Best director of all time

[Reply #80 on:]

 

Originally posted by bored idiot:
 this post reminded me that i am probably the only person on this website to like war of the worlds. ah, well, it was tons better than independence day.

I liked War of the Worlds, it was entertaining, I just don't think it's a movie that would win someone to title of best director of all time.

[Reply #81 on:]

I also like War of the Worlds, despite the fact Tom Cruise plays himself, trying to play the everyman.

Spielberg is one of the best directors ever.  Every film I've seen of his, he has a way of making the audience be apart of the film.  Whether it's War of the Worlds, Jaws, Schindler's List, Jurassic Park or etc, his techniques have always made me feel that I'm experiencing the scene in person.

[Reply #82 on:]

I also loved War Of The Worlds.

But it's not better than Independence Day. Independence Day is awesome.

[Reply #83 on:]

the funniest scene in a movie i've ever seen is when that damn dog is jumping into the closet while being chased by an explosion- all in slow motion.

[Reply #84 on:]

I found Independance Day to be an over bugeted hack fest. It's basically Will Smith trying to be funny while killing aliens.

[Reply #85 on:]

Holy shit, that's what I liked about the movie too!

 

[Reply #86 on:]

Edgar Wright is the best for me

[Reply #87 on:]

I'm going to throw out a few names that I haven't seen mentioned yet; not necessarily the best or my favorite, but damn good.

Chris Nolan- The Prestige, Batman Begins
Matin Scorsese- Goodfellas, The Departed, Raging Bull

[Reply #88 on:]

Sorry for double posting here; my first post didn't come up.  See below for my original post.

[Reply #89 on:]

I have 2 favorites for Best Director of all time.  My first is Akira Kurosawa.  His films in the 50's & 60's are the acknowledged basis for more current day blockbusters like The Magnificent 7, Star Wars & others.  George Lucas, Steven Spielberg & Sam Peckinpah all acknowledged Kurosawa's work as one of the reasons they got into filmmaking in the 1st place.

My second choice would be Ridley Scott (pre-CG films).  This is not to take anything away from his current CG films (like Alien, Gladiator, etc), but his best work is when it's not covered over with special effects.  A good example of this is his film "The Duelists".  It's become one of my favorites; it's amazingly shot & well paced, the story is outstanding, it's visually a feast for the eyes & is almost a perfect film.  If you get a chance, rent it; you'll get to see a director & storyteller at the top of his game...

[Reply #90 on:]

My vote for best directors are:

Mel Brooks
Woody Allen
Zucker Brothers
Coen Brothers
Ridley Scott
Blake Edwards
Dario Argento
Mario Puzo
Fredricko Fellini
M. Night Shalamyn
Farrelly Brothers
Oliver Stone
Stanley Kramer
Stanley Kubrick
Martin Scorsese
Hal Needham
Clint Eastwood
Guy Richtie

[Reply #91 on:]

Mario Puzo never directed anything

[Reply #92 on:]

Stanley Kubrick, all the way.


On a less objective, far more personal level, I'm a huge fan of Sam Raimi.


And George Lucas is a terrible, terrible director. He's a good producer and business man and he had some good ideas, but he doesn't direct films well. Star Wars was a fluke because he had so many people watching over his shoulders and making sure that he didn't blow all the money.

My vote for best directors are:
Mel Brooks

Mel Brooks is nothing interesting as a director. If you're a fan of his work; you're a fan of him as a writer. I absolutely adore The Producers, but very little of that is down to the direction. Its strength is the writing and the performances.

And The Producers is probably his best job as a director.

Zucker Brothers

Again, if you like these guys, it's not really because they're great at directing. It's because they write jokes that you like.

Coen Brothers

Now we're talking. These guys are phenomenal directors.

Ridley Scott

Another good choice. If only Prometheus had been half as well written as it was directed.

Blake Edwards

Not a hugely interesting director. Again, I think you like him as a writer and are struggling to tell the difference.

Dario Argento

I'm a huge fan of Argento's aesthetic, but I'm yet to see a single film of his that isn't an incoherent mess. I'm not sure that I'd say he's a good director, although he is a very interesting director.

M. Night Shalamyn

M. Night Shyamalan got 3 great films under his belt, but everything since has been abysmal. I don't know how to feel about him because his first three films were incredibly well crafted, but the later ones are so badly put together that it feels like they were made by a totally different person.

Farrelly Brothers

Yet again, these guys aren't particularly good directors. They're funny writers (although they haven't made anything good in years).

Martin Scorsese

Another true great.

Clint Eastwood

Eastwood always surprises me with how good he is at directing.

Guy Richtie

Richie's best film is Sherlock Holmes, which is a derivative, brainless bit of action fun. His films largely suck, though, I suppose they fall down on their crappy scripts rather than the direction.

[Reply #93 on:]

Forgot to put in Sam Raimi.  His horror movies are awesome!   Cool to see another Argento fan!

[Reply #94 on:]

I like James Cameron the best, mainly for Titanic, and Steven Spielberg for Jurassic Park and Tiny Toons.

I like Sam Raimi, but not all of his works. The first Spiderman movie was too corny and fake for me, but he did good with 2 and 3.

There was an independent movie called, " The Cat's Meow" that I really liked, and the directing was really great, but I don't know the director's name.

[Reply #95 on:]

You realise that Steven Spielberg directed precisely nothing in the entire history of Tiny Toon Adventures, right?

He was an executive producer, he made a guest appearance in at least one episode and he slapped his name on the opening, but he didn't direct any of it.

Put him on a list of your favourite executive producers.

[Reply #96 on:]

And George Lucas is a terrible, terrible director. He's a good producer and business man and he had some good ideas, but he doesn't direct films well. Star Wars was a fluke because he had so many people watching over his shoulders and making sure that he didn't blow all the money.

It's hard to say Lucas is a bad director, because he really hasn't directed a whole lot.

THX-1138 and American Graffiti are both well directed. Aside from that, he's only ever directed Star Wars movies.  That is literally all he's done as a director.

My opinion is that he has/had the talent to be a great director, but once Star Wars became such a sensation in '77 he decided to make his impact more on the business side of things (running his giant company) rather than the artsy-fartsy side of directing movies.

He came back to do the prequels, but intent was to just finish what he started in the 70's. Stylistically, he didn't break any new ground (nor did he intend to).

Anyway, I don't have a favorite director. They all end up making crappy films at some point or another.

[Reply #97 on:]

Alfred Hitchcock and Akira Kurosawa, great directors, whose movies I've seen.

I'll just mention one Finnish director, Aki Kaurismäki, with style of very little dialog. His movies are for example: The Man Without a Past and Le Havre (in French).

[Reply #98 on:]

Anyway, I don't have a favorite director. They all end up making crappy films at some point or another.

Yeah I'd agree with that.

Tarrantino is my fav but I'm not a huge fan of his latest stuff. Pulp Fiction & Dogs are 2 of my favourite movies, Jackie Brown is quite high too but then it starts to decline. Kill Bill was good but you could see he was becoming more self indulgent, did it really need to be 2 volumes?
Not a fan really of anything beyond that, they just all seem to be revenge porns.