Well, i could do with seeing more by Rocha- at least Terra em Transe is near the top of my rental list and should be on the way soon. Black God White Devil is a striking film that sets out for and achieves something new and distinctively Brazilian (though there are hints of Leone, Godard, even Fellini.)
Anyway:
1.Mizoguchi
2.Tarkovsky
3.Renoir
4.Ozu
5.Hitchcock
6.Rohmer
7.Oliveira
8.Angelopoulos
9.Kubrick (he’s been gradually slipping)
10.
now this is hard, between 5 or 6, and i can’t even mention the ones who don’t make it?
oh, ok Ophuls, cos he could do with a bit more of the spotlight. His films are seen as romantic confections, to be enjoyed for their exquisite decor and camerawork but not to be taken too seriously, which is a pity. There’s a strong critical fashion for the antithesis of (ever increasing) Hollywood excess at present.
Further on your list. I respect Brakhage’s prolific independence but i’ve yet to be really wowed by anything. I would like to see Scenes from Under Childhood. I have seen several of his best known films, along with hand-painted shorts, and was underwhelmed, i wonder why the blind spot, but which do you especially recommend? He believed sound interfered with the process of actually looking, but i happen to like the musical hand-painted shorts of Len Lye and Norman Mclaren more, as well as the European avant-garde of the 20s and 30s. Dreyer- so i can mention him here- is great. Give me his top 5 ahead of Bergman’s any day. Then again, Bergman had a very impressive overall filmography. Fellini and Bresson are two i often struggle with, at least compared with their great reputations; very different on the surface and in temperament, both are unmistakeable auteurs, i happen to prefer some directors whose styles are less distinctive. Rivette i do like, but must see L’Amour Fou and Out One, which get very high ratings here
Hmm. Well, I guess you can have noborable mentions.
And definitely see Out 1.
Wait—since I’ve just allowed runner-ups, I guess I should mention Tarkvsky, Resnais, Bergman and Altman.
In my 33 years of film watching, based on the films I have loved the most, these directors have directed a majority of my favorites.
Preston Sturges
Alfred Hitchcock
Pedro Almodovar
Martin Ritt
Woody Allen
Orson Welles
Roman Polanski
Billy Wilder
John Ford
Peter Bogdanovich
Clint Eastwood
I can’t do just 10 so I’ll do 10 who peaked PRE-1970 and 10 who peaked (or are peaking) post-1970
In order of height (not really)
PRE 1970:
Billy Wilder
Elia Kazan
Orson Welles
Jean Pierre Melville
John Huston
Federico Fellini
Alfred Hitchcock
David Lean
Joseph L. Mankewicz
Michelangelo Antonioni
POST 1970:
Sidney Lumet
Joel & Ethan Coen
Martin Scorsese
Francois Truffaut
Jonathan Demme
Francis Ford Coppola
Paul Thomas Anderson
Nicolas Roeg
John Schlesinger
Alan Pakula
This may be difficult, although I know some of them that just seem to rock my socks off.
1. Ingmar Bergman
2. Francois Truffaut
3. Wes Anderson
4. Richard Linklater
5. Federico Fellini
6. Paul Thomas Anderson
7. Jean-Luc Godard
8. Krzysztof Kieslowski
9. Sophia Coppola
10. Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu
This is very difficult. I have so many others, as well (Luis Bunuel, Robert Rodriguez, Quentin Tarantino, Orson Welles), but these are the ones I’m feeling right now. Frankly, I’ve only seen one of Sohpia Coppola’s films (Lost In Translation), but that movie has had such a profound impact on me that I had to put her on the list. I’m also surprised that I didn’t put Michel Gondry, Spike Jonez, or Charlie Kaufman on there, even though Kaufman’s Synecdoche, New York is (right now) my favorite film. Oh well.
Savvy
I agree with your opinion on Synecdoche, Zack. It really is one of the greats.
Also, I’d just like to take the time right now to revise my list:
10. Michelangelo Antonioni
9. Luis Bunuel
8. Ingmar Bergman
7. Andrei Tarkovsky
6. Robert Bresson
5. Abbas Kiarostami
4. Glauber Rocha
3. Federico Fellini
2. Kenji Mizoguchi
1. Jean-Luc Godard
Ah ha, quite right to promote Mizoguchi! Of course Godard knew he was Japan’s finest. My reserves would be Satyajit Ray, Dreyer, Eisenstein, Welles, Rivette and i’ve been quite taken with what i’ve seen of Hiroshi Shimizu.
Odd that no silent directors are ever nominated. Considering that the language of film was primarily established in that era I’d think it would get more notice: Abel Gance, G.W. Pabst, Buster Keaton (my man), D. W. Griffith, F. W. Murnau. Louis Feuillade, Charles Chaplin, Sadao Yamanaka, Victor Sjostrom, Erich von Stroheim, Aleksandr Dovzhenko, Serge Eisenstein, Carl Dreyer, Fritz Lang … etc.
Just for balance.
Well, of course you’re quite right that more notice should be taken of them and silent films generally. The 20s was a great fertile decade, and so many of the top directors were active then, whether already established or starting out on tremendous careers.
Well, of course you’re quite right that more notice should be taken of them and silent films generally. The 20s was a great fertile decade, and so many of the top directors were active then, whether already established or starting out on tremendous careers.
What has been gratifying is that silent films have established a critical mass. Several years back some folks in Boston formed a quartet to do silent film scores and now it is a competitive business. Quite a few groups doing it nation wide.
There are a number of active festivals and silent restoration has been effective. I believe it really deepens our appreciation for film when we look at these directors as creative talents rather than anachronisms.
Where would the development of special effects be without Keaton in Sherlock Jr?
1. Stanley Kubrick
2. Stanley Kubrick
3. Stanley Kubrick
4. Stanley Kubrick
5. Stanley Kubrick
6. Stanley Kubrick
7. Stanley Kubrick
8. Stanley Kubrick
9. Stanley Kubrick
10. Stanley Kubrick
also, in no particualr order, Andrei Tarkovsky, Martin Scorsese, Tim Burton, Joel & Ethan Coen, PT Anderson, Wes Anderson, Ingmar Bergman, Sam Peckinpah, Terry Gilliam, David Fincher, Alfred Hitchcock, M. Night Shyamalan, Hayao Miyazaki, Woody Allen, Francis Ford Coppola, Christopher Nolan, the obvious Speilberg, and, on a one-film basis, Jacques Becker, Francois Truffaut, Matthieu Kassovitz
no numbers here. just names. ;)
michel gondry, fernando meirelles, sofia coppola, takeshi kitano, leon hirzman, glauber rocha, alain resnais, orson welles, fritz lang, sergei eisenstein.
Fassbinder
Godard
Bunuel
Murnau
Ophuls
Laughton
Tarr
Preminger
Suzuki
Renoir
Warhol
I gave myself 11 since Charles Laughton only directed once…
10. Truffaut
09. Charlot
08. Pabst
07. Bresson
06. Renoir
05. Allen
04. Scorsese
03. Bergman
02. Welles-drum roll please-
01. JLG
an order which will probably change many times within the next few months
1. Bergman
2. Fellini
3. Kurosawa
4. Tarkovsky
5. Renoir
6. Antonioni
7. De Sica
8. Godard
9. Carl Th Dreyer
10. Truffaut
Pasolini
Cassavetes
Tarkovsky
Bava
Antonioni
Bergman
Bertolucci
Godard
Roeg
Peckinpah
Mioguchi
In order of personal importance to me:
1) Hitchcock (incredibly absent on many of the above lists)
2) Kubrick
3) Antonioni
4) Lynch
5) PT Anderson (being the leader of his generation must count for something)
6) Cassavetes
7) Tarkovsky
8) Welles
9) Bresson
10) (This space intentionally left blank as a stand-in for all the singlular great films ever made by a director whose career is otherwise inconsistent or unimpressive.)
In order:
1. Atonioni
2. Tarkovsky
3. Bergman
4. Godard
5. Kubrick
6. Cassavetes
7. Bunuel
8. Woody Allen
9. J.P. Melville
10. Jodarowski
@Orpheus: “10) (This space intentionally left blank as a stand-in for all the singlular great films ever made by a director whose career is otherwise inconsistent or unimpressive.)”
Great idea. I wanted so badly to mention Elem Klimov, for Come and See, since I think it’s one of the best films ever made. But I couldn’t, because that’s the only thing he’s done thats on such a par. Similarly, I think Sydney Lumet almost deserved a place in my top ten just for Network, but the rest of his career (while certainly great) isn’t top ten material for me. Also, Hal Hartley for Simple Men. Incredible film, mediocre career.
I would like to divide the 10 in to two groups, first is the pioneers of cinema and the other, directors still living and making films.
Not in particular order.
1. Jean Luc Godard
2. Sergei Eisenstein
3. Akira Kurosawa
4. Satyajit Ray
5. Krzysztof Kieslowski
1. Ken Loach
2. Richard Linklater
3. Pedro Almodovar
4. Wong Kar Wai
5. Michel Gondry
Well, this are mine:
1.- Fritz Lang
2.- Billy Wilder
3.- Jean Renoir
4.- Mizoguchi
5.- Hitchcock
6.- Dreyer
7.- Bresson
8.- Fassbinder
9.- Godard
10.- Buñuel
1. Akira Kaurosawa—I cant think of as many great directors who’ve released as many masterpieces so consistently throughout his career. Seven Samurai, Rashomon, Ikiru, Ran, Drunken Angel, Yojimbo/Sanjuro, Stray Dog etc. He redefined modern cinema and would always be my pick for my favorite director ever.-America’s best director and maybe the most consistently great director who ever lived. Looking at his filmograghy, there areally arent many films that weren’t masterpieces (Paths of Glory, Dr. Strangelove, 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket). Of all the films of he made, the only one I’m not much of a fan of is Eyes Wide Shut, but outside of that theyre all great.
2. Stanley Kubrick
-
3. Alfred Hitchcock—I’m also stunned why his name keeps getting left out from people’s lists. No one can deny the mastery from films like Vertigo, Rope, Rear Window, Notorious, and Psycho. I also want to add that Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour are two of my favorite shows.-The only word i can describe Buñuel is audacious. I cant name as many directors who were as daring and consistently made films that were as shocking, poignant and at the same time enjoyable. His wicked humor and surreal imagery made The Exterminating Angel, That Obscure Object of Desire, The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, An Andalusian Dog, and Belle de Jour all masterpieces.
4. Luis Buñuel
-
5. David Cronenberg—In my opinion, there isn’t a better living director than Cronenberg and has been so consistently great since his 1979 horror classic the Brood. But as time has moved on, he evolved into a class director with films like Videodromes, Dead Zone, The Fly, Dead Ringers, Naked Lunch, eXistenZ, Spider, A History of Violence, and his most recent work Eastern Promises. It’s very difficult for horror directors to make a transition to a more dramatic type of film making, but Cronenberg (like James Whales and Polanski before him) did it.-I can say without a doubt that John Cassavetes deserves to be looked as the most important American director next Orson Welles, Stanley Kubrick, Griffith and so on. Without films like Shadows, Faces, and Woman Under the Influences, there wouldn’t be American Independence movement.
6. John Cassavetes
-
7. Michelangelo Antonioni—There wasn’t a better director working in the 60s with masterpieces like L’avventura, La Notte, and Blow up, and then bringing the world one more in the 70s with the vastly underrated the Passenger. Hes hit or miss with most film goers, but i have yet to see a film i’ve not liked from him. -A director who has been working since the 60s and I’m not sure if hes shown any signs of age or slowing down in the quality of films. In the 70s, no other filmmaker could compete with him: Aguirre, the Wrath of God (a masterpiece and important film in cinematic history), The Enigma of Kasper Hauser, Stroszek (my favorite) and his audacious remake of Nosferatu (a film that i felt topped the original). Hes also revolutionized the documentary form with classics like Grizzly Man. The more and more i watch his films, the higher i want him on my list.
8. Werner Herzog
-
9. Federico Fellini—I’ve read forums from people who just detest Fellini with a passion and don’t care for his whimsical look at the world. I couldn’t disagree more. 8 1/2, La Strada, La Dolce Vita, and Le Notti di Cabiria always put a smile on face and effect me so emotionally. And i can say without a doubt, I’ve never seen as many visually impressive director. —10 spot was hard, and in the end i had to choose David Lynch over other world class directors mainly because I’ve seen and enjoyed most of his films and it would have been a crime not to include him. Eraserhead, Elelphant Man, Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart, the Straight Story, and Muholland Dr. were all great films and showcase one of the best talents to come from America.
10. David Lynch
-
11 spot: I had a lot of directors in my head but since i cant include all of them in my top ten i decided to add them here. Most of the reason these directors didn’t make the cut is that i just haven’t seen enough of their films to say that they are my favorite, but i felt that they should at least be mention:
Ingmar Berman (I’ve only seen Seventh Seal and Cries and Whispers but both are masterpieces), Satyajit Ray (only seen the Apu Trilogy, but I’m hoping to see more from this director but a lot of his films haven’t been released here), Kenji Mizoguchi (Ugetsu and Sansho are the only films I’ve seen but both are masterpieces) and Terrence Malik (I’ve actually seen all his films outside of the New World, but I decide to go with Lynch instead).
1. Godard
2. Fellini
3. Almodovar
4. Kubrick
5. Bergman
6. Hitchcock
7. PT Anderson
8. Antonioni
9. Cuaron
10. DW Griffiths (For his cinematic ability, not a fan of the racism)
Sorry for having such a typical list, I am a victim of the poor availability of non-Western cinema in the UK.
Also, whilst not someone I feel particularly inclined towards, the lack of Roberto Rossellini’s name on any of these lists always seems like a glaring omission or a sign that neorealism has aged better in countries beyond Italy.
1. The Coen Brothers
2. Orson Welles
3. Federico Fellini
4. Erich von Stroheim
5. Stanley Kubrick
6. Abel Gance
7. Wes Anderson
8. Ingmar Bergman
9. Quentin Tarantino (I just have to.)
10. F.W. Murnau
So close I hate myself for excluding them: Alfred Hitchcock, Carl Theodore Dreyer, Paul Thomas Anderson, Francis Ford Coppola, Richard Linklater, Christopher Marker.
I need to see way more Godard, Truffaut, and Antonioni. I’ve only seen one film of each’s canon, so I feel I cannot put them on my list, in good conscience.
John Ford
Billy Wilder
Robert Altman
Orson Welles
Stanley Kubrick
Alfred Hitchcock
Fritz Lang
Steven Spielberg
David Lean
Jean-Luc Godard
In Alphabetical Order:
Paul Thomas Anderson
Frank Capra
Federico Fellini
John Ford
Jean-Luc Godard
Alfred Hitchcock
Fritz Lang
Stanley Kubrick
Akira Kurisowa
Martin Scoresese
Tarantino, Screw what you think!
Hitchcock
Kurosawa
Scorsese
Chaplin
Griffith
Kubrick
Renoir
Murnau
Truffaut and Godard
sorry Italy
A couple of people express indignation over Hitchcock not getting a ten spot and all of a sudden everyone feels they have to include him, lol. Oh, the powers of suggestion.
Aaron Dumont
Basically, post no more, no less than a top ten of your favorite directors.
Here’s mine:
10. Michelangelo Antonioni
9. Stan Brakhage
8. Jacques Rivette
7. Fritz Lang
6. Glauber Rocha
5. Carl Theodor Dreyer
4. Federico Fellini
3. Kenji Mizoguchi
2. Robert Bresson
1. Jean-Luc Godard