This year’s Cannes saw an unprecedented number of auteur pieces heading up the competition – films from Ken Loach, Pedro Almodovar, Richard Linklater, et al - while coming up over the next few months are a stack of releases designed to get the cinephile’s mouth watering – Michael Mann’s adaptation of his own TV series Miami Vice, Michel Gondry’s The Science of Sleep, Hou Hsiao-Hsien’s Three Times and Terry Gilliam’s Tideland. And now that other great summer contest, the World Cup, is about to start, we here at Close-Up thought we’d counteract the football blues by kicking off our own debate on the best in film. So we asked our writers this simple question: who are the ten best directors working today? The filmmakers who are making the difference, the ones crafting the finest cinema, the work that will last and be remembered in the future?
It was clear who the winners would be early on, but what was extraordinary about the response was the sheer breadth of people offered as candidates. All in all, our writers polled an astonishing 97 names. And the diversity of filmmakers who excited their interest was refreshing, from the Coen Brothers to the Dardenne Brothers, from Julio Medem to Chris Cunningham. Proof enough against the prophets of doom who would have us believe that cinema is past its best. On the contrary, world cinema is alive and well, blossoming with new genres and movements, like the Korean revenge thriller or Luhrmann’s acid musical.
Over the next few weeks, Close-Up will be providing a series of specials on some of the directors mentioned here and in the individual responses below. Look out for issues devoted to Ken Loach, Hou Hsiao-Hsien, Michael Mann, Richard Linklater, and, of course, the winner of our poll, Martin Scorsese. With all that, who needs football?
- Martin Scorsese
2= Michael Haneke
Park Chan-wook
Steven Spielberg
5= Paul Thomas Anderson
Wes Anderson
David Cronenberg
Ang Lee
Quentin Tarantino
10= Tim Burton
Clint Eastwood
Michel Gondry
David Lynch
Hiyao Miyazaki
Christopher Nolan
Bryan Singer
Wong Kar Wei
Michael Bartlett (Co-editor):
Abbas Kiarostami – Every generation needs their own movement of cinema. The ‘20s had the Soviet school, the ‘40s Neo-realism, the ‘60s the French New Wave. But what was the defining movement of my, er, thirtysomething generation? The new Iranian cinema. And its crown prince was Kiarostami. He is our Rossellini, our Godard, a filmmaker who rewrites all the rules, who fuses neorealism with docudrama with contemplative humanism. And he’s still going strong, pushing cinema so far into the abstract with Ten and Five that a new word will have to be coined for the genre they belong to.
Hou Hsiao-Hsien – Derek Malcolm once complained that if Hou was French or Italian, he’d be known as one of the “world’s foremost filmmakers”. Well, here he is on my list, Derek. Because no director at the moment makes films that are so lyrical, so downright beautiful, but which contrive at the same time to define the whole social, political and historical framework of one country – namely, Taiwan. He is an absolute master.
David Cronenberg – Although I haven’t much liked his two most recent efforts, I still regard Cronenberg as the most intelligent and original English-language director. Throughout his career, from his first shorts (Stereo, Crimes of the Future) and his early ‘grunge’ classics (The Brood, Videodrome) up to his ingenious adaptations of untranslatable books (Naked Lunch, Crash), he has displayed an uncompromising, intellectual edge. He needs to return to writing his own scripts, but his control of material is never less than assured.
David Lynch – The other great David of North American film is a whole other story, one played out in dreams and nightmares, that slides between Surrealist monsters and bobbysox pop. Lynch has pushed his way out of the cult envelope to emerge as a fully-fledged master of narrative experimentation, and the realms he has created are so tangible, they’re now a part of everyone’s cinematic mindscape.
Hiyao Miyazaki – The king of all animators, even surpassing Disney in the complexity of his story-telling and the richness of his themes. While the excellence of his films’ animation is in no doubt, what constantly surprises is the subtlety of the interaction between characters and the quiet but passionate way Miyazaki pursues his arguments about personal responsibility and ecological damage.
“Beat” Takeshi Kitano – The super cool hard man of modern cinema perhaps, but also a formidably intelligent essayist, comedian and director who has combined his talents to create a new, utterly unique brand of film. Deceptively light, his movies combine childlike playfulness, vehement nihilism and romantic sentiment with bravura visual stylisation.
Koreeda Hirokazu – The third Japanese director on my list is the least-known, and yet his four features to date demonstrate a humanism that had been all but lost from cinema since the 1950s. He may not be as formally daring as his East Asian counterparts, but Koreeda is more concerned with the vagaries of human relationships. His compassion for his characters, and the often non-professional actors that play them, coupled with the intensity of his enquiry and sureness of technique means he should be regarded as a minor master.
Jia Zhangke – Still a relatively new face on the World Cinema scene, and yet already this Chinese director has shown a tremendous talent for combining rigorous technique with intelligent insight. His breakthrough feature, Platform, could be considered the apotheosis of the long-take, sequence-shot ‘cinema of contemplation’.
Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne – Harbingers of a new European humanism, harking back to the social realism of the ‘50s and ‘60s and the work of Alan Clark, and already influencing figures like Christi Puiu, maker of the astonishing Death of Mr Lazarescu. Their films are intimate and small-scale, but the impact of their work is universal, as their two Palme D’Ors bear witness.
Robert Altman – One of a growing league of veterans (including New Wavers Rivette, Rohmer and Chabrol, and keepers of the classic mise-en-scene faith, Eastwood and Polanksi) who not only refuse to go away but repeatedly show up their young rivals with movies that are innovative and challenging. Only recently, Altman gave us Gosford Park and the beautiful, criminally-underrated ballet movie, The Company, which deserves to be called one of the greatest dance films ever.
Honourable mentions to those two great “shadow-men” of the movies – Victor Erice and Chris Marker.
Michael Blyth:
Here are my top ten working directors. No doubt I've probably
forgotten someone, but here goes...
Terrence Malick
George A. Romero
Brian De Palma
Francois Ozon
Gregg Araki
Todd Haynes
Michael Haneke
David Lynch
Alexandr Sokurov
Werner Herzog
Stephen Collings:
Tim Burton - Maverick wunderkind whose skewed visual sensibilities have
earned the director his own section in Forbidden Planet. There is always
a (cookie) heart at the centre of his oddball collection of misfits and
outsiders and Ed Wood remains a modern masterpiece.
Hayao Miyazaki - A living legend of animation who retired once, then
created Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle. Let's hope he changes
his mind again. Sublimely beautiful masterpieces that transcend
perceived limitations of the 2D format.
Baz Lurhmann - While ambition alone does not make a great director,
Lurhmann is always upping the stakes to produce the ultimate spectacle,
fusing together street gangs and Shakespeare (Romeo + Juliet) or pop
culture and cabaret (Moulin Rouge!).
Todd Haynes - His love of cinema shines through every frame of film,
whether it is an affectionate paean to Douglas Sirk melodramas (Far From Heaven) or a campy retelling of Karen Carpenter's life using
Barbie dolls (Superstar).
Michel Gondry - Wildly imaginative and inventive director whose music
videos for the likes of Daft Punk and Björk ensured cult status before
hitting the big time with Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind. Now
set to secure his reputation with Gael García Bernal feature, The Science Of Sleep.
Jonathan Glazer - Another graduate from the school of pop promos,
Glazer's forays into full length features have invited critical acclaim
(Sexy Beast) and tabloid scandal (Birth), but criminally have struggled
to find an audience.
Pedro Almodóvar - Women, priests and gazpacho. Political director who
never lets rhetoric get in the way of a good story. Dark humour and
heartfelt emotion walk hand in hand with a rich and vivid sense of
visual iconography.
Bryan Singer - Fan boy favourite, Singer always had the edge over Sam
Raimi when it came to comic book adaptations, and like Tim Burton,
complicates the usual divisions between good and evil by having
villains who are just so damn likeable! (step forward, Keyser Soze).
Stephen Chow - Not content with producing the best modern animation and
horror, the Far East is stealing a march on action cinema, too. Stylish,
intelligent and super cool filmmaking from a director who has
reenergised the martial arts genre in both Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle.
Michael Winterbottom - Jack of all trades, master of all; Winterbottom
effortlessly shifts genres with each film, from conscience-led films
like Welcome To Sarajevo and The Road To Guantanamo to the comedy
genius of 24 Hour Party People, while generating some controversy along
the way with 9 Songs.
Will Davis:
Michael Haneke
Atom Egoyan
Wong Kar Wai
Jane Campion
Gurinder Chadha
Mike Leigh
Paul Verhoeven
Nick Broomfield
Todd Solondz
Ang Lee
Kevin Gill:
David Cronenberg
Abbas Kiarostami
Michael Haneke
Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne
Paul Greengrass
Ken Loach
Pedro Almodovar
Quentin Tarantino
P.T.Anderson
David Lynch
Kevin Holmes:
Wes Anderson - Idiosyncratic, stylish, Bill Murray and a forthcoming stop-motion adaptation of Roald Dahl's The Fantastic Mr Fox. Get some.
Richard Kelly - Donnie Darko was an inspiring debut and his next, Southland Tales, starring Sarah Michelle Gellar as an ex porn queen, looks equally likely to impress. We'll forgive him for the Domino screenplay...
Paul Greengrass - His new film United 93 is set to divide audiences with its take on that ill-fated flight. He's British, he's political and he came this close to directing the Watchmen adaptation (tight shot, show how angry I am).
Morgan Spurlock - Single-handedly caused the big M to change their obesity-ripe menu simply by eating nothing but their own burgers. Who’s next? Starbucks? M&S? Mctastic.
Wong Kar Wai - Evocative, dreamy cinema, Godardian in its temporal displacement. The head of this year’s Cannes jury, plus he looks damn cool in shades.
Park Chan-wook - His recently completed 'revenge' trilogy was some of the best cinema in recent years. Brutal, aggressive, yet stylish and clever. Like Scorsese at his raw, Mean Streets best.
Quentin Tarantino - Yeah, okay, he's not been up to much recently and the Kill Bills weren't quite up to his standard – dialogue-wise. But he had a hand in last year’s Sin City, one of the (visually) most adventurous and innovative films to come out of Hollywood in recent memory. And Pulp Fiction? It changed Hollywood's filmic landscape forever (well, at least for the 1990s).
Richard Linklater – His brilliant, rambling film Waking Life, while referencing everything from Timothy Leary to Quantum Indeterminacy via James Joyce, also trialled the cutting-edge animation technique he’s going to be using in the upcoming A Scanner Darkly. Finally, a Phil K Dick adaptation that respects the source material and casts a bunch of drug addicts to play…a bunch of drug addicts. Spark another owl.
Christopher Nolan - The excellent Memento was a tour-de-force in edge-of-your-seat, mind-bending cinema. Last year’s Batman Begins took the Dark Knight back to where he belonged, relying on a Frank Miller story and the idea that blockbuster audiences might actually be intelligent. Bring on the sequel.
Dave McKean - This comic-book artist's recent debut Mirrormask was a visual feast. Made on a tight budget, the plot's not up to much, but it's a sure promise of great things to come.
Elizabeth Hyder:
In no particular order:
Martin Scorsese – Who can believe that he STILL hasn’t been given an Oscar? True, his work can sometimes verge on self-indulgent, but when he makes films this interesting and watchable - frankly, who cares?
Michael Winterbottom – Surely the man who debunks the auteur theory? Absolutely un-pigeon-holable, he moves from costume drama to comedy to social history to political film-making in the blink of an eye. Not to mention his prolific output, the man’s brilliant and a true reason to cheer British film-making.
James Marsh – From Death Trip Wisconsin to The King, he’s only made two films but, my God, he’s good. One of the most original filmmakers around at the moment and definitely one to watch.
Andrea Arnold – With an Oscar-winning short under her belt and her debut feature making waves at Cannes, its time to shout a big hurrah for our female film directors. There’s not many of them, but Arnold is being tipped for the big time, and about time too.
Nick Park – Bless him. Bless him, bless him. Who would ever have thought Ealing would make a comeback in plasticine form? Three cheers for Aardman.
Tim Burton – Hit and miss, but his hits are worth the wait and even his misses are usually pretty interesting. There’s no-one else around quite like him. Treasure him people, treasure him.
Emir Kusturica – Not as big in Britain as he should be. A hugely talented big bear of a man who can turn his hand to acting, writing, directing and performing and composing the music. But he ain’t no Woody Allen. This is a man whose sense of humour owes as big a debt to the stars of silent film as anyone else – and I dare you to listen to his music without your toes tapping along. Go on, try it!
Michael Haneke – A very, very interesting director. He thrives on variety and after the success of Hidden, Haneke seems to be maturing into one of the top directors around.
Bryan Singer – The Usual Suspects, X Men 2… Singer’s obviously influenced as much by film noir as the visuals of comic books, but the new Superman film will be the true test as to whether he can hold out his distinctive style against the Hollywood beast.
Steven Spielberg – He nearly didn’t make it on here, but the recent Munich was pretty damn good and hopefully will mark a return to form. Minority Report and AI were a long time ago now but he still remains incredibly influential. As long as he doesn’t get tempted to do family schmaltz, the man’s brilliant, but I’m afraid he’s going down the Chaplin route of over-emoting his characters, which is something he never used to do. Will the real Steven Spielberg stand up, please?
Hemanth Kissoon:
The Top 10 directors who are making the greatest impact on cinema at the moment are, for me, the ones who are not only pushing the cinematic form but seeming to push themselves and not rest on past successes. In alphabetical order:
David Fincher - A portrayer of the dark heart of the modern Western corporate world. Fincher can move a camera like no other, and conjure an atmosphere of intangible menace out of nothing. Key films: Se7en and Fight Club.
Alejandro González Iñárritu - He has only released two films, but Iñárritu (with screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga) has shown up that beginning-middle-end narrative structure for the cliché that it is. Films: Amores Perros and 21 Grams.
Jean-Pierre Jeunet - Jeunet has the ability to make the mundane look extraordinarily striking. He is the 21st Century Hans Christian Anderson – the world is a fairy tale. Key films: Delicatessen and Amelie.
Takeshi Kitano - Sublime, meditative and often intensely violent, the multi-talented Kitano seduces the senses like few film-makers can. Key films: Sonatine and Dolls.
Ang Lee - If Daniel Day-Lewis is the chameleon of acting, then Lee is his directorial equivalent. He is virtually unparalleled in Hollywood at the moment when it comes to intelligence, sensitivity and versatility. Key films: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Brokeback Mountain.
Richard Linklater - Linklater has spent his career sticking it to the “Man”. Equally at home in Hollywood or outside it, on film, digital or with animation. Key films: Before Sunset and School of Rock.
Michael Mann - Mann’s films are machine-tooled precision, peopled with charismatic professionals that prevent his epics from being soulless. Key Films: The Last of the Mohicans and Heat.
Hayao Miyazaki - The holy trinity of feature animation: Walt Disney, John Lasseter and Miyazaki. His output forces Lasseter into third, and gives Uncle Walt a run for number one of all time. A spectacular visual sensibility and imagination. Key films: Laputa: The Flying Island (aka Castle in the Sky) and Spirited Away.
M. Night Shyamalan - His last four films are all love stories: bereavement of a beloved spouse (The Sixth Sense, Signs), the reconnection of husband and wife (Unbreakable) and the trials of young love (The Village). They concern the pain and pleasure of human relationships. Shyamalan sets these romances in B-movie genres (ghost, super-hero, alien invasion and super-natural stories) and elevates them into artful meditations on longing. Added to that his films are really allegories about the modern world: The Sixth Sense is ostensibly a horror film but really about coming to terms with the increasingly taboo subject of death, Unbreakable concerns violence in modern life and body fascism, Signs is a metaphor for faith in one’s self and a higher being, and The Village is a response to American isolationism post 9/11.
Steven Soderbergh - Soderbergh is a one-man force of nature – director, writer, producer, cinematographer, editor – moving between television and the big screen with ease. A man whose purposefulness is a theme that runs through his work, from Karen Sisko and Danny Ocean, to Erin Brockovich and Wilson. Key films: Traffic and Out of Sight.
Daniel Laverick (News Editor):
Stephen Chow - The supremely talented Chow writes, directs, produces and stars in many of his films. Hi recent Western success with Kung Fu Hustle and Shaolin Soccer has indicated Chow’s entry into global stardom.
Tsai Ming Liang - Taiwan’s experimental auteur has progressively descended into darker and weirder territory in the last ten years. Making boundary-pushing films with limited resources, Tsai is one of the few truly ‘original’ directors making films at the moment.
Takeshi Miike - Takes our deepest fears, the things that outrage and disgust us, and shoves them down our throats while laughing. Nothing is sacred to this man, an artist with a splendid sense of visual decadence who confuses, taunts and goads with an underlying sense of irony and sarcasm (look for it, it’s there!).
Hou Hsiao Hsien - The godfather of Taiwanese cinema, a filmmaker whose career spans 30 years of engaging and meaningful cinema. His work in the years of the Taiwan New Cinema (The Boys From Fengkuei, City of Sadness) has laid a path for the likes of Ang Lee and Tsai Ming Liang to follow. Hou continues to direct films (Millennium Mambo, Three Times, Café Lumiere) that represent the ever-changing society of his native Taiwan.
Jim Jarmusch - Explores familiar genre films, brushing them with the hand of an artist and producing something unexpected and interesting. Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai and Dead Man stand out as the pinnacle of his talent so far.
Beat Takeshi - Despite playing the same character in every single film he appears in, Takeshi remains as an engaging figure on screen. His style is subtle and simple but highly effective. Films like Gohatto (Nagisa Oshima) and Zatoichi have solidified his place amongst Japan’s current directorial elite.
Ang Lee - Seems to be on a mission to explore any and all genres. His recent global success with Brokeback Mountain has come after years spent hopping from one genre to another, from the British Costume Drama (Sense and Sensibility) to the Chinese wuxia film (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) to the comic book hero adaptation (The Hulk). Lee is a multi-talented visionary who applies a humanist approach to his many projects.
Wong Kar Wei - Hong Kong’s leading (and perhaps only) auteur director. Wong is popular with the Western art house crowd and continues to delve into his obsession with love, loss and time, weaving his narratives around these themes that have become synonymous with his work.
Chan-Wook Park - One of many talented Korean directors currently riding the crest of the ‘Asian Invasion’ wave. His revenge-themed films, Sympathy for Mr Vengeance, Old Boy and Sympathy for Lady Vengeance have secured his position at the helm of extreme Korean cinema.
Johnny To - Along with Stephen Chow, To is currently keeping Hong Kong cinema alive with his fast-paced action films. Part of the new generation of directors emerging post-John Woo, To has produced films such as Election, PTU and Fulltime Killer amongst a rapidly increasing and impressive resume.
Oli Lewington:
Being the total, all-round film nut that I am, I can’t put them in any
particular numerical order (I can’t even tell you my top five fave films
in any order!) so here we are:
Michael Mann Rock solid, beautifully constructed stories with a
powerful human element and unforgettable turns from the most talented
actors working in the business.
Steven Spielberg Simply a master story-teller.
Christopher Nolan Bringing an independent sensibility to blockbuster
action, fusing spectacle with real, grounded characters.
Steven Soderbergh A textbook example of an indie filmmaker who refuses
to be ruled by the suits but understands the need to bring in the bucks
to ensure creative freedom.
Clint Eastwood Understated and thoughtful, he has created two of the
most powerful character-driven stories of the last few years and drawn
career-best performances from actors who have many credits laying claim
to that honour.
Robert Rodriguez A revolutionary from the start, RR continues to turn
accepted wisdom on its head and make films the way he sees best. And
when they’re as good as Sin City, who’s gonna argue?
Bryan Singer After ushering in the Age of X, the man with the plan is
soon to be lauded for his revamp of the classic all-American hero. The
blueprint for the success of indie cross-overs.
M Night Shyamalan Bold, imaginative filmmaking with strong thematic
elements and a body of work that stands the test of repeated viewings.
His views on filmmaking, story and editing are a master-class in
themselves.
Cameron Crowe Although coming off the back of the
less-than-successful Elizabethtown, Crowe is still a masterful story
teller and the man with the greatest soundtracks in the industry bar
none.
Matthew Vaughn The new kid on the block who showed he can do style
with no budget on his debut and had the world excited about X3 before he
bailed. We wait with baited breath to see how he unleashes the
multi-millions.
Jean Lynch (Close-Up founder and co-editor)
Quentin Tarantino - Reservoir Dogs reignited American independent cinema, and his work demonstrates that arthouse and fun can be an exhilarating mix. The king of dialogue also was instrumental in raising the profile of the Eastern 'Grindhouse' movies.
Tim Burton - His dark visions of Gotham City set the standard for comic book film adaptations. Added to that is the magical art direction that has even coined the term 'Burton-esque', and the working relationship that has helped make an unconventional leading man of Johnny Depp.
Baz Luhrmann - for making both musicals and Shakespeare ultra-cool.
Peter Jackson - the film adaptation of the LOTR trilogy was always going to be a huge responsibility and a tenuous undertaking given its huge fan base. Peter Jackson delivered with aplomb a staggering spectacle that remained faithful to the book. He then went on to achieve the impossible - an almost unanimous round of applause for a new version of King Kong. Spielberg has his successor in a man who can achieve classic cinema with state-of-the-art special effects.
Alejandro Amenabar - an absolute master of creepy suspense.
Martin Scorsese - from Mean Streets through to The Aviator, Scorsese immerses us directly into the world of the outsider and has us rooting for him all the way. Give this man his Oscar NOW!
Neil Jordan - here is a man who manages to portray beauty and poignancy in the most surreal and disturbing scenarios.
Steven Spielberg - still the master filmmaker - a release bearing his name is still a 'must see' movie.
Darren Aronofsky - a small body of work but what a body! Requiem for a Dream was the most gut-wrenching, physical film-going experience of my life.
Peter Weir - a classic film director who makes gorgeous films, just the right side of sentimental.
Angus Macdonald:
Paul Thomas Anderson
David Cronenberg
Michael Haneke
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
David Lynch
Park Chan-Wook
The Quay Brothers
Martin Scorsese
Steven Spielberg
Gus Van Sant
Sion Marks:
In no order:
Todd Solondz
Wes Anderson
Martin Scorsese
Chan-wook Park
David Cronenberg
Nick Broomfield
Francis Ford Coppola (back in his day)
Gaspar Noe
Chris Cunningham
Spike Jonze
Richard Mellor:
In no particular order:
Sofia Coppola
Pawel Pawlikowski
Ken Loach
Pedro Almodovar
Neil Jordan
Quentin Tarantino
Terrence Malick
Curtis Hanson
Martin Scorsese
Chan-wook Park
God knows I've probably missed a few I love…
Paul Murphy:
In no particular order
The Coen Brothers
Clint Eastwood
Michael Haneke
Martin Scorsese
Wes Anderson
Michel Gondry
Alejandro González Iñárritu
Ki-duk Kim
Julio Medem
Steven Soderbergh
Paul Nash:
Chan-wook Park
Alexander Payne
P.T. Anderson
Wes Anderson
Peter Jackson
Spike Jonze
Michel Gondry
Lynne Ramsay
Joel Coen
John Lasseter
Matthew Rodgers:
The 10 most influential/favourite working directors are as follows:-
Steven Spielberg - THE best director of the modern cinematic climate
that he both still influences and helped to establish from Duel through
to Munich. Even so-called "flops" such as Hook and the criminally
underrated AI are superior films to those at the top of some other
helmers CVs. As Spielberg matures, he seems to be making more
personal films, taking some time out from entertaining the masses to
discover himself a little, but I think we can afford him this when he has
bought us some of the most entertaining (ET, Indiana Jones trilogy) and
important (Schindler’s List) films of our time. The "beard" must take a
bow.
David Fincher - I might get face-hugged for this but ALIEN3 is my
second favourite of the franchise (tumbleweed?). There was a great idea
in there somewhere and a few early glimpses of a talent trying
to struggle free from the studio arm lock with flashes of genius (the POV
tracking in the corridors).Those that don't agree must be thankful that
the film made Fincher flee from the studio system and gestate for a
while before re-emerging as the most creative and thought provoking
director since Scorsese. Se7en came out of nowhere to shock global
audiences. The Game was largely ignored but should be revisited for its
Hitchcockian twists and dark humour. Panic Room was him letting his hair down – thin premise expertly executed. Fight Club will be the benchmark movie for Fincher until he hangs up his megaphone, incorporating his now trademark visual trickery with a social commentary that was misunderstood as machismo violence upon release, but is now regarded as an intelligent dissection of the struggle that modern man has with his vanishing masculinity. Zodiac cannot come quickly enough.
Peter Jackson - Lord of the Rings and King Kong are comment enough for
inclusion on the list.
Bryan Singer
Martin Scorsese
Clint Eastwood
Quentin Tarantino
Wes Anderson
PT Anderson
Uwe Boll
Julia Smith:
Richard Linklater - Linklater has spent so many years on the bench, studying and developing his craft, I think he is finally ready to exist in contemporary cinema without having to bow down to Hollywood and its money-makers (which is what he has always avoided). The release of A Scanner Darkly will definitely double his fan base, and I think he has the talent and integrity to continue its growth from then on in. Also, his films focus a great deal on the philosophy of life and I think, after the success of this year (with Fast Food Nation also being released), people will have a great deal of interest in his work, as it will appeal to the contemporary malaise.
Michel Gondry
Richard Kelly
Zach Braff
Edgar Wright - We don’t have many British directors, and I think after the success of Shaun of the Dead, the forthcoming Hot Fuzz could really win over American as well as British audiences.
Hayao Miyazaki - With the battle between computer-animated films growing by the second, I think Miyazaki’s films will bring people back to the ways of ‘hand-drawn’ animation. Since the success of both Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle, people are also starting to recognise his work and respect the magical qualities which it offers.
Wong Kar-Wai - The western world is just waking up to his work, and I think he could be the person who persuades them to watch more world cinema.
Fernando Meirelles
Jim Jarmusch - Although he has had a long and varied career, I think Broken Flowers really brought him out in a new light. His previous films have not fared well with the mass public and there’s a possibility that they are now just beginning to realise the gravitas of his work.
Shane Carruth - A filmmaker with only one film beneath his belt, I think Carruth could offer up some truly special films in the future. Primer, his one and only film, won the 2004 Grand Jury Prize for best drama and the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize at the Sundance Film Festival. A complicated, and painstakingly created piece of work, Primer is a pure independent film. Working with the smallest of crews, the film is truly an auteur piece where Carruth did everything but make the sandwiches. It is also fantastically written and acted. Like a mathematical equation, it takes a long time to work out. And what’s fantastic about it is that Carruth is probably the only one who knows the answer.
Jarrod Walker:
Here's my list of the ten best directors working today and - in my
opinion - their best films. (In no particular order):
Peter Weir (Gallipoli)
Paul Thomas Anderson (Magnolia)
Michael Mann (Heat)
Ang Lee (The Ice Storm)
Lars Von Trier (Breaking the Waves)
John Hillcoat (The Proposition)
Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich)
David Cronenberg (The Fly)
Christopher Nolan (Memento)
David Fincher (Fight Club)
Justin Whitton:
I've taken a rather generous line on CURRENTLY working.
Roman Polanski - A truly great director, if not as prolific as he was in the 60s and 70s. Even his bad films (of which there haven't been many) are always
interesting to watch.
Clint Eastwood - Despite a tremendous body of work behind him already, his filmmaking seems to get even better with age.
Ang Lee - Is there a genre he cannot master?
Steven Spielberg - Surely nobody in the history of cinema has entertained more people?
Martin Scorsese - Still the filmmaker's filmmaker.
Oliver Stone - Yes, some of his projects have been misguided. But at least
he is not scared to make bold statements, and JFK remains a high point in
American cinema.
Mike Leigh - An instinctive genius who has thankfully avoided the mainstream
and focused on the personal.
Tim Burton - A remarkable eye for the visual, and not afraid to explore the darker
side of life.
Christopher Nolan - Not many projects to his name as yet, but has already demonstrated great skill and confidence.
Jonathan Demme - What a shame this talented New Yorker doesn't make more films.
Of course, on another day, this list might be completely different…
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