ERNST LUBITSCH NINOTCHKA, SHOP AROUND THE CORNER, HEAVEN CAN WAIT, TROUBLE IN PARADISE A German expatriate who fled the Nazi regime, Lubitsch had a flare for comedy unparalleled at his time. His movies were known for perfectly balancing tragedy and...
GUILLERMO DEL TORO PAN’S LABYRINTH, HELLBOY, CRONOS, THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE Perhaps the biggest compliment you can pay a film director is to say that his or her work is identifiable by a single frame of one of their films. Del...
SPIKE JONZE BEING JOHN MALKOVICH, ADAPTATION., WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE After his first two films, Being John Malkovich and Adaptation., Jonze was in danger of merely being a vessel for Charlie Kaufman’s work. One needn’t look too deep to...
MICHAEL MANN HEAT, THE INSIDER, LAST OF THE MOHICANS, COLLATERAL, ALI, MANHUNTER It is my view that the films of Michael Mann are the perfect blend of style and substance. There is no doubt that he is a flashy director. ...
WES ANDERSON RUSHMORE, THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS, BOTTLE ROCKET, THE FANTASTIC MR. FOX In his own way, one of the most divisive filmmakers around, Wes Anderson’s films have a signature style that is a clear extension of his personality. Perfectly balanced...
MICHEL GONDRY ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP, BE KIND REWIND From utter brilliance with Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind to his subpar director-for-hire work in The Green Hornet, Michel Gondry’s filmography is uneven. And...
JEAN RENOIR THE RULES OF THE GAME, GRAND ILLUSION, THE CRIME OF MONSIEUR LANGE Jean Renoir once said, “My dream is of a craftsman’s cinema in which the author can express himself as directly as the painter in his paintings...
ERIC ROHMER MY NIGHT AT MAUD’S, AUTUMN TALE, CLAIRE’S KNEE, FULL MOON IN PARIS Rohmer was often tagged with accusations that his films weren’t “cinematic” enough, but he simply wasn’t going for the same kind of cinema as his contemporaries....
SATOSHI KON TOKYO GODFATHERS, MILLENNIUM ACTRESS, PAPRIKA There are people who look at certain Sathoshi Kon films, such as Perfect Blue or Tokyo Godfathers, and say, “Why did that have to be animated?” Those people quite clearly don’t get it....
SPIKE LEE DO THE RIGHT THING, THE 25th HOUR, 4 LITTLE GIRLS, MALCOLM X For almost three decades Spike-Lee, Celebrity Provocateur has threatened to overshadow Spike Lee, World Class Filmmaker. Which is a shame. Lee’s 1989 masterpiece Do the Right...
