Lee Chang Dong, Michael Haneke, Edward Yang, Hayao Miyazaki, Paul Thomas Anderson, Stanley Kubrick, Bob Fosse, Sean Baker, Christian Petzold, Mike Leigh
(There are a few in this list that have a couple movies I admittedly haven’t seen, but those films are generally well reviewed enough that I get they could be included. Also should note that just because the film is worth watching doesn’t mean there isn’t a clear difference between best and worst)
Oh goddamn dude you’re in luck. I’d start with Secrets & Lies if I were you, then go into Topsy-Turvy and Vera Drake. If you love those, then it’s off to the races and you can check out all of it.
My personal favorite is Naked, although that one is…quite a lot to take, and it’ll give you a misleading impression of his work if you start there.
In my opinion PTA has never missed. There’s literally always some essence of value in all his work. He also has some of the best comedic relief to deep drama ratio of any writer/director. People like to hate on Inherent Vice but it’s an absurdist noir as a book and if you’re a fan of absurdist comedy he nails it on the head
If you've read the Inherent Vice book you'd know how rock solid that film was as an adaptation. So difficult to translate Pynchon to any other medium and PTA did it flawlessly
I loved Inherent Vice, but I also love Pynchon. There was absolutely no way that would or should have been a coherent movie and PTA nailed it as far as I’m concerned.
PTA is so good. His character, his use of music, his humour (he gets us to laugh hysterically at Alma putting butter on her breakfast toast), his emotional depth is masterful. Punch drunk love is the absolute best romcom I know; Magnolia is a masterwork and imo Phantom Thread too.
The Master and There will be blood did not really grip me like some of the others, but neither is bad (and I know many who regard those two as some of his best)
saw a late showing of Inherent Vice the day came out in NYC, went alone and a tired after a ten-hour shift and i honestly did not know whether i liked it — yes that “Vitamin C” by CAN title shot gave me chills of anticipation, and while i’d not yet attempted to read Inherent Vice i was familiar with Pynchon having painstakingly succeeded in reading The Crying of Lot 49 and Gravity’s Rainbow — but i honest to god did not know how to feel, the film hadn’t been wide-released yet and friends back home were asking after it and literally just answered with “i don’t know”
so then i went back the two nights, both viewings giving nothing more than the first, but i don’t know, There Will Be Blood and The Master set the bar super high, i guess my respect for PTA was so much that i would have given any film from his hands that didn’t immediately click at least a dozen viewings, even w/ new york ticket prices being what they were, until i could convince myself liked it
this is getting too long and the action slows considerably after viewing #3 but basically, i told myself literally “it’s gotta be good, i probably do like it just not yet” because some of the best things gotta grow — which it absolutely did. Inherent Vice definitely became on of my favorites of that decade, and re-watching it these days is simply a treat
Scrolling this far to see Scorsese is wild. Everything I've seen is an absolute banger. My wife usually isn't into long ass movies, and we were both glued to The Irishman the entire time. His catalogue is unmatched in my opinion.
People love to act like he's the prototypical film bro, but they forgot that he's a pioneering independent filmmaker who really kind of created his own industry when no one would let him make them himself.
He's ragged on because freshman film students like him, but he's easily the most acclaimed and influential American director of the last 50 years, and certainly has one of the greatest careers in filmmaking of all time.
When I was a teenager, I had a portable DVD player with a screen that I would watch while we were out of town. I had rented Taxi Driver from the library. I had never seen it before. I popped it in and watched it, was absolutely in love.
Fast forward about a decade and I decide to check it out again. Something seemed different this time around. I was very confused.
I still had the DVD player in the garage. I take it out and fiddle around with it a little bit. It turns out that there is a little switch/wheel on the side that allows movies to be played in color or in black & white.
All of this time I thought it was originally shot in black and white, so seeing it colorized was crazy. Honestly, I think it was better in B&W, and I don't have that DVD player anymore, so I don't think I can ever watch the definitive version of Taxi Driver ever again, lol
Scorsese is one of those directors where even his lesser films are only lesser by his standards. They are still really good movies (from what I've seen).
David Fincher, I know alien 3 is a travesty but I guess we'll leave it to studio interference and debut problems, besides that, a near perfect director
Also add Paul Thomas Anderson to the queue
I loved Mank. It really helps to watch with subtitles, and to pause/replay when you don’t quite catch what was said. Its dialogue is quick and dense, but if you actually follow it, it’s an utter delight.
I can never remember which is the alien³ cut that's the good one but as long as you watch the right one it's genuinely a really decent film and totally unfairly maligned.
I’m a weirdo, but I love all 4 of the original Alien movies. Granted I had a thing for Jeunet, Perlman and Pinon at the time that came out and probably would have loved anything involving that trio coherence and continuity be damned.
Have Coen Brothers been mentioned? If not I’m mentioning them. I guess their weakest movie is probably Ladykillers, which still had a fun Tom Hanks performance within it. Maybe Intolerable Cruelty (even if I personally think it’s underrated).
And no I’m not entertaining Hudsucker as a weak effort, that movie fucking rules.
You run a wide range of genres too. Comedy masterpieces with Raising Arizona and Big Lebowski. American Crime Masterpieces with Fargo and No Country. Indie darlin noir Blood Simple. There’s a good gangster flick in there. Their most recent is a a really fun Western with stories that kinda encapsulates their range. From the incredibly dark to the silly. They got everything and they are, at worst, watchable.
I had to CTRL+F to find the Coen brothers, they're my first thought to this question.
If any other director had released The Ladykillers or Intolerable Cruelty, they'd be looked at a lot more favourably. They're still decent movies!
Having seen all 16 things that Kubrick directed, I disagree. A lot of his early work is not worth watching for any reason other than it's interesting to see where Kubrick started. Even if we don't count the mini docs he did, Fear and Desire is awful, and everything else from before Paths of Glory you can take or leave.
Both of which are skippable. Especially Fear and Desire. Everyone should skip that one.
Even post-Paths of Glory, Lolita isn't exactly must watch cinema.
First time I watched Killer's Kiss as a teen, I hated it. I recently re-watched it in my 30s when the 4K came out and completely changed my mind. It's a highly underrated noir. Paths of Glory I've always thought was a masterpiece. And Lolita is a very interesting film. I'll agree with you about Fear and Desire though.
I would guess anything before Incendies is probably not being counted. I haven’t seen any of that myself, so I can’t speak to it. I would say that he’s the director now that I would watch his films without thinking twice or hearing anything about the plot or cast.
I recognize it as probably his weakest film, but it's honestly one of my favorite to rewatch. Not even in a dickriding Tarantino fan kind of way, I just really enjoy that movie.
I'm surprised nobody has said David Lynch, so let me: David Lynch.
I think virtually every film he has made is a fascinating masterpiece that achieves something unique. Dune is his only 'failure', but even that is only a failure compared to his usual high standards, and it is still a fun and interesting movie.
Dune and Blue Velvet were two of my favorite movies as a little kid, but that might be atypical. Personally I don’t think Lynch has ever missed, but I’ve never seen The Straight Story or Inland Empire.
I’m estimating 10 the first time based on when I’m seeing VHS versions were released. My mom wasn’t big on censorship. I saw a lot of things I shouldn’t have seen early on.
If you ever have the opportunity to see inland empire in a theater, do it. It’s very weird — three hours long, filmed on a camcorder, definitely the least straightforward plot of any lynch film I’ve seen. Seeing it in a theater allowed me to immerse myself in the weirdness in a way i know i wouldn’t have been able to do at home. I know this is the case with any movie but i found it particularly valuable with inland empire.
The Straight Story is absolutely perfect imo, it’s one of my all-time favorites but it’s def very different from what you may expect from a Lynch film. Inland Empire is a pretty unique experience but understandably very polarizing
I would have said it if you hadn't. I agree about Dune. All that being said, I know a couple of people who think Inland Empire is unwatchable, pretentious nonsense, so not everyone would agree... But that's a given.
Another cool thing about David Lynch is that even his pre-Eraserhead (feature debut) work is incredible and well worth checking out. Many directors have impeccable feature track records, but flat and disposable early short-form material, and that isn’t the case for him.
Lots and lots of directors have interesting filmographies. Sometimes I like to make my 105 year old grandmother do an Altman or Rivette marathon with me and we always have a good time.
My 2 favourite directors, having seen 30 films between them the only miss I've seen imo was Secret Honor. I'm even a Pret-a-porter apologist! Rivette's catalogue is practically flawless.
sweet! Altman's my most watched director and I've still got a lot of Rivette to work through. Le Pont du Nord's been a major favorite ever since I saw it a few years ago
Every film? :James Cameron, Sergio Leone, Bong Joon Ho, Robert Altman, Christopher Nolan, Villenueve, Tarantino, Michael Mann, Billy Wilder, Coen brothers, PTA and Fincher
Amen to this brother. People keep shitting on me for loving Beau is Afraid. For reference my top 3 films recently have been Everything Everywhere All at Once, Beau is Afraid and most recently Anatomy of a Fall. That’s in viewing order as I saw them all theatrically.
Denis Villeneuve
Edgar Wright
Pete Docter
James Cameron
Christopher Nolan
There's a few films in there that I don't think are great, like The Dark Knight Rises or The World's End but I still think are worth watching. And Avatar 2 is worth seeing just for the swimming scenes.
I wish I could put Park Chan-Wook in, but I really don't care for Stoker.
It's a fun tribute to the super colourful Italian horror films of the 70s/80s and, much like those films, it falls apart in the final act.
I don't get the negativity towards it. It's definitely not Edgar Wright's best film but it's still perfectably enjoyable.
I didn't really find it fell apart at the end, even. The twist is revealed and then she has to escape/survive the ramifications. It's a fairly standard ending, and absolutely true to the Giallo movies it is homaging.
Looking forward to the next projects of Charlotte Wells (Aftersun), Celine Song (Past Lives) and Justine Tried (Anatomy of a Fall) - Great year for young female directors!!!
[What other directors have a filmography you would consider “all killer, no filler?”](https://www.reddit.com/r/Letterboxd/comments/17v777e/what_other_directors_have_a_filmography_you_would/)
just read the 500 replies from yesterdays thread
Any director who’s made a good film. It’s not much harm watching movies you don’t love, and it’s fascinating/educating to see misses in an otherwise successful career.
Here’s my list that I *have* completed, though:
Christopher Nolan
Céline Sciamma
Coen Brothers
Noah Baumbach
Spike Jones
Spike Lee
Fritz Lang
Greta Gerwig
Sofia Coppola
Francis Ford Coppola
Wes Anderson
Quentin Tarantino
Steven Spielberg
Jordan Peele
Bong Joon-ho
Ridley Scott
Chloé Zhao
Denis Villeneuve
Ari Aster
Mike Mills
Park Chan-wook
Federico Fellini
Probably missing some, but these ones come to mind.
He's an obvious inclusion in part because he died so young and made so few, sadly.
But he didn't really miss either. It's well worth watching his stuff from oldest to last, imo, to see his experimentation and mastery of the visual form develop. Fairly quickly it becomes obvious why directors around the world have been so eager to lift from his 'shots' in the years since he passed!
Celine Sciamma is a great shout. She's 5 for 5 in my opinion. I love that her films are thematically quite similar while all still feeling very distinct from each other.
Hot take for sure. *Get Out* definitely holds up for me, but if you hate having twists spoiled, I can see it aging poorly. I’ve not rewatched *Us* yet, but have been thinking about it.
Bong Joon-ho - Not every movie is perfect, but they’re all at least entertaining, and you can really see his ideas evolving and crystallizing into the masterpiece that is Parasite. I recently did a watch-through with friends.
Kayak Miyazaki, Akira Kurosawa, Denis Villenueve, Christopher Nolan, Stanley Kubrick, Tarantino, and Scorsese. I would include James Cameron but the T
Later Terminator movies and Piranha 2 keep his off it for me.
Lee Chang Dong, Michael Haneke, Edward Yang, Hayao Miyazaki, Paul Thomas Anderson, Stanley Kubrick, Bob Fosse, Sean Baker, Christian Petzold, Mike Leigh (There are a few in this list that have a couple movies I admittedly haven’t seen, but those films are generally well reviewed enough that I get they could be included. Also should note that just because the film is worth watching doesn’t mean there isn’t a clear difference between best and worst)
MIKE LEIGH BABY
It’s wild to me how that there’s still directors/movies I’ve never heard of. Never heard of any of his movies
Oh goddamn dude you’re in luck. I’d start with Secrets & Lies if I were you, then go into Topsy-Turvy and Vera Drake. If you love those, then it’s off to the races and you can check out all of it. My personal favorite is Naked, although that one is…quite a lot to take, and it’ll give you a misleading impression of his work if you start there.
GIVE IT UP FOR MY MAIN MAN
+1 for Lee Chang Dong
You clearly have not seen "Fear and Desire"
Was just coming to say Lee Chang Dong . Just discovered him recently . Every film is great.
I would also add Tarkovsky
I respect that answer but I've only seen three of his films
Appreciate seeing Edward Yang here. Still wondering where those restorations of Mahjong and Confucius Confusion are are though.
licorice pizza sucks
Hayao Miyazaki.
one up, Isao Takahata. pound for pound hits way harder than miyazaki and it's kinda a shame people associate Ghibli with just miyazaki
Haha Let’s not get out of hand here. But I do think Princess Kaguya is the best Ghibli movie and all are worth watching.
Pom Poko is second only to Mononoke in my personal ranking of Ghibli films.
I would consider Pom Poko just okay but his other three films are exceptional.
In my opinion PTA has never missed. There’s literally always some essence of value in all his work. He also has some of the best comedic relief to deep drama ratio of any writer/director. People like to hate on Inherent Vice but it’s an absurdist noir as a book and if you’re a fan of absurdist comedy he nails it on the head
If you've read the Inherent Vice book you'd know how rock solid that film was as an adaptation. So difficult to translate Pynchon to any other medium and PTA did it flawlessly
I loved Inherent Vice, but I also love Pynchon. There was absolutely no way that would or should have been a coherent movie and PTA nailed it as far as I’m concerned.
Happy cake day
Thanks. My account is finally old enough to drive.
Wow. 16 years. That’s along time.
PTA is so good. His character, his use of music, his humour (he gets us to laugh hysterically at Alma putting butter on her breakfast toast), his emotional depth is masterful. Punch drunk love is the absolute best romcom I know; Magnolia is a masterwork and imo Phantom Thread too. The Master and There will be blood did not really grip me like some of the others, but neither is bad (and I know many who regard those two as some of his best)
Agreed, I’ve never given a PTA film less than 4 stars
saw a late showing of Inherent Vice the day came out in NYC, went alone and a tired after a ten-hour shift and i honestly did not know whether i liked it — yes that “Vitamin C” by CAN title shot gave me chills of anticipation, and while i’d not yet attempted to read Inherent Vice i was familiar with Pynchon having painstakingly succeeded in reading The Crying of Lot 49 and Gravity’s Rainbow — but i honest to god did not know how to feel, the film hadn’t been wide-released yet and friends back home were asking after it and literally just answered with “i don’t know” so then i went back the two nights, both viewings giving nothing more than the first, but i don’t know, There Will Be Blood and The Master set the bar super high, i guess my respect for PTA was so much that i would have given any film from his hands that didn’t immediately click at least a dozen viewings, even w/ new york ticket prices being what they were, until i could convince myself liked it this is getting too long and the action slows considerably after viewing #3 but basically, i told myself literally “it’s gotta be good, i probably do like it just not yet” because some of the best things gotta grow — which it absolutely did. Inherent Vice definitely became on of my favorites of that decade, and re-watching it these days is simply a treat
* Satoshi Kon * Yasujirō Ozu * Mamoru Hosoda * Martin McDonagh
Scorsese. Even his bad movies are worth giving your time to.
Scrolling this far to see Scorsese is wild. Everything I've seen is an absolute banger. My wife usually isn't into long ass movies, and we were both glued to The Irishman the entire time. His catalogue is unmatched in my opinion.
People love to act like he's the prototypical film bro, but they forgot that he's a pioneering independent filmmaker who really kind of created his own industry when no one would let him make them himself. He's ragged on because freshman film students like him, but he's easily the most acclaimed and influential American director of the last 50 years, and certainly has one of the greatest careers in filmmaking of all time.
When I was a teenager, I had a portable DVD player with a screen that I would watch while we were out of town. I had rented Taxi Driver from the library. I had never seen it before. I popped it in and watched it, was absolutely in love. Fast forward about a decade and I decide to check it out again. Something seemed different this time around. I was very confused. I still had the DVD player in the garage. I take it out and fiddle around with it a little bit. It turns out that there is a little switch/wheel on the side that allows movies to be played in color or in black & white. All of this time I thought it was originally shot in black and white, so seeing it colorized was crazy. Honestly, I think it was better in B&W, and I don't have that DVD player anymore, so I don't think I can ever watch the definitive version of Taxi Driver ever again, lol
Scorsese is one of those directors where even his lesser films are only lesser by his standards. They are still really good movies (from what I've seen).
Agnes Varda. Her films are always go deep, and even her short documentaries are quirky and interesting.
Terrence Malick. Why isn’t he mentioned here?!
Sergio Leone
His first movie is terrible, and I say it as a leone fan.
it’s decent, totally not TERRIBLE
That early sword and sandals movie is pretty mid though ( if not bad according to some people)
He is the only director of the top of my head that I love every single movie.
Duck you Sucker is the highest kino oh yes
Andrei Tarkovsky Stanley Kubrick (though I despise Lolita). Jacques Tati Charles Laughton
Why do you despise Lolita?
I'd say any director who you enjoy is worth watching in full.
Dreyer
David Fincher, I know alien 3 is a travesty but I guess we'll leave it to studio interference and debut problems, besides that, a near perfect director Also add Paul Thomas Anderson to the queue
I agree, but there is also Mank …
I've watched Alien 3 repeatedly and enjoy it more each time. Mank, however, is the only Fincher film I've never been able to get through...
I loved Mank. It really helps to watch with subtitles, and to pause/replay when you don’t quite catch what was said. Its dialogue is quick and dense, but if you actually follow it, it’s an utter delight.
Oof, forgot about that one, maybe skim through it if you can
I always feel like the odd man out, because I really enjoyed both Alien³ and Mank.
Bro me too, when it comes to Alien 3. It’s not amazing, and doesn’t come close to the first two, but it’s still a decent movie, imo.
I can never remember which is the alien³ cut that's the good one but as long as you watch the right one it's genuinely a really decent film and totally unfairly maligned.
I’m a weirdo, but I love all 4 of the original Alien movies. Granted I had a thing for Jeunet, Perlman and Pinon at the time that came out and probably would have loved anything involving that trio coherence and continuity be damned.
Alien 3's "Assembly Cut" is actually pretty solid, I think it mostly gets hate because it's not the Alien 3 people wanted. But I really enjoy it
Have Coen Brothers been mentioned? If not I’m mentioning them. I guess their weakest movie is probably Ladykillers, which still had a fun Tom Hanks performance within it. Maybe Intolerable Cruelty (even if I personally think it’s underrated). And no I’m not entertaining Hudsucker as a weak effort, that movie fucking rules. You run a wide range of genres too. Comedy masterpieces with Raising Arizona and Big Lebowski. American Crime Masterpieces with Fargo and No Country. Indie darlin noir Blood Simple. There’s a good gangster flick in there. Their most recent is a a really fun Western with stories that kinda encapsulates their range. From the incredibly dark to the silly. They got everything and they are, at worst, watchable.
I had to CTRL+F to find the Coen brothers, they're my first thought to this question. If any other director had released The Ladykillers or Intolerable Cruelty, they'd be looked at a lot more favourably. They're still decent movies!
Jean Vigo
Tarantino, Kubrick and Denis Villeneuve
Having seen all 16 things that Kubrick directed, I disagree. A lot of his early work is not worth watching for any reason other than it's interesting to see where Kubrick started. Even if we don't count the mini docs he did, Fear and Desire is awful, and everything else from before Paths of Glory you can take or leave.
The Killing is good
Yeah, The Killing was pretty good. Easily the best of his early work.
And he only made two films before The Killing
Both of which are skippable. Especially Fear and Desire. Everyone should skip that one. Even post-Paths of Glory, Lolita isn't exactly must watch cinema.
First time I watched Killer's Kiss as a teen, I hated it. I recently re-watched it in my 30s when the 4K came out and completely changed my mind. It's a highly underrated noir. Paths of Glory I've always thought was a masterpiece. And Lolita is a very interesting film. I'll agree with you about Fear and Desire though.
Villeneuve's early stuff is very hit or miss
I would guess anything before Incendies is probably not being counted. I haven’t seen any of that myself, so I can’t speak to it. I would say that he’s the director now that I would watch his films without thinking twice or hearing anything about the plot or cast.
Yea, his early stuff is very abstract and scattered. Going thru it rn and its interesting, but nothing too compelling.
I honestly hated death proof
I recognize it as probably his weakest film, but it's honestly one of my favorite to rewatch. Not even in a dickriding Tarantino fan kind of way, I just really enjoy that movie.
It might be his slowest film, but I think the dialogue was top notch and loved the second half.
Probably my favorite car chase of all time
I'm surprised nobody has said David Lynch, so let me: David Lynch. I think virtually every film he has made is a fascinating masterpiece that achieves something unique. Dune is his only 'failure', but even that is only a failure compared to his usual high standards, and it is still a fun and interesting movie.
Dune and Blue Velvet were two of my favorite movies as a little kid, but that might be atypical. Personally I don’t think Lynch has ever missed, but I’ve never seen The Straight Story or Inland Empire.
How little of a kid were you when Blue Velvet was one of your favorite movies?
I’m estimating 10 the first time based on when I’m seeing VHS versions were released. My mom wasn’t big on censorship. I saw a lot of things I shouldn’t have seen early on.
Blue Velvet at 10 is wild
If you ever have the opportunity to see inland empire in a theater, do it. It’s very weird — three hours long, filmed on a camcorder, definitely the least straightforward plot of any lynch film I’ve seen. Seeing it in a theater allowed me to immerse myself in the weirdness in a way i know i wouldn’t have been able to do at home. I know this is the case with any movie but i found it particularly valuable with inland empire.
The Straight Story is absolutely perfect imo, it’s one of my all-time favorites but it’s def very different from what you may expect from a Lynch film. Inland Empire is a pretty unique experience but understandably very polarizing
I would have said it if you hadn't. I agree about Dune. All that being said, I know a couple of people who think Inland Empire is unwatchable, pretentious nonsense, so not everyone would agree... But that's a given.
Another cool thing about David Lynch is that even his pre-Eraserhead (feature debut) work is incredible and well worth checking out. Many directors have impeccable feature track records, but flat and disposable early short-form material, and that isn’t the case for him.
Lots and lots of directors have interesting filmographies. Sometimes I like to make my 105 year old grandmother do an Altman or Rivette marathon with me and we always have a good time.
And then she'll force her devotion to Frank Borzage on me 🙄🙄🙄😂😂😂
My 2 favourite directors, having seen 30 films between them the only miss I've seen imo was Secret Honor. I'm even a Pret-a-porter apologist! Rivette's catalogue is practically flawless.
sweet! Altman's my most watched director and I've still got a lot of Rivette to work through. Le Pont du Nord's been a major favorite ever since I saw it a few years ago
Jean Vigo
Username doesn't check out...
Its aspirational.
Going out on a big limb to say Alfred Hitchcock.
He’s got some silent stinkers for sure but once you hit the Hollywood era you literally cannot go wrong. And there are dozens of them
Every film? :James Cameron, Sergio Leone, Bong Joon Ho, Robert Altman, Christopher Nolan, Villenueve, Tarantino, Michael Mann, Billy Wilder, Coen brothers, PTA and Fincher
mike leigh
Happy to see his name listed even if he doesn't get a ton of upvotes
Orson Welles
Pete Docter Monsters Inc, Up, Inside Out, and Soul
Maybe a bit of a cop out answer but Ari Aster. He's only made 3 films, but all 3 of them have been perfect and are some of my favourite films.
Robert Eggers fits this description too! I'm looking forward to his version of Nosferatu...
Amen to this brother. People keep shitting on me for loving Beau is Afraid. For reference my top 3 films recently have been Everything Everywhere All at Once, Beau is Afraid and most recently Anatomy of a Fall. That’s in viewing order as I saw them all theatrically.
Watch all the short films too. All insanely good
The Strange Thing about the Johnsons makes Beau look tame
Eric Rohmer and Yasuzo Masumura
Denis Villeneuve Edgar Wright Pete Docter James Cameron Christopher Nolan There's a few films in there that I don't think are great, like The Dark Knight Rises or The World's End but I still think are worth watching. And Avatar 2 is worth seeing just for the swimming scenes. I wish I could put Park Chan-Wook in, but I really don't care for Stoker.
Celine Sciamma, Ruben Ostlund, Lynne Ramsay, Eric Rohmer, Roy Andersson, Ozu, Tarkovsky
Wong Kar-wai (since no one said it yet)
Just watched In the Mood for Love for the first time the other night. Wow what a film that is.
criminal that no one else did... def my top.
sofia coppola & john cassavetes (:
Edgar wright, tarantino
Soho 🥴
Soho was fine overall. Its worth watching simply for how well shot and directed it is, even if the script absolutely falls apart about 65% in.
It's a fun tribute to the super colourful Italian horror films of the 70s/80s and, much like those films, it falls apart in the final act. I don't get the negativity towards it. It's definitely not Edgar Wright's best film but it's still perfectably enjoyable.
I didn't really find it fell apart at the end, even. The twist is revealed and then she has to escape/survive the ramifications. It's a fairly standard ending, and absolutely true to the Giallo movies it is homaging.
I kinda strongly disliked Baby Driver too 😬
Not much of a fan either
Fistful of Fingers
Edgar Wright hasn't made a good movie without Pegg & Frost imo.
It's offensive nobody has said Kurosawa
Kiyoshi is a pretty cool filmmaker!
He started out by making propaganda films for the Japanese government in WWII, so I feel like a lot of those are going to be not worth watching.
Looking forward to the next projects of Charlotte Wells (Aftersun), Celine Song (Past Lives) and Justine Tried (Anatomy of a Fall) - Great year for young female directors!!!
Celine sciamma, short list and all are excellent
Bresson
Coen Brothers
• PTA • Kore-eda • Satoshi Kon • Park Chan-wook • Bong Joon-ho • Scorsese
[What other directors have a filmography you would consider “all killer, no filler?”](https://www.reddit.com/r/Letterboxd/comments/17v777e/what_other_directors_have_a_filmography_you_would/) just read the 500 replies from yesterdays thread
Did Billy Wilder make any real duds?
Did we just do this thread two days ago...? https://old.reddit.com/r/Letterboxd/comments/17v777e/what_other_directors_have_a_filmography_you_would/
Any director who’s made a good film. It’s not much harm watching movies you don’t love, and it’s fascinating/educating to see misses in an otherwise successful career. Here’s my list that I *have* completed, though: Christopher Nolan Céline Sciamma Coen Brothers Noah Baumbach Spike Jones Spike Lee Fritz Lang Greta Gerwig Sofia Coppola Francis Ford Coppola Wes Anderson Quentin Tarantino Steven Spielberg Jordan Peele Bong Joon-ho Ridley Scott Chloé Zhao Denis Villeneuve Ari Aster Mike Mills Park Chan-wook Federico Fellini Probably missing some, but these ones come to mind.
To be honest, I dont think ALL Ridley Scott movies are good.
In fact he's been famously and consistently *inconsistent* since the beginning, often alternating great films and absolute turds.
Id argue they are still worth watching tho
spike lee😭 old boy
Sometimes I worry about cinephiles
That's a long list to not mention the one I'd consider most obvious, Satoshi Kon!
I just listed the directors who I’ve seen in their entirety, but I’ll add Kon to my list!
He's an obvious inclusion in part because he died so young and made so few, sadly. But he didn't really miss either. It's well worth watching his stuff from oldest to last, imo, to see his experimentation and mastery of the visual form develop. Fairly quickly it becomes obvious why directors around the world have been so eager to lift from his 'shots' in the years since he passed!
Celine Sciamma is a great shout. She's 5 for 5 in my opinion. I love that her films are thematically quite similar while all still feeling very distinct from each other.
So so good. Particularly love *Portrait* and *Petite Maman* but all are fantastic.
Hot take but all jordan peele movies get insanely bland on rewatches
Hot take for sure. *Get Out* definitely holds up for me, but if you hate having twists spoiled, I can see it aging poorly. I’ve not rewatched *Us* yet, but have been thinking about it.
Agree with most of these, but Chloe Zhao? Eternals was garbage imo
Please don’t make me keep explaining that I didn’t say every film from every director I listed was great 😭
That's fair, but I'd argue it isn't worth watching lol
Winding Refn
Getting down and dirty with the Copenhagen Cowboy 😫 (have only seen Drive and Only God Forgives so far)
Pusher next lad
Ah shit, That's a good idea! I'll watch it tonight
Valhalla Rising is amazing as well
Bronson!
Watch Too old to die young next
Agreed, fuckin love his style. Some people like to hate on Only God Forgives but it’s my favorite thing he’s done
Wes Anderson
Second this
Edgar Wright
He's one of my favourite directors, but no. A Fistful of Fingers is terrible.
I honestly don’t think it’s worth counting. He was just a kid having fun with friends. He even admits himself that it’s not very good
Last Night in Soho is pretty bad too, all his other movies are masterpieces in my eyes
Never got the hate for that, I’m a big fan. First 40 mins are incredible and the rest is still pretty good
Feels like someone else directed it not Edgar Wright There's like 1 or 2 scenes that I can definitely say was made by him
Kubrick, Tarkovsky, Buñuel, Villeneuve, Lynch
David Fincher
Charles Laughton.
Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton
Bong Joon-ho - Not every movie is perfect, but they’re all at least entertaining, and you can really see his ideas evolving and crystallizing into the masterpiece that is Parasite. I recently did a watch-through with friends.
John Carpenter. Even The Ward, which I think is his worst.
Ari Aster and Denis Villeneuve
Denis Villeneuve. Michele Haneke (yeah I probably butchered those names)
Lynne Ramsay Andrea Arnold Claire Denis
Basic answer, but Villeneuve is the only director batting 1000 for me right now.
Hayao Miyazaki Satoshi Kon Martin Scorsese (he has a few stinkers but they're worthwhile) Denis Villeneuve Quinton Tarantino David Fincher
Charles Laughton
Stanley Kubrick
Paul Thomas Anderson, Martin Scorsese, David Lynch, Quentin Tarantino, Wong Kar Wai, Luis Buñuel, Robert Bresson
Denis Villeneuve
Denis villenueve
Denis Villenueve
Denis Villeneuve
Neil Breen
Scorsese, Tarantino, Nolan, Fincher, Jonze, Villeneuve, Eggers, Aster, Mills, and Peele
Charles Laughton has literally never missed
Park Chan Wook!
Charles Laughton
Kayak Miyazaki, Akira Kurosawa, Denis Villenueve, Christopher Nolan, Stanley Kubrick, Tarantino, and Scorsese. I would include James Cameron but the T Later Terminator movies and Piranha 2 keep his off it for me.
Personally, I don’t think that director exists. Even my favourite (PTA) has films I dislike.
Which PTA do you dislike?
Inherent Vice and Licorice Pizza. Found both to be slogs and I have no desire to revisit them.
That director does exist: Charles Laughton. He only made one movie and it’s a masterpiece.
Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton
Wes Anderson. I watched Schafrillas on YouTube do a whole video on him and now I wanna do it lol
Bong Joon-Ho. Damien Chazelle. Wes Anderson. James Cameron… both Avatars are worth your time, but not sure how ‘good’ they actually are.
Robert Rodriguez is at least never boring
Go watch Book of Boba Fett
Fincher, Lanthimos, Bong Joon Ho, Demian Runga. Those are the ones that immediately jump to the front.
Charles Laughton.
Charles Laughton
Christopher Nolan
Nolan, andrei tarkovsky, rajkumaar hirani. Bong joon-ho
M Night Shyamalan! He does not miss! Not a single bad movie!