Favorite Directors

My Top 25 Directors

(including my three favorites of their movies):



1. Sam Peckinpah




 

 






2. Martin Scorsese




 

 






3. John Carpenter




 

 






4. Robert Altman



Gosford Park

 

 





 


5. Alfred Hitchcock




 

 





6. Werner Herzog



Stroszek

 

 





7. Stanley Kubrick




 

 





8. Samuel Fuller



Pickup on South Street
Shock Corridor

 

 






9. James Whale




 

 

 








10. Quentin Tarantino



Django Unchained

 

 






11. Ingmar Bergman



Fanny and Alexander
Smiles of a Summer Night

 

 






12. John Ford




 

 

 






13. François Truffaut




 

 





14. Hayao Miyazaki



My Neighbor Totoro

 

 





 

15. Otto Preminger



Advise & Consent
Laura

 

 

 





16. Joel and Ethan Coen




No Country for Old Men

 

 

 

 

 


17. Akira Kurosawa



Ikiru

 

 

 

 



 

18. Federico Fellini




 

 

 





 

19. Wes Anderson




 

 

 





20. George Romero




 

 

 





21. Steven Spielberg




 

 

 





 

22. Billy Wilder



Stalag 17
Witness for the Prosecution

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

23. Sidney Lumet



12 Angry Men

 

 

 

 


 

24. Jean Renoir



The River

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





 25. Woody Allen




 

 

 

 

17 comments:

frshpilot said...

Kurosawa
- Seven Samurai
- Yojimbo
- Rashoman

Screamqueenarmy said...

Lloyd Kaufman

- The Toxic Avenger
- Terror Firmer
- Tromeo and Juliet

DVD Infatuation said...

Both excellent choices!

I felt especially bad not having Kurosawa on the list (I love so many of his films), so I'm glad he was mentioned.

Everyone else is welcome to include their favorites as well in the comments (also, let me know if your favorite is listed above, but your three films differ from mine)

tjpieraccini said...

Frank Capra

- American Madness
- Mr Smith Goes to Washington
- Bitter Tea of General Yen

(though I'd be lying by omission if I didn't also mention the obvious Christmas one)

Peter Weir qualifies for me on the basis of Dead Poets Society alone.

Clint Eastwood for Unforgiven and Bridges of Madison County.

Jacques Tourneur

- Night of the Demon
- I walked With a Zombie
- Out of the Past

(Though I haven't seen Anne of the Indies for a while, and he deserves some sort of medal for getting both Jean Peters and Debra Paget in one film...)

Top Bergmans vary - I'd probably also go with Seventh Seal but add The Silence and Persona

Interesting that you select both Kubrick and Hitchcock without the third that often, these days, goes with them - Christopher Nolan. All three are a bit head-over-heart for me, though I'm not questioning their actual moviemaking skills.

Lally said...

Great list. Throwing in for discussion:
Elia Kazan
-On the Waterfront
-East of Eden
-A streetcar named desire

Peter Jackson
-Fellowship of the Ring
-Two Towers
-Return of the King

John Huston
-The Man who Would be King
-The Maltese Falcon
-The African Queen

Woody Allen (not going to list, too numerous)

Fuller was interesting - didn't think of him. I am glad someone else mentioned Akira Kurisowa - I love so many of his films. Ridley Scott doesn't make this list, and I can see why - but I think he may be in the conversation too, especially if you liked Blade Runner, Alien and Gladiator. I didn't see Coppolla on my first reading? Peckinpaw as #1 - I didn't see that but it's thought provoking - especially when you think how remarkably original his work was for it's time - the Wild Bunch was really the first movie of it's kind. No mention of Sergio Leone here - but I think that makes sense. Like your list, thanks for sharing!

Unknown said...

Clint Eastwood, Ron Howard, Ridley Scott, Christopher Nolan, JJ Abrahms, Ben Affleck for Argo alone for me

Unknown said...

Agree with almost if not all of the above - but would add Clint Eastwood, Ron Howard, Ridley Scott, Christopher Nolan, JJ Abrahms, Ben Affleck for Argo alone for me

Save the Book said...

Peter Weir
The Cars that Ate Paris
Picnic at Hanging Rock
Dead Poets Society
Sergei Eisenstein
The Battleship Potemkin
Alexander Nevsky
Ivan the Terrible (parts 1 and II)

Unknown said...

Top list, Dave.
David Lynch
Blue Velvet
Wild At Heart
The Elephant Man

DVD Infatuation said...

Thanks to everyone who posted above! And I can't argue with any of your choices. All are excellent directors!

Thanks again!

Tony said...

Michael Curtiz
Casablanca
The Adventures of Robin Hood
Mildred Pierce

filmgrit said...

Wim Wenders:
Paris, Texas
Wings of Desire
Buena Vista Social Club

replicantpinky said...

Not one person mentioned David Fincher or Danny Boyle? Wow

irish said...

I would say Billy Wilder is my alltime favourite director. because he has directed more of my fav movie's than any other. Among the favs would be 1,2,3, and The Major and The Minor.
Woody Allen might have taken over, if he had kept on making movies like Sleeper, and Love and Death.
Howard Hawks is possibly next. I always lump in and Ford together. I'm not a great fan of Ford. The only fav for me is How Green was my valley. But I've always enjoyed Wagonmaster.
I also Bergman and Fellini together. But for me Bergman wins out. Although I think Seventh Seal is overrated. Some of his best for me are Shame, Fanny and Alexander, Face to Face, and Scenes from a marriage.
As for Fellini, i prefer his earlier work. Stuff like 8½, and La Dolce Vita do nothing for me.

Of the direcrtors you mention. These are my fav movies
Peckinpah-bunch

Altman-prarie home companion+m.a.s.h
Still haven't seen Park, or Miller

Hitchcock-Saboteur, North by northwest, pyscho

Kubrick-Strangelove

Fuller-Big Red One

Tarantino-Dogs (i think) Fiction. Bill (not sure if both or just the first, or just the second)

Bergman (Fanny and Alexander-maybe)

Ford-Valley

Spielberg-ET. Jurassic Park, Raiders

Billy Wilder-Sabrina fair,The Fortune Cookie,kiss me stupid,one two three,the apartment, some like it hot.the major and the minor (maybe A foreign affair, and arise my love)

woody allen. Money, sleeper, Love and, bananas.

irish said...

I would include Howard Hawks as well.

Unknown said...

FRITZ LANG
M
Metropolis
The Testament of Dr. Abuse

ROMAN POLANSKI
Chinatown
The Tennant
Rosemary's Baby

ORSON WELLES
Touch of Evil
The Trial
Citizen Came

TOD BROWNING
Dracula
Freaks
The Unknown

SEIJUN SUZUKI
Branded To Kill
Youth Of The Beast
Tokyo Drifter

HOWARD HAWKS
The Thing From Another World
The Big Sleep
Scarface
Rio Bravo
(I know it's a cheat, but I honestly couldn't narrow it down!)


oakland steve said...

VITTORIO DE SICA
Umberto D
Bicycle Thieves
Miracle in Milan
Shoeshine
After the Fox
Two Women
Marriage, Italian Style
Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
Brief Vacation