Being a big indie fan I simply adore Richard Linklater. From "Dazed and Confused" to "Tape" to "School of Rock" (one of the best mainstream films Ive ever seen) I dont think this guy has had one misstep. Whereas, Guy Ritchie had quite a stumble with "Swept Away".

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Whereas, Guy Ritchie had quite a stumble with "Swept Away".

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So I've heard. However, his one big mistake aside (he admits it sucked ass) I really think Lock Stock and Snatch are one of the two most stylish films in recent memory. No he doesn't make the most "sophisticated" films, but they're pretty damn entertaining (again, Swept Away aside), even when lacking a significant message.

K-Dog

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Originally posted by K-Dog:

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Whereas, Guy Ritchie had quite a stumble with "Swept Away".

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So I've heard. However, his one big mistake aside (he admits it sucked ass) I really think Lock Stock and Snatch are one of the two most stylish films in recent memory. No he doesn't make the most "sophisticated" films, but they're pretty damn entertaining (again, Swept Away aside), even when lacking a significant message.

_K-Dog_

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Ah, i havent seen either of those so i cant vouch for them-----"Swept Away", on the other hand, I have seen, and it is awful. So, avoid it, if possible.

Does anyone else here think David Lean is getting a bit under-rapped? He directed Dr Zhivago, Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia.

As for Guy Ritchie, I dont really rate him. I thought Lock Stock beat Snatch (which was a pretty poor film IMO) but I cannot bring myself to watch Lock Stock again because the cockney and self indulgent ultra-coolness of the film begins to grate on me after about 10 minutes.

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Originally posted by Member 27:
Does anyone else here think David Lean is getting a bit under-rapped? He directed Dr Zhivago, Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia.

As for Guy Ritchie, I dont really rate him. I thought Lock Stock beat Snatch (which was a pretty poor film IMO) but I cannot bring myself to watch Lock Stock again because the cockney and self indulgent ultra-coolness of the film begins to grate on me after about 10 minutes.

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What is gratingly cool about Guy Ritchie that makes it more cool than Quentin Tarantino? I ask this because I have not seen, but "Swept Away", and can not imagine a film more "cool" than QT's.

Guy Ritchie has major casting problems in his movies! Swept Away was pure self-indulgent trash, just like his first two films! Lock, stock had some of the most unbelievable casting I have ever seen, you want me to believe some of these guys are tough?! Snatch had some improvements but both it and Lock seem like they were written and directed by a first year film school student to impress his friends! Tarantino has a much greater vision, and sets out to achieve new greatness with each film, Ritchie is a pretender who's only skill is imitation.

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Originally posted by Member 27:
Does anyone else here think David Lean is getting a bit under-rapped? He directed Dr Zhivago, Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia.

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I agree with you that Lean is a great director, and he would have made my list if it was top ten; it was just very difficult, and I still think I'm leaving somebody major off.

Most people love Lean for the films you mentioned, and I really love those, but my favorite Lean film is the 1954 comedy "Hobson's Choice." I guess it's not too well-known now but it's a hilarious Victorian-era film with Charles Laughton as this widower shoe-store owner who spends all his time at the pub while his oldest daughter(Brenda de Banzie) and the lower-class cobbler (John Mills) do all the work. When Laughton decides to let his two younger daughters marry into rich families, de Banzie decides that she'll marry Mills and set up a rival shop. Poor Mills doesn't think much of the idea but he gets steamrolled by the strong-willed woman. It's just amazing how artistic and romantic such a fun film can be; definitely check it out if you haven't.

I'm also a big fan of "Great Expectations", and the look of "Summertime" is incredible. I even like "Ryan's Daughter", but maybe that's because of that awesome wave-crashing scene...or was it because Sarah Miles went topless?

P.S. Maybe this is overkill, but since Alec Guinness was in so many Lean films, I can say here that Guinness is my second-favorite actor, only after Bogart.

Guys, this is grim:

So far 1 memtion of Neil Jordan
1 mention of RW Fassbinder
1 mention of Lynch
no Bertollucci
no Godard
no Coppola
no Tarkovsky
no Demme
no Gilliam
no Wong Kar-Wai
no Frears
no Figgis
no Cronenberg
no Zhang Yimou
no Coen
not even Ridly Scott
no John Ford
no Krzysztof Kieslowski
not even John Milius

it's too painful to go on...

Spielberg's 2 best films are Indiana Jones and the Ark of the Covenant and Jurassic Park, both not his projects, where he shows an economy and aptness not evident in his own personal projects, all of which are technically proficient, but exhibits an emotional mawkishness and neediness that undermines the credibility of his characters, and suggests he doesn't trust his audience.

(For instances, see treads on Krubrick and SF.)

What about Fellini? Has he been mentioned? There's a good one.


And wong, I loved Breathless and In the Mood For Love, but those are the only Godard and Wong Kar Wai films I have seen so far, so it's my own lack of exposure that keeps me from putting them on my list.

Oh, on behalf of the Music Editor I'd like to mention Hal Hartley, since I know that's one he'd want to post about.

Yeah, besides Bertollucci and Fellini...

the Italians:

De Sica
Rossellini
P and V Taviani
Visconti
Antonioni

besides Kurosawa, the Japanese:

Oshima
Mizoguchi
Ozu
Imamura

...and these are just the old guys.

Jeez...I forgot the guys from the northern provinces:

Ingmar Bergman
Alain Tanner

and Lars von Trier

I appreciate all the responses, but theoretically one was supposed to come up with a TOP FIVE. Before we make you our new God, or is it "King of Fools", we need some more info; Who, exactly, wong828, are your TOP FIVE directors? I could list 100 directors, American and foreign, but, what exactly is the point? I hope you checked out some more threads before you responded. That's just me. I DO ENJOY all of wongs' posts; he just seems to ignore me!

mark f:

That's not true, see Kubrick/Class/Violence and 2001/Clockwork Orange.

Let's see, my 5:

1. Godard
2. Tarkovsky
3. Kieslowski
4. Wells
5. Lynch

And Mark F, isn't this a hell of a less interesting list than my "no" list?

mark f:

I don't mean to torment you, but I can't leave out

6. Wong Kar Wai

Do you suppose the other guys mind?

Please, if you have something to add directly after posting, edit your previous post rather than posting two in a row. Thanks!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: KT,

Paul Thomas Anderson (big shocker coming from me, I know) The fact that no one has mentioned him is crazy.

Billy Wilder
Alfred Hitchcock
Terrence Malick
Martin Scorsese
Roman Polanski
Atom Egoyan
Todd Haynes
Robert Altman
Mike Nichols
Todd Solondz
Krzysztof Kieslowski
Hal Ashby
Spike Lee
Pedro Almodóvar
Jonathan Demme
Sam Peckinpah
David O. Russell
Lukas Moodysson
John Carpenter
Orson Welles
Henri-Georges Clouzot

What I'm trying to say is: that's a tough question and certainly a poll of five choices couldn't hope to be fair.

If I had to choose five:

Paul Thomas Anderson
Martin Scorsese
Krzysztof Kieslowski
Robert Altman
Billy Wilder

Alllllrighty then, lets go:

1. Tim Burton
2. Alfred Hitchcock
3. Coen Brothers
4. Ridley Scott
5. Stanley Kubrick

Spielberg, Scorsese, David Mamet, Christopher Nolan, David Fincher

Other Favorites:

Frank Darabont, John McTiernan, Roman Polanski, Guy Ritchie (except for swept away)

Thanks Jakal, I completely forgot Capra, the director of my favorite film of all time, It's A wonderful Life!

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Steven Speilberg
Tim Burton
John Frankenheimer
Robert Zemekis
Frank Capra

Mine are in this order.

1. Steven Spielberg
2. Quentin Tarantino
3. Peter Jackson
4. Tim Burton
5. Stanley Kubrick

I also like FF Coppolla, Peter Weir, Ridley Scott, Jonathon Demme and Alfred Hitchcock.

P.T., Q.T., and Lloyd Kaufman take my award for the most enthusiastic and are at this point in time, my favorite. I don't think I can take someone who puts Steven Spielberg at the top of their list seriously...

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Originally posted by Nickel-Z:
P.T., Q.T., and Lloyd Kaufman take my award for the most enthusiastic and are at this point in time, my favorite. I don't think I can take someone who puts Steven Spielberg at the top of their list seriously...

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Wow that's about 70 percent of the people here at the forums (I, like you, am one of the 30). Prepare to get verbally slapped in the face by Mark...