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borntohula

Underappreciated Directors

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so, lately i've been into movies a lot. mainly because im now in film courses at my university and quite liking it. finally i'm able to put my love for movie-related things into words. these courses have given me a new vocabulary to work with. but i digress...

 

the_rat_who_would_be_king and i have been compiling a list of underrated or underappreciated CONTEMPORARY directors... by contemporary i mean that they've worked in the past 20 years or that their best work exists within the past 20 years. so this is who we've come up with so far:

 

(in no particular order or fashion)

michael mann

wes anderson

christopher nolan

terry gilliam

spike lee

paul thomas anderson

david o. russell

kevin smith

clint eastwood

joss whedon

jean-pierre jeunet

 

and here is our tenative list (we need to see more films by these jokers before we commit them to the list):

 

darren aronofsky

michel gondry

roger avery

steven soderbergh

vincent gallo

 

what are your thoughts? who should we add? who should we take off? why?

 

i should probably clarify what we mean by underrated: underrated in the sense that in comparison to more major directors of this day and age (scorcese, spielberg, etc)... eric and i feel that the abovementionned filmmakers exhibit exemplary skills and talents that deserve more than a cursory glance. we feel that all of these filmmakers are doing something different than their peers, and have definitive styles that set them apart.

 

this helps to explain why we've excluded people like tarantino, rodriquez and burton... in some cases its because we agree that they are simply overrated, meaning they have talent, but in comparison to those on the list, are nothing special. or in some cases they have no talent at all.

 

if you're familiar with any female directors that you want to alert our attention to, please feel free, since i feel kindof weird that this list is so gender-biased.

 

eric, feel free to add something if i've missed it.

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There are female directors around, such as Kathryn Bigalow and Marry Haron (sp), but they aren't anything special. It's not the list or the audiences that are biased, but the industry, as well as the way our culture has come to be. For the same reasons that there aren't as many females in the sciences, there aren't as many 'great' female directors, because there aren't as many female directors to begin with. But I'm surprised we forgot Sophia Copolla. And I also want Shane Carruth added to the tentative list. He just needs to do more than one movie.

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I'm wondering if Sam Raimi counts?

 

Also, a Korean director named Kim Ki-Duk has an exceptional vision, when directing his movies. A very distinct, enthralling style. Take a look at "Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter...and Spring", and "3-Iron" as good examples of his style.

 

Wong Kar-Wai, a Hong Kong director, does some incredible work too, really visually interesting. Take a look at "In The Mood For Love", and "2046" (I highly recommend the latter)

 

Takeshi Kitano is also really amazing, although he does a lot of other stuff, alongside of directing. When he directs, he tends to make rather artistic movies, a great example of this is a movie called "Dolls". "Brother", and "Zatoichi" were pretty good examples of his directing style as well.

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There are female directors around, such as Kathryn Bigalow and Marry Haron (sp), but they aren't anything special. It's not the list or the audiences that are biased, but the industry, as well as the way our culture has come to be. For the same reasons that there aren't as many females in the sciences, there aren't as many 'great' female directors, because there aren't as many female directors to begin with. But I'm surprised we forgot Sophia Copolla. And I also want Shane Carruth added to the tentative list. He just needs to do more than one movie.

i didnt forget her...i've only seen lost in translation so i couldnt really say if she was good or not. i guess one of the other qualities we're looking for is consistency. i'll add that to the manifesto.

 

i've seen the spiderman films and one from the evil dead series and can't really say i really noticed anything about them that i would consider on the same plane as the abovementionned ones.

 

ill certainly take a look at those films (or try to) muran, thanks.

 

what about ang lee? overrated? i hated brokeback mountain but that was more of a story issue than anything else. crouching tiger was beautiful, and he directed the hulk right? that was pretty good.

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haha yeah, I think Sam Raimi is more of a cult favourite, sort of thing, over huge artistic talent. And yeah, sometimes the best part about a Sam Raimi film is seeing what old friends (Like Campbell or his brother, Ted) he can squish into a cameo role. Novelty director, perhaps?

 

Darkman is a pretty good movie yeah, but I personally liked The Evil Dead trilogy the most (#2 especially). Something about his Stooge-y style, and the camera mounted on a motorbike-style that is really hilarious.

 

Personally, yeah, I think Ang Lee's a little overrated. There are a lot more beautiful martial art epic type movies, for example "The Warriors Of Heaven and Earth", "Hero", and "The Emperor and the Assassin". I thought "The Hulk" was terrible...

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Sam Mendes:

 

He did American Beauty, which owns.

Jarhead, which I haven't seen.

Road to Perdition

 

Mina Shum:

 

She did Double Happiness, which is a Canadian film actually. Good Mise en scene/a lot of subtle techniques.

 

Marc Forster:

 

I'm saying this guy based on the masterpiece "Stay" alone.

Edited by shade
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i would also like to add george clooney to the list. both good night and good luck and confessions of a dangerous mind were awesome. moreso the former as far as direction is concerned. thoughts?

Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind is my favorite movie

 

and so underrated.

 

I think if he chose a subject matter that was more popular with the film critics, more popular than a game show host moonlighting as a CIA agent, it would be getting higher praises.

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I don't count one hit wonders unless they did something really special, and as much as I love Boondock Saints, actually I change the direction of the sentence to Yay Troy Duffy. And Good call on George Clooney, the direction in Confessions of Dangerous mind was amazing. As for Eastwood getting awards, that doesn't make a good director. But I really haven't seen enough to judge. But I think a lot of people confuse good grasp of standard film techniques and good, usually epic stories as 'good direction'.

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I don't count one hit wonders unless they did something really special, and as much as I love Boondock Saints, actually I change the direction of the sentence to Yay Troy Duffy. And Good call on George Clooney, the direction in Confessions of Dangerous mind was amazing. As for Eastwood getting awards, that doesn't make a good director. But I really haven't seen enough to judge. But I think a lot of people confuse good grasp of standard film techniques and good, usually epic stories as 'good direction'.

ala v for vendetta.

 

audience member 1: "wow it's political!!!"

audience member 2: "so that's what anarchy is! those were bitching masks man!"

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Roger AvAry

wow, what insight. you've got a good point there. keep up the great posts man. solid, solid work.

 

listen, i was thinking... i was so impressed with what you said back there that i'd like to give you a full on sloppy blow job. the kind that grandma used to make. what do you think? you interested? you know, just something to encourage more posts like that last one. you know how to contact me.

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well that sure was a knee-jerk reaction for someone who's oozing with self esteem. haha it amazes me when a person on a message board attacks another by suggesting they get a life. right, because we're not here for the same reasons. you know, aside from your time being spent here (which is a total waste in your opinion) you go about your day sniffing coke off of hookers and jumping off buildings and blowing up satellites. right. and you have a puretracks account because you're going to be a successful musician.

 

unless you have something to contribute to this thread, like a director's name, or a reason why a director shouldn't be on the list, i suggest you leave.

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