Movie Directors' Top Films

[ManPerson]

Suspiria does seem to take audience acclaim over Queer, though.

[Dubrow555]

Either is fine with me, personally.

[pauldrach]

Suspiria does seem to take audience acclaim over Queer, though.

Yes, rather close too though. OK, I'll swap.

[Tim]

So

Luca Guadagnino
1. Call Me by Your Name (2017)
2. Challengers (2024)
3. I Am Love (2009)
4. Bones and All (2022)
5. A Bigger Splash (2015)
6. Queer (2024)
7. Suspiria (2018)
8. We Are Who We Are (2020)
9. Melissa P. (2005)
10. The Staggering Girl (2019)

[pauldrach]

Updates page 14:

David Gordon Green
1. George Washington (2000)
2. Pineapple Express (2008)
3. Halloween (2018)
4. All the Real Girls (2003)
5. Joe (2013)
6. Stronger (2017)
7. Prince Avalanche (2013)
8. Snow Angels (2007)
9. Undertow (2004)
10. Good Vibes (2011)

Peter Greenaway
1. The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989)
2. The Draughtsman's Contract (1982)
3. The Pillow Book (1996)
4. Drowning by Numbers (1988)
5. A Zed & Two Naughts (1985)
6. The Falls (1980)
7. Prospero's Books (1991)
8. The Baby of Mâcon (1993)
9. The Belly of an Architect (1987)
10. Nightwatching (2007)

Paul Greengrass
1. The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
2. The Bourne Supremacy (2004)
3. Captain Phillips (2013)
4. United 93 (2006)
5. Bloody Sunday (2002)
6. News of the World (2020)
7. Green Zone (2010)
8. Jason Bourne (2016)
9. 22 July (2018)
10. The Theory of Flight (1998)

D. W. Griffith
1. The Birth of a Nation (1915)
2. Intolerance (1916)
3. Broken Blossoms (1919)
4. Way Down East (1920)
5. The Musketeers of Pig Alley (1912)
6. Orphans of the Storm (1921)
7. The Lonedale Operator (1911)
8. A Corner in Wheat (1909)
9. Judith of Bethulia (1914)
10. True Heart Susie (1919)

Christopher Guest
1. Waiting for Guffman (1996)
2. Best in Show (2000)
3. A Mighty Wind (2003)
4. For Your Consideration (2006)
5. The Big Picture (1989)
6. Family Tree [with Jim Piddock] (2013)
7. Mascots (2016)
8. Almost Heroes (1998)
9. Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman (1993)
10. The Thick of It (2007)

Sacha Guitry
1. Confessions of a Cheat (1936)
2. La poison (1951)
3. The Pearls of the Crown [with Christian-Jaque] (1937)
4. Faisons un rêve... (1936)
5. Désiré (1937)
6. Mon père avait raison (1936)
7. Quadrille (1938)
8. Royal Affairs in Versailles (1954)
9. Ceux de chez nous (1915)
10. Bonne chance! [with Fernand Rivers] (1935)

Luca Guadagnino (new list)
1. Call Me by Your Name (2017)
2. Challengers (2024)
3. I Am Love (2009)
4. Bones and All (2022)
5. A Bigger Splash (2015)
6. Suspiria (2018)
7. Queer (2024)
8. We Are Who We Are (2020)
9. Melissa P. (2005)
10. The Staggering Girl (2019)

Alice Guy-Blaché
1. La fée aux choux (1896)
2. The Birth, the Life and the Death of Christ (1906)
3. Falling Leaves (1912)
4. The Consequences of Feminism (1906)
5. Madame's Cravings (1906)
6. Algie the Miner [with Harry Schenck & Edward Warren] (1912)
7. A Fool and His Money (1912)
8. Matrimony's Speed Limit (1913)
9. Making an American Citizen (1912)
10. The Ocean Waif (1916)

Guy Hamilton
1. Goldfinger (1964)
2. Live and Let Die (1973)
3. Battle of Britain (1969)
4. Diamonds Are Forever (1971)
5. Evil Under the Sun (1982)
6. An Inspector Calls (1954)
7. The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)
8. The Colditz Story (1955)
9. The Devil's Disciple (1959)
10. Funeral in Berlin (1966)

Michael Haneke
1. Caché (2005)
2. Amour (2012)
3. The White Ribbon (2009)
4. Funny Games (1997)
5. The Piano Teacher (2001)
6. The Seventh Continent (1989)
7. Code Unknown (2000)
8. Benny's Video (1992)
9. 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance (1994)
10. Happy End (2017)

Mia Hansen-Løve
1. Things to Come (2016)
2. One Fine Morning (2022)
3. Bergman Island (2021)
4. Eden (2014)
5. Goodbye First Love (2011)
6. Father of My Children (2009)
7. All Is Forgiven (2007)
8. Maya (2018)
9. Un pur esprit (2004)
10. Après mûre réflexion (2004)

Catherine Hardwicke
1. Twilight (2008)
2. Thirteen (2003)
3. Lords of Dogtown (2005)
4. Miss You Already (2015)
5. Red Riding Hood (2011)
6. The Nativity Story (2006)
7. Miss Bala (2019)
8. Prisoner's Daughter (2022)
9. Mafia Mamma (2023)
10. Plush (2013)

Henry Hathaway
1. The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935)
2. True Grit (1969)
3. Kiss of Death (1947)
4. How the West Was Won [with John Ford & George Marshall] (1962)
5. Peter Ibbetson (1935)
6. The House on 92nd Street (1945)
7. Niagara (1953)
8. Call Northside 777 (1948)
9. The Sons of Katie Elder (1965)
10. Fourteen Hours (1951)

I'll send the page 13 updates to lew.

[ManPerson]

I'd have The Bourne Supremacy > Captain Phillips since I'd give TBS popularity but it's fairly close, Captain Phillips acclaim, but it's fairly close, and TBS takes influence clearly.

I'm curious how The Lives of a Bengal Lancer compare with the two films below it and how Niagara compares with the two above it.

I'd say Twilight's win in popularity over Thirteen is larger than Thirteen's win in acclaim, plus Twilight was a starmaking film for both K Stew and Pattinson.

[pauldrach]

I'd have The Bourne Supremacy > Captain Phillips since I'd give TBS popularity but it's fairly close, Captain Phillips acclaim, but it's fairly close, and TBS takes influence clearly.

I'm curious how The Lives of a Bengal Lancer compare with the two films below it and how Niagara compares with the two above it.

I'd say Twilight's win in popularity over Thirteen is larger than Thirteen's win in acclaim, plus Twilight was a starmaking film for both K Stew and Pattinson.

No objections concerning the proposed swaps on the Greengrass and Hardwicke lists. They could've ended up either way for me.

For Hathaway, part 1:
Both TLoaBL and TG were the 7th highest grossing movies of their respective years though TG had the higher total gross. KoD is way down in that regard.
Lasting popularity is TG > KoD > TLoaBL.

Lasting acclaim goes KoD > TG > TLoaBL.
Initial acclaim probably would be TLoaBL > KoD = TG. All do quite well here.

Influence I'd give to TLoaBL for its influence on the careers of Cooper (was cast in many adventure films in the film's wake) and Hathaway (his first big movie, he would go on to direct more similar films) over KoD for being Widmark's breakthrough over TG (the Coen remake and a few sequels).

For Hathaway, part 2:
Initial popularity is close with THo92S > CN777 > Niagara.
Lasting popularity is exactly the other way round.

Lasting acclaim goes Niagara > CN777 > THo92S with especially the first two really close.
Initial acclaim probably goes THo92S > CN777 > Niagara with praise mainly going to MM in the latter case.

Influence I'd give to THo92S for spawning the semidocumentary police thriller, over Niagara for giving MM's career a significant boost, last CN777.

I see reason to swap Niagara and CN777 but would leave the rest as it is, personally. Feel free to disagree.

EDIT: I've edited the three changes into the lists above so don't get confused. Niagara had previously been placed below CN777.

[DmitryXenon]

Suggestion:

Robert Eggers
1. The Lighthouse (2019)
2. The Witch (2015)
3. Nosferatu (2024)
4. The Northman (2022)
5. The Tell-Tale Heart (2008)

[pauldrach]

Updates for page 15:

Howard Hawks
1. Rio Bravo (1959)
2. Bringing Up Baby (1938)
3. His Girl Friday (1940)
4. Scarface (1932)
5. The Big Sleep (1946)
6. Red River (1948)
7. To Have and Have Not (1944)
8. Only Angels Have Wings (1939)
9. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)
10. Sergeant York (1941)

Todd Haynes
1. Far from Heaven (2002)
2. Carol (2015)
3. Safe (1995)
4. I'm Not There (2007)
5. May December (2023)
6. Velvet Goldmine (1998)
7. Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story (1987)
8. Dark Waters (2019)
9. Poison (1991)
10. Mildred Pierce (2011)

Amy Heckerling
1. Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
2. Clueless (1995)
3. Look Who's Talking (1989)
4. National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985)
5. Johnny Dangerously (1984)
6. Look Who's Talking Too (1990)
7. Loser (2000)
8. I Could Never Be Your Woman (2007)
9. Vamps (2012)
10. Clueless [TV series] (1996-1999)

Monte Hellman (1929-2021)

Werner Herzog
1. Aguirre: The Wrath of God (1972)
2. Fitzcarraldo (1982)
3. The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser (1974)
4. Grizzly Man (2005)
5. Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)
6. Stroszek (1977)
7. Lessons of Darkness (1992)
8. Encounters at the End of the World (2007)
9. Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2010)
10. Fata Morgana (1971)

George Roy Hill
1. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
2. The Sting (1973)
3. The World According to Garp (1982)
4. Slap Shot (1977)
5. Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967)
6. Slaughterhouse-Five (1972)
7. The Great Waldo Pepper (1975)
8. A Little Romance (1979)
9. Hawaii (1966)
10. The World of Henry Orient (1964)

Jack Hill
1. Coffy (1973)
2. Foxy Brown (1974)
3. Spider Baby (1967)
4. Switchblade Sisters (1975)
5. The Big Doll House (1971)
6. Pit Stop (1969)
7. The Big Bird Cage (1972)
8. Blood Bath [with Stephanie Rothman] (1966)
9. The Swinging Cheerleaders (1974)
10. The Host (1961)

Walter Hill
1. The Warriors (1979)
2. 48 Hrs. (1982)
3. The Driver (1978)
4. Southern Comfort (1981)
5. Hard Times (1975)
6. The Long Riders (1980)
7. Crossroads (1986)
8. Streets of Fire (1984)
9. Red Heat (1988)
10. Last Man Standing (1996)

Arthur Hiller
1. Love Story (1970)
2. Silver Streak (1976)
3. The In-Laws (1979)
4. The Americanization of Emily (1964)
5. The Hospital (1971)
6. The Out-of-Towners (1970)
7. See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989)
8. Plaza Suite (1971)
9. Outrageous Fortune (1987)
10. Making Love (1982)

Alfred Hitchcock
1. Psycho (1960)
2. Vertigo (1958)
3. Rear Window (1954)
4. North by Northwest (1959)
5. Notorious (1946)
6. The Birds (1963)
7. Rebecca (1940)
8. Strangers on a Train (1951)
9. The 39 Steps (1935)
10. Rope (1948)

Agnieszka Holland
1. Europa Europa (1990)
2. The Secret Garden (1993)
3. In Darkness (2011)
4. Olivier, Olivier (1991)
5. Green Border (2023)
6. Burning Bush (2013)
7. Angry Harvest (1985)
8. Mr. Jones (2019)
9. A Lonely Woman (1981)
10. Spoor (2017)

Hong Sang-Soo
1. Right Now, Wrong Then (2015)
2. On the Beach at Night Alone (2017)
3. The Day He Arrives (2011)
4. The Day After (2017)
5. Tale of Cinema (2005)
6. Woman on the Beach (2006)
7. The Woman Who Ran (2020)
8. Yourself and Yours (2016)
9. The Novelist's Film (2022)
10. In Front of Your Face (2021)

Mamoru Hosoda
1. Wolf Children (2012)
2. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)
3. Belle (2021)
4. The Boy and the Beast (2015)
5. Summer Wars (2009)
6. Mirai (2018)
7. Digimon: The Movie (2000)
8. One Piece: Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island (2005)
9. Digimon Adventure: Our War Game! (2000)
10. Digimon Adventure [short film] (1999)

Hou Hsiao-Hsien
1. A City of Sadness (1989)
2. The Time to Live and the Time to Die (1985)
3. The Puppetmaster (1993)
4. Flowers of Shanghai (1998)
5. Dust in the Wind (1986)
6. The Assassin (2015)
7. Millennium Mambo (2001)
8. Three Times (2005)
9. Café Lumière (2003)
10. Goodbye South, Goodbye (1996)

And the new list of the week:

Damien Chazelle (1985-)
1. La La Land (2016)
2. Whiplash (2014)
3. First Man (2018)
4. Babylon (2022)
5. Whiplash [short film] (2013)

...which means I'm fine with what whoever suggested on the old forum.

[pauldrach]

I'll send the page 14 updates (with Guadagnino's list) to lew.

[Dubrow555]

Suggestion:

Robert Eggers
1. The Lighthouse (2019)
2. The Witch (2015)
3. Nosferatu (2024)
4. The Northman (2022)
5. The Tell-Tale Heart (2008)

Good list...although I would want to consider if Nosferatu > The Witch is a possibility at this point.

[Dubrow555]

For Todd Haynes, I would consider May December a bit higher. It's on the 2023 list while I can't imagine Dark Waters was anywhere near the 2019 list.

For Hosoda - Mirai seems surprisingly low to me. As far as I know, it's the only Anime film to ever be nominated at the Oscars that isn't attached to Studio Ghibli.

[ManPerson]

Ditto on May December.

Curious how GPB and Sergeant York compare.

I'd have The Assassin 2-3 spots lower considering it's fairly clear disadvantage in lasting acclaim (especially audience).

I'd have The In-Laws 2 spots higher considering it's advantage in lasting critical acclaim and popularity.

[pauldrach]

I moved up "May December" three spots. Too many?

As for Hosoda, I'd say "Summer Wars" takes lasting popularity and lasting/audience acclaim. "Mirai" takes initial popularity and initial/critical acclaim. As I consider especially initial acclaim very close (SW was the first of his films to be nominated for an important international award), I'd give the edge to SW. What do others think?

As for Hawks, I'd saySY takes initial popularity and initial/audience/industry acclaim. GPB takes lasting popularity and possibly influence for the cultural references that especially Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend spawned. Lasting/critical acclaim seems to me to be more or less a draw though I'd give GPB the edge for its decisively lofty TSPDT rank.

Moved The Assassin down two spots and The In-Laws up two.

[Dubrow555]

Works for me!

[ManPerson]

As for Hawks, I'd saySY takes initial popularity and initial/audience/industry acclaim. GPB takes lasting popularity and possibly influence for the cultural references that especially Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend spawned. Lasting/critical acclaim seems to me to be more or less a draw though I'd give GPB the edge for its decisively lofty TSPDT rank.

GPB's also been credited for being step forward for Monroe's career and cementing her image as a blonde bombshell.