The 167th Best Director of All-Time: James Ivory
Ivory. James Ivory is the director of the Merchant Ivory brand- and it is a brand- a clear and distinct style and taste. Ismail Merchant is the producer and James Ivory is most often credited
Two Days, One Night – 2014 Dardenne
The perfect marriage of this era’s greatest cinematic realists (The Dardenne brothers) and perhaps this generation’s most gifted actress (Marion Cotillard). This is their first time working with a “star”. I thought of Ingrid Bergman’s
The 166th Best Director of All-Time: Tim Burton
Burton. Eight films with Burton’s unmissable gothic fingerprint is the reason he lands on this list. He doesn’t have a top 500 of all-time film (and unlike some others I’m pretty certain of that) and
Muriel, or the Time of Return – 1963 Resnais
Similar to Hiroshima Mon Amour and Last Year at Maridenbad in some regards (meditating on memory, a playful deconstruction of traditional plot and character motivations)—Muriel, of the Time of Return makes the tragic mistake, immeasurably
The 165th Best Director of All-Time: John Woo
Woo. Woo’s case is his unabashed style and depth of filmography—there aren’t too many style-plus auteurs left this far down the list with a fourth best film as good as Hard Boiled or fifth as
Nighthawks – 1981 Malmuth
If you love The French Connection, Serpico, and The Day of the Jackal--- you’ll really like NighthawksStallone is clearly imitating Pacino here, has Serpico’s facial hair, undercover NYC cop (dressing up multiple times to blend
Last Year at Marienbad – 1961 Resnais
A convincing case could be made for Resnais’ Last Year at Marienbad to be called the most attractive work of cinema of all-time—a formal, stylistic, and visual sonic boom an interior shot as good
Hiroshima Mon Amour – 1959 Resnais
Resnais started Hiroshima Mon Amour as a documentary (he had made shorts and documentaries before but this is his debut) and then he integrates that into a brilliant blend of an almost David Lean-like Brief
The 164th Best Director of All-Time: Alexander Payne
Payne. Lists like these are often unkind to comedies and comedic filmmakers but Alexander Payne’s resume and talents as an auteur can’t be ignored any further. Like so many others he burst onto he scene
Patty Hearst – 1988 Schrader
There are two films here within one—the opening first 30 minutes or so, the part where she is captured and held capture is brilliant cinema- a fever dream montage of arresting images, lighting and camera
Joker – 2019 Phillips
first viewing October 2019--- 2.0 March 2020A very notable artistic accomplishment by both Todd Phillips and Joaquin PhoenixPhoenix’s work is easier to tackle but I still feel like you could easily write 2000 words on
Steamboat Bill, Jr. – 1928 Buster Keaton and Charles Reisner
It begins with a strong 180-degree panoramic pan shot and quickly, like Keaton’s sophomore and breakout feature Our Hospitality, we’re introduced to two rival men and families- King and Stonewall Jackson. And like Our Hospitality,