No.1 Director of all time

Goodshape

IMO, based on talent rather than box office recipts, this has to go to Stanley Kubrick. Anyone who has the (almost) compleat box-set of his films would have to agree that there isint a bad one amongst them. Speaking as someone interested in directing, its plain to see the man was a genious.

....and if anyone suggests Steven Spielberg they had better have some good reasons, other than... "er.. well... he's just made soooo much money!!"... sure he's not bad... top 10 prehaps... but number 1???.. give me a break! The guy makes films that money... his actual talent as a director is extremly over-rated! ....er, in my opinion

Bard

As for Kubrick... some good ones in the ould repertoire there, aye... Clockwork Orange, 2001: A Space Odyssey,... granted... but wasn't "Eyes Wide Shut" a complete load of mucky-type muck?

Your comments about Senor Spielbergo are possibly a little unfair... there's certainly talent there, - but I wouldn't rank him as the best film director ever to have lived.

It's a tough one to call- as are most of these "Best YOLKY-BOB ever!!!" threads... For some, it would be Oliver Stone, while others may be just as content with Jay Roach or Richard Donner and others still would rate the Wachowski brothers as #1, simply for The Matrix. It's all a matter of taste and opinion... of course.

I'll go with James Cameron.

The Terminator... T-2... the upcoming T-3... ALIENS... Rambo: First Blood Part II... True Lies (and it's upcoming sequel)

A man doesn't have to have had many successful movies under his belt to be a great director - he just needs to have excelled in the way he made the ones he made.

Goodshape

no... Eyes Wide Shut was a masterpiece

....a little misunderstood, highly over-anticipated, a little thin on story... but the direction was breathtaking....

and yes.. i was a little hard on ol' stevo... just sick of hearing him being hailed as 'the best'.

gandalf

I'll go with Kubrick as well because he always made an original and daring film. He also made my all time favourite film, "Dr. Strangelove".

Those other Directors that nearly made it there (to my top director that is) were the following

Martin Scorsese
Luc Besson
Joel Coens (his dudeness)
Steven Spielberg
David Lean
Tim Burton
Terry Gilliam
Michael Mann
Spike Lee

Gandalf.

Karl Hungus

Tim Burton owns my pants.

Luc Besson also.
The Coens.
Terry Gilliam.

Well agreed with Gandalf on these.

Also, whoever directed Conan The Barbarian.

John Carpenter.
John Boorman.
James Cameron.
Ridley Scott.

gandalf

The Director of Conan the Barbarian was John Milius.

Gandalf.

Manach

Personally I'd go back in time & nominate John Ford. He seemed to have a knack of coaxing great performances from the most basic of materials:
The Grapes of Wrath & The Quiet Man
+ had an eye for scenario that conveyed the American West:
Fort Apache & Rio Grande & The Searchers.

Karl Hungus

Thanks Gandalf.

I'd also like to add Bryan Singer.
Usual Suspects is classic.

And Sam Peckinpah?
The Wild Bunch/Cross Of Iron.
Fantastic.

gandalf

Bugger forgot good old Sam Peckinpah as well. Cross of Iron is an excellent film and deserves a special edition DVD release (which I do not think it has).

As for Milius I don't think he deserves to be up with directors like Kubrick and co. on the back of an ok film.

Gandalf.

Fidelis

Ed Wood

OSiriS

but i'd have to go with:

Ridley Scott - for creating great atmosphere in every film he has ever made

James Cameron - for pure entertainment

But above both of them i'd have to put Luc Besson

Goodshape

Originally posted by AngelWhore

I'd also like to add Bryan Singer.
Usual Suspects is classic.

true, but lets not forget X-Men! :mad:

and seen as things have moved into top-ten mode...

(in random order)
tim burton
terry gilliam
oliver stone (most of the time)
joel coen
orsan wells
tarintino

...er, thats all I can think off... but i suppose I'd put Cameron in there for a bit of entertainment.....

and, well fug it, spieberg's in there too.... but only after the rest!

DeadBankClerk

sadam husain
pol pot
hitler


oh.. sorry "director"

oops

richindub2

Originally posted by DeadBankClerk
sadam husain
pol pot
hitler

You left out stalin

--Kaiser--

Stanley Kubrick

other notables:
David Lynch
Quentin Tarantino
Oliver Stone
Francis Ford Coppola
Coen Bros.
Ridley Scott
Martin Scorcese

Casiel

It's always very subjective when it comes to discussing fav anything. I mean sure if you like the sort of stuff that Tarrantino or Burton put out there, but director of all time??? Most of the replies were American or the ocassional British (Scott) or French (Besson) but what about the rest of the world?

Japanese director Juzo Itami (Tampopo, A taxing woman, Funeral)
Spanish director Pedro Almodovar (High Heels, All About My Mother)
Swedish director Ingmar Bergman (The Seventh Seal, Through a glass darkly)
Italys Federico Fellini (La Dolce Vita, City of Women)
French director Jean-Luc Godard (Breathless, Videoaste)
Polands Krzysztof Kieslowski (Three colours Blue, White, Red)
Germanys Rainer Werner Fassbinder (Fear Eats the Soul, Querelle)
Hong Kongs Wong Kar-wai' (In the mood for love, Chungking Express)

...all of whom have a huge body of work and anyone of them deserves to top a great directors list and indeed influenced many of the film makers already listed.

But of course David Lynch, Francis Ford Coppola, Coen Bros, Ridley Scott and Martin Scorcese easily stand along side them.

BLITZ_Molloy

Kubrick

BLITZ_Molloy

Eyes Wide Shut was a fine film. It was just marketed badly with too much hype. everybody expected it to be a 3 hour Cruse/Kidman shag fest.

Draco

Originally posted by Goodshape
no... Eyes Wide Shut was a masterpiece

No, it was a big pile of smelly poo that had not a single redeming feature.

mewso

You couldnt possibly pick just one but I'll try. I agree with alot of what has already been said plus some of my own picks.

Ford, Hitchcock, Sergio Leone, Carpenter, De Palma are favs of mine. I always liked Spielberg because while he made money I always considered his direction aimed to entertain and his films rarely failed to do so. I'm not one for namby pamby arthouse and these directors have merit but tend to appeal to a minority. Having said that I've loved almost all of Almodovar's films and as such he gets a mention. Lucas gets in for making my favorite film of all time and coming up with Indy even if he isn't a director as such. Fincher for Alien 3 and Seven, yes I liked Alien 3. Overall though my acolade is a joint one. Many here mention only one of these guys (perhaps to show their nous of who does what) but the films are the creation of both and as such they should be mentioned together at all times...........

THE COEN BROTHERS

Others like Beson, Kubrick are/were very stylish directors but never captured me in any major way. I liked their films allright but never loved them. Eyes Wide Shut wasn't bad but in the end it seemed to me like a whole lot about nothing.

Shad0r

Originally posted by Draco
No, it was a big pile of smelly poo that had not a single redeming feature.

I really enjoyed it and it had loads going for it imho. Great direction, atmosphere by the bucket load, some really good performances by the actors, to name but a few qualities.

I've watched it a good few times thanks to Sky movies overplaying every film they air, and still think its worth a watch.
(btw I think its ten times the film that clockwork orange was, well maybe five times the film!)

That said I dont think that Kubrick would be my all time favourite director. That said I dont think I could choose.

Defo in the list would be:
Luc Besson
Oliver Stone
Ridley Scott
Martin Scorcese
Steven Spielburg

tools

1:Luis Bunuel
2:Orson Welles
3:Martin Scorsese
4:The Coens
5: David Cronenberg
6:Billy Wilder

Loomer

Albeit most of his films would fall into the Hollywood blockbuster category I think Tony Scott (True Romance, Crimson Tide et al) is a masterful director, in the same category John McTiernan, Roger Donaldson( Hes a Kiwi )
My favourite directors are Paul Verhoevenn (for his subversiveness), Luc Besson ( for his vision) and William Friedkin ( for his insanity). Steven Spielberg, Stanley Kubrick, Alfred Hitchcock and Terence Mallick are all masters also.

b20uvkft6m5xwg

Originally posted by --Kaiser--
Stanley Kubrick

other notables:
David Lynch
Quentin Tarantino
Oliver Stone
Francis Ford Coppola
Coen Bros.
Ridley Scott
Martin Scorcese

I like it Kaiser:)
Maybe I'd include Kevin Smith in the subtext- just for his usual brilliant portrail of contempary America!

Karl Hungus

Originally posted by gandalf
Bugger forgot good old Sam Peckinpah as well. Cross of Iron is an excellent film and deserves a special edition DVD release (which I do not think it has).

As for Milius I don't think he deserves to be up with directors like Kubrick and co. on the back of an ok film.

Gandalf.

Yeah, Cross Of Iron is a film I'd like to see again.
Although I am more of a Wild Bunch man...
Is it just me, or is that film very similar to Heat?


On the point of Milius, I normaly wouldn't put a person up on the strength of a sinlge film, but...
Conan has to be one of the greatest films ever made in my view.

And I really did forget good old David Lynch...
Se7en was another modern classic.

Goodshape

...oh yea! Lynch and Fincher are tip-top!

but Stanley K. is still numero uno!

...Kevin Smith is a better writer than he is director... he is good at what he does though!

-Goodshape

---

flanagan.ie

---

Excelsior

Best director ever: Steven Spielberg.

While movies can have a message, it is redundant if it does not work as an entertainment form.
I believe that El Spielbergo has perfected the entertaining movie, and has made some damn fine films with deep and lasting effects on me aswell.

I think Kubrick is an over-rated director. Clockwork Orange and 2001 in particular annoy me. 2001... uhh, don't get me started. I definitely side with the Pretentious camp on that one.
But Strangelove does rock-diddly-ock.

The director whose movies I most look forward to would have to be Tom Tykwer.

BLITZ_Molloy

The coens of course- forgot about the. Big Lebowski, Fargo, O Brother and most of all Raising Arizona are all amazingly funny films.

plastic membrane

Ok, i was thinking about this. All of the above are great directors, and id love to mention them all just to show how knowledgeable and brilliant i obviously am . But to begin..

Kubrick : If you looking for cinema as art form, he's the lord king of your pants. But at the same time, he's cold and inpenetrable (personal opinion, so dont get stroppy). With the exception of Spartacus and Dr Strangelove, of course.

Spielberg : Why must be continue to be given poor treatment. Jaws, Close Encounters, Indy, for pure entertainment value, he IS the lord king of your pants. Schindlers List is astonishing. Saving Private Ryan, the first twenty minutes, are haunting. Its not the amount of money he' made that has made him talented, the guy understands cinema, knows how it works, knows how to awe the crap out of you. Thats why he's talented, thats why he's usuallly number one.

Personally Michael Mann is my fave, Heat, Manhunter, The Insider, visually striking, intense, character driven movies with fantastic acting. Can't wait for Ali.

Otherwise, The Coen's, Scorcese, Jean Pierre Jeunet, David Fincher, David Lynch, Ridley Scott, Sam Peckinpah (cross of iron, yeah, baby !) and about fifty others i'll be kicking myself for not mentioning later on..

mike65

The greatest director is er, er, er....
God knows but the following have a chance

Alfred Hitchcock- for refining the art of suspence
Steven Spielberg - for instilling a child-like sense of wonder (no really).
David Cronenberg- for recasting the horor genre.
Leni Refenstahl- For understanding the power of the visual medium. (controversial I know)
Chris Columbus- for making everyone else seem more talented
by comparison.
Stanley Kubrik- for the set piece
Werner Herzog - for being "out there"
Terry Gilliam - for spending so much money on flops
and then getting more...!

Mike.

Bard

A poll of readers of Empire magazine (see November issue - out now) gave the following results...

There were 50 directors listed, I'll give the top 20 here, complete with quotes and a must-see movie from them (text paraphrased from Empire):

20. Michael Mann
"Stark stylist, critically acclaimed."
Must see: Heat

19. Kevin Smith
"Pop culture-soaked slacker..."
Must see: Clerks

18. Steven Soderbergh
"The comeback kid, currently on an artistic roll"
Must see: Out of Sight

17. Howard Hawks
"Versatile... at home in any genre... creator of some of the greatest movies"
Must see: The Big Sleep

16. Ang Lee
"Unshowy approach masks his mastery of cinematic convention"
Must see: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

15. John Woo
"[his] predilection for slow-mo violence makes Peckinpah look soft"
Must see: The Killer

14. Francis Ford Coppola
"In the 70's he was untouchable. Since then he's stumbled slightly..."
Must see: The Godfather Part II

13. Billy Wilder
"began penning scripts in late-1920's Berlin, until Hitler came to power and he sensibly scarpered..."
Must see: Some Like It Hot

12. Oliver Stone
"Paranoid, bitterly brilliant conspiracy theorist"
Must see: J.F.K.

11. Quentin Tarantino
"Gives movie geeks a good name"
Must see: Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction

10. Joel Coen
"Along with his brother, responsible for some of the most visually astounding, elliptical, obtuse films of the last 15 years"
Must see: Miller's Crossing

09. James Cameron
"Cinematic megalomaniac famous for adage 'more is more' - routinely makes 'most expensive movie ever'"
Must see: Aliens, Terminator 2: Judgment Day

08. George Lucas
"The Living Beard who birthed a million childhood fantasies - and is still doing so today."
Must see: STAR WARS (Trilogy)

07. David Fincher
"...compulsive, inspired, mired in darkness - administering smelling salts to the MTV generation"
Must see: Fight Club

06. Ridley Scott
"Back on top... one of cinema's supreme shooters ... an under-rated talent"
Must see: Blade Runner, Gladiator

05. Stanley Kubrick
"Difficult. Remote. Impenetrable."
Must see: Dr. Strangelove

04. Tim Burton
"...cinema's biggest conundrum... a true artist on a huge canvas"
Must see: Edward Scissorhands, Batman

03. Alfred Hitchcock
"...most brilliant director of suspense in cinematic history... always entertaining"
Must see: North By Northwest, Psycho

02. Martin Scorsese
"An unerring cinematic sensibility, coupled with a matchless ability to get the best out of actors - infused with an understanding of the darker side of human nature."
Must see: Taxi Driver

01. Steven Spielberg
"Breathtakingly consistent, and able to instil in his audience a unique sense of wonder, this is the man who has brought cinema to life for more people than any other."
Must see: E.T. The Extra Terrestrial, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Jaws, Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones Trilogy, Schindler's List, and many more.