The cream of the crop: directors
by B_Willis_Federer | created - 09 Dec 2018 | updated - 8 months ago | Public
1. Steven Spielberg
Producer | Schindler's List
One of the most influential personalities in the history of cinema, Steven Spielberg is Hollywood's best known director and one of the wealthiest filmmakers in the world. He has an extraordinary number of commercially successful and critically acclaimed credits to his name, either as a director, ...
Best movies:
E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial
Jurassic Park
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Duel
Saving Private Ryan
War of the Worlds
Catch Me If You Can
War Horse
Minority Report
West Side Story
2. Walt Disney
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Walter Elias Disney was born on December 5, 1901 in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Flora Disney (née Call) and Elias Disney, a Canadian-born farmer and businessperson. He had Irish, German, and English ancestry. Walt moved with his parents to Kansas City at age seven, where he spent the majority of ...
R.I.P.
Many many great short movies.
As odd as it can seem, he didn't direct nor co-direct any long movie; he "only" produced, supervised all those classics we love.
He also did the voice of Mickey Mouse in tens of short, and even sometimes the voice of Minnie Mouse as well.
3. Clint Eastwood
Actor | Million Dollar Baby
Clinton Eastwood Jr. was born May 31, 1930 in San Francisco, to Clinton Eastwood Sr., a bond salesman and later manufacturing executive for Georgia-Pacific Corporation, and Ruth Wood (née Margaret Ruth Runner), a housewife turned IBM clerk. He grew up in nearby Piedmont. At school Clint took ...
Best movies:
Letters From Iwo Jima
Changeling
Million Dollar Baby
The Outlaw Josey Wales
Absolute Power
Richard Jewell
The 15:17 to Paris
High Plains Drifter
Pale Rider
Gran Torino
True Crime
4. Luc Besson
Writer | Le Cinquième Élément
Luc Besson spent the first years of his life following his parents, scuba diving instructors, around the world. His early life was entirely aquatic. He already showed amazing creativity as a youth, writing early drafts of The Big Blue (1988) and The Fifth Element (1997), as an adolescent bored in ...
Best movies:
The Fifth Element
Joan of Arc
Léon: The Professional
5. David Fincher
Director | Se7en
David Fincher was born in 1962 in Denver, Colorado, and was raised in Marin County, California. When he was 18 years old he went to work for John Korty at Korty Films in Mill Valley. He subsequently worked at ILM (Industrial Light and Magic) from 1981-1983. Fincher left ILM to direct TV commercials...
Best movies:
Se7en
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Panic Room
Gone Girl
The Game
So, the half of his movies so far.
Isn't it the absolute class when half the movies you directed are great or more?
Se7en and Button are 2 masterpieces, Panic and Gone are amazingly great and The Game is one of the best thrillers ever, period.
6. Charles Chaplin
Writer | The Great Dictator
Considered to be one of the most pivotal stars of the early days of Hollywood, Charlie Chaplin lived an interesting life both in his films and behind the camera. He is most recognized as an icon of the silent film era, often associated with his popular character, the Little Tramp; the man with the ...
R.I.P.
Best movies:
The Great Dictator
The Kid
The Gold Rush
Moder Times
7. Wolfgang Reitherman
Director | The AristoCats
Wolfgang Reitherman was a German-born American animator who was one of Disney's Nine Old Men.
He began working for Disney in 1933, along with future Disney legends Ward Kimball and Milt Kahl. The three worked together on a number of classic Disney shorts.
Reitherman directed several Disney animated ...
R.I.P.
Best movies:
One Hundred and One Dalmatians
The Jungle Book
Robin Hood
The Rescuers
The guy directed 7 Disney classics between 61 and 77, and 4 of them are masterpieces.
Nothing to add!
8. Roland Emmerich
Writer | Independence Day
Roland Emmerich is a German film director and producer of blockbuster films like The Day After Tomorrow (2004), Godzilla (1998), Independence Day (1996) and The Patriot (2000). Before fame, he originally wanted to be a production designer, but decided to be a director, after watching the original ...
Best movies:
2012
The Day After Tomorrow
The Patriot
10000 BC
Independence Day: Resurgence
9. Lana Wachowski
Writer | The Matrix
Lana Wachowski and her sister Lilly Wachowski, also known as the Wachowskis, are the duo behind such ground-breaking movies as The Matrix (1999) and Cloud Atlas (2012). Born to mother Lynne, a nurse, and father Ron, a businessman of Polish descent, Wachowski grew up in Chicago and formed a tight ...
R.I.P. LARRY!
Best movies:
The Matrix
The Matrix Reloaded
Cloud Atlas
10. Lilly Wachowski
Writer | The Matrix
Director, writer, and producer Lilly Wachowski was born in 1967 in Chicago, the daughter of Lynne, a nurse and painter, and Ron, a businessman. Lilly was educated at Kellogg Elementary School in Chicago, before moving on to Whitney M. Young High School. After graduating from high school, she ...
R.I.P. ANDY!
Best movies:
The Matrix
The Matrix Reloaded
Cloud Atlas
11. Christopher Nolan
Writer | Tenet
Best known for his cerebral, often nonlinear, storytelling, acclaimed Academy Award winner writer/director/producer Sir Christopher Nolan CBE was born in London, England. Over the course of more than 25 years of filmmaking, Nolan has gone from low-budget independent films to working on some of the ...
Best movies:
The Dark Knight
Inception
Dunkirk
Batman Begins
The Dark Knight Rises
Like Fincher, 5 of the 10 movies he directed are masterpieces or near for the "worst" of those 5 best.
Excuse for the less...!
12. J.J. Abrams
Producer | Lost
Jeffrey Jacob Abrams was born in New York City and raised in Los Angeles, the son of TV producer parents. At 15, he wrote the music for Don Dohler's Nightbeast (1982). In his senior year of college, he and Jill Mazursky teamed up to write a feature film, which became Taking Care of Business (1990)....
Best movies:
Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens
Star Trek Into Darkness
Mission Impossible III
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker
Best series:
Lost
Fringe
13. John McTiernan
Director | Die Hard
John McTiernan was born on January 8, 1951 in Albany, New York, USA. He is a director and producer, known for Die Hard (1988), Rollerball (2002) and Last Action Hero (1993). He has been married to Gail Sistrunk since 2012. He was previously married to Kate Harrington, Donna Dubrow and Carol Land.
Best movies:
Die Hard
Predator
Die Hard With a Vengeance
This man directed the best movie ever, Die Hard, and the best of its 4 sequels, Die Hard 3, so, he easily deserves his place here.
And Predator (the very 1st one) is a jewel.
14. Paul W.S. Anderson
Writer | Resident Evil: Apocalypse
Paul W.S. Anderson gained a fair bit of notoriety in his native England when he directed the ultra-violent Shopping (1994) (which he also wrote), starring Jude Law and Sean Pertwee in a story about thieves who steal by ramming a car into storefronts. The film was banned in some cinemas in England, ...
Best movies:
Resident Evil Extinction
Resident Evil Afterlife
Resident Evil Retribution
Death Race
15. Wes Craven
Writer | A Nightmare on Elm Street
Wes Craven has become synonymous with genre bending and innovative horror, challenging audiences with his bold vision.
Wesley Earl Craven was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to Caroline (Miller) and Paul Eugene Craven. He had a midwestern suburban upbringing. His first feature film was The Last House on ...
R.I.P.
Best movies:
Scream
Scream 2
The Hills Have Eyes
Music of the Heart (the only non-horror or thriller movie he directed)
16. James Wan
Writer | Saw
James Wan (born 26 February 1977) is an Australian film producer, screenwriter and film director of Malaysian Chinese descent. He is widely known for directing the horror film Saw (2004) and creating Billy the puppet. Wan has also directed Dead Silence (2007), Death Sentence (2007), Insidious (2010)...
Best movies:
Saw
The Conjuring
Furious 7
Insidious
17. Zack Snyder
Director | 300
Zachary Edward "Zack" Snyder (born March 1, 1966) is an American film director, film producer, and screenwriter, best known for action and science fiction films. Snyder made his feature film debut with the 2004 remake Dawn of the Dead and has gone on to be known for his comic book movies and ...
Best movies:
300
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Dawn of the Dead
18. Mel Gibson
Actor | Braveheart
Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson was born January 3, 1956 in Peekskill, New York, USA, as the sixth of eleven children of Hutton Gibson, a railroad brakeman, and Anne Patricia (Reilly) Gibson (who died in December of 1990). His mother was Irish, from County Longford, while his American-born father is ...
Best movies:
Braveheart
Hacksaw Ridge
Apocalypto
19. George Lucas
Writer | Star Wars
George Walton Lucas, Jr. was raised on a walnut ranch in Modesto, California. His father was a stationery store owner and he had three siblings. During his late teen years, he went to Thomas Downey High School and was very much interested in drag racing. He planned to become a professional racecar ...
Best movies:
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
20. James Cameron
Writer | Avatar: The Way of Water
James Francis Cameron was born on August 16, 1954 in Kapuskasing, Ontario, Canada. He moved to the United States in 1971. The son of an engineer, he majored in physics at California State University before switching to English, and eventually dropping out. He then drove a truck to support his ...
Best movies:
Titanic
Aliens
Avatar
21. Peter Jackson
Producer | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Sir Peter Jackson made history with The Lord of the Rings trilogy, becoming the first person to direct three major feature films simultaneously. The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King were nominated for and collected a slew of awards from around the globe, with The ...
Best movies:
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
King Kong (2005)
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
22. Francis Veber
Writer | Le dîner de cons
Francis Veber was born on July 28, 1937 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, Île-de-France, France. He is a writer and director, known for Le Dîner de Cons (1998), The Birdcage (1996) and Ruby & Quentin (2003). He has been married to Françoise Veber since January 11, 1964. They have two ...
Best movies:
Le Dîner de cons
Les Fugitifs (The Fugitives)
Tais-toi! (Ruby & Quentin)
L'Emmerdeur
23. Ron Howard
Producer | Arrested Development
Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ron Howard is one of this generation's most popular directors. From the critically acclaimed dramas A Beautiful Mind (2001) and Apollo 13 (1995) to the hit comedies Parenthood (1989) and Splash (1983), he has created some of Hollywood's most memorable films.
Howard ...
Best movies:
Willow
Apollo 13
Solo: A Star Wars Story
In the Heart of the Sea
Ransom
EDtv
Angels and Demons (the best of the Da Vinci trilogy)
24. Dany Boon
Actor | Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis
Dany Boon was born on June 26, 1966 in Armentières, Nord, France. He is an actor and writer, known for Welcome to the Sticks (2008), Joyeux Noel (2005) and R.A.I.D. Special Unit (2016).
Best movies:
Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis (Welcome to the Sticks)
La ch'tite famille
Rien à déclarer (Nothing to Declare)
Supercondriaque
25. Jackie Chan
Actor | Ngo si seoi
Hong Kong's cheeky, lovable and best-known film star, Jackie Chan endured many years of long, hard work and multiple injuries to establish international success after his start in Hong Kong's manic martial arts cinema industry.
Jackie was born Kong-sang Chan on April 7, 1954, on Hong Kong's famous ...
Best movies (as a director of course; but as he plays in all the movies he directs... anyway, there he didn't direct my favorite movies with him - u can check it in my top 5 of him here https://www.imdb.com/list/ls047001764/ - so, here, you'll find my favorite of him AS A DIRECTOR):
The Fearless Hyena
Police Story 2
Armour of God
Project A
26. Bryan Singer
Director | X-Men
Bryan Singer is an American film director and producer who got his start writing and co-directing the short film Lions Den with his classmates while he attended USC. He was hired by 20th Century Fox to direct X-Men, which helped kick-start the superhero renaissance. He later directed three sequels....
Best movies:
Jack the Giant Slayer
Valkyrie
Some of the 4 X-Men movies he directed; pick ur favorite
Bohemian Rhapsody (cause I'm a fan of Queen)
27. Anthony Russo
Producer | Everything Everywhere All at Once
Anthony J. Russo is an American filmmaker and producer who works alongside his brother Joseph Russo. They have directed You, Me and Dupree, Cherry and the Marvel films Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Endgame is one of ...
Best movies:
Captain America 2
Captain America 3
Avengers 3
Avengers 4
I mean, he and his brother Joe directed 4 of the very best super-hero movies ever, 2 of them even being masterpieces (Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War), the other 2 (Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Avengers: Endgame) being great also.
What more do we want, expect?
28. Joe Russo
Director | Avengers: Endgame
Joseph Vincent Russo is an American filmmaker and producer who works alongside his brother Anthony Russo. They have directed You, Me and Dupree, Cherry and the Marvel films Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Endgame is one ...
Best movies:
Captain America 2
Captain America 3
Avengers 3
Avengers 4
29. Yimou Zhang
Director | Ying xiong
Yimou Zhang was born on November 14, 1951 in Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. He is a director and writer, known for Hero (2002), House of Flying Daggers (2004) and Curse of the Golden Flower (2006). He has been married to Ting Chen since December 2011. They have three children. He was previously married to ...
Best movies:
House of Flying Daggers
Curse of the Golden Flower
The Great Wall
The Flowers of War
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