My Favorite Directors
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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 1992, first-time writer-director Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (1992) appeared at the Sundance Film Festival. The film garnered critical acclaim and the director became a legend immediately. Two years later, he followed up Dogs success with Pulp Fiction (1994) which premiered at the Cannes film festival, winning the coveted Palme D'Or Award. At the 1995 Academy Awards, it was nominated for the best picture, best director and best original screenplay. Tarantino and writing partner Roger Avary came away with the award only for best original screenplay. In 1995, Tarantino directed one fourth of the anthology Four Rooms (1995) with friends and fellow auteurs Alexandre Rockwell, Robert Rodriguez and Allison Anders. The film opened December 25 in the United States to very weak reviews. Tarantino's next film was From Dusk Till Dawn (1996), a vampire/crime story which he wrote and co-starred with George Clooney. The film did fairly well theatrically.
Since then, Tarantino has helmed several critically and financially successful films, including Jackie Brown (1997), Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003), Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004), Inglourious Basterds (2009), Django Unchained (2012) and The Hateful Eight (2015).- Director
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Tony Kaye was born in London, United Kingdom. He has made several well-known music videos, including the video for "Runaway Train" by Soul Asylum, which won a Grammy Award, "Dani California" by Red Hot Chili Peppers, "What God Wants" by Roger Waters, and "Help Me" and "God's Gonna Cut You Down" by Johnny Cash. Kaye is a six time Grammy nominated music video director. His feature film debut was American History X (1998), a drama about racism starring Edward Norton and Edward Furlong. Kaye disowned the final cut of the film, as he did not approve of its quality. He unsuccessfully attempted to have his name removed from the credits. The final cut was critically lauded and Norton was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in the film. Kaye's second feature, a documentary called Lake of Fire, was about the abortion debate in the United States. It opened in Toronto in September 2006. The movie was shortlisted for an Oscar, nominated for Best Documentary Film at the Independent Spirit Awards, the Chicago Film Critics Association Awards, and the Satellite Awards. Lake of Fire took Kaye 18 years to make. Kaye's third feature film, Black Water Transit (2010), starred Laurence Fishburne, Karl Urban, Evan Ross, Brittany Snow, and Stephen Dorff. The film is unfinished as the production company went bankrupt during the making. Kaye's fourth feature film, Detachment (2011), starring his daughter Betty Kaye, is a drama about the decline of the education system in American high schools.- Director
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Paul Verhoeven graduated from the University of Leiden, with a degree in math and physics. He entered the Royal Netherlands Navy, where he began his film career by making documentaries for the Navy and later for TV. In 1969, he directed the popular Dutch TV series, Floris (1969), about a medieval knight. This featured actor Rutger Hauer, who has appeared in many of Verhoeven's later films. Verhoeven's first feature, Wat zien ik (1971) (trans. "What do I See?"), was released in 1971. However, it was his second, Turkish Delight (1973), with its combination of raw sexuality and a poignant story-line, that gained him great popularity in the Netherlands, especially with male audiences. When his films, especially Soldier of Orange (1977) and The 4th Man (1983), received international recognition, Verhoeven moved to the US. His first US film was Flesh+Blood (1985) in 1985, but it was RoboCop (1987) and, especially, Total Recall (1990) that made him a big box office success. Sometimes accused of portraying excessive violence in his films, Verhoeven replies that he is only recording the violence of society. Verhoeven has co-scripted two of his films: Soldier of Orange (1977) and Flesh+Blood (1985). He also directed an episode of the HBO The Hitchhiker (1983) TV series. Several of his films have been photographed by Jost Vacano, including the hit cult film, Starship Troopers (1997), starring Casper Van Dien.- Director
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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 family. Originally entering university as a physics student, De Palma became attracted to films after seeing such classics as Citizen Kane (1941). Enrolling in Sarah Lawrence College, he found lasting influences from such varied teachers as Alfred Hitchcock and Andy Warhol.
At first, his films comprised of such black-and-white films as To Bridge This Gap (1969). He then discovered a young actor whose fame would influence Hollywood forever. In 1968, De Palma made the comedic film Greetings (1968) starring Robert De Niro in his first ever credited film role. The two followed up immediately with the films The Wedding Party (1969) and Hi, Mom! (1970).
After making such small-budget thrillers such as Sisters (1972) and Obsession (1976), De Palma was offered the chance to direct a film based on Stephen King's classic novel "Carrie". The story deals with a tormented teenage girl who finds she has the power of telekinesis. The film starred Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie and John Travolta, and was for De Palma, a chance to try out the split screen technique for which he would later become famous.
Carrie (1976) was a massive success, and earned the two lead females (Laurie and Spacek) Oscar nominations. The film was praised by most critics, and De Palma's reputation was now permanently secured. He followed up this success with the horror film The Fury (1978), the comedic film Home Movies (1979) (both these films featured Kirk Douglas), the crime thriller Dressed to Kill (1980) starring Michael Caine and Angie Dickinson, and another crime thriller entitled Blow Out (1981) starring John Travolta.
His next major success was the controversial, ultra-violent film Scarface (1983). Written by Oliver Stone and starring Al Pacino, the film concerned Cuban immigrant Tony Montana's rise to power in the United States through the drug trade. While being a critical failure, the film was a major success commercially.
Moving on from Scarface (1983), De Palma made two more movies before landing another one of his now-classics: The Untouchables (1987), starring old friend Robert De Niro in the role of Chicago gangster Al Capone. Also starring in the film were Kevin Costner as the man who commits himself to bring Capone down, and Sean Connery, an old policeman who helps Costner's character to form a group known as the Untouchables. The film was one of De Palma's most successful films, earning Connery an Oscar, and gave Ennio Morricone a nomination for Best Score.
After The Untouchables (1987), De Palma made the Vietnam film Casualties of War (1989) starring Michael J. Fox and Sean Penn. The film focuses on a new soldier who is helpless to stop his dominating sergeant from kidnapping a Vietnamese girl with the help of the coerced members of the platoon. The film did reasonably well at the box office, but it was his next film that truly displayed the way he could make a hit and a disaster within a short time. The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990) starred a number of well-known actors such as Bruce Willis and Morgan Freeman, however it was still a commercial flop and earned him two Razzie nominations.
But the roller coaster success that De Palma had gotten so far did not let him down. He made the horror film Raising Cain (1992), and the criminal drama Carlito's Way (1993) starring Al Pacino and Sean Penn. The latter film is about a former criminal just released from prison that is trying to avoid his past and move on. It was in the year 1996 that brought one of his most well-known movies. This was the suspense-filled Mission: Impossible (1996) starring Tom Cruise and Jon Voight.
Following up this film was the interesting but unsuccessful film Snake Eyes (1998) starring Nicolas Cage as a detective who finds himself in the middle of a murder scene at a boxing ring. De Palma continued on with the visually astounding but equally unsuccessful film Mission to Mars (2000) which earned him another Razzie nomination. He met failure again with the crime thriller Femme Fatale (2002), the murder conspiracy The Black Dahlia (2006), and the controversial film Redacted (2007) which deals with individual stories from the war in Iraq.
Brian De Palma may be down for the moment, but if his box office history has taught us anything, it is that he always returns with a major success that is remembered for years and years afterwards.- Actor
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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 director; her experience as a singer helped him understand how music was used in a scene. Rob often felt pressured about measuring up to his father's successful streak, with twelve Emmys and other prestigious awards.
When Rob graduated high school, his parents advised him to participate in Summer Theatre. Reiner got a job as an apprentice in the Bucks County Playhouse in Pennsylvania. He went on to UCLA Film School to further his education. Reiner felt he still wasn't successful even having a recurring role on one of the biggest shows in the country, All in the Family. He began his directing career with the Oscar-nominated films This Is Spinal Tap, Stand By Me, and The Princess Bride.
In 1987, with these successful box-office movies under his belt, Reiner founded his own production company, Castle Rock Entertainment; along with Martin Shafer, Andrew Scheinman, Glenn Padnick, and Alan Horn. Under Castle Rock Entertainment, he went to direct Oscar-nominated films When Harry Met Sally, Misery, and A Few Good Men. Reiner has credited former co-star Carroll O'Connor in helping him get into the directing business, showing Reiner the ropes.
Reiner is known as a political activist, co-founding the American Foundation For Equal Rights, a group that was an advisory for same-sex-marriage. He has spoken at several rallies on several topics, an advocate for social change regarding such issues as domestic violence and tobacco use.
Reiner made cameo appearances on television shows 30 Rock, The Simpsons, and Hannah Montana, and in films The First Wives Club, Bullets Over Broadway, Primary Colors, and Throw Momma From The Train, among many others.- Actor
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Nick Cassavetes was born in New York City, the son of actress Gena Rowlands and Greek-American actor and film director John Cassavetes. As a child, he appeared in two of his father's films: Husbands (1970) and A Woman Under the Influence (1974). After spending so much of his youth surrounded by the film industry, Cassavetes initially decided he did not want to go into the field. He instead attended Syracuse University on a basketball scholarship. His athletic career was effectively ended by an injury, and he decided to rethink his aspirations, ultimately deciding to attend his parents' alma mater, the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. He has appeared in the films, Face/Off (1997), The Wraith (1986), Life (1999), Class of 1999 II: The Substitute (1994), Backstreet Dreams (1990) and The Astronaut's Wife (1999), among others. He has directed several films, including John Q (2002), Alpha Dog (2006), She's So Lovely (1997), Unhook the Stars (1996), The Notebook (2004), and My Sister's Keeper (2009). He also adapted the screenplay for Blow (2001) and wrote the dialogue for the Justin Timberlake music video, "What Goes Around... Comes Around". In 1985, Cassavetes married Isabelle Rafalovich. They had two daughters together, Virginia Cassavetes (Virginia Sara Cassavetes) (born in 1986) and Sasha Cassavetes (born in 1988), before divorcing. He then married Heather Wahlquist (Heather "Queenie" Wahlquist), who has appeared in several of his films, including a small role in The Notebook (2004) as Sara, a secondary character and best friend to the female lead Allie Hamilton, portrayed by Rachel McAdams. The movie is effectively a family project, as Cassavetes's own mother, Gena Rowlands, appears as the older, married Allie Calhoun.- Actor
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Stanley Lloyd Kaufman never really wanted to make movies, he wanted to work in Broadway musicals. During his years in Yale he was introduced to "B" pictures and the works of Roger Corman. Lloyd later got the opportunity to executive-produce a short movie made by a fellow student. The film, called "Rappacini", got him even more interested in movies. He bought his own camera and took it with him to Chad, Africa, were he spent his summer. There, he shot a 15-minute film of a pig being slaughtered. That was his first movie, and was the birth of what was later to become known as Troma Films. He showed the footage of the squealing pig being killed to his family, and their reaction to it made him wonder if making movies that shocked audiences would keep them in their seats to see what would happen next.
He wanted to be a director right then and there, so he got a couple of friends at Yale and made his second movie, The Girl Who Returned (1969). People loved it, and he went straight to work on other films, helping out on projects like Joe (1970), Rocky (1976) and Saturday Night Fever (1977).
Lloyd put in a lot of long, hard hours in the film business, just to be in the credits and to get money for his next project, a full-length feature. It was a tribute to Charles Chaplin, Harold Lloyd and the classic era of silent-film comedy. Even though Lloyd hated the movie when it was completed, people seemed to love it. He formed a studio called 15th Street Films with friends and producers Frank Vitale and Oliver Stone. Together, they made Sugar Cookies (1973) and Cry Uncle (1971), directed by John G. Avildsen. A friend from Yale, Michael Herz, saw Lloyd in a small scene in "Cry Uncle" and contacted him to try to get into the film business. Kaufman took Herz in, as the company needed some help after Oliver Stone quit to make his own movies. Michael invested in a film they thought would be their biggest hit yet, Schwartz: The Brave Detective (1973) (aka "Big Gus, What's the Fuss?"). It turned out to be a huge flop and 15th Street Films was ruined. Lloyd and Michael owed thousands of dollars to producers and friends and family members who had invested in the picture.
Lloyd, trying to find a quick way to pay off the bills, made The Divine Obsession (1976), and with Michael formed Troma Studios, hoping to make some decent movies, since they only owned the rights to films they thought were poor. They were introduced to Joel M. Reed, who had an unfinished movie called "Master Sardu and the Horror Trio". The film was re-edited and completed at Troma Studios (which consisted of just one room) during 1975, re-titled and released in 1976 as Blood Sucking Freaks (1976) (aka "Bloodsucking Freaks"). It was enough of a success to enable them to pay the rent so they wouldn't lose the company.
Lloyd later got a call from a theater that wanted a "sexy movie" like The Divine Obsession (1976), but about softball (!). The resulting film, Squeeze Play (1979), used up all the money Troma had earned from "Bloodsucking Freaks" and, as it turned out, no one wanted to see it--not even the theater owner who wanted it made in the first place (he actually wanted a porno movie). Just when things looked their darkest, they got a call from another theater which was scheduled to show a film, but the distributor pulled it at the last minute. Troma rushed "Squeeze Play" right over, and it turned out to be a huge hit. Lloyd, Michael and Troma eventually made millions from it, and had enough money to buy their own building (which remains as Troma Headquarters). Troma then turned out a stream of "sexy" comedies-- Waitress! (1982), The First Turn-On!! (1983), Stuck on You! (1983)--but there was a glut of "T&A" films on the market. Lloyd noticed that a lot of comedies were being made and decided to make one, but much different than the rest. After reading an article that claimed horror movies were dead, Lloyd got the idea to combine both horror and comedy, and Troma came up with "Health Club Horror"--later re-titled and released as The Toxic Avenger (1984), a monster hit that finally put Troma on the map.
Lloyd Kaufman and Troma have become icons in the cult-movie world, and Troma has distributed over 1000 films. Lloyd has continued his career as a director in addition to producing, and Troma has turned out such films as Monster in the Closet (1986), Class of Nuke 'Em High (1986), Combat Shock (1984), Troma's War (1988), and Fortress of Amerikkka (1989), and Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead (2006), which follows an army of undead chickens as they seek revenge on a fast food palace.- Writer
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Wayne Kramer was born in South Africa, where he graduated from the Johannesburg School for Art, Drama and Music. His feature film debut came in 2003 with "The Cooler," a romantic drama set in Las Vegas and starring William H. Macy as a professional casino jinx and Maria Bello as the cocktail waitress who changes his luck. "The Cooler" was selected for competition in the 2003 Sundance Film Festival and opened the 2003 Los Angeles Film Festival. Alec Baldwin received an Oscar® nomination for his portrayal of an old-school casino boss, and won the National Board of Review's Best Supporting Actor award. The Lionsgate release also received Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild and Online Film Critics award nominations for both Baldwin and Bello. Kramer won the Special Jury Prize at the Cognac Festival du Film Policier. Kramer was nominated for a 2004 Golden Satellite Award and a 2004 Edgar Allan Poe (along with Frank Hannah) for his screenplay to The Cooler, which also received a 2003 Special Mention For Excellence in Filmmaking from the National Board of Review
Wayne followed up "The Cooler" with "Running Scared," a gritty action thriller for New Line Cinema. Paul Walker starred as a New Jersey mob foot soldier who spends a harrowing night chasing down a gun used to kill a dirty cop. The film also starred Vera Farmiga, Chazz Palminteri and Elizabeth Mitchell. "Running Scared" was released in 2006 and has since become a cult favorite among action fans.
Next, Wayne wrote, produced (along with Frank Marshall) and directed "Crossing Over," an ensemble drama about illegal immigration in Los Angeles. The film stars Harrison Ford, Ray Liotta, Jim Sturgess, Ashley Judd, Cliff Curtis, Alice Eve and Alice Braga. "Crossing Over" was released by The Weinstein Company in 2009.
Most recently, Wayne directed the black comedy ensemble "Pawn Shop Chronicles," which was released by Anchor Bay in 2013. The film stars Paul Walker, Matt Dillon, Brendan Fraser, Elijah Wood, Thomas Jane, Vincent D'Onofrio and Lukas Haas.
Wayne will next direct the dystopian sci-fi love story "Ecstasia," based on his upcoming novel, with Scott Eastwood attached to star.
Kramer's other credits include the original screenplay for "Mindhunters" (2004), directed by Renny Harlin and released by Dimension Films.- Writer
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Sean Baker is a graduate of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. He is an award-winning writer/director/producer known for Take Out (2004), Prince of Broadway (2008), Starlet (2012), Tangerine (2015), and The Florida Project (2017). Sean's latest feature, Red Rocket, premiered at Cannes on July 14, 2021. Red Rocket was acquired by A24 for theatrical and home entertainment release.
Baker is also the co-creator of the long-running comedy show Greg the Bunny (2005) which had incarnations on IFC TV, FOX and MTV Warren the Ape (2010).- Director
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Born and raised in the small riverbank town of Jenny Lind in Calaveras County, California, Edward Lucky McKee grew up mostly in poverty with little access to modern forms of entertainment. When McKee was age ten, he used an old video camera to videotape his sister's birthday party which put him on a path for an interest in film making. At age 12, he and a friend made their own version of A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) which they first saw at the local cinema.
While attending the Calaveras High School, McKee and classmate 'Kevin Ford' qv) solicited a commission from the school board to videotape a documentary for their senior class. After graduation, McKee traveled to Los Angeles in 1993 and enrolled himself in a film writing program at the University of Southern California's School of Film-Television. McKee made several friends during his four years at USC, most of whom helped with the development of his directing films. After leaving USC in 1997, McKee returned to his hometown to look for work. In 1999, he collaborated with making his first feature movie, which was a very low budget horror film titled All Cheerleaders Die (2001) with the production help from former USC classmate Chris Sivertson. Shot on high definition videotape over a period of two four-day weekends, All Cheerleaders Die (2001) was a splatter comedy about the rivalry between a group of high school jocks and four cheerleaders who accidentally die and are brought back to life to seek revenge.
While attending USC as a sophomore, McKee wrote the screenplay for a short film titled 'Fraction', as well as the screenplay for the feature movie May (2002) which was inspired by 'Mary Shelley''s Frankenstein and the moodiness of Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976), as well as the lyrics to a song from Nirvana. May (2002) tells the story about a lonely and repressed young woman working as a veterinarian assistant who is slowly pushed into insanity and murder by her quest for companionship. Having recognized McKee's talent while attending USC, classmate Marius Vaysberg developed the script through his newly founded "2Loop Productions" and offered McKee a production deal to make it into a feature film. With the backing of "2Loop Productions" and a cast of independent film actors who included Texas-born Angela Bettis in the starring role, who was Kevin Ford's wife, as well as Jeremy Sisto and Anna Faris. Filming was made in late 2001 in Los Angeles, and finished just in time for the January 2002 Sundance Film Festival where it had a one-night showing where it was picked up by Lions Gate for a limited theatrical release the following year before making its mark on home video and DVD as a cult following ever since.
In 2005, McKee was offered by United Artists to direct the David Ross script The Woods (2006), another horror film shot in and around Montreal, Canada and starring some first-rate actors like Patricia Clarkson and Bruce Campbell about a haunted woods influencing the actions of a teenage girl attending an all-girls high school located in isolation within the woods. But the film ended up being shelved after United Artists was bought out by Metro Goldwyn Mayer with a release date still impending.
Also in 2005, McKee was brought on by Mick Garris as one of the many film directors to direct an episode for Masters of Horror (2005) with the episode "Sick Girl" which starred May (2002) star Angela Bettis and B-horror film star Erin Brown (aka: Erin Brown) which was written by Sean Hood. McKee describes the episode as a dark comedy-romantic version of The Fly (1986) featuring Angela and Erin as two young lovers whose romance is complicated by the arrival of a lethal insect.
McKee then stepped in front of the camera for his first acting role in the starring role of Roman (2006), a psychological drama-thriller which is based on his own script and directed by May (2002) star Angela Bettis. McKee describes Roman (2006) as a sort-of alternated version of May (2002) with him playing a lonely guy whose obsession with a woman he sees passing by his residence every day leads to things going horribly wrong.
Most recently, McKee has agreed to direct Red (2008) an adoption of a Jack Ketchum novel about a lonely war veteran who goes crazy after his pet dog is killed. McKee has also worked as a producer for Chris Sivertson for the 2006 feature film The Lost (2006) also based on a novel by Ketchum.- Director
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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 Eileen Hitchcock (born 1892). Raised as a strict Catholic and attending Saint Ignatius College, a school run by Jesuits, Hitch had very much of a regular upbringing. His first job outside of the family business was in 1915 as an estimator for the Henley Telegraph and Cable Company. His interest in movies began at around this time, frequently visiting the cinema and reading US trade journals.
Hitchcock entering the film industry in 1919 as a title card designer. It was there that he met Alma Reville, though they never really spoke to each other. It was only after the director for Always Tell Your Wife (1923) fell ill and Hitchcock was named director to complete the film that he and Reville began to collaborate. Hitchcock had his first real crack at directing a film, start to finish, in 1923 when he was hired to direct the film Number 13 (1922), though the production wasn't completed due to the studio's closure (he later remade it as a sound film). Hitchcock didn't give up then. He directed The Pleasure Garden (1925), a British/German production, which was very popular. Hitchcock made his first trademark film in 1927, The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927) . In the same year, on the 2nd of December, Hitchcock married Alma Reville. They had one child, Patricia Hitchcock who was born on July 7th, 1928. His success followed when he made a number of films in Britain such as The Lady Vanishes (1938) and Jamaica Inn (1939), some of which also gained him fame in the USA.
In 1940, the Hitchcock family moved to Hollywood, where the producer David O. Selznick had hired him to direct an adaptation of 'Daphne du Maurier''s Rebecca (1940). After Saboteur (1942), as his fame as a director grew, film companies began to refer to his films as 'Alfred Hitchcock's', for example Alfred Hitcock's Psycho (1960), Alfred Hitchcock's Family Plot (1976), Alfred Hitchcock's Frenzy (1972).
Hitchcock was a master of pure cinema who almost never failed to reconcile aesthetics with the demands of the box-office.
During the making of Frenzy (1972), Hitchcock's wife Alma suffered a paralyzing stroke which made her unable to walk very well. On March 7, 1979, Hitchcock was awarded the AFI Life Achievement Award, where he said: "I beg permission to mention by name only four people who have given me the most affection, appreciation, and encouragement, and constant collaboration. The first of the four is a film editor, the second is a scriptwriter, the third is the mother of my daughter Pat, and the fourth is as fine a cook as ever performed miracles in a domestic kitchen and their names are Alma Reville." By this time, he was ill with angina and his kidneys had already started to fail. He had started to write a screenplay with Ernest Lehman called The Short Night but he fired Lehman and hired young writer David Freeman to rewrite the script. Due to Hitchcock's failing health the film was never made, but Freeman published the script after Hitchcock's death. In late 1979, Hitchcock was knighted, making him Sir Alfred Hitchcock. On the 29th April 1980, 9:17AM, he died peacefully in his sleep due to renal failure. His funeral was held in the Church of Good Shepherd in Beverly Hills. Father Thomas Sullivan led the service with over 600 people attended the service, among them were Mel Brooks (director of High Anxiety (1977), a comedy tribute to Hitchcock and his films), Louis Jourdan, Karl Malden, Tippi Hedren, Janet Leigh and François Truffaut.- Producer
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Wong Jing is one of Hong Kong's most prolific, talented and controversial filmmakers. His directorial style, at best, manages to combine commercial appeal and artistic aspects. Most of his films were among the biggest box office hits, partly due to possessing an amazing sense of what would play well. Some of his films have achieved groundbreaking success, artistically as well as financially.
His films are so popular that in the mid to late '90s, Wong's movies accounted for as much as thirty percent of the total box office take in Hong Kong. Genre-wise, he's done comedy, drama, romance, action (including martial arts) and even erotica. He often combines genres. His screen-writing portfolio is impressive as there is so much scope in terms of plot, historical setting and quality.
Even his credentials in the action movie genre are accomplished from films set in period China to a futuristic setting, whether it be a Chinese equivalent to Lord of the Rings, a Sci-Fi adventure that manages to be an adaptation of the famous computer game Street Fighter or a scathing satire on action films that also manages to pay tribute to films such as Reservoir Dogs, Invasion U.S.A. and Raw Deal.
Ironically, regardless of his impressive list of credentials, there came a time when the one genre Wong Jing was most famous for (in the eyes of Western fans of Hong Kong cinema) was the erotic thriller. It became commonly associated with him due to him being the producer and screenwriter for Naked Killer - an exploitation film well known for combining scenes of action, dark humor, shocking violence and lesbianism.
His true niche, however, can be found in the gambling genre (his favorite genre). He has, quite frankly created some of the best gambling scenes ever depicted on celluloid. His highest-grossing film in Hong Kong theaters was a gambling-themed genre-mixer (God of Gamblers Returns) starring Chow Yun-Fat (of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon fame).
Also known as The Return of the God of Gamblers, the film is still one of Hong Kong's top ten highest-grossing films. It had even made a lot more money than Jackie Chan's Drunken Master 2 (which was released in the same year - 1994). This is saying a lot since Drunken Master 2 is constantly referred to as Jackie's best film (the quality of the fight scenes have rarely been rivaled). It had people cheering and giving standing ovations in cinemas throughout Asia which led many to suggest that Drunken Master 2 is the pinnacle of his decorated and illustrious career. However, that didn't stop Jing from delivering a larger crowd-please.
His directorial debut was a gambling film. A multi-layered caper set in the early part of the twentieth century, Challenge of the Gamesters is a prequel to the popular Hong Kong TV mini-series The Shell Game (which Wong himself wrote, with his father Wong Tin-Lam handling the directing duties).
Which brings us to Wong Jing's roots, he got his start in the entertainment industry early, since his father Wong Tin-Lam was a TV drama director and a renowned film director from the 1950s. It seemed inevitable that Jing would follow in his father's footsteps, but first Wong attended the Chinese University of Hong Kong, majoring in Chinese Literature.
He was becoming disenchanted with university and was more interested in media art so he asked his father for permission to study film in England but his father said "just observe and you will learn the craft" and that is what he proceeded to do so he became a screenwriter by writing scripts for TV. In fact, he skipped class a lot to the extent that some of his professors said that they never saw him at all during the four years it took to earn his degree.
He later said that the degree was worthless to him. Jing believed that he learned more about making movies and (perhaps more importantly) making money by cutting classes and hanging around studios, where he would get work as a director's assistant (basically a glorified errand boy) and writing scripts for his father's shows.
As a devout fan of classical Cantonese cinema, Jing impressed many of the old-timers around the studios with his knowledge of movie trivia. Combined with his high work ethic and the ability to change scripts on the fly (a necessary skill in the fast-paced world of Hong Kong's entertainment industry), Wong had found his niche.
By 1978, he made his entrance into the world of movies with his script Cunning Tendency before directing Challenge of the Gamesters in 1981. Both films were made for the Shaw Brothers film studio and were big hits but it wasn't until the late '80s where he began to show his commercial genius with Casino Raiders, which was a smash hit that actually began the gambling craze (that Wong was to capitalize on with the extremely popular God of Gamblers films).
The one thing that Jing likes about making this genre of film is being able to direct the gambling duels at the end. Besides possessing a genuine interest in gambling, his main motivation for making gambling movies was because Wong saw there was a large audience for gambling films. This revelation was found after working on two films with his father: King of Gamblers (1980) and Return of King of Gamblers (1981).
Wong Jing is also a highly influential filmmaker. Hong Kong's most popular film star - Stephen Chow - had become what he is today due to Wong. He had starred in a film, which was a parody/cash-in of God of Gamblers entitled All for the Winner, which became the highest-grossing film in Hong Kong and made Stephen a huge star in the process (virtually overnight).
Wong went out of his way to not only adapt this new star in his own franchise but to add more comedy to the proceedings. This resulted in making an even more groundbreaking success with God of Gamblers II (which was also a sequel to All for the Winner).
Chow's collaborations with Wong, which included yet another God of Gamblers movie had confirmed the basic template for Chow's films - a slightly dimwitted but talented man gets thrown into strange circumstances, where he ultimately finds redemption (and resolution) through love.
In regards to Jing's influence, there came a point when nearly one third of the films coming out of Hong Kong yearly had Wong's touch on them in some way, either as a screenwriter, producer, director or actor. The script that Wong Jing helped to write for the early '80s traditional Kung Fu film Dreadnaught had proved to be the inspiration for one scene in the Hollywood blockbuster Batman Forever, which had Chris O'Donnell doing laundry chores with the aid of his martial arts skills.
Wong Jing's New Legend of Shaolin had proved to be one of the main influences for Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon via the use of a female duo of thieves dressed in black (one of whom is much older and proves to be an expert in poison darts) who try to steal a valuable object before confronting someone who's trying to stop them.
Like many famous directors; Wong Jing has trademarks. Besides making a slew of films referencing or based on computer games, he likes using creative POV shots.
Sometimes, Jing likes to trick the audience into thinking the film is over when it's not as a way of making things less predictable e.g. the endings of two of his films (i.e. City Hunter and Return to a Better Tomorrow) feature shots where the camera is being pulled further into the distance away from the action into an aerial shot (a shot which is accomplished either a crane or a helicopter) before concluding with an additional scene.
Another Wong Jing trademark (or Jingism) is the vertigo shot (a shot that is accomplished by zooming the lens forward whilst physically moving the camera backwards). The way he uses it is either during a revelation of a plot point or a startled reaction from one of the main characters. He has used this shot in The Romancing Star, The Big Score, The Last Blood, Royal Tramp, City Hunter, God of Gamblers 3: Back to Shanghai, Kung Fu Cult Master, Return to a Better Tomorrow, God of Gamblers Returns and High Risk.
Like Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith, Jing's films have plenty of pop culture references from a subtle reference to The Beatles (in City Hunter) to a blatant take on The Six Million Dollar Man.
Another Jingism is to lampoon (as opposed to just referencing) other Chinese filmmakers such as Tsui Hark, John Woo and Wong Kar Wai. Jing's Last Hero in China is a parody of Hark's Once Upon a Time in China film series (which dealt with the nineteenth century Chinese hero, Wong Fei-Hung). Woo has been well known for making action films that deal with male bonding, so Jing had lampooned John Woo's macho male bonding in Boys are Easy with a scene that parodies Woo's A Better Tomorrow. Arthouse favorite Wong Kar Wai is mocked in Jing's Those Were the Days via a character called Wong Jing Wai.
Unlike his fellow contemporaries, Jing chooses not to make films in Hollywood as he feels that most other American films directed by Hong Kong directors fail to live up to standards (considering the amount of money and time invested). Hence why he allegedly rejected Tom Cruise's offer to direct Mission: Impossible II. Coincidentally, Jing referenced Tom in The Big Score. Additionally, God of Gamblers has been described as a Chinese take on Rain Man. Also, Jing feels that he won't gain the same amount of control as he would in his Hong Kong productions.
Perhaps that is the key to Wong's continued success - while many directors craft overly 'arty' films or overly 'commercial' movies, Wong Jing's films hit a nice middle ground. Yes, there is a good deal of bloodshed and talk of sexual-related things such as bodily functions, but the films themselves are technically sound and well-written. It is quite a testament to Wong's talent that his first film, made over 20 years ago, can stand up to (and surpass) much of today's output. Those wanting to get a bit of a H.K. film industry lesson, while having fun doing it, would be well-advised to check out Challenge of the Gamesters.- Director
- Cinematographer
- Writer
Herman Yau was born in 1961 in Guangzhou, China. He is a director and cinematographer, known for Shock Wave 2 (2020), Jing xin dong po (2004) and Shock Wave (2017).