My Favorite Directors

1. Quentin Tarantino

Quentin Jerome Tarantino was born in Knoxville, Tennessee. His father, Tony Tarantino, is an Italian-American actor and musician from New York, and his mother, Connie (McHugh), is a nurse from Tennessee. Quentin moved with his mother to Torrance, California, when he was four years old.

In January of...

Pulp Fiction ----------------------------- 10/10 Reservoir Dogs ------------------------- 10/10 Django Unchained ---------------------- 10/10 Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood ----- 10/10 The Hateful Eight ----------------------- 10/10 Inglourious Basterds ------------------- 10/10 Jackie Brown ---------------------------- 9/10 Kill Bill: Vol. 1 --------------------------- 9/10 Kill Bill: Vol. 2 --------------------------- 9/10 Death Proof ----------------------------- 8/10

2. Martin Scorsese

Producer | Killers of the Flower Moon

Martin Charles Scorsese was born on November 17, 1942 in Queens, New York City, to Catherine Scorsese (née Cappa) and Charles Scorsese, who both worked in Manhattan's garment district, and whose families both came from Palermo, Sicily. He was raised in the neighborhood of Little Italy, which later ...

The Wolf of Wall Street - 10/10 Goodfellas --------------- 10/10 Shutter Island ------------ 9/10 The Departed ------------ 9/10 Taxi Driver -------------- 9/10 The Irishman ----------- 9/10 Raging Bull -------------- 9/10 The Aviator ------------- 9/10 Killers of the Flower Moon - 9/10 After Hours ------------- 9/10 The King of Comedy --- 9/10 The Last Waltz ---------- 9/10 Casino ------------------- 9/10 Silence ------------------ 8/10 Gangs of New York ---- 8/10 Mean Streets ----------- 8/10 New York, New York ---- 8/10 Cape Fear --------------- 8/10 Hugo -------------------- 8/10 The Color of Money ----- 8/10

3. Sergio Leone

Writer | Once Upon a Time in America

Sergio Leone was virtually born into the cinema - he was the son of Roberto Roberti (A.K.A. Vincenzo Leone), one of Italy's cinema pioneers, and actress Bice Valerian. Leone entered films in his late teens, working as an assistant director to both Italian directors and U.S. directors working in ...

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly --- 10/10 Once Upon a Time in America ------ 10/10 For a Few Dollars More -------------- 9/10 Once Upon a Time in the West ------ 9/10 A Fistful of Dollars ------------------ 9/10 Duck, You Sucker ------------------- 8/10

4. Francis Ford Coppola

Producer | Apocalypse Now

Francis Ford Coppola was born in 1939 in Detroit, Michigan, but grew up in a New York suburb in a creative, supportive Italian-American family. His father, Carmine Coppola, was a composer and musician. His mother, Italia Coppola (née Pennino), had been an actress. Francis Ford Coppola graduated ...

The Godfather - 10/10 The Godfather II - 10/10 Apocalypse Now -- 9/10 The Rainmaker --- 9/10 The Godfather III - 9/10 The Conversation - 7/10

5. Frank Darabont

Writer | The Shawshank Redemption

Three-time Oscar nominee Frank Darabont was born in a refugee camp in 1959 in Montbeliard, France, the son of Hungarian parents who had fled Budapest during the failed 1956 Hungarian revolution. Brought to America as an infant, he settled with his family in Los Angeles and attended Hollywood High ...

The Shawshank Redemption --- 10/10 The Green Mile-------------------- 10/10 The Mist ---------------------------- 9/10

6. Billy Wilder

Writer | The Apartment

Originally planning to become a lawyer, Billy Wilder abandoned that career in favor of working as a reporter for a Viennese newspaper, using this experience to move to Berlin, where he worked for the city's largest tabloid. He broke into films as a screenwriter in 1929 and wrote scripts for many ...

Stalag 17 ------------------------------ 10/10 The Apartment ------------------------- 9/10 Ace in the Hole ------------------------- 9/10 Witness for the Prosecution ------------ 9/10 The Lost Weekend ---------------------- 9/10 Irma la Douce --------------------------- 9/10 One, Two, Three ------------------------- 9/10 The Fortune Cookie ---------------------- 9/10 The Front Page --------------------------- 9/10 Double Indemnity ------------------------ 9/10 Some Like It Hot ------------------------- 8/10 Sunset Boulevard ------------------------ 8/10 Avanti! ------------------------------------ 8/10 Sabrina ----------------------------------- 8/10 A Foreign Affair -------------------------- 8/10 Five Graves to Cairo --------------------- 8/10 The Seven Year Itch --------------------- 7/10 The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes ---- 7/10

7. 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, ...

Schindler's List ---------------------- 9/10 Catch Me If You Can ----------------- 9/10 The Terminal ------------------------- 9/10 Saving Private Ryan ------------------ 9/10 Empire of the Sun -------------------- 9/10 Bridge of Spies ----------------------- 9/10 Jurassic Park ------------------------- 9/10 War Horse -----------------------------9/10 Jaws --------------------------------- 8/10 Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ---- 8/10 Raiders of the Lost Ark ---------------- 8/10 Ready Player One --------------------- 8/10 A.I. Artificial Intelligence --------------- 8/10 Munich -------------------------------- 8/10 Minority Report ------------------------ 8/10 Amistad ------------------------------- 8/10 The Post ------------------------------ 8/10 The Fabelmans ------------------------ 8/10 Lincoln ------------------------------- 8/10 E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial --------------- 8/10 The Color Purple ----------------------- 8/10 Close Encounters of the Third Kind ------ 7/10 Duel ----------------------------------- 7/10

8. Sidney Lumet

Director | 12 Angry Men

Sidney Lumet was a master of cinema, best known for his technical knowledge and his skill at getting first-rate performances from his actors -- and for shooting most of his films in his beloved New York. He made over 40 movies, often complex and emotional, but seldom overly sentimental. Although ...

12 Angry Men --------------------------- 10/10 Dog Day Afternoon ---------------------- 9/10 Find Me Guilty ---------------------------- 9/10 Network ---------------------------------- 9/10 Serpico ------------------------------------ 9/10 Running on Empty ------------------------ 9/10 The Hill ------------------------------------ 9/10 Before the Devil Knows You're Dead ----- 9/10 The Verdict -------------------------------- 8/10 Fail-Safe ----------------------------------- 8/10 Prince of the City -------------------------- 8/10 Murder on the Orient Express ------------ 8/10 The Pawnbroker --------------------------- 8/10

9. 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 ...

Memento ---------------- 10/10 The Prestige ------------- 9/10 Interstellar --------------9/10 The Dark Knight ------- 9/10 Inception ---------------- 9/10 The Dark Knight Rises - 9/10 Dunkirk ----------------- 9/10 Following ---------------- 8/10 Insomnia ---------------- 8/10 Batman Begins ---------- 8/10 Tenet -------------------- 8/10 Oppenheimer ------------- 8/10

10. 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...

Fight Club ------------------------------ 10/10 Zodiac ---------------------------------- 9/10 Se7en ---------------------------------- 9/10 The Social Network ---------------------- 9/10 Gone Girl ------------------------------- 9/10 The Killer ------------------------------- 9/10 The Curious Case of Benjamin Button ----- 9/10 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo --------- 8/10 Panic Room ----------------------------- 8/10 Mank ----------------------------------- 8/10 The Game ------------------------------- 7/10 Alien³ ----------------------------------- 6/10

11. Joel Coen

Producer | The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

Joel Daniel Coen is an American filmmaker who regularly collaborates with his younger brother Ethan. They made Raising Arizona, Barton Fink, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, True Grit, O Brother Where Art Thou?, Burn After Reading, A Serious Man, Inside Llewyn Davis, Hail Caesar and other projects. Joel ...

The Big Lebowski -------------- 10/10 Miller's Crossing ---------------- 9/10 Fargo ---------------------------- 9/10 Inside Llewyn Davis ------------ 9/10 Blood Simple -------------------- 9/10 No Country for Old Men -------- 9/10 O Brother, Where Art Thou? --- 8/10 The Man Who Wasn't There ---- 8/10 The Ballad of Buster Scruggs -- 8/10 True Grit ------------------------- 8/10 A Serious Man ------------------- 8/10 Barton Fink ---------------------- 8/10 Raising Arizona ----------------- 7/10 Burn After Reading ------------- 7/10 The Hudsucker Proxy ----------- 7/10 Hail, Caesar! -------------------- 7/10 The Tragedy of Macbeth -------- 6/10

12. Robert Zemeckis

Writer | Back to the Future

A whiz-kid with special effects, Robert is from the Spielberg camp of film-making (Steven Spielberg produced many of his films). Usually working with writing partner Bob Gale, Robert's earlier films show he has a talent for zany comedy (Romancing the Stone (1984), 1941 (1979)) and special effect ...

Forrest Gump -------------- 10/10 Cast Away -------------------- 9/10 Flight ------------------------- 9/10 Back to the Future ------------ 9/10 Contact ------------------------ 9/10 Back to the Future Part II --- 8/10 Back to the Future Part III --- 8/10 The Walk ---------------------- 8/10 Allied -------------------------- 8/10 Who Framed Roger Rabbit --- 6/10

13. Sam Mendes

Producer | 1917

Samuel Alexander Mendes was born on August 1, 1965 in Reading, England, UK to parents James Peter Mendes, a retired university lecturer, and Valerie Helene Mendes, an author who writes children's books. Their marriage didn't last long, James divorced Sam's mother in 1970 when Sam was just 5-...

American Beauty ---------- 10/10 1917 ------------------------ 9/10 Skyfall ---------------------- 8/10 Revolutionary Road -------- 8/10 Road to Perdition ----------- 8/10 Spectre --------------------- 8/10

14. Alejandro G. Iñárritu

Director | Biutiful

Alejandro González Iñárritu (ih-nyar-ee-too), born August 15th, 1963, is a Mexican film director.

González Iñárritu is the first Mexican director to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and by the Directors Guild of America for Best Director. He is also the first Mexican-born ...

Birdman --------- 10/10 The Revenant ---- 9/10 Babel ------------- 8/10 21 Grams -------- 8/10 Amores Perros --- 8/10 Biutiful ----------- 7/10

15. Damien Chazelle

Writer | La La Land

Damien Sayre Chazelle is an American director and screenwriter. He was born in Providence, Rhode Island. His mother, Celia Sayre (Martin) Chazelle, is an American-Canadian writer and professor of history at The College of New Jersey. His father, Bernard Chazelle, is a French-American Eugene Higgins...

Whiplash ---- 10/10 Babylon ----- 10/10 La La Land ---- 9/10 First Man ------ 8/10

16. Stanley Kubrick

Director | 2001: A Space Odyssey

Stanley Kubrick was born in Manhattan, New York City, to Sadie Gertrude (Perveler) and Jacob Leonard Kubrick, a physician. His family were Jewish immigrants (from Austria, Romania, and Russia). Stanley was considered intelligent, despite poor grades at school. Hoping that a change of scenery would ...

Full Metal Jacket ------------ 10/10 Paths of Glory ------------- 9/10 Barry Lyndon --------------- 9/10 The Shining ------------------ 9/10 Dr. Strangelove -------------- 9/10 2001: A Space Odyssey ----- 9/10 A Clockwork Orange -------- 9/10 The Killing ------------------- 8/10 Spartacus --------------------- 8/10 Eyes Wide Shut --------------- 8/10 Lolita -------------------------- 7/10

17. Guy Ritchie

Director | Sherlock Holmes

Guy Ritchie was born in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, UK on September 10, 1968. After watching Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) as a child, Guy realized that what he wanted to do was make films. He never attended film school, saying that the work of film school graduates was boring and ...

Snatch ------------------------------- 10/10 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows --- 9/10 The Gentlemen ------------------------ 9/10 Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels --- 9/10 RocknRolla ---------------------------- 8/10 Sherlock Holmes ---------------------- 8/10 Guy Ritchie's the Covenant ------------ 8/10 Wrath of Man ------------------------ 8/10 The Man from U.N.C.L.E. -------------- 8/10 King Arthur: Legend of the Sword ------ 7/10

18. Akira Kurosawa

Writer | Kakushi-toride no san-akunin

After training as a painter (he storyboards his films as full-scale paintings), Kurosawa entered the film industry in 1936 as an assistant director, eventually making his directorial debut with Sanshiro Sugata (1943). Within a few years, Kurosawa had achieved sufficient stature to allow him greater...

Seven Samurai ----- 9/10 Ran ------------------ 9/10 The Hidden Fortress - 9/10 High and Low ------- 9/10 Dersu Uzala --------- 9/10 Dreams -------------- 9/10 The Bad Sleep Well - 8/10 Ikiru ----------------- 8/10 Rashomon ----------- 8/10 Yojimbo -------------- 8/10 Red Beard ------------ 8/10 Throne of Blood ------ 8/10 Sanjuro --------------- 8/10 Kagemusha ----------- 8/10

19. Ridley Scott

Producer | The Martian

Described by film producer Michael Deeley as "the very best eye in the business", director Ridley Scott was born on November 30, 1937 in South Shields, Tyne and Wear. His father was an officer in the Royal Engineers and the family followed him as his career posted him throughout the United Kingdom ...

Gladiator ------------ 9/10 The Martian ---------- 9/10 Body Of Lies --------- 9/10 Alien ----------------- 9/10 Matchstick Men ----- 9/10 Blade Runner ------- 8/10 Prometheus --------- 8/10 Thelma & Louise ---- 8/10 The Last Duel ------- 8/10 American Gangster - 8/10 Black Hawk Down -- 7/10 G.I. Jane ------------ 6/10

20. Clint Eastwood

Actor | Million Dollar Baby

Clint Eastwood 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 Margret Ruth Runner), a housewife turned IBM clerk. He grew up in nearby Piedmont. At school Clint took interest in ...

Changeling ------------- 9/10 Million Dollar Baby ------ 9/10 Mystic River -------------- 9/10 Letters from Iwo Jima --- 9/10 Unforgiven --------------- 9/10 Gran Torino -------------- 8/10 Invictus ------------------ 8/10 American Sniper -------- 8/10 Sully ---------------------- 8/10 A Perfect World ---------- 8/10

21. 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 ...

Cinderella Man --------------- 9/10 Rush -------------------------- 9/10 A Beautiful Mind ------------- 9/10 Apollo 13 --------------------- 9/10 Frost/Nixon ------------------- 9/10 The Da Vinci Code ----------- 8/10 Angels & Demons ------------ 8/10 Ransom ----------------------- 8/10 Solo: A Star Wars Story ----- 7/10

22. Alfred Hitchcock

Director | Psycho

Alfred Joseph Hitchcock was born in Leytonstone, Essex, England. He was the son of Emma Jane (Whelan; 1863 - 1942) and East End greengrocer William Hitchcock (1862 - 1914). His parents were both of half English and half Irish ancestry. He had two older siblings, William Hitchcock (born 1890) and ...

Dial M for Murder ------------------ 9/10 Strangers on a Train --------------- 9/10 Frenzy ------------------------------ 9/10 Psycho ------------------------------ 9/10 Rear Window ----------------------- 8/10 Vertigo ------------------------------ 8/10 North by Northwest ---------------- 8/10 Rope --------------------------------- 8/10 The Man Who Knew Too Much ----- 8/10 The Lady Vanishes ----------------- 8/10 Rebecca ---------------------------- 8/10 The Wrong Man -------------------- 8/10 Shadow of a Doubt ---------------- 8/10 Notorious -------------------------- 7/10 The 39 Steps ---------------------- 7/10 The Birds -------------------------- 6/10

23. Denis Villeneuve

Director | Dune

Denis Villeneuve is a French Canadian film director and writer. He was born in 1967, in Trois-Rivières, Québec, Canada. He started his career as a filmmaker at the National Film Board of Canada. He is best known for his feature films Arrival (2016), Sicario (2015), Prisoners (2013), Enemy (2013), ...

Prisoners ------------- 9/10 Incendies -------------- 9/10 Arrival ------------------ 9/10 Blade Runner 2049 ---- 9/10 Enemy ------------------ 8/10 Sicario ------------------ 8/10 Dune -------------------- 8/10

24. Masaki Kobayashi

Director | Seppuku

Masaki Kobayashi was born on February 14, 1916 in Hokkaido, Japan. He was a director and writer, known for Harakiri (1962), Samurai Rebellion (1967) and The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer (1961). He died on October 4, 1996 in Tokyo, Japan.

Kwaidan --------------------------- 9/10 The Human Condition I ---------- 9/10 The Human Condition II --------- 9/10 he Human Condition III ---------- 9/10 Harakiri ---------------------------- 8/10 Samurai Rebellion ----------------- 8/10

25. Asghar Farhadi

Writer | Forooshande

Asghar Farhadi was born in 1972 in Iran. He became interested in cinema in his teenage years and started his filmmaking education by joining the Youth Cinema Society of Esfahan in 1986 where he made 8mm and 16mm short films. He received his Bachelors in Theater from University of Tehran's School of...

About Elly ---------------- 9/10 A Separation ------------- 9/10 The Salesman ------------ 9/10 A Hero -------------------- 9/10 Fireworks Wednesday ---- 8/10 The Past ------------------- 8/10

26. Vittorio De Sica

Director | Ladri di biciclette

Vittorio De Sica grew up in Naples, and started out as an office clerk in order to raise money to support his poor family. He was increasingly drawn towards acting, and made his screen debut while still in his teens, joining a stage company in 1923. By the late 1920s he was a successful matinee ...

Bicycle Thieves --------------------- 9/10 Umberto D. ------------------------- 9/10 Shoeshine --------------------------- 9/10 Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow ------ 9/10 Two Women ------------------------- 8/10 Marriage Italian Style ---------------- 8/10

27. William Wyler

Director | The Best Years of Our Lives

William Wyler was an American filmmaker who, at the time of his death in 1981, was considered by his peers as second only to John Ford as a master craftsman of cinema. The winner of three Best Director Academy Awards, second again only to Ford's four, Wyler's reputation has unfairly suffered as the...

The Best Years of Our Lives --------- 9/10 Roman Holiday ---------------------- 9/10 Ben-Hur ---------------------------- 9/10 The Big Country --------------------- 9/10 How to Steal a Million --------------- 8/10 The Collector ----------------------- 8/10

28. Federico Fellini

Writer | Le notti di Cabiria

The women who both attracted and frightened him and an Italy dominated in his youth by Mussolini and Pope Pius XII - inspired the dreams that Fellini started recording in notebooks in the 1960s. Life and dreams were raw material for his films. His native Rimini and characters like Saraghina (the ...

8½ ------------------------ 9/10 The Nights of Cabiria ----- 9/10 La Dolce Vita -------------- 9/10 La Strada ------------------ 8/10 Amarcord ------------------ 8/10 I Vitelloni ------------------ 8/10 Juliet of the Spirits -------- 8/10 Il Bidone ------------------- 8/10

29. Paul Thomas Anderson

Director | Punch-Drunk Love

Anderson was born in 1970. He was one of the first of the "video store" generation of film-makers. His father was the first man on his block to own a V.C.R., and from a very early age Anderson had an infinite number of titles available to him. While film-makers like Spielberg cut their teeth making...

There Will Be Blood - 9/10 Magnolia --------------- 9/10 The Master ------------- 9/10 Boogie Nights ----------- 8/10 Hard Eight --------------- 8/10 Phantom Thread --------- 8/10 Licorice Pizza ------------- 8/10 Punch-Drunk Love ------- 6/10

30. 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 ...

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey ----- 9/10 The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug ---- 9/10 The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies - 9/10 Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring --- 8/10 Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers ------- 8/10 Lord of the Rings: Return of the King ----- 8/10 Heavenly Creatures --------------------- 3/10

31. 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 ...

Titanic --------- 9/10 Terminator 2 ---- 9/10 Aliens ------------ 9/10 The Terminator -- 8/10 Avatar ------------ 8/10 The Abyss -------- 8/10

32. Lee Chang-dong

Writer | Beoning

Lee Chang-Dong was born in 1954 in Daegu, which some consider the most right-wing city in South Korea. Lee is a former high-school teacher and an acclaimed novelist. He turned to cinema when he was over 40 years old. His debut film "Green Fish" (1997) brought immediate success and critical acclaim....

Peppermint Candy --- 9/10 Oasis ----------------- 9/10 Secret Sunshine ----- 9/10 Green Fish ----------- 8/10 Burning -------------- 8/10 Poetry ---------------- 8/10

33. Park Chan-wook

Director | Oldeuboi

Park Chan-wook was born on August 23, 1963 in Seoul, South Korea. He is a producer and director, known for Oldboy (2003), The Handmaiden (2016) and Decision to Leave (2022). He is married to Eun-hee Kim. They have one child.

Oldboy -------------------------- 9/10 The Handmaiden ----------------- 9/10 Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance ---- 9/10 Decision to Leave ----------------- 8/10 Lady Vengeance ------------------- 8/10 J.S.A.: Joint Security Area -------- 8/10

34. John Huston

Director | The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

An eccentric rebel of epic proportions, this Hollywood titan reigned supreme as director, screenwriter and character actor in a career that endured over five decades. The ten-time Oscar-nominated legend was born John Marcellus Huston in Nevada, Missouri, on August 5, 1906. His ancestry was English,...

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre ---- 9/10 The Man Who Would Be King --------- 9/10 Key Largo ----------------------------- 9/10 The Maltese Falcon -------------------- 8/10 The African Queen --------------------- 8/10 The Asphalt Jungle --------------------- 8/10

35. Roman Polanski

Director | Chinatown

Roman Polanski is a Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few truly international filmmakers. Roman Polanski was born in Paris in 1933.

His parents returned to Poland from France in 1936, three years ...

Rosemary's Baby ---- 9/10 Chinatown ------------- 9/10 The Pianist ------------- 9/10 Carnage ---------------- 8/10 The Tenant ------------- 8/10 Repulsion --------------- 7/10

36. Paul Greengrass

Director | United 93

Paul Greengrass started his filmmaking career with a super 8 camera he found in his art room in secondary school. Those short movies were animation horror films he made using old dolls, artist dummies, and the general art room clutter.

After studying in Cambridge University he got into Granada ...

The Bourne Supremacy - 9/10 The Bourne Ultimatum --- 9/10 Captain Phillips ----------- 9/10 United 93 ----------------- 8/10 Jason Bourne ------------ 8/10

37. Alan Parker

Director | Evita

The son of Elsie Ellen, a dressmaker, and William Leslie Parker, a house painter, Alan Parker was a London advertising copywriter in the 1960s and early 1970s with Collett Dickenson Pearce (CDP), an ad agency. He formed a partnership with David Puttnam as his producer (Puttnam had been a ...

Midnight Express --------- 9/10 Mississippi Burning -------- 9/10 The Life of David Gale ---- 9/10 Pink Floyd: The Wall ------ 8/10 Angel Heart --------------- 8/10

38. Kim Ki-duk

Writer | Bin-jip

He studied fine arts in Paris in 1990-1992. In 1993 he won the award for Best Screenplay from the Educational Institute of Screenwriting with "A Painter and A Criminal Condemned to Death". After two more screenplay awards, he made his directorial debut with Crocodile (1996) ("Crocodile"). Then he ...

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring - 9/10 3-Iron ----------------------------------------- 9/10 Pieta ------------------------------------------- 9/10 The Bow --------------------------------------- 8/10 Samaritan Girl --------------------------------- 8/10

39. Stanley Kramer

Producer | Judgment at Nuremberg

Stanley Kramer was born on September 29, 1913 in Hell's Kitchen [now Clinton], Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA. He was a producer and director, known for Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) and Inherit the Wind (1960). He was married to Karen Sharpe, Anne P. ...

Inherit the Wind --------------------- 9/10 Judgment at Nuremberg ------------ 9/10 Guess Who's Coming to Dinner ---- 9/10 It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World ----- 8/10 The Defiant Ones -------------------- 8/10

40. Costa-Gavras

Director | Z

Costa-Gavras was born on February 12, 1933 in Loutra-Iraias, Greece. He is a director and writer, known for Z (1969), Missing (1982) and Amen. (2002). He has been married to Michèle Ray-Gavras since 1968. They have two children.

Missing ----------------- 9/10 Z ------------------------ 9/10 State of Siege ---------- 9/10 Music Box --------------- 8/10 The Confession --------- 8/10

41. Edward Zwick

Producer | Thirtysomething

Zwick moves deftly between the roles of writer, director and producer. He was nominated for a Golden Globe for his direction of the 1989 critically acclaimed Civil War drama, Glory. He received his second Golden Globe nomination as a director for Legends of the Fall. Zwick received an Academy Award...

Blood Diamond ----- 9/10 Pawn Sacrifice ------- 9/10 Legends of the Fall -- 9/10 The Last Samurai ---- 8/10 Glory ----------------- 7/10 Courage Under Fire - 7/10 Love & Other Drugs - 6/10

42. James Mangold

Producer | Logan

James Mangold is an American film and television director, screenwriter and producer. Films he has directed include Girl, Interrupted (1999), Walk the Line (2005), which he also co-wrote, the 2007 remake 3:10 to Yuma (2007), The Wolverine (2013), and Logan (2017).

Mangold also wrote and directed Cop...

Identity ------------- 9/10 Walk the Line ------- 9/10 Ford v Ferrari -------- 9/10 3:10 to Yuma ------- 8/10 Girl, Interrupted ---- 7/10

43. John Cassavetes

Actor | Rosemary's Baby

John Cassavetes was a Greek-American actor, film director, and screenwriter. He is considered a pioneer of American independent film, as he often financed his own films.

Cassavetes was born in New York City in 1929 to Nicholas John Cassavetes (1893-1979) and his wife, Katherine Demetre (1906-1983). ...

A Woman Under the Influence --------- 9/10 Opening Night -------------------------- 9/10 Love Streams --------------------------- 9/10 The Killing of a Chinese Bookie -------- 8/10 Shadows -------------------------------- 7/10

44. Norman Jewison

Director | Jesus Christ Superstar

Norman Jewison was an award-winning, internationally acclaimed filmmaker who produced and directed some of the world's most memorable, entertaining and socially important films, exploring controversial and complicated subjects and giving them a universal accessibility. Some of his most well-known ...

The Hurricane ----------- 9/10 ...And Justice for All. ----- 9/10 In the Heat of the Night --- 9/10 A Soldier's Story ----------- 8/10

45. Kathryn Bigelow

Director | The Hurt Locker

A very talented painter, Kathryn spent two years at the San Francisco Art Institute. At 20, she won a scholarship to the Whitney Museum's Independent Study Program. She was given a studio in a former Offtrack Betting building, literally in an old bank vault, where she made art and waited to be ...

The Hurt Locker - 9/10 Zero Dark Thirty -- 9/10 Detroit ------------- 9/10 Strange Days ------ 7/10 Point Break -------- 6/10

46. 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 ...

The Kid ------------------ 9/10 City Lights --------------- 9/10 The Great Dictator ------ 9/10 Modern Times ----------- 7/10 The Gold Rush ----------- 6/10

47. John Frankenheimer

Director | The Manchurian Candidate

Born in New York and raised in Queens, John Frankenheimer wanted to become a professional tennis player. He loved movies and his favorite actor was Robert Mitchum. He decided he wanted to be an actor but then he applied for and was accepted in the Motion Picture Squadron of the Air Force where he ...

Birdman of Alcatraz ------------9/10 The Manchurian Candidate --- 9/10 Seven Days in May ------------ 9/10 Ronin --------------------------- 7/10

48. Denzel Washington

Actor | Fences

Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. was born on December 28, 1954 in Mount Vernon, New York. He is the middle of three children of a beautician mother, Lennis, from Georgia, and a Pentecostal minister father, Denzel Washington, Sr., from Virginia. After graduating from high school, Denzel enrolled at ...

Antwone Fisher ------------ 9/10 The Great Debaters --------- 9/10 Fences ------------------------ 9/10

49. Jim Jarmusch

Director | Paterson

Moved to New York City at the age of seventeen from Akron, Ohio. Graduated from Columbia University with a B.A. in English, class of '75. Without any prior film experience, he was accepted into the Tisch School of the Arts, New York.

Mystery Train ------------------------------ 9/10 Down by Law ------------------------------ 9/10 Night on Earth ----------------------------- 8/10 Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai ----- 8/10 Stranger Than Paradise ------------------- 8/10 Broken Flowers ---------------------------- 8/10 Coffee and Cigarettes --------------------- 8/10 Gimme Danger ---------------------------- 8/10 Only Lovers Left Alive --------------------- 7/10 Dead Man ---------------------------------- 7/10 Paterson ----------------------------------- 7/10

50. Danny Boyle

Director | 127 Hours

Daniel Francis Boyle is a British filmmaker, producer and writer from Radcliffe, Greater Manchester. He is known for directing 28 Days Later, 127 Hours, Trainspotting, T2 Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire, Millions, Shallow Grave, The Beach, Yesterday, and Steve Jobs. He won many awards for ...

Trainspotting ------- 9/10 T2 Trainspotting ----- 9/10 Steve Jobs ----------- 8/10 127 Hours ------------ 8/10 Slumdog Millionaire - 8/10 Trance ---------------- 8/10 Shallow Grave -------- 8/10

51. Steven Soderbergh

Director | Sex, Lies, and Videotape

Steven Andrew Soderbergh was born on January 14, 1963 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, the second of six children of Mary Ann (Bernard) and Peter Soderbergh. His father was of Swedish and Irish descent, and his mother was of Italian ancestry. While he was still at a very young age, his family moved to ...

Erin Brockovich - 9/10 Side Effects ------ 9/10 Traffic ------------- 8/10 Ocean's Eleven --- 8/10 Logan Lucky ------ 8/10 Out of Sight ------- 8/10 Ocean's Twelve --- 7/10 Ocean's Thirteen --- 7/10

52. Peter Weir

Director | Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

Peter Weir was born on August 21, 1944 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. He is a director and writer, known for Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), The Way Back (2010) and Witness (1985). He has been married to Wendy Stites since 1966. They have two children.

Dead Poets Society --------- 9/10 The Truman Show ----------- 9/10 Master and Commander ----- 8/10 The Way Back ---------------- 8/10 Gallipoli ----------------------- 8/10 Witness ----------------------- 8/10 Picnic at Hanging Rock ------- 7/10

53. John Ford

Director | The Quiet Man

John Ford came to Hollywood following one of his brothers, an actor. Asked what brought him to Hollywood, he replied "the train". He became one of the most respected directors in the business, in spite of being known for his westerns, which were not considered "serious" film. He won six Oscars, ...

The Grapes of Wrath ------------------ 9/10 The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance ---- 9/10 The Searchers --------------------------- 8/10 The Quiet Man --------------------------- 8/10 My Darling Clementine ------------------ 8/10 Stagecoach ------------------------------ 8/10

54. Giuseppe Tornatore

Director | La migliore offerta

Giuseppe Tornatore was born on May 27, 1956 in Bagheria, Sicily, Italy. He is a director and writer, known for The Best Offer (2013), Cinema Paradiso (1988) and The Legend of 1900 (1998). He is married to Roberta Pacetti.

Cinema Paradiso -------- 9/10 The Legend of 1900 ---- 9/10 Malèna ------------------ 8/10 The Best Offer ---------- 8/10 A Pure Formality ------- 8/10 Everybody's Fine ------- 8/10

55. Robert Altman

Director | Gosford Park

Robert Altman was born on February 20th, 1925 in Kansas City, Missouri, to B.C. (an insurance salesman) and Helen Altman. He entered St. Peters Catholic school at the age six, and spent a short time at a Catholic high school. From there, he went to Rockhurst High School. It was then that he started...

Short Cuts -------- 9/10 MASH --------------- 9/10 The Player ---------- 8/10 Gosford Park -------- 8/10 McCabe & Mrs. Miller - 8/10 Nashville ------------ 7/10

56. Doug Liman

Producer | Edge of Tomorrow

Douglas Eric Liman is a Jewish-American filmmaker and producer who directed Swingers, The Bourne Identity, Chaos Walking, Jumper, Go, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Fair Game, Locked Down, Edge of Tomorrow, The Wall and American Made. He executive produced the Bourne sequels except The Bourne Legacy, The ...

The Bourne Identity - 9/10 Edge of Tomorrow ---- 9/10 American Made -------- 8/10 Swingers --------------- 8/10 Go ---------------------- 8/10 Jumper ----------------- 6/10

57. Spike Lee

Director | Do the Right Thing

Spike Lee was born Shelton Jackson Lee on March 20, 1957, in Atlanta, Georgia. At a very young age, he moved from pre-civil rights Georgia, to Brooklyn, New York. Lee came from artistic, education-grounded background; his father was a jazz musician, and his mother, a schoolteacher. He attended ...

Do the Right Thing ------ 9/10 25th Hour ----------------- 9/10 Malcolm X ----------------- 8/10 Inside Man ----------------- 8/10 Blackkklansmen ----------- 8/10

58. Jean-Pierre Melville

Writer | Le Samouraï

The name "Melville" is not immediately associated with film. It conjures up images of white whales and crackbrained captains, of naysaying notaries and soup-spilling sailors. It is the countersign to a realm of men and their deeds, both heroic and villainous. It is the American novel, with its ...

Le Cercle Rouge ------ 9/10 Army of Shadows ------- 9/10 Le Samouraï ------------- 8/10 Le Doulos ---------------- 8/10 Bob le Flambeur --------- 8/10

59. Bong Joon Ho

Writer | Snowpiercer

Bong Joon-ho is a South Korean filmmaker. The recipient of three Academy Awards, his filmography is characterized by emphasis on social themes, genre-mixing, black humor, and sudden tone shifts. He first became known to audiences and achieved a cult following with his directorial debut film, the ...

Memories of Murder ------- 9/10 Parasite -------------------- 9/10 Okja ------------------------ 8/10 Mother ---------------------- 8/10 Snowpiercer ---------------- 8/10

60. Hayao Miyazaki

Writer | Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi

Hayao Miyazaki is one of Japan's greatest animation directors. The entertaining plots, compelling characters, and breathtaking visuals in his films have earned him international renown from critics as well as public recognition within Japan.

Miyazaki started his career in 1963 as an animator at the ...

Spirited Away ------------------------ 9/10 The Wind Rises ---------------------- 9/10 Howl’s Moving Castle ---------------- 8/10 Princess Mononoke ------------------ 8/10 My Neighbor Totoro ----------------- 7/10 Castle in the Sky -------------------- 7/10 Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind - 7/10

61. Rob Reiner

Actor | All in the Family

Robert Reiner was born in New York City, to Estelle Reiner (née Lebost) and Emmy-winning actor, comedian, writer, and producer Carl Reiner.

As a child, his father was his role model, as Carl Reiner created and starred in The Dick Van Dyke Show. Estelle was also an inspiration for him to become a ...

Stand by Me --------- 9/10 A Few Good Men ------ 9/10 Misery ----------------- 8/10 The Bucket List ------- 8/10 The Princess Bride ---- 7/10 Flipped ----------------- 7/10 This Is Spinal Tap ---- 5/10

62. David Lynch

Writer | Twin Peaks

Born in precisely the kind of small-town American setting so familiar from his films, David Lynch spent his childhood being shunted from one state to another as his research scientist father kept getting relocated. He attended various art schools, married Peggy Lynch and then fathered future ...

The Straight Story ----------- 9/10 Mulholland Drive-------------- 9/10 Blue Velvet ------------------ 8/10 The Elephant Man ------------ 8/10 Eraserhead ------------------ 7/10 Wild at Heart ---------------- 7/10 Lost Highway ---------------- 5/10

63. Gore Verbinski

Director | Rango

Gore Verbinski, one of American cinema's most inventive directors who was a punk-rock guitarist as a teenager and had to sell his guitar to buy his first camera, is now the director of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) which made the industry record for highest opening weekend of ...

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl - 9/10 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest -------------- 9/10 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End ----------------- 8/10 Rango -------------------------------------------------------- 8/10

64. Frank Capra

Director | It's a Wonderful Life

One of seven children, Frank Capra was born on May 18, 1897, in Bisacquino, Sicily. On May 10, 1903, his family left for America aboard the ship Germania, arriving in New York on May 23rd. "There's no ventilation, and it stinks like hell. They're all miserable. It's the most degrading place you ...

It Happened One Night ---------- 9/10 It's a Wonderful Life --------------- 9/10 Mr. Smith Goes to Washington ---- 8/10 Arsenic and Old Lace --------------- 8/10

65. 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 ...

Hacksaw Ridge ---------- 9/10 Apocalypto ---------------- 9/10 The Passion of the Christ - 8/10 Braveheart ----------------- 8/10

66. Jean-Pierre Dardenne

Producer | Deux jours, une nuit

After studying drama in the arts institute, Jean Pierre Dardenne and his brother Luc made some videos about the rough life in blue-collar small towns in the Wallonie. After their meeting with filmmaker Armad Gatti and cinematographer Ned Burgess, they decided to enter in the movie business.

In 1978 ...

L'enfant ------------------------------ 9/10 Two Days, One Night --------------- 9/10 Rosetta ------------------------------ 8/10 La Promesse ------------------------ 8/10

67. Luc Dardenne

Producer | Deux jours, une nuit

Luc Dardenne was born on March 10, 1954 in Awirs, Wallonia, Belgium. He is a producer and director, known for Two Days, One Night (2014), The Kid with a Bike (2011) and The Child (2005).

L'enfant ------------------------------ 9/10 Two Days, One Night --------------- 9/10 Rosetta ------------------------------ 8/10 La Promesse ------------------------ 8/10

68. Hal Ashby

Editor | In the Heat of the Night

Hal Ashby was born the fourth and youngest child in a Mormon household, in Ogden, Utah, to Eileen Ireta (Hetzler) and James Thomas Ashby, on September 2, 1929. His father was a dairy farmer. After a rough childhood that included the divorce of his parents, his father's suicide, his dropping out of ...

Being There -------- 9/10 Harold and Maude --- 9/10 The Last Detail ------ 8/10 Bound for Glory ----- 8/10

69. David Lean

Director | Lawrence of Arabia

An important British filmmaker, David Lean was born in Croydon on March 25, 1908 and brought up in a strict Quaker family (ironically, as a child he wasn't allowed to go to the movies). During the 1920s, he briefly considered the possibility of becoming an accountant like his father before finding ...

The Bridge on the River Kwai --- 9/10 Doctor Zhivago -------------------- 9/10 Lawrence of Arabia ---------------- 8/10 Great Expectations ---------------- 7/10 Brief Encounter -------------------- 7/10

70. Howard Hawks

Director | Rio Bravo

What do the classic films Scarface (1932), Twentieth Century (1934), Bringing Up Baby (1938), Only Angels Have Wings (1939), His Girl Friday (1940), Sergeant York (1941), To Have and Have Not (1944), The Big Sleep (1946), Red River (1948) Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) and Rio Bravo (1959) have in...

Rio Bravo ----------- 9/10 Red River ------------ 9/10 His Girl Friday ------- 8/10 The Big Sleep -------- 7/10 Bringing Up Baby ---- 6/10

71. Brian De Palma

Director | Body Double

Brian De Palma is one of the well-known directors who spear-headed the new movement in Hollywood during the 1970s. He is known for his many films that go from violent pictures, to Hitchcock-like thrillers. Born on September 11, 1940, De Palma was born in Newark, New Jersey in an Italian-American ...

Carlito's Way -------- 9/10 Scarface --------------- 9/10 The Untouchables ----- 8/10 Mission: Impossible --- 7/10

72. Robert Redford

Actor | The Natural

Born on August 18, 1936, in Santa Monica, California, to Charles Robert Redford, an accountant for Standard Oil, and Martha Redford, Charles Robert Redford, Jr. was a scrappy kid who stole hubcaps in high school and lost his college baseball scholarship at the University of Colorado because of ...

A River Runs Through It ----- 9/10 Quiz Show --------------------- 9/10 Ordinary People --------------- 8/10 The Horse Whisperer --------- 7/10

73. Milos Forman

Director | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Milos Forman was born Jan Tomas Forman in Caslav, Czechoslovakia, to Anna (Svabova), who ran a summer hotel, and Rudolf Forman, a professor. During World War II, his parents were taken away by the Nazis, after being accused of participating in the underground resistance. His father died in ...

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest ----- 9/10 Amadeus --------------------------------- 9/10 The People vs. Larry Flynt -------------- 8/10 Man on the Moon ------------------------ 6/10 The Firemen's Ball ----------------------- 3/10

74. Emir Kusturica

Director | Underground

A Serbian film director. Born in 1954 in Sarajevo. Graduated in film directing at the prestigious Academy of Performing Arts (FAMU) in Prague in 1978. During his studies, he was awarded several times for his short movies including Guernica (1978), which took first prize at the Student's Film ...

Black Cat, White Cat --------------------- 9/10 Time of the Gypsies ---------------------- 9/10 When Father Was Away on Business ---- 8/10 Underground ------------------------------6/10

75. Matthew Vaughn

Producer | Kick-Ass

Matthew Vaughn is an English film producer and director. He is known for producing such films as Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) and Snatch (2000) and for directing the crime thriller, Layer Cake (2004), the fantasy epic, Stardust (2007), the superhero comedy, Kick-Ass (2010), and the ...

Kingsman : The Secret Service --- 9/10 Layer Cake --------------------------- 9/10 Kick-Ass ------------------------------ 8/10

76. Barry Levinson

Director | Rain Man

Barry Lee Levinson was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to Violet (Krichinsky) and Irvin Levinson, who worked in furniture and appliance. He is of Russian Jewish descent. Levinson graduated from high school in 1960, attended college at American University in Washington, DC. He did well, but decided he ...

Rain Man ----------------- 9/10 Sleepers ------------------- 9/10 Good Morning, Vietnam --- 8/10

77. Franklin J. Schaffner

Director | Planet of the Apes

Franklin J. Schaffner was one of the most innovative creative minds in the early days of American network television, utilizing a moving camera in the days when most television directors kept the camera static. His eye for visuals was developed in the dozens of live television programs he directed ...

Planet of the Apes ------ 9/10 Patton -----------------------9/10 Papillon --------------------- 8/10

78. Ken Loach

Director | I, Daniel Blake

Unlike virtually all his contemporaries, Ken Loach has never succumbed to the siren call of Hollywood, and it's virtually impossible to imagine his particular brand of British socialist realism translating well to that context.

After studying law at St. Peter's College, Oxford, he branched out into ...

The Wind that Shakes the Barley ---- 9/10 I, Daniel Blake ------------------------ 9/10 Kes ------------------------------------ 8/10

79. Mike Leigh

Director | Secrets & Lies

Mike Leigh is an English film and theatre director, screenwriter and playwright. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and further at the Camberwell School of Art, the Central School of Art and Design and the London School of Film Technique. He began his career as a theatre ...

Secrets & Lies ----------------- 9/10 Vera Drake --------------------- 9/10 Naked --------------------------- 8/10

80. Ruben Östlund

Director | Triangle of Sadness

Ruben Östlund was born on April 13, 1974 in Styrsö, Västra Götalands län, Sweden. He is a director and editor, known for Triangle of Sadness (2022), Force Majeure (2014) and The Square (2017). He was previously married to Andrea Östlund.

Triangle of Sadness -------- 9/10 The Square ---------------- 9/10 Force Majeure -------------- 8/10

81. François Truffaut

Writer | La nuit américaine

French director François Truffaut began to assiduously go to the movies at age seven. He was also a great reader but not a good pupil. He left school at 14 and started working. In 1947, aged 15, he founded a film club and met André Bazin, a French critic, who became his protector. Bazin helped the ...

The 400 Blows -------------- 9/10 Day for Night --------------- 9/10 Stolen Kisses --------------- 7/10 Jules and Jim --------------- 7/10 Shoot the Piano Player ----- 6/10

82. Terry Zwigoff

Director | Ghost World

Born in Appleton, Wisconsin, Zwigoff held several jobs before making his breakthrough feature: the documentary Crumb (1994) in 1994. His previous jobs included musician, shipping clerk, printer and welfare office worker. In fact, Zwigoff traces his film career back to discovering a rare blues ...

Bad Santa -------- 9/10 Crumb -------------- 9/10 Ghost World -------- 7/10

83. Michael Curtiz

Director | Casablanca

Curtiz began acting in and then directing films in his native Hungary in 1912. After WWI, he continued his filmmaking career in Austria and Germany and into the early 1920s when he directed films in other countries in Europe. Moving to the US in 1926, he started making films in Hollywood for Warner...

Casablanca --------------------------- 9/10 Angels with Dirty Faces -------------- 9/10 The Adventures of Robin Hood ------ 7/10