Community Recommendations

Re:Favorite Director

   Obviously, this entire subject of "best director" is completely subjective and based on what one considers to be a "good" or a "great" film.   I chose Peter Jackson ENTIRELY based on what he did with  The Lord of the Rings  series even though the rest of his filmography is not very good to say the least.

   But, if I were to pick a favorite director based on CONSISTENTLY putting out "good" or "great" films, that honor would have to go to John Carpenter...   in a close tie with George Romero.   I have yet to see a movie by EITHER of those directors that I DIDN'T like!   I think Carpenter has the edge because he directed MORE movies that were at least as good as anything Romero ever did.   Halloween  was nothing short of a masterpiece and always ranks near the top of any of my "favorite movie" lists.

   For myself, I automatically disqualify such "art-house" directors as Bergman and Truffeau and even Kurasawa (and, yes, I HAVE seen films by each of these directors but they are not quite my cup of tea...   I perhaps enjoy the violence of Kurasawa the best but foriegn movies like this are just not my thing...)

   So that leaves Steven Spielberg and Clint Eastwood.   Both of these gentlemen have directed some true masterpieces that will live forever but both have directed some real stinkers as well.   Spielberg directed  JAWS  which is one of the BEST movies ever made and, his very first movie,  DUEL  was another great one.   But, he also directed  Artificial Intelligence: AI ,  Jurassic Park ,  Hook and  ET !

   Clint Eastwood directed himself in some of the BEST movies ever put on film including ;   High Plains Drifter ,  The Eiger Sanction ,  The Outlaw Josey Wales ,  The Gauntlet ,  Sudden Impact and  UNFORGIVEN !   But, he also directed  Space Cowboys ,  The Bridges of Maddison County ,  Honkytonk Man and  Bronco Billy !

   SO, based on the criteria of CONSISTANTLY putting out "good" or "great" movies, that leaves only Carpenter and Romero for me.   I choose Carpenter based mostly on sheer volume and the fact that some of his best ones were at least as good as anything by Romero.

   HORROR RULES !

                                                                        < GOR >

Re:Favorite Director

Gor,

I didn't mean to define how you define what a great director is. I was just giving my own opinion as to what I think defines a great director.

I really admire Peter Jackson for his direction of the LOTR trilogy. It is a masterpiece. I guess I also have to recognize that the process making a films, with all of the variables (different actors, producers, budgets, crews, screenwriters, etc., etc.) it is incredibly difficult to continually be the director of really good films. So those directors who happen to accomplish such feats are either incredibly lucky (which could happen) or incredibly talented, and maybe a bit of both.

Of course personal taste in films will strongly determine your feelings, but if a certain director is able to make movies you really like over and over again, then I'd say they're probably your favorite. Doesn't that make sense?

Re:Favorite Director

rjsprague:

Gor,

I didn't mean to define how you define what a great director is. I was just giving my own opinion as to what I think defines a great director.

I really admire Peter Jackson for his direction of the LOTR trilogy. It is a masterpiece. I guess I also have to recognize that the process making a films, with all of the variables (different actors, producers, budgets, crews, screenwriters, etc., etc.) it is incredibly difficult to continually be the director of really good films. So those directors who happen to accomplish such feats are either incredibly lucky (which could happen) or incredibly talented, and maybe a bit of both.

Of course personal taste in films will strongly determine your feelings, but if a certain director is able to make movies you really like over and over again, then I'd say they're probably your favorite. Doesn't that make sense?

   Hey, Ryan!

   I think that is what I just said...   but maybe in a longer form...

Re:Favorite Director

Tough question! 

Its hard for me to pick an overall best, as I tend to have favorites in every genre.  Can I cheat and pick a Top 5? :-}

1. Sergio Leone

2. Quentin Tarantino

3. Wes Andersen

4. Darren Aronofsky

5. Tim Burton

I guess now that I think about it, if I were to give anyone an "overall" title, it would probably be Burton for the amount and variety of work he's done.  I really enjoyed his action/horror/comic adaptations, but also some of his more "heartfelt" work like Big Fish, one of my all-time favorite films.

Re:Favorite Director

My favorite director(s) is the Coen brothers.  Not much else to say about that, but I did make a thread in my director's group about ranking your favorite directors.  I used a homemade algorithm.  I'll probably be updating this thread within the next year soon with some new posts actually, for anyone who could care:

My favorite directors (by algorithm)

Re:Favorite Director

Risselada:

My favorite director(s) is the Coen brothers.  Not much else to say about that, but I did make a thread in my director's group about ranking your favorite directors.  I used a homemade algorithm.  I'll probably be updating this thread within the next year soon with some new posts actually, for anyone who could care:

My favorite directors (by algorithm)

Yeah I remember reading through that stuff. It is really interesting.

Let's see. My favorite director... is Wes Anderson. :)

I love every one of his films, and they are all unique in their own way. I love his sense of humor. I think most people think it's too dry, or understate, but it makes me laugh and laugh. His body of work isn't as large as some directors, and he hasn't garnered much acclaim, but I still would say he is my favorite director of all time. (At least for now.)

Re:Favorite Director

It's a toss up between these two:

Christopher Nolan

The Dark Knight (2008)

The Prestige (2006)

Batman Begins (2005)

Memento (2000)

Insomnia (2002) (have not seen this one)

Following (1998)

Nolan is so smart--he sees the big picture so he tells the story without distracting flaws; it's like he holds the script to the same standards as a classic novel. Yet he also pays great atttention to detail.

Mike Leigh (b. 1943 England)

Secrets & Lies (96)

Career Girls (97) (Have not seen this one)

Topsy-Turvey (99)

All or Nothing (02)

Vera Drake (04)

Happy-Go-Lucky (08)

Under the influence of the wonderful Happy-Go-Lucky, I finally admit that Mike Leigh's unorthodox way of creating films works like a charm for him and for me.

Re:Favorite Director

JimBell:

It's a toss up between these two:

Christopher Nolan

The Dark Knight (2008)

The Prestige (2006)

Batman Begins (2005)

Memento (2000)

Insomnia (2002) (have not seen this one)

Following (1998)

Nolan is so smart--he sees the big picture so he tells the story without distracting flaws; it's like he holds the script to the same standards as a classic novel. Yet he also pays great atttention to detail.

Mike Leigh (b. 1943 England)

Secrets & Lies (96)

Career Girls (97) (Have not seen this one)

Topsy-Turvey (99)

All or Nothing (02)

Vera Drake (04)

Happy-Go-Lucky (08)

Under the influence of the wonderful Happy-Go-Lucky, I finally admit that Mike Leigh's unorthodox way of creating films works like a charm for him and for me.

Interesting choices Jim. I really enjoy Christopher Nolan's films as well. My favorite is probably The Prestige actually, I guess that's weird, but I felt that it was such an amazing film. Just as you say, it was like a great novel, a page-turner, which kept you at the edge of your seat.

Re:Favorite Director

rjsprague:

JimBell:

It's a toss up between these two:

Christopher Nolan

The Dark Knight (2008)

The Prestige (2006)

Batman Begins (2005)

Memento (2000)

Insomnia (2002) (have not seen this one)

Following (1998)

Nolan is so smart--he sees the big picture so he tells the story without distracting flaws; it's like he holds the script to the same standards as a classic novel. Yet he also pays great atttention to detail.

Mike Leigh (b. 1943 England)

Secrets & Lies (96)

Career Girls (97) (Have not seen this one)

Topsy-Turvey (99)

All or Nothing (02)

Vera Drake (04)

Happy-Go-Lucky (08)

Under the influence of the wonderful Happy-Go-Lucky, I finally admit that Mike Leigh's unorthodox way of creating films works like a charm for him and for me.

Interesting choices Jim. I really enjoy Christopher Nolan's films as well. My favorite is probably The Prestige actually, I guess that's weird, but I felt that it was such an amazing film. Just as you say, it was like a great novel, a page-turner, which kept you at the edge of your seat.

 Can i second your choice of Mike Leigh ..head and shoulders above the rest last year alone with "Happy Go Lucky"...(you must see "Career Girls",it's akin to "Happy" ,with "mannered " but "realsitic" female characters). Suprised you dont include "Naked" .. Back to "Happy Go Lucky" ,those who dont "get" it ,well thats a relationship breaker.

Re:Favorite Director

It is too bad that this potentially awesome web group did not take off. IN a general sense ( I'm an outsider), the initial idea was superb--get "mavens" to recommend movies, as opposed to generic ratins. However, this innovative concep5t  seems to have disintegrated. Although I do not know exactly why, it has someting to do with Bureaucracy and how the idea was pitched ot Bureaucarcy. Oh, well.