Best Of: Directors

Would it be too much to consider him the king of sci-fi? Oh and let's not forget that this guy that held the title of highest grossing film of all-time, just to be out-done by his next film, which surpassed that gross. The guy directed Avatar, Titanic, Terminator (1, 2), Aliens, True Lies and The Abyss. Every single one of these films was absolutely fantastic! Amazing director!

Fantastic director! I have a few minor complaints about parts of his films, but overall, a superb director. I can't think of a single film of his that I didn't like (in it's entirety).

Jurassic Park 1 & 2, Minority Report, Jaws, Close Encounters, E.T., Catch me if you Can, Amistad, Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, War of the Worlds, Indiana Jones (1,2,3 & 4), The Terminal, A.I., Hook.... need I go on?

I've now seen War Horse...another great film to add to the list!

I've now seen Lincoln...um...wow!

...and now "Bridge of Spies", another amazing film!

...and now we have "The BFG" (great!), "The Post" (fantastic) and "Ready Player One" (definitely one of his best films to date!!!).

Say what you want about Roland Emmerich's style of directing, but personally, I think if you can't enjoy his films, then you must be dead inside. I can't think of another director that consistently wows me. I have yet to see a film of his that I didn't come out of the theater saying "HELL YES THAT WAS AWESOME!".

Universal Soldier, Stargate, Independence Day, Godzilla, The Patriot, The Day After Tomorrow, 10,000 B.C., 2012.... LOVED them all!

I have now seen White House Down as well, a great film!

I can now add Independence Day: Resurgence, while not his best, it was still a fun movie and I enjoyed it very much.

I can see why someone might not be a fan of his style, as he is definitely a director who's main concern is how awesome he can make something look and how sexy he can make it. But nonetheless, I still come out of every films of his saying "Hell yeah! Let's see that again!"

Bad Boys 1 & 2, Armageddon, The Rock, Transformers (1, 2*, 3), The Island, Pearl Harbor ... All Awesome!

I have now seen Pain & Gain, a surprisingly good movie. I had low expectations to be honest. I cannot wait for Transformers 4!

I have now seen "13 Hours", which was amazing! And two more Transformers movies, bother were entertaining, but not great. He needs to move on from the Transformers franchise and let someone else take over.

*Yes I had some issues with Transformers 2, but taken for what it is, I still enjoy it every time I watch it. I would have preferred less of the ghetto-bots and more of the rest of the transformer cast, but it's not the end of the world, it's still a fun movie.

The only film of Tony's that I wasn't real big on was Domino, Revenge might be one of my less-than-favorite films as well, but it's been years since I've seen it, so I can't remember too well.

However, the rest of his films have been fantastic. Crimson Tide will probably go down as one of my favorite films of all time. And who doesn't like Top Gun? Enemy of the State and Unstoppable are some of my favorites as well. The rest of his resume is pretty darn good as well; Taking of Pelham 123, Deja Vu, Man on Fire, Spy Game, The Fan, Days of Thunder, True Romance, The Last Boyscout, Beverly Hills Cop 2... solid films!

Whatever he does next....I'm there!

[2012.08.29] It's a bit sad to read the above now that he has passed away, I guess we'll never get to see what he would do next.

You can't have Tony Scott in the list without having his older brother. He's another director that consistently makes excellent films. The guy directed Alien and Blade Runner, that alone gets him in this list. The only films of his that I would classify as "so-so" would be A Good Year and Thelma & Louise. The rest were all fantastic films!

Robin Hood, Body of Lies, American Gangster, A Good Year, Kingdom of Heaven, Matchstick Men, Black Hawk Down, Hannibal, Gladiator, G.I. Jane, White Squall, 1492: Conquest of Paradise, Thelma & Louise, Black Rain, Legend, Blade Runner, Alien

...And now we can add Prometheus to the list. Great film!

Then he goes and make "The Martian", one of the best films ever, simply amazing!

He went back to his roots and did "Alien: Covenant", which was ok, but slightly disappointing.

Probably one of the shortest resumes in the list, but he hasn't directed a bad film yet. I loved Made, Elf and Zathura, then he busts out 2 excellent Iron Man films and tops it off with Cowboys & Aliens! Loved every film he made! Can't wait to see his next film!

...and now he's made "The Jungle Book", which was excellent.

Another short resume, but again, excellent films all around. The Usual Suspects! EXCELLENT film! X-Men 1 and 2, both fantastic! I also loved Valkyrie, Apt Pupil and Superman Returns. Looking forward to his next work.

So excited that he is returning for the latest X-Men! Cannot wait!

Helming many of the best Pixar films to date, I would be happy to see anything his name attached, especially as director. Who didn't love Toy Story 1 and 2? I loved A Bug's Life, one of my favorite Pixar films to date. I was also pleasantly surprised with Cars. Cars 2 was not as fantastic as the original, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

A surprising entry on the list even to me, but it occurred to me that I've really enjoyed all of his film. "Honey, I Shrunk The Kids", "The Rocketeer", "Jumanji", "October Sky", "Jurassic Park 3", "The Wolfman", "Hidalgo" and "Captain America: The First Avenger".

I'm sure I'll be anxious to see his next film!

After taking another look at my list, I realized that if I'm gonna put John Lasseter, I better put Andrew Stanton on this list too, especially now that he's entered the realm of live-action with "John Carter". Sadly, the film under performed, but I REALLY enjoyed it and thought it was a fantastic movie. I would love to see some sequels, but I think we can count that out now. Of course he also has the fantastic Pixar films, "Finding Nemo", "A Bug's Life" and "Wall-E" on his resume. So...I think it's safe to say, his next gig...I'm there!

[2012.07.18] ...And I just read that his next gig will be "Finding Nemo 2". Ok...I'm there!

Ok, Ok...if I have Andrew Stanton, I've got put Brad Bird on this list too! Starting with the fantastic non-Pixar animated film "The Iron Giant", he set a rather high bar...then he moves to Pixar and busts out "The Incredibles" and "Ratatouille", both excellent films, although "Ratatouille" is probably one of my least favorite Pixar films....but they are all good, so it's hard to compare them. And then to top it all off, he moves to live action and busts out the superb "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" and pretty much revitalized the series. I doubt he'll be involved with the next M:I installment, but I wish he would be. :) In any case, I'll see his next work for sure!

Might as well put Lee Unkrich on this list too, being the director or co-director on many fantastic Pixar films, he's got "Toy Story 2", "Monster's Inc.", "Finding Nemo" and "Toy Story 3" on his directing resume...I'm happy to see anything he's directing. Wonder if he'll make the jump to live-action too...

I'm not interested in EVERYTHING Alex does, but of what I have seen I've LOVED. "The Crow" was fantastic! "Dark City" is one of my all-time favorite films for sure. "I, Robot" was excellent! and "Knowing" was very good as well. I'm not gonna rush out and see everything he does, but when/if he makes another venture into the sci-fi/fantasy realm I'll be there for sure.

At first I wasn't going to put him on my list, as I haven't seen or didn't love EVERYTHING he's done. However, after a second thought, I realized how many awesome movies he's made and decided that he's more hit than miss. He's got some of my childhood favorites and and adult favorites on his resume. Films like "Splash", "Cocoon", "Willow", "Parenthood", "Backdraft", "Apollo 13", "Ransom", "EDtv", "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", "A Beautiful Mind", "The DaVinci Code", "Frost/Nixon", and "Angels & Demons" put this guy in my favorites list. There aren't really any films he's done that I didn't like, however the others that aren't listed I either haven't seen or I just didn't LOVE them (they are all pretty decent). Looking forward to what he does next. I hope he does "The Lost Symbol", but I don't believe he will.

I now get to add Ron's name to the list of Star Wars directors, "Solo: A Star Wars Story" is now out, loved it!

Holy Crap, how did I leave off Clint? Such a fantastic director! I still have a lot of his films to watch, but of what I have seen I love his work. Working backwards in time, I've seen and loved "Gran Turino", "Changeling", "Letter from Iwo Jima", "Flags of our Fathers", "Million Dollar Baby", "Mystic River", "Space Cowboys", "Absolute Power", "Heartbreak Ridge", and "Sudden Impact". The only directorial films that he's done that I wasn't in love with (but are still good films) were "Hereafter", "Blood Work", "True Crime", "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil", "A Perfect World", "White Hunter Black Heart", "The Outlaw Josey Wales", "Firefox", and "The Gauntlet".

On top of all that he's acted in boat load of movies that are equally awesome that he didn't direct. I think it's pretty safe to say that I am VERY interested in what he does next! Looking forward to it Clint!

[2012.08.29] Since the last update, I've seen "The Eiger Sanction" and "Unforgiven", both under his direction, as well as "Coogan's Bluff", not under his direction. All three films were good, not sure they blew my mind, but they were solid films.

I'm really looking forward to "Trouble with the Curve", looks fantastic!

I saw Trouble with the Curve, great movie! He's still got it!

I have since seen "American Sniper", great film.

An odd choice for one of my favorite directors, but I have to say that Rob knows how to make an entertaining, fun movie! The only movie on his resume that I'm not big on is "The Skulls", it was ok, but nothing to write home about. On the flip side, I loved "Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story", "Dragonheart", "Daylight", "The Fast and the Furious", "xXx", "Stealth" and "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor". Many people would scoff at this, but I really enjoyed those films, they were fun and entertaining and I had a good time watching them. No, they aren't meant to be really deep movies or oscar winners, but they are meant to fun and entertaining films and they deliver. I am really looking forward to his next work "Alex Cross", however I wish it wasn't Tyler Perry in the film, there are a plethora of better choices for the role....I'd rather see Morgan Freeman back in the role.

I saw Alex Cross, it was ok, but nothing amazing. Tyler Perry is hard to take seriously.

An amazing director! Where has this guy been? He's made some of my favorite movies ever and he's hiding out somewhere! This is the guy behind "The Beast", "Robin Hood: Prince of Theives", "187", "Waterworld", and "The Count of Monte Cristo". All of these were fantastic films! "Tristan & Isolde" was ok too, but nothing special. I just found out he was behind the recent "Hatfields & McCoys", I think I need to give that a watch now! I love this guy's style and I really look forward to seeing his work on the big-screen again.

I wasn't going to add Robert because I have not been a big fan of his motion-capture films (The Polar Express, Beowulf, and A Christmas Carole), they are good movies, but I don't like the mo-cap, I'd rather see live action or straight up animation.

However! This guy directed Back to the Future 1, 2, 3, Contact, Forrest Gump, Cast Away, What Lies Beneath and Flight. All amazing or down-right mind-blowing films! I also saw Used Cars, which was ok, but nothing special. When/if he does another live-action film, I'm there. If it's mo-cap, I'll see it, but I'm not gonna rush out to see it.

...I have since seen "Allied", very good film.

The only movie of his I saw that I didn't like at all was "Dead Alive", a truly terrible film. However, he later went on to make The Frighteners, King Kong, Lord of the Rings 1, 2, 3 and The Hobbit 1 and 2, with the third coming out later this year! I can't wait for it!

Great director! I wasn't going to put him on the list at first, but he's getting up there with a long list of amazing films. Mimic, Hellboy 1 and 2, Pan's Labyrinth and now Pacific Rim! Pacific Rim blew my mind!

I hate to jump on the Chris Nolan band-wagon, but he really is a good director. Insomnia, Batman Begins, Dark Knight, Dark Knight Rises, Inception, Interstellar. Even though I wasn't a big fan of the film, I suppose I gotta mention Memento too. There is also The Prestige, which is ok, but could have been better. While I have a few gripes about some of his films, for the most part they are excellent.

He now has Dunkirk in the theaters, but I have yet to see it. Looks great though.

I have since seen Dunkirk, it was rather average. I wasn't that impressed, unfortunately. I have no idea what all the hype was about.