Ophuls is Jimmy Stewart (this is probably not one you expected). The camera/he seem to be always moving and pacing around, making for an energetic ride for the viewer. Although their stylistic/slightly accented voice is very recognizable and unchangeable, they can be comedic, tragic, contemplative, and many other things.
Ingmar Bergman (perhaps David Lynch as well) is Maria Falconetti. Their performance/direction is very expressionistic and surreal. They seem somewhat grim and always obsessed with finding the truth about God. Very meaningful, although you must sift through the unusual character/movies to understand the messages,
Lumet is Leonardo DiCaprio. Prone to sudden bursts of anger, and when they become angry, they are shouting at the audience at loud as they can. Sometimes they have something big to say about the American system (political system, judicial system, corporate system) or about persevering through unexpected events.
Leone is Brad Pitt. Their characters are always trying to look cool, but often slow down for a minute or two at points to analyze their status in the plot/character development. Those who accuse them of constant sameness and being unrealistic can’t seem to notice how well they can adapt to different situations.
John Ford is Humphrey Bogart. They are tough and
Coppola is Gene Hackman. I’m mostly not going with collaborators but they did only one film together. They can be very contemplative but usually have moments of psychologically complex violent events/actions. Their top few movies/performances are all very close in (very high) quality.
Scorsese probably should be De Niro, but for non-collaborators I’d go with Marlon Brando. Their personal voice is very unique and carefully cultivated, but can be altered to whatever they find fits the narrative/character. They can become violent and angry, but are even more often personal and sensitive. Protagonists are often ordinary men who became unusually powerful due to plot circumstances.
Kurosawa probably would be Mifune, but outside of him I’ll say he’s Gloria Swanson. Emotions are heightened to a point of being purposefully urealistic, and characters often grow insane and delusional. They are prepared to show no mercy to people, but feel colorful even when their movies aren’t in color.
Are there any more ideas you’d add? Would any of the ones above work better as an equivalent to a different actor or director?
Wow, I didn’t realize how long that comment was and how many director-actor combinations their were until I posted it. I forgot to finish the Ford/Bogart comparison, though. Here is what I was going to say:
John Ford is Humphrey Bogart. They are tough but sensitive, and characters’ opinions often become clear in a concise shot/line. They claim that their only goal is to entertain, but are being humble about their true artistic merits. Sometimes, characters feel like they might just have to kills others to get what they want
@graham- very good interesting question. first id say that comparing gosling to tarkovsky is an insult to the soviet master. hmm. i’d say spielberg is jack lemmon for his humble gentleness, or ving rhames. dustin hoffman is hitchock for choosing studio films that explore his own personal ideas, howard hawks is harrison ford for making big studio films with great unrealized often films of artistic merit. de palma is jim carrey because they are both misunderstood greats (or adam sandler). marlon brando is orson welles for their poetic genius and tarantino is either robert pattinson or taylor lautner from twilight (maybe even bradley cooper).
Thanks and good additions. Gosling with Tarkovsky is, to me, certainly not an insult. Tarkovsky would certainly be ranked higher among diectors than Gosling among actors, but the later is one of the better subtle, often stone-faced performers in the tradition of Buster Keaton. Drake agrees, putting Gosling as the second-best of the 2010s,
Also, I’ll add another one: Herzog is Joaquin Phoenix. Kinski is the logical option, and there are many parallels between the two actors, but I think Phoenix actually works better. Herzog and Phoenix often explore people going mad, but their films/characters are very different in how they get to that madness. They also heavily deal with the theme of loneliness and feel sort of untouchable and unreachable, but interesting.
Haha this is very interesting @Graham, I wouldn’t put Gosling for Master Tarkovsky, for Lumet it would put Pacino, I will not say that your choices were wrong. some feel strange, but honestly it never would have happened to me.
Yes, I was thinking about Pacino going somewhere and Lumet was my first idea. DiCaprio may not seem very similar to Pacino, but I think he and Lumet work. All three (Al, Leo, Sidney) love to shout.
Who would you put with Tarkovsky, other than Anatoly Sonitsyn, the obvious (and perhaps more correct than Gosling) choice?
Makes no sense after number 5 (remove Hitchcock form 1)
Great list!
I agree with Matt Harris that Kurosawa should be much higher. Really it’s Kubrick, Kurosawa, Hitchcock. Take your pick.
I’d put Tarkovsky higher. He and Bergman are neck and neck.
Not sure about Ozu being so high. “Tokyo Story”, “Late Spring” are great, of course, but something about his static camera which just doesn’t quite work. Kind of like Dreyer’s and Bresson’s asceticism. Cinephiles adore these guys, though, so maybe it’s just not my style.
No love for Herzog? I would place Herzog much higher and Scorsese a bit lower. I think that the two of them are the greatest living, still relevant directors by far. They seem to have a lot in common, too. I’m surprised they don’t get compared much.
But overall, very nice job. Thanks for taking the time to put this together.
I feel like purely as a filmmaker, Herzog is ranked appropriately. However, if documentary work was also considered, Herzog would easily be one of the greatest of all time. Lessons of Darkness is absolutely gorgeous. Absolutely incredible. His other documentary work is also good.
However, based on all his films (Aguirre etc), a top 40 rank (at 40) is perfect for Herzog.
Drake, I’m just wondering; why don’t you mention Pressburger and Gene Kelly for the films they co-directed? I’m curious because Donen and Powell are mentioned on your list. Pressburger and Kelly helped out a bit while directing too.
I’m sorry for being picky Drake. This was something small I noticed.
Your list is mostly incredible and the directors are placed appropriately.
What are some of the best films you know of that are directed by multiple directors? Do you know if there’s a reason why most directors prefer directing on their own?
You’re right here Azman, why do the Coens count together and the others don’t? Blood Simple, Raising Arizona, Fargo, the Big Lebowski the credited director is Joel Coen, you still count those movies for both.
@Azman and @Aldo– you’re partially right and partially wrong. I should list them on the individual film pages (as I do here) http://thecinemaarchives.com/2020/04/10/i-know-where-im-going-1945-powell-pressburger/ and on the year by year archives (like I’ve done with some of Buster Keaton’s co-directors as I update the yearly pages. But Donen directed films Kelly didn’t and that’s why he’s on the 250 list and Kelly isn’t. Pressburger is well known as the financial side of the Powell and Pressburger tandem as I explain on the Powell page. http://thecinemaarchives.com/2019/05/14/the-35th-best-director-of-all-time-michael-powell/ . It is also well known that (up until now) the Coen brothers share their writing/acting/producing duties.
@Drake, Gene Kelly co directed Singin in the rain, Its always fair weather and On the Town with Stanley Donen.
Other movies he has directed or co-directed are:
Invitation to the dance
Happy Road
The tunnel of love
Gigot
A guide for the married man
Hello Dolly
The Cheyenne Social club
That’s entertainment part 2.
I don’t know if these ‘non-Donen’ films are archiveable, but Kelly had quite a big role with directing the musicals with Donen. He helped choreograph the dance scenes (especially in SIngin in the rain). Kelly decided some shots too and how to shoot them. Perhaps the most famous dance scene in cinema history was choreographed by Kelly and some shots too
@Azman- Thanks–I’m aware. Happy with how I have things here.
This is crazy stat, I mentioned Lang with Metropolis and M, but we could well declare Anderson the best of all and close the book, the 14 directors in front of him have never given the best movie of the year more than 3 times the exception is Coppola, Anderson gave the best movie of the year 5 times
Hitchcock 3: 1935, 1951, 1958
Kubrick 3: 1968, 1971, 1987
Bergman 2: 1957, 1966
Fellini 2: 1960, 1963
Scorsese 3: 1976, 1980, 1990 although you could also give 2019
Coppola 4: 1972, 1974, 1979, 1983
Welles 1: 1941
Ford 2: 1940, 1956
Kurosawa 2: 1950, 1954
Truffaut 1: 1959
Renoir 2: 1937, 1939
Anderson 5: 1997, 1999, 2002, 2007, 2012
Tarkovsky, Ozu and Antonioni they add up to a total of zero, they never gave the best movie of the year
@Aldo- very interesting. Others are going to have different #1 films of the year (even I am going to make some changes as I update my year by year archives) but this is still fascinating. Thank you for compiling.
Well i did this based on the Archives by year section, taking the movie that appears in the cover, so i don’t know how much it changes when you update it, although i must confess Tarkovsky’s statistics makes me very sad.
What do you think is due to Anderson’s crazy 5 statistic, you mention that there is no one equal to his generation and i agree, do you think it’s because he has no competition? because for example Hitchcock had bad luck, you mention his crazy career 58,59,60 but only in one of those years was he the best, but this is due to the amount of good directors working, in 54 he lost to 7 samurai, very movies good / rare that hardly appear, also Stalker would be the best movie of the year in +90 times, the same Manhattan, but they are unlucky that Apocalypse now came out that year, in the 50s and 60s there were several directors of the same level Hitchcock, Kurosawa, Godard, Fellini, Antonioni, Truffaut, Anderson belongs to that group, but in an era where he is alone
@Aldo- I mean I find it interesting- but it isn’t a declarative statement about which filmmakers are the best. I’m doing 1932 next (after 1931 of course) and there isn’t a film on the level of 1931’s M (which came runner-up so to speak in 1931). I may have had Full Metal Jacket as the best film of 1987 but there are a number of films from 2007 or 1960 (just way stronger years) better.
As for Tarkvosky, I have Stalker in my top 10 of all-time. So don’t feel too sad. haha. And when I update 1983- Nostalgia will be #1 so he’ll have at least one year as #1.
As for PT Anderson- I do think he’s the greatest of his generation. But he has a ton of competition (from Cuaron, Fincher, Tarantino, Wes Anderson for starters) but I’m not sure any generation, before or after, can compare with the late 1950’s and early 1960’s at the top
Drake, i want to apologize sincerely if i made you feel like i don’t appreciate the site. this is specifically in reference to a comment i posted yesterday on your back to the future page where i wrote ‘why aren’t there more images on this review’ and you replied ‘whats wrong with THIS one.’ i apologize, as i did not mean to offend you. i and everyone else who visits this site respects or should the hard work you put into it. all the movies you watch, your knowledge of the art form, allowing civil discourse, it is all very appreciates and as i said i respect what you do. i will take a break from commenting for a long spell and i think just focus on growing, watching more films and such. i don’t want to offend anyone, certainly not anyone who is this dedicated hardworking and passionate.
The Top 250 directors is now a quiz on JetPunk! This time, you have the countries from which the directors came as clues.
https://www.jetpunk.com/user-quizzes/259519/the-cinema-archives-top-250-directors
@Graham– this is so cool. Thank you
A really wonderful list you have put together here, only outdone by the depth of study and focus you have done for each director on it. Any plans for what your next big ranking might be? I have seen a few ideas being tossed around in these comments like screenplays and directors ranked between 251-500, but do you know what you’re drawn to most yet?
@Declan- thanks for the kind words. I’m updating the year by year archives right now (last did it in 2017) and then I’m not sure after that. I do find myself drawn to the auteur/director aspect of things but people do love the actor rankings, too. We’ll see. I’m only on 1939 right now- doing 2-3 a week so this will take me some time to work my way through things and I can think about it
Chaplin directed amazing movies in silent era and after that.. For me, is on my top 5. He touches both eras as no director ever made, and directed great pics (Modern Times, the Great Dictator.. so many..)
Hi @Efren. Who are the other 4?
Interesting, i wonder what Drake would say about this, he calls having Chaplin at #16 ridiculous
You’ve mentioned a small number of films that you think could rightfully be called the single greatest of all time when examined thoroughly. How long do you think the list of directors is that you would accept as number one? How far down the list would it take until you think you could argue against a person’s choice? I know it must be a little farther than twelve, or else you would have parted ways with Matt Harris years ago (Although you’ve implied Kurosawa may be moving up now that you’ve finished your study). What about actors and actresses, or even some other occupations like cinematographers and writers?
@Graham- Interesting. I’m not sure there is a set number But I’d say if you get too far past 25 then either I’m missing something (which can happen- I was wrong or uninformed when it came to Ozu a few years ago) or we’re using different criteria (and at that point I’d disagree with the criteria being used). It may be a little deeper than that for actors and actresses.
I know this website is all about making lists- and hey- I love doing them, debating them— but to it is more about admiring the work from all of them and trying to be as specific as possible (sometimes down to the minute in a film or the frame from the film or a camera movement) as the the reason. Who is worthy of admiration and study and where do you start if you had to prioritize your time? It doesn’t get me too worked up debating Hitchcock vs. Welles or whomever. Why are they in the top tier? Who else is with them? and so on.
I completely agree, and thanks for responding. Admiring and enjoying cinema is much more about just that – enjoyment and admiration – than specificity and analytics. I couldn’t set such a number myself, anyway. Sometimes it is fun to pay attention to the specific moments and superiority of a person’s skills over another, and sometimes I just like to sit back and appreciate the majesty of the movies. That’s “There’s nothing else, just us, and the cameras, and those wonderful people out there in the dark.” And there can also be times of “All right, Mr. (or Ms.) DeMille (or Kubrick, or Coppola, or Hepburn, or Lubezki), I’m ready for my close-up (or filmography study)!”
@Graham- yep we’re on the same page. And I mean if you read my feelings on like director #199 or #228– I’m mean I’m pretty passionate about their work, filmography, style to study and admire. It isn’t like I spend the whole time on the page complaining why they aren’t Kubrick or Tarkovsky. That isn’t the point there. There are so many great directors to discover.
great list, just think Alain Resnais is somehow forgotten there… so sad he is one of my favorites
@Pedro – thanks for visiting the site and for the comment. So Resnais on the list- at #142. But your comment may be saying that he is underrated at #142. I did a quick study of Resnais’ available work in the spring of 2020 so if you search “Resnais” you’ll get my pages for a handful of films. He will be moving up the list the next time I update it based on this study.
Happy to see Hitchcock at the top spot, but why is Rob Reiner so low?
You can click on the director’s name in the list to learn about Drake’s (the creator of the site) opinions. Here is Reiner’s page: http://thecinemaarchives.com/2020/08/08/the-241st-best-director-of-all-time-rob-reiner/. He can explain it better, but Reiner simply does not have the stylistic mastery of cinema to be a top-tier director.
Drake, you’ve always maintained that your best actors lists are different than a “most talented actors” list because a less talented person may have a superb filmography and vice-versa. In theory, how would a most talented directors list for you look? Would that be the same as a list ranking “style-plus” directors? Who might be a rough top five for you on such a list?
@Graham- that’s interesting … The next time I update it I could see whose filmography is rated lowest in comparison with their overall landing spot on the list– that may tell me something. I don’t think I’d get outside of the top 10-20 though to get to those 5 for your list
It would not be something like Tati or Kalatozov that their films are unique but they do not have much depth of work.
Usually the best directors are not the most mediocre.
The ten most talented directors are the top 10.
Usually won’t find low-talented directors like Chaplin being the best, it just doesn’t make sense, to make many of the best movies you need to be the most talented.
You can make a very good movie like many, but you just won’t find the best movies made by untalented directors, just take a look at the top 20, almost all of them are made up of the top 10 directors, it’s called luck in some cases, but luck doesn’t strike many times as you can see with Stanley Donen
Here’s another interesting exercise I just envisioned. What can be considered the signature shot of each of these talented auteurs, or the one that most defines their work? This is not necessarily the same as their greatest shot. I will go in order mentioning the ones for which I have an idea.
Hitchcock – I think the iconic shot of Cary Grant running away from the crop duster epitomizes the master of suspense perfectly.
Kubrick – It is difficult to choose a single image. Perhaps the opening shot of A Clockwork Orange? Semi-symmetrical, unforgiving, and including that famous Kubrickian stare. Another is the pilot riding on the bomb as it falls in Dr. Strangelove.
Bergman – The dance of death is the most memorable, but the choice for Bergman must be some sort of arrangement of faces. I select the beautiful moment in Persona in which the two leads’ silhouetted heads lean together.
Ozu – Every shot in an Ozu film could be regarded as his signature shot. Ebert mentions a simple shot in Tokyo Story where two pairs of shoes are sitting in the hallway of the resort to which the elderly leads traveled to “rest” – perhaps his best “pillow shot.”
I will have more soon.
@Graham- love the exercise. So tough to pick just one. On my 250 individual director pages I’m obviously trying to do this (but I can pick 2, 3 and in some cases can’t help myself and get to 15-20- haha). Of course I could be missing some and some (tough increasing less and less) could be hard to find images of
Continued from the above comment:
Fellini – Any shot that satirizes life as a whole could suffice for this choice. The scene at the end of 8 1/2 where the characters dance around in a circus seems to embody this idea best, but Guido floating away from the sweaty traffic jam in the same film and Marcello wading into the fountain in La Dolce Vita are just as perfect.
Scorsese – The Copa shot in Goodfellas and the one that tracks over to the empty hallway in Taxi Driver are wonderful, but perhaps not the most characteristic of his style. I’ll go with the slow motion (very Scorsesian) moment in the final fight scene of Raging Bull where De Niro leans in waiting on the bars.
Coppola – The superimposed image of Sheen’s upside down head on the exploding forest constitutes my favorite opening sequence in cinema. Effective camera angles, dissolve editing, a contemplative protagonist, and superb openings are characteristic of Coppola.
Tarkovsky – The “candle shot” in Nostalghia of the poet walking back and forth for nine minutes is something absolutely no one but Tarkovsky would have the guts to do, but I think the choice must be the stunning wide shot of the room in Stalker with mounds of sand. Green-gray color scheme and the floor as an element of composition.
Ford – The doorway shot in The Searchers. Duh.
Kurosawa – The image of the swing through the jungle gym in Ikiru is an impeccable one and the old lord walking out of the burning castle in Ran is another, but I will lobby for what may be my favorite closing shot in cinema in Seven Samurai.
Truffaut – It’s pretty obviously the freeze frame that closes The 400 Blows. This gives us three in a row that are the final shot in a movie.
PT Anderson – The Master’s shot of Freddie lying above the sailors on the boat may be Anderson’s most beautiful, but I think Daniel being forced to recount his sins in the church in There Will Be Blood best epitomizes his thematic and visual style.
Ophuls – It must be an energetic tracking shot for Max Ophuls. Perhaps the opening of The Earrings of Madame de…?
Lynch – This one is not as obvious a choice. Perhaps the shot in Mulholland Drive’s Club Silencio where everything becomes dark blue? This incorporates Lynch’s dark, odd and haunting use of color and setting.
Dreyer – The shot to define Dreyer’s work must be a close-up with evocative mise-en-scene. How about the one of Joan praying with the cross behind her in The Passion of Joan of Arc?
Continued again:
Leone – One of Leone’s trademark extreme close-ups might seem better, but I think the frame near the beginning of OUaTitW where Frank’s three duelists square off with Harmonica may be a signature shot for him.
Wong – The saturated orangey image of Cheung and Leung standing by the wall of the hallway beautified by the shadows of bars in ITMFL seems to best illustrate Wong’s mood oriented color design and calm film structuring.
Malick – Any shot in a Malick movie, or at least any focusing on nature (a.k.a. any shot in a Malick movie) would suffice. Perhaps the terrific composition in Days of Heaven where the six silhouetted men are situated in the fields by the mansion watching the locusts rise above is my favorite.
Murnau – Either the shadow of Nosferatu creeping up the stairs or the Man in gazing at the moon by the lake (two in a row shots of silhouette men in fields looking at something above them) in Sunrise is perfect for Murnau. I will select the latter as I believe it includes Murnau’s wonderful gliding camera movement.
Allen – Do I really have to do this (sorry, that’s a reference to a film by the next director :)? It is certainly the iconic photography of Woody and Keaton sitting on a bench by the Queensboro Bridge.
Spielberg – There are many options, but the brilliant silhouette of E.T. and Elliott biking across the moon at night is impossible to resist. Quite Spielbergian.
Beginning here, the number of directors for whom I can decide becomes sparser. I will choose some random ones I can think of quickly for now.
Lean – The beautiful frame of Gasim staggering away into the sunset may be Lean’s most gorgeous shot, but one earlier in Lawrence of Arabia better illustrates his epic scope. It is the extreme wide shot of the dunes with two tiny figures in the distance that introduces us to Arabia.
Altman – Altman is known for his reliance on steady, calm zoom lens usage and his expansive amounts of characters. The shot of Tomlin in the back of the bar in Nashville incorporates both traits.
De Sica – I don’t believe that the moment where Antonio and his son hopelessly sit onto the curb in Bicycle Thieves is the film’s single greatest, but it is certainly the most iconic
Fincher – He is known for dark ligting and subtle color creation, both of which appear in nearly every shot. The final shot of Fight Club watching the effects of Tyler’s scheming may be the epitome of Fincher’s style.
Kieslowski – The choice here must be one with brilliant use of primary colors and fine-tuned formal significance. Any of the shots of the blue mobile in Blue embody these ideas quite well.
Griffith – The crane shot of the massive Babylon gate in Intolerance is the best choice here. Expansive and epic.
Sorry to be flooding the comments, but the site will not allow me to put it all in one entry.
Herzog – Kinski’s speech leaning against the tree in Aguirre is haunting, psychological, and minimalist. Very Herzogian (who says you can’t make an -ian out of every director’s name?).
Bertolucci – The shot of the many-windowed corridor in The Conformist is an immaculate composition and work of lighting like all of Bertolucci’s ouevre.
Mann – De Niro leaning on the post by the window in Heat is a justifiably iconic image. It includes Mann’s trademark use of dark blue as well.
Scott – Blade Runner has Ridley’s famous smoky shadows in all its shots. The one with Rachel holding the cigarette in her hand is a masterful use of lighting.
Peckinpah – Although Peckinpah is mostly known for editing, he slow walk of the four uncaptured members of the group to retrieve their kidnapped comrade is famous for other reasons.
Cuaron – Children of Men and Gravity have many perfect Cuaronian (as I said with Herzog, I’ll make any name an adjective if I like) moments, but the obvious choice is the tracking shot of the family hugging on the beach in Roma. Breathtaking photography and style.
W. Anderson – It must be something symmetrical with bold color design. Perhaps the shot of Monsieur Gustave smiling at the concierge dest of the Grand Budapest?
Tati – There is a composition in Playtime with a man walking down a long hallway in half the frame and two men having a conversation in another. It is a perfect mise-en-scenal (I can make adjectives out of other kinds of nouns, too!) creation.
Gilliam – The fisheye lens shot of the man wearing the baby mask in Brazil’s torture chamber is exactly the absurdism that make his movies so wonderful.
Chaplin – You must have more restraint than any other human on this planet if you have the ability to refrain from laughing at any point in City Lights’ boxing scene.
S. Coppola – The everlasting loneliness of Charlotte sitting next to the window in Lost in Translation is the easy contender here.
Demme – The Silence of the Lambs’ creative close-up shot of Clarice with Hannibal reflected on the glass next to her is the best illustration of Demme’s style.
That’s enough for now. Have I made the correct choices? What may be the signature shot for some of the auteurs I missed?
@Graham– man– I am enjoying this. thank you!
Olivier Assayas
Have you seen films from Jean Marie Straub and Danielle Huillet ? If yes, what is your opinion ? I’m looking forward to get to them but I don’t think the films are easy to find.
*I looked again and I was wrong, many of his films are on YouTube. I also found 12 in Grasshopper.
@Cinephile- I have not seen them. I’ve been looking for them but yeah- not easy to find. You and others can probably teach me about finding stuff on YouTube. I know it varies by geography/region but aside from some public domain silent stuff in high quality I’ve stayed away from youtube as a resource. Perhaps I’m missing out
Have you seen Andrzej Zulawski films or specifically On the Silver Globe?
@Cinephile– I have not– I’ve been hunting for Possession for a long time
The next time you update your list, which directors do you think will move up or down?
@Azman- well first off directors with really strong films between 2009-2020 (and newer) will climb. I used my top 500 as the main skeleton for my top 250 directors list and I have that 10 year moratorium. But beyond that- certainly it feels like Kurosawa will climb, definitely Visconti… I enjoyed the Jarmusch study but he will fall a little (certainly Visconti will go past him)– I’m not sure on others… I haven’t decided what to do next after I update the year by year archives (currently on 1951 so there is a ways to go).
What is your opinion on vulgar auteurism?
@Cinephile- haha interesting- I haven’t heard the term in a few years- it was quite a topic (in cinephile circles) in 2012-2013 I think. I think it is just largely an extension of the normal auteur theory championed by the Cahiers Du Cinema critics and Andrew Sarris— they all saw themselves as finding consistencies throughout a directors work- regardless of genre, budget, popularity and championing those that deserved to be championed— I’d like to think that’s what I’m trying to do in my own little humble way as well (certainly not putting myself in the company of these giants)… what are your thoughts?
@Drake– I find the theory quite interesting. I think many cinephiles, me too when I finally got serious about cinema, have a bias against genres. It’s interesting since many of us cinema lovers, in the before-serious-with-cinema period, we loved the movies that fall into the vulgar auteurism category, then when we finally discover and watch Tarkovsky and Bergman, we become these snobbish pricks that all of a sudden are biased against the films that wouldn’t qualify as “serious” artistic achievements. But then, our cinephilia becomes more mature and we finally appreciate everything. Wow. Quite a journey–haha. I support vulgar auteurism. Especially here in Greece, the local critical community is incredibly skewed on the genres. I’m not saying that every “vulgar” movie must be championed, because many people, in their attempt to be these kinds of controversial or contrarian cinephiles go in the other side and find a masterpiece out of a bad movie. Every film is a craft and must be evaluated as such. To conclude, I’m beginning my journey with the “vulgar” movies, I’ll give them attention probably starting with Paul W.S. Anderson movies and we’ll see from there.
Happy new year guys!
@Cinephile– happy near year to you as well– I agree with you here. But do you see a big difference between “vulgar” auteurism — and the auteur theory in general– I mean if you go back two decades before the phrase with what Tarantino was doing praising genre films, De Palma— or even further back the French critics praising Hitchcock and coining the phrase “noir” for B-movies after WW2? I don’t. I mean I have Refn’s Only God Forgives firmly in my top 100 of the 2010’s as an example— anyways- please report back if you find any films or particular directors worthy of a closer look
@Drake– I fully agree here, you make a great point. Yesterday, I saw The Grey, which I’ve seen people categorize as vulgar auteurism. It’s great, the best film in the Neeson action persona in the last decade or so. Maybe I’ll go in the 2011 page and write more about it.
I Haven’t seen as many films as you’ve seen. But, According to me,
Top 10 Greatest Filmmakers of all Time are:
1. Stanley Kubrick
2. Ingmar Bergman
3. Alfred Hitchcock
4. Kasinadhuni Viswanath
5. Akira Kurosawa
6. Federico Fellini
7. Andrei Tarkovsky
8. Martin Scorsese
9. Jean-Luc Godard
10. Steven Spielberg
@RAVI KIRAN – thanks for visiting the site and for the comment here. This is a great list of filmmakers– I haven’t seen any films from Kasinadhuni Viswanath or heard of him– any particular film to start with if I can locate his films?
If a director were to make a brilliant style-plus film that was the best of all-time or at least on the level of 2001, Apocalypse Now, and such, but then never make another movie at all, where would they land?
I’ve written way too many comments today haha.
@Graham- well it isn’t on the level of 2001 but Andrew Dominik with The Assassination of Jesse James may be the closest example…. he has a couple of other archiveable films (and a new one coming in 2021 that i’m excited about) but the other archiveable films don’t land in the top 20 of their year so this is pretty much it. I have him at 200 here– so certainly if someone made 2001 and that was it– I’d have him/her on the list, and higher than Dominik— I’m not sure how high I’d have to go– Carol Reed at #118?
How much does having a masterpiece or multiple masterpieces, rather than simply a great body of work, impact a director’s placing? If that question is too unspecific, imagine this hypothetical situation (all I seem to ask on this site are hypothetical situations haha): there is a director who has made 20-30 must-see films, but none that rise to the MP level. Using your filmography ranking scale, I would assume this director would land at or near the very top, but the lack work in the very top tier would seem concerning. Roughly where would this director fall on the general list? I know such a director would be unlikely to occur, but it is fascinating to consider.
I’m not Drake, but if you have a shitload of MSs that would mean you’re a great director, a reaaaaaally great director even, but if you don’t have at least 1-2 MPs than can you really be THE best director? Just a thought.
Personally, I’d expect them in the top 20.
@Graham— I think 20-30 Must-See’s is what changes this. I think I have Fassbinder with 5 Must-See’s (I actually think he has at least one masterpiece now but that’s a different conversation) and he’s at #51 on my list. 20-30 is a crazy number– the last time I updated my top 500 Hitchcock had the most total films– so this hypothetical person would pass Hitchcock— even without a masterpiece I don’t see how you could keep them out of the top 10
If you ever get the chance, try to watch Nikos Nikolaidis’s films. One of the best filmmakers to come out of Greece. He makes a truly divergent cinema compared to other Greek movies. They never made films like his in the country.