Favorite Filmmakers

1. Orson Welles

His father, Richard Head Welles, was a well-to-do inventor, his mother, Beatrice (Ives) Welles, a beautiful concert pianist; Orson Welles was gifted in many arts (magic, piano, painting) as a child. When his mother died in 1924 (when he was nine) he traveled the world with his father. He was ...

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17 Films / 10 Favorites

Too Much Johnson (1938) ★★★ Citizen Kane (1941) ★★★★★ The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) ★★★★★ The Stranger (1946) ★★★★ The Lady from Shanghai (1947) ★★★★★ Macbeth (1948) ★★★★ The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice (1951) ★★★★★ Mr. Arkadin (1955) ★★★★★ Touch of Evil (1958) ★★★★★ Fountain of Youth (1958) ★★★★ Le procès (1962) ★★★★★ Campanadas a medianoche (1965) ★★★★★ Histoire immortelle (1968) ★★★ F for Fake (1973) ★★★★★ Filming 'Othello' (1978) ★★★★ The Other Side of the Wind (2018) ★★★★★ Hopper/Welles (2020) ★★★★

2. Jean-Luc Godard

Director | Bande à part

Jean-Luc Godard was born in Paris on December 3, 1930, the second of four children in a bourgeois Franco-Swiss family. His father was a doctor who owned a private clinic, and his mother came from a preeminent family of Swiss bankers. During World War II Godard became a naturalized citizen of ...

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41 Films / 12 Favorites

Charlotte et Véronique, ou Tous les garçons s'appellent Patrick (1959) ★★★★ Charlotte et son Jules (1958) ★★★★ À bout de souffle (1960) ★★★★★ Une femme est une femme (1961) ★★★★★ Vivre sa vie: Film en douze tableaux (1962) ★★★★★ Le petit soldat (1963) ★★★★ Les carabiniers (1963) ★★★★ Le mépris (1963) ★★★★★ Bande à part (1964) ★★★★★ Une femme mariée: Suite de fragments d'un film tourné en 1964 (1964) ★★★★ Alphaville: Une étrange aventure de Lemmy Caution (1965) ★★★★★ Pierrot le fou (1965) ★★★★★ Masculin féminin (1966) ★★★★★ Made in USA (1966) ★★★★★ 2 ou 3 choses que je sais d'elle (1967) ★★★★ La chinoise (1967) ★★★★ Le plus vieux métier du monde (1967) ★★★★ Week End (1967) ★★★★★ One + One (1968) ★★★★ Pravda (1970) ★★ British Sounds (1970) ★★ Tout va bien (1972) ★★★ Numéro deux (1975) ★★★ Ici et ailleurs (1976) ★★★★ France/tour/détour/deux/enfants (1980) ★★★★★ Sauve qui peut (la vie) (1980) ★★★ Passion (1982) ★★★ Scénario du film 'Passion' (1982) ★★★★ Prénom Carmen (1983) ★★★★ Je vous salue, Marie (1985) ★★★★ Détective (1985) ★★★★ King Lear (1987) ★★★★ Puissance de la parole (1988) ★★ Histoire(s) du cinéma (1989) ★★★★★ Nouvelle vague (1990) ★★★★ Allemagne année 90 neuf zéro (1991) ★★★★ Hélas pour moi (1993) ★★★ For Ever Mozart (1996) ★★★ Éloge de l'amour (2001) ★★★★ Notre musique (2004) ★★★★ Film socialisme (2010) ★★★★

3. 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 ...

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14 Films / 8 Favorites

A Burlesque on Carmen (1915) ★★★★★ One A.M. (1916) ★★★★ Easy Street (1917) ★★★★ The Kid (1921) ★★★★ The Pilgrim (1923) ★★★ A Woman of Paris: A Drama of Fate (1923) ★★★ The Gold Rush (1925) ★★★★★ The Circus (1928) ★★★★ City Lights (1931) ★★★★★ Modern Times (1936) ★★★★★ The Great Dictator (1940) ★★★★★ Monsieur Verdoux (1947) ★★★★★ Limelight (1952) ★★★★★ A King in New York (1957) ★★★★★

4. Yasujirô Ozu

Writer | Tôkyô monogatari

Tokyo-born Yasujiro Ozu was a movie buff from childhood, often playing hooky from school in order to see Hollywood movies in his local theatre. In 1923 he landed a job as a camera assistant at Shochiku Studios in Tokyo. Three years later, he was made an assistant director and directed his first ...

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“I formulated my own directing style in my own head, proceeding without any unnecessary imitation of others… for me there was no such thing as a teacher. I have relied entirely on my own strength.”

31 Films / 11 Favorites

Daigaku wa detakeredo (1929) ★★★ Seishun no yume ima izuko (1932) ★★★ Rakudai wa shitakeredo (1930) ★★★★ Sono yo no tsuma (1930) ★★★★ Shukujo to hige (1931) ★★★ Tôkyô no kôrasu (1931) ★★★ Seishun no yume ima izuko (1932) ★★★ Otona no miru ehon - Umarete wa mita keredo (1932) ★★★★★ Hijôsen no onna (1933) ★★★★ Dekigokoro (1933) ★★★★★ Ukikusa monogatari (1934) ★★★★ Tôkyô no yado (1935) ★★★★ Hitori musuko (1936) ★★★★★ Shukujo wa nani o wasureta ka (1937) ★★★★ Toda-ke no kyôdai (1941) ★★★★★ Chichi ariki (1942) ★★★★ Nagaya shinshiroku (1947) ★★★★★ Kaze no naka no mendori (1948) ★★★★ Banshun (1949) ★★★★★ Munekata kyôdai (1950) ★★★ Bakushû (1951) ★★★★★ Ochazuke no aji (1952) ★★★★ Tôkyô monogatari (1953) ★★★★★ Sôshun (1956) ★★★★ Tôkyô boshoku (1957) ★★★★ Higanbana (1958) ★★★★ Ukigusa (1959) ★★★★★ Ohayô (1959) ★★★★★ Akibiyori (1960) ★★★★ Kohayagawa-ke no aki (1961) ★★★★ Sanma no aji (1962) ★★★★★

5. 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 ...

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43 Films / 11 Favorites

The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927) ★★★ The Ring (1927) ★★★★ Blackmail (1929) ★★ Rich and Strange (1931) ★★★ Murder! (1930) ★★★ Number Seventeen (1932) ★★★ The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934) ★★★★ The 39 Steps (1935) ★★★★★ Sabotage (1936) ★★★ Secret Agent (1936) ★★★ Young and Innocent (1937) ★★ The Lady Vanishes (1938) ★★★★★ Jamaica Inn (1939) ★★ Rebecca (1940) ★★★★★ Foreign Correspondent (1940) ★★★★★ Suspicion (1941) ★★★ Mr. & Mrs. Smith (1941) ★★★★ Saboteur (1942) ★★★★ Shadow of a Doubt (1943) ★★★★ Lifeboat (1944) ★★★ Spellbound (1945) ★★★ Notorious (1946) ★★★★★ The Paradine Case (1947) ★★★ Rope (1948) ★★★★ Under Capricorn (1949) ★★★★★ Stage Fright (1950) ★★★ Strangers on a Train (1951) ★★★★ I Confess (1953) ★★★ Dial M for Murder (1954) ★★★★ Rear Window (1954) ★★★★★ To Catch a Thief (1955) ★★★ The Trouble with Harry (1955) ★★★★ The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) ★★★ The Wrong Man (1956) ★★★★★ Vertigo (1958) ★★★★★ North by Northwest (1959) ★★★★★ Psycho (1960) ★★★★★ The Birds (1963) ★★★★ Marnie (1964) ★★★★ Torn Curtain (1966) ★★ Topaz (1969) ★★★ Frenzy (1972) ★★★ Family Plot (1976) ★★★★

6. 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). ...

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10 Films / 6 Favorites

Shadows (1958) ★★★★ Too Late Blues (1961) ★★★ Faces (1968) ★★★★★ Husbands (1970) ★★★★ Minnie and Moskowitz (1971) ★★★ A Woman Under the Influence (1974) ★★★★★ The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976) ★★★★★ Opening Night (1977) ★★★★★ Gloria (1980) ★★★★★ Love Streams (1984) ★★★★★

7. Abbas Kiarostami

Writer | Copie conforme

Abbas Kiarostami was born in Tehran, Iran, in 1940. He graduated from university with a degree in fine arts before starting work as a graphic designer. He then joined the Center for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults, where he started a film section, and this started his career ...

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25 Films / 9 Favorites

Nan va Koutcheh (1970) ★★★★ Zang-e Tafrih (1972) ★★★ Mossafer (1974) ★★★ Dow Rahehal Baraye yek Massaleh (1975) ★★★★ Lebassi Baraye Arossi (1976) ★★★★ Gozaresh (1977) ★★★★ Ghazieh-e Shekl-e Aval, Ghazieh-e Shekl-e Dou Wom (1979) ★★★★ Be Tartib ya Bedoun-e Tartib (1981) ★★★★★ Hamsarayan (1982) ★★★★ Hamshahri (1983) ★★★★ Avaliha (1984) ★★★★ Khane-ye doust kodjast? (1987) ★★★★★ Mashgh-e Shab (1989) ★★★ Nema-ye Nazdik (1990) ★★★★★ Zendegi va digar hich (1992) ★★★★★ Zire darakhatan zeyton (1994) ★★★★★ Ta'm e guilass (1997) ★★★★★ Bad ma ra khahad bord (1999) ★★★★★ ABC Africa (2001) ★★ Dah (2002) ★★★★ Five Dedicated to Ozu (2003) ★★★ 10 on Ten (2004) ★★★ Roads of Kiarostami (2005) ★★★ Copie conforme (2010) ★★★★★ Like Someone in Love (2012) ★★★★★

8. Luis Buñuel

Writer | Le charme discret de la bourgeoisie

The father of cinematic Surrealism and one of the most original directors in the history of the film medium, Luis Buñuel was given a strict Jesuit education (which sowed the seeds of his obsession with both religion and subversive behavior), and subsequently moved to Madrid to study at the ...

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26 Films / 7 Favorites

Un chien andalou (1929) ★★★★ L'âge d'or (1930) ★★★★ Las Hurdes (1933) ★★ El gran calavera (1949) ★★★ Los olvidados (1950) ★★★★★ Susana (1951) ★★★ El bruto (1953) ★★★ Él (1953) ★★★★ La ilusión viaja en tranvía (1954) ★★★ Abismos de pasión (1954) ★★ Robinson Crusoe (1954) ★★★ Ensayo de un crimen (1955) ★★★★ La mort en ce jardin (1956) ★★★ Nazarín (1959) ★★★ La fièvre monte à El Pao (1959) ★★★ The Young One (1960) ★★★ Viridiana (1961) ★★★★★ El ángel exterminador (1962) ★★★★★ Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964) ★★★★ Simón del desierto (1965) ★★★★ Belle de jour (1967) ★★★★★ La voie lactée (1969) ★★★ Tristana (1970) ★★★★ Le charme discret de la bourgeoisie (1972) ★★★★★ Le fantôme de la liberté (1974) ★★★★★ Cet obscur objet du désir (1977) ★★★★★

9. Jean Renoir

Writer | La règle du jeu

Son of the famous Impressionist painter Pierre Auguste, he had a happy childhood. Pierre Renoir was his brother, and Claude Renoir was his nephew. After the end of World War I, where he won the Croix de Guerre, he moved from scriptwriting to filmmaking. He married Catherine Hessling, for whom he ...

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27 Films / 7 Favorites

La fille de l'eau (1925) ★★★ Sur un air de Charleston (1927) ★★★ La petite marchande d'allumettes (1928) ★★★★ La chienne (1931) ★★★★ La nuit du carrefour (1932) ★★★ Boudu sauvé des eaux (1932) ★★★★ Toni (1935) ★★★★ Le crime de Monsieur Lange (1936) ★★★★★ Les bas-fonds (1936) ★★★ Partie de campagne (1946) ★★★★★ La grande illusion (1937) ★★★★★ La bête humaine (1938) ★★★ La Marseillaise (1938) ★★★★ La règle du jeu (1939) ★★★★★ Swamp Water (1941) ★★★ This Land Is Mine (1943) ★★★★★ The Southerner (1945) ★★★★ The Diary of a Chambermaid (1946) ★★★★ The Woman on the Beach (1947) ★★★★★ The River (1951) ★★★★ Le carrosse d'or (1952) ★★★★★ French Cancan (1955) ★★★★ Elena et les hommes (1956) ★★ Le testament du Docteur Cordelier (1959) ★★★★ Le déjeuner sur l'herbe (1959) ★★★ Le caporal épinglé (1962) ★★★ Le petit théâtre de Jean Renoir (1970) ★★★★

10. 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, ...

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30 Films / 8 Favorites

Straight Shooting (1917) ★★★ The Iron Horse (1924) ★★★★★ 3 Bad Men (1926) ★★★★ Judge Priest (1934) ★★★★ The Informer (1935) ★★★★ The Prisoner of Shark Island (1936) ★★★★ Stagecoach (1939) ★★★★★ Young Mr. Lincoln (1939) ★★★★ Drums Along the Mohawk (1939) ★★ The Grapes of Wrath (1940) ★★★★ The Long Voyage Home (1940) ★★★ Tobacco Road (1941) ★★★★ How Green Was My Valley (1941) ★★★★★ They Were Expendable (1945) ★★★ My Darling Clementine (1946) ★★★★★ Fort Apache (1948) ★★★ 3 Godfathers (1948) ★★★ She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949) ★★★★ Wagon Master (1950) ★★★★ Rio Grande (1950) ★★★★ The Quiet Man (1952) ★★★★ The Sun Shines Bright (1953) ★★★★★ The Long Gray Line (1955) ★★★★★ The Searchers (1956) ★★★★★ The Wings of Eagles (1957) ★★★ The Horse Soldiers (1959) ★★★★ Sergeant Rutledge (1960) ★★★★ Two Rode Together (1961) ★★★ The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) ★★★★★ 7 Women (1965) ★★★

11. Nicholas Ray

Director | Rebel Without a Cause

Nicholas Ray was born Raymond Nicholas Kienzle in 1911, in small-town Galesville, Wisconsin, to Lena (Toppen) and Raymond Joseph Kienzle, a contractor and builder. He was of German and Norwegian descent. Ray's early experience with film came with some radio broadcasting in high school. He left the ...

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16 Films / 8 Favorites

They Live by Night (1948) ★★★★★ Knock on Any Door (1949) ★★★★ A Woman's Secret (1949) ★★★★ Born to Be Bad (1950) ★★★★ In a Lonely Place (1950) ★★★★★ On Dangerous Ground (1951) ★★★★★ The Lusty Men (1952) ★★★★ Johnny Guitar (1954) ★★★★★ Run for Cover (1955) ★★★★ Rebel Without a Cause (1955) ★★★★★ Bigger Than Life (1956) ★★★★★ The True Story of Jesse James (1957) ★★★ Bitter Victory (1957) ★★★★★ Party Girl (1958) ★★★★★ Wind Across the Everglades (1958) ★★★ The Savage Innocents (1960) ★★★★

12. Howard Hawks

Director | Red River

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...

13. Fritz Lang

Actor | Le mépris

Fritz Lang was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1890. His father managed a construction company. His mother, Pauline Schlesinger, was Jewish but converted to Catholicism when Lang was ten. After high school, he enrolled briefly at the Technische Hochschule Wien and then started to train as a painter. ...

14. Alain Resnais

Director | Hiroshima mon amour

Alain Resnais was born on June 3, 1922 in Vannes, Morbihan, France. He was a director and editor, known for Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959), Same Old Song (1997) and My American Uncle (1980). He was married to Sabine Azéma and Florence Malraux. He died on March 1, 2014 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, ...

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19 Films / 9 Favorites

Feature Films: Hiroshima mon amour (1959) ★★★★★ L'année dernière à Marienbad (1961) ★★★★★ Muriel ou le temps d'un retour (1963) ★★★★★ La guerre est finie (1966) ★★★ Je t'aime, je t'aime (1968) ★★★★ Stavisky... (1974) ★★★ Providence (1977) ★★★★ Mon oncle d'Amérique (1980) ★★★★★ La vie est un roman (1983) ★★★★ L'amour à mort (1984) ★★★★ Mélo (1986) ★★★★★ I Want to Go Home (1989) ★★★ Smoking/No Smoking (1993) ★★★★ On connaît la chanson (1997) ★★★★★ Pas sur la bouche (2003) ★★★★ Coeurs (2006) ★★★★★ Les herbes folles (2009) ★★★★ Vous n'avez encore rien vu (2012) ★★★★★ Aimer, boire et chanter (2014) ★★★★★

Short Documentaries: Guernica (1950) ★★★★ Les statues meurent aussi (1953) ★★★★ Night and Fog (1955) ★★★★ Toute la mémoire du monde (1956) ★★★★ Le chant du Styrène (1959) ★★★

15. 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.

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13 Films / 9 Favorites

Permanent Vacation (1980) ★★ Stranger Than Paradise (1984) ★★★★★ Down by Law (1986) ★★★★★ Mystery Train (1989) ★★★★★ Night on Earth (1991) ★★★★ Dead Man (1995) ★★★★★ Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999) ★★★★★ Coffee and Cigarettes (2003) ★★★★★ Broken Flowers (2005) ★★★★ The Limits of Control (2009) ★★★★★ Only Lovers Left Alive (2013) ★★★★★ Paterson (2016) ★★★★★ The Dead Don't Die (2019) ★★★★

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 ...

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13 Films / 6 Favorites

Day of the Fight (1951) ★★★ Killer's Kiss (1955) ★★★ The Killing (1956) ★★★★★ Paths of Glory (1957) ★★★★ Spartacus (1960) ★★★★ Lolita (1962) ★★★★ Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) ★★★★ 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) ★★★★★ A Clockwork Orange (1971) ★★★ Barry Lyndon (1975) ★★★★★ The Shining (1980) ★★★★★ Full Metal Jacket (1987) ★★★★★ Eyes Wide Shut (1999) ★★★★

17. Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Writer | Faustrecht der Freiheit

Above all, Rainer Werner Fassbinder was a rebel whose life and art was marked by gross contradiction. Openly homosexual, he married twice; one of his wives acted in his films and the other served as his editor. Accused variously by detractors of being anticommunist, male chauvinist, antiSemitic and...

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32 Films / 6 Favorites

Katzelmacher (1969) ★★★★★ Liebe ist kälter als der Tod (1969) ★★★★ Der amerikanische Soldat (1970) ★★★★ Götter der Pest (1970) ★★★★ Die Niklashauser Fart (1970) ★★★ Warum läuft Herr R. Amok (1970) ★★ Pioniere in Ingolstadt (1971) ★★★★ Warnung vor einer heiligen Nutte (1971) ★★★ Whity (1971) ★★★ Händler der vier Jahreszeiten (1972) ★★★★ Die bitteren Tränen der Petra von Kant (1972) ★★★★★ Wildwechsel (1972) ★★★★ Welt am Draht (1973) ★★★★★ Martha (1974) ★★★★ Nora Helmer (1974) ★★★ Angst essen Seele auf (1974) ★★★★★ Fontane Effi Briest (1974) ★★ Angst vor der Angst (1975) ★★★★ Faustrecht der Freiheit (1975) ★★★★ Mutter Küsters' Fahrt zum Himmel (1975) ★★★★ Chinesisches Roulette (1976) ★★★★ Ich will doch nur, daß ihr mich liebt (1976) ★★★★ Satansbraten (1976) ★★★ Despair (1978) ★★★ In einem Jahr mit 13 Monden (1978) ★★★★ Die dritte Generation (1979) ★★★★ Die Ehe der Maria Braun (1979) ★★★★★ Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980) ★★★★★ Lili Marleen (1981) ★★★ Lola (1981) ★★★★ Die Sehnsucht der Veronika Voss (1982) ★★★★ Querelle (1982) ★★★

18. 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 ...

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13 Films / 8 Favorites

Eraserhead (1977) ★★★★★ The Elephant Man (1980) ★★★★ Dune (1984) ★★★ Blue Velvet (1986) ★★★★★ Wild at Heart (1990) ★★★★ Twin Peaks (1990) ★★★★★ Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992) ★★★★ Lost Highway (1997) ★★★★★ The Straight Story (1999) ★★★★ Mulholland Dr. (2001) ★★★★★ Rabbits (2002) ★★★★★ Inland Empire (2006) ★★★★★ Twin Peaks: The Return (2017) ★★★★★

19. 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 ...

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12 Films / 7 Favorites

Rupan sansei: Kariosutoro no shiro (1979) ★★★★ Kaze no tani no Naushika (1984) ★★★★★ Tenkû no shiro Rapyuta (1986) ★★★★★ Tonari no Totoro (1988) ★★★★★ Majo no takkyûbin (1989) ★★★★★ Kurenai no buta (1992) ★★★★★ Mononoke-hime (1997) ★★★★ Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001) ★★★★★ Hauru no ugoku shiro (2004) ★★★★★ Gake no ue no Ponyo (2008) ★★★★ Kaze tachinu (2013) ★★★ Kimitachi wa dô ikiru ka (2023) ★★★★

20. Zhangke Jia

Producer | Jiang hu er nü

Zhangke Jia was born on May 24, 1970 in Fenyang, Shanxi, China. He is a producer and director, known for Jiang hu er nü (2018), A Touch of Sin (2013) and Mountains May Depart (2015). He has been married to Tao Zhao since January 7, 2012.

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13 Films / 6 Favorites

Xiao Wu (1997) ★★ Zhantai (2000) ★★★★★ Gong gong chang suo (2001) ★★★ Ren xiao yao (2002) ★★★★ Shijie (2004) ★★★★★ San xia hao ren (2006) ★★★★★ Dong (2006) ★★★ Er shi si cheng ji (2008) ★★★★ Heshang de aiqing (2008) ★★★ Hai shang chuan qi (2010) ★★★★ Tian zhu ding (2013) ★★★★★ Shan he gu ren (2015) ★★★★★ Jiang hu er nü (2018) ★★★★★

21. Kenji Mizoguchi

Director | Ugetsu monogatari

Coming from a lower class family Mizoguchi entered the production company Nikkatsu as an actor specialized in female roles. Later he became an assistant director and made his first film in 1922. Although he filmed almost 90 movies in the silent era, only his last 12 productions are really known ...

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16 Films / 5 Favorites

Gion no shimai (1936) ★★★★ Naniwa erejî (1936) ★★★ Zangiku monogatari (1939) ★★★★★ Genroku chûshingura (1941) ★★★★ Utamaro o meguru gonin no onna (1946) ★★★★ Yoru no onnatachi (1948) ★★★ Oyû-sama (1951) ★★★★ Saikaku ichidai onna (1952) ★★★★★ Ugetsu monogatari (1953) ★★★★★ Gion bayashi (1953) ★★★★ Sanshô dayû (1954) ★★★★★ Chikamatsu monogatari (1954) ★★★★★ Uwasa no onna (1954) ★★★★ Yôkihi (1955) ★★★★ Shin Heike monogatari (1955) ★★★ Akasen chitai (1956) ★★★★

22. Buster Keaton

Actor | The General

Joseph Frank Keaton was born on October 4, 1895 in Piqua, Kansas, to Joe Keaton and Myra Keaton. Joe and Myra were Vaudevillian comedians with a popular, ever-changing variety act, giving Keaton an eclectic and interesting upbringing. In the earliest days on stage, they traveled with a medicine ...

A

12 Films + (19 Shorts) / 5 Favorites

P.S: Keaton made 19 shorts between 1920 and 1923 and they're all very good, but these are the ones which stand out:

One Week (1920) ★★★★ Neighbors (1920) ★★★★ The Scarecrow (1920) ★★★★ Cops (1922) ★★★★ The High Sign (1921) ★★★★ -------------------------------------------- Three Ages (1923) ★★★★ Our Hospitality (1923) ★★★★★ Sherlock Jr. (1924) ★★★★★ The Navigator (1924) ★★★★ Seven Chances (1925) ★★★★★ Go West (1925) ★★★★ Battling Butler (1926) ★★★ The General (1926) ★★★★★ College (1927) ★★ Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928) ★★★★ The Cameraman (1928) ★★★★★ Spite Marriage (1929) ★★★

23. F.W. Murnau

Director | Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans

F.W. Murnau was a German film director. He was greatly influenced by Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Shakespeare and Ibsen plays he had seen at the age of 12, and became a friend of director Max Reinhardt. During World War I he served as a company commander at the eastern front and was in the German air ...

A

10 Films / 4 Favorites

Schloß Vogelöd (1921) ★★★★ Der Gang in die Nacht (1921) ★★ Phantom (1922) ★★★★ Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens (1922) ★★★★★ Der letzte Mann (1924) ★★★★★ Herr Tartüff (1925) ★★★ Faust: Eine deutsche Volkssage (1926) ★★★★ Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927) ★★★★★ City Girl (1930) ★★★★★ Tabu: A Story of the South Seas (1931) ★★★★

24. Jacques Tati

Writer | Playtime

The comic genius Jacques Tati was born Taticheff, descended from a noble Russian family. His grandfather, Count Dimitri, had been a general in the Imperial Army and had served as military attaché to the Russian Embassy in Paris. His father, Emmanuel Taticheff, was a well-to-do picture framer who ...

A

7 Films / 4 Favorites

L'école des facteurs (1947) ★★★★ Jour de fête (1949) ★★★★ Les vacances de Monsieur Hulot (1953) ★★★★★ Mon oncle (1958) ★★★★★ Playtime (1967) ★★★★★ Trafic (1971) ★★★★ Parade (1974) ★★★★★

25. Erich von Stroheim

Actor | Sunset Blvd.

Erich von Stroheim was born Erich Oswald Stroheim in 1885, in Vienna, Austria, to Johanna (Bondy), from Prague, and Benno Stroheim, a hatter from Gleiwitz, Germany (now Gliwice, Poland). His family was Jewish.

After spending some time working in his father's hat factory, he emigrated to America ...

A

6 Films / 4 Favorites

Blind Husbands (1919) ★★★★★ Foolish Wives (1922) ★★★★★ Greed (1924) ★★★★★ The Merry Widow (1925) ★★★★★ The Wedding March (1928) ★★★★ Queen Kelly (1932) ★★★★

26. Ernst Lubitsch

Director | To Be or Not to Be

From Ernst Lubitsch's experiences in Sophien Gymnasium (high school) theater, he decided to leave school at the age of 16 and pursue a career on the stage. He had to compromise with his father and keep the account books for the family tailor business while he acted in cabarets and music halls at ...

A

28 Films / 7 Favorites

Wo ist mein Schatz? (1916) ★★★ Carmen (1918) ★★★ Ich möchte kein Mann sein (1918) ★★★ Die Austernprinzessin (1919) ★★★★★ Die Puppe (1919) ★★★★★ Madame DuBarry (1919) ★★ Anna Boleyn (1920) ★★ Sumurun (1920) ★★ Die Bergkatze (1921) ★★ Das Weib des Pharao (1922) ★★★ The Marriage Circle (1924) ★★★ Lady Windermere's Fan (1925) ★★★ So This Is Paris (1926) ★★★★ The Love Parade (1929) ★★★★ Monte Carlo (1930) ★★★★ The Smiling Lieutenant (1931) ★★★★ One Hour with You (1932) ★★★★★ Trouble in Paradise (1932) ★★★★★ Broken Lullaby (1932) ★★★★ Design for Living (1933) ★★★★ The Merry Widow (1934) ★★★ Angel (1937) ★★★★ Ninotchka (1939) ★★★ The Shop Around the Corner (1940) ★★★★★ That Uncertain Feeling (1941) ★★★★ To Be or Not to Be (1942) ★★★★★ Heaven Can Wait (1943) ★★★★★ Cluny Brown (1946) ★★★★

27. Roberto Rossellini

Writer | Roma città aperta

The master filmmaker Roberto Rossellini, as one of the creators of neo-realism, is one of the most influential directors of all time. His neo-realist films influenced France's nouvelle vague movement in the 1950s and '60s that changed the face of international cinema. He also influenced American ...

A

12 Films / 7 Favorites

Roma città aperta (1945) ★★★★★ Paisà (1946) ★★★★★ Germania anno zero (1948) ★★★★★ L'amore (1948) ★★★ Stromboli (Terra di Dio) (1950) ★★★★★ Francesco, giullare di Dio (1950) ★★★★ Europa '51 (1952) ★★★★★ Viaggio in Italia (1954) ★★★★★ Non credo più all'amore (La paura) (1954) ★★★★ India: Matri Bhumi (1959) ★★★★★ Il generale Della Rovere (1959) ★★★★ La prise de pouvoir par Louis XIV (1966) ★★★★

28. Carl Theodor Dreyer

Writer | Gertrud

The illegitimate son of a Danish farmer and his Swedish housekeeper, Carl Theodor Dreyer was born in Copenhagen on the 3th of February, 1889. He spent his early years in various foster homes before being adopted by the Dreyers at the age of two. Contrary to popular belief (perhaps nourished by the ...

A

13 Films / 4 Favorites

Præsidenten (1919) ★★★★ Blade af Satans bog (1920) ★★★★ Prästänkan (1920) ★★★★ Die Gezeichneten (1922) ★★★★ Der var engang (1922) ★★★ Michael (1924) ★★★★ Du skal ære din hustru (1925) ★★★★ Glomdalsbruden (1926) ★★★ La passion de Jeanne d'Arc (1928) ★★★★★ Vampyr (1932) ★★★★ Vredens dag (1943) ★★★★★ Ordet (1955) ★★★★★ Gertrud (1964) ★★★★★

29. Ingmar Bergman

Writer | Smultronstället

Ernst Ingmar Bergman was born July 14, 1918, the son of a priest. The film and T.V. series, The Best Intentions (1992) is biographical and shows the early marriage of his parents. The film Sunday's Children (1992) depicts a bicycle journey with his father. In the miniseries Private Confessions (...

30. Satyajit Ray

Writer | Pather Panchali

Satyajit Ray was born in Calcutta on May 2, 1921. His father, Late Sukumar Ray was an eminent poet and writer in the history of Bengali literature. In 1940, after receiving his degree in science and economics from Calcutta University, he attended Tagore's Viswa-Bharati University. His first movie ...

A

26 Films / 12 Favorites

Pather Panchali (1955) ★★★★★ Aparajito (1956) ★★★★★ Jalsaghar (1958) ★★★★★ Apur Sansar (1959) ★★★★★ Devi (1960) ★★★★★ Rabindranath Tagore (1961) ★★★★★ Teen Kanya (1961) ★★★★ Abhijaan (1962) ★★★★★ Kanchenjungha (1962) ★★★★ Mahanagar (1963) ★★★★★ Charulata (1964) ★★★★★ Kapurush (1965) ★★★★ Mahapurush (1965) ★★★ Nayak (1966) ★★★★ Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne (1969) ★★★ Aranyer Din Ratri (1970) ★★★★★ Pratidwandi (1970) ★★★★ Seemabaddha (1971) ★★★★ Ashani Sanket (1973) ★★★★ Sonar Kella (1974) ★★★ Jana Aranya (1975) ★★★★★ Shatranj Ke Khilari (1977) ★★★★ Joi Baba Felunath (1979) ★★★★ Sikkim (1981) ★★★ Ghare-Baire (1984) ★★★★ Agantuk (1991) ★★★★★

31. Kar-Wai Wong

Director | Yi dai zong shi

Wong Kar-wai (born 17 July 1956) is a Hong Kong Second Wave filmmaker, internationally renowned as an auteur for his visually unique, highly stylised, emotionally resonant work, including Ah fei zing zyun (1990), Dung che sai duk (1994), Chung Hing sam lam (1994), Do lok tin si (1995), Chun gwong ...

A

10 Films / 4 Favorites

Wong Gok ka moon (1988) ★★★ Ah fei jing juen (1990) ★★★★★ Chung Hing sam lam (1994) ★★★★★ Dung che sai duk (1994) ★★★★ Do lok tin si (1995) ★★★★ Chun gwong cha sit (1997) ★★★★★ Fa yeung nin wah (2000) ★★★★★ 2046 (2004) ★★★★ My Blueberry Nights (2007) ★★★★ Yi dai zong shi (2013) ★★★★

32. 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 ...

A

15 Films / 5 Favorites

Luci del varietà (1950) ★★★ Lo sceicco bianco (1952) ★★★ I vitelloni (1953) ★★★★ La strada (1954) ★★★★★ Il bidone (1955) ★★★ Le notti di Cabiria (1957) ★★★★★ La dolce vita (1960) ★★★★★ 8½ (1963) ★★★★★ Giulietta degli spiriti (1965) ★★★★ Fellini - Satyricon (1969) ★★★ I clowns (1970) ★★★★ Roma (1972) ★★★★ Amarcord (1973) ★★★★★ Il Casanova di Federico Fellini (1976) ★★★ Prova d'orchestra (1978) ★★★

33. Preston Sturges

Writer | Sullivan's Travels

Preston Sturges' own life is as unlikely as some of the plots of his best work. He was born into a wealthy family. As a boy he helped out on stage productions for his mother's friend, Isadora Duncan (the scarf that strangled her was made by his mother's company, Maison Desti). He served in the U.S....

A

8 Films / 7 Favorites

Christmas in July (1940) ★★★★★ The Great McGinty (1940) ★★★★★ The Lady Eve (1941) ★★★★★ Sullivan's Travels (1941) ★★★★★ The Palm Beach Story (1942) ★★★★★ The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1943) ★★★★★ Hail the Conquering Hero (1944) ★★★★ Unfaithfully Yours (1948) ★★★★★

34. Sergei Eisenstein

Director | Ivan Groznyy

The son of an affluent architect, Eisenstein attended the Institute of Civil Engineering in Petrograd as a young man. With the fall of the tsar in 1917, he worked as an engineer for the Red Army. In the following years, Eisenstein joined up with the Moscow Proletkult Theater as a set designer and ...

A

7 Films / 4 Favorites

Stachka (1925) ★★★★ Bronenosets Potyomkin (1925) ★★★★★ Oktyabr (1927) ★★★★ Staroye i novoye (1929) ★★★★ Aleksandr Nevskiy (1938) ★★★★★ Ivan Groznyy (1944) ★★★★★ Ivan Groznyy. Skaz vtoroy: Boyarskiy zagovor (1958) ★★★★★

35. 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...

A

23 Films / 6 Favorites

Sugata Sanshirô (1943) ★★★ Tora no o wo fumu otoko-tachi (1945) ★★★ Yoidore tenshi (1948) ★★★ Nora inu (1949) ★★★★ Rashômon (1950) ★★★★★ Shûbun (1950) ★★★ Ikiru (1952) ★★★★★ Shichinin no samurai (1954) ★★★★★ Ikimono no kiroku (1955) ★★★★ Kumonosu-jô (1957) ★★★★ Donzoko (1957) ★★★ Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (1958) ★★★★ Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru (1960) ★★★ Yôjinbô (1961) ★★★★ Tsubaki Sanjûrô (1962) ★★★★ Tengoku to jigoku (1963) ★★★★★ Akahige (1965) ★★★★ Dodesukaden (1970) ★★★★ Dersu Uzala (1975) ★★★★ Kagemusha (1980) ★★★★ Ran (1985) ★★★★★ Yume (1990) ★★★★ Hachigatsu no rapusodî (1991) ★★★★★

36. Louis Feuillade

Director | Les vampires

A prolific director--over 700 films, most of them short- or medium-length--Louis Feuillade began his career with Gaumont where, as well as directing his own features, he was appointed artistic director in charge of production in 1907. His work was largely comprised of film series; his first series,...

A

5 Films / 3 Favorites

Fantômas - À l'ombre de la guillotine (1913) ★★★★★ Les vampires (1915) ★★★★★ Judex (1916) ★★★★ Tih Minh (1918) ★★★★★ Barrabas (1919) ★★★★

37. 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 ...

B+

17 Films / 7 Favorites

Five Graves to Cairo (1943) ★★★★★ Double Indemnity (1944) ★★★★★ The Lost Weekend (1945) ★★★ Sunset Blvd. (1950) ★★★★★ Ace in the Hole (1951) ★★★★★ Stalag 17 (1953) ★★★ Sabrina (1954) ★★★ The Seven Year Itch (1955) ★★★★ Love in the Afternoon (1957) ★★★ Witness for the Prosecution (1957) ★★★★ Some Like It Hot (1959) ★★★★★ The Apartment (1960) ★★★★ One, Two, Three (1961) ★★ Irma la Douce (1963) ★★★ The Fortune Cookie (1966) ★★★ The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) ★★★★★ Avanti! (1972) ★★★★★

38. Andrei Tarkovsky

Writer | Offret

The most famous Soviet film-maker since Sergei Eisenstein, Andrei Tarkovsky (the son of noted poet Arseniy Tarkovsky) studied music and Arabic in Moscow before enrolling in the Soviet film school VGIK. He shot to international attention with his first feature, Ivan's Childhood (1962), which won the...

B+

7 Films / 3 Favorites

Ivanovo detstvo (1962) ★★★★ Andrey Rublyov (1966) ★★★★ Solyaris (1972) ★★★★★ Zerkalo (1975) ★★★ Stalker (1979) ★★★★★ Nostalghia (1983) ★★★★ Offret (1986) ★★★★★

39. Hsiao-Hsien Hou

Producer | Cike Nie Yin Niang

Of the ten films that Hsiao-Hsien Hou directed between 1980 and 1989, seven received best film or best director awards from prestigious international films festivals in Venice, Berlin, Hawaii, and the Festival of the Three Continents in Nantes. In a 1988 worldwide critics' poll, Hou was championed ...

B+

13 Films / 4 Favorites

Feng gui lai de ren (1983) ★★★★ Dong dong de jiàqi (1984) ★★★★ Tóngnián wangshì (1985) ★★★★★ Liàn liàn fengchén (1986) ★★★★ Bei qing cheng shi (1989) ★★★★★ Xi meng ren sheng (1993) ★★★★★ Hao nan hao nu (1995) ★★★★ Nan guo zai jian, nan guo (1996) ★★★★ Hai shang hua (1998) ★★★★ Qian xi man bo (2001) ★★★★ Kôhî jikô (2003) ★★★ Zui hao de shi guang (2005) ★★★ Cike Nie Yin Niang (2015) ★★★★★

40. Éric Rohmer

Director | Ma nuit chez Maud

Admirers have always had difficulty explaining Éric Rohmer's "Je ne sais quoi." Part of the challenge stems from the fact that, despite his place in French Nouvelle Vague (i.e., New Wave), his work is unlike that of his colleagues. While this may be due to the auteur's unwillingness to conform, ...

B+

25 Films / 5 Favorites

Le signe du lion (1962) ★★★ 1 La boulangère de Monceau (1963) ★★★ 2 La carrière de Suzanne (1963) ★★★ 3 La collectionneuse (1967) ★★★★ 4 Ma nuit chez Maud (1969) ★★★★★ 5 Le genou de Claire (1970) ★★★★★ 6 L'L'amour l'après-midi (1972) ★★★★ Die Marquise von O... (1976) ★★★ Perceval le Gallois (1978) ★★★★★ La femme de l'aviateur (1981) ★★★★ Le beau mariage (1982) ★★★ Pauline à la plage (1983) ★★★★ Les nuits de la pleine lune (1984) ★★★★ Le rayon vert (1986) ★★★★★ L'ami de mon amie (1987) ★★★★★ 4 aventures de Reinette et Mirabelle (1987) ★★★★ Conte de printemps (1990) ★★★ Conte d'hiver (1992) ★★★★ L'arbre, le maire et la médiathèque (1993) ★★ Les rendez-vous de Paris (1995) ★★★★ Conte d'été (1996) ★★★★ Conte d'automne (1998) ★★★★ L'Anglaise et le duc (2001) ★★★★ Triple agent (2004) ★★★ Les amours d'Astrée et de Céladon (2007) ★★★★

41. Vincente Minnelli

Director | An American in Paris

Born Lester Anthony Minnelli in Chicago on February 28 1903, his father Vincent was a musical conductor of the Minnelli Brothers' Tent Theater. Wanting to pursue an artistic career, Minelli worked in the costume department of the Chicago Theater, then on Broadway during the depression as a set ...

B+

17 Films / 5 Favorites

Cabin in the Sky (1943) ★★ Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) ★★★★ The Clock (1945) ★★ Undercurrent (1946) ★★★ The Pirate (1948) ★★★★★ Father of the Bride (1950) ★★★★★ An American in Paris (1951) ★★★★ The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) ★★★★★ The Story of Three Loves (1953) ★★★★ The Band Wagon (1953) ★★★★★ Brigadoon (1954) ★★ The Cobweb (1955) ★★★★ Gigi (1958) ★★★★ Some Came Running (1958) ★★★★★ Home from the Hill (1960) ★★★★ Bells Are Ringing (1960) ★★★★ Two Weeks in Another Town (1962) ★★★★

42. 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 ...

B+

19 Films / 4 Favorites

Les mistons (1957) ★★★ Les quatre cents coups (1959) ★★★★★ Tirez sur le pianiste (1960) ★★★★★ Antoine et Colette (1962) ★★★★ Jules et Jim (1962) ★★★★★ La peau douce (1964) ★★★★ Fahrenheit 451 (1966) ★★★ La mariée était en noir (1968) ★★★ Baisers volés (1968) ★★★★ La sirène du Mississipi (1969) ★★★ L'enfant sauvage (1970) ★★★★ Domicile conjugal (1970) ★★★ Les deux Anglaises et le continent (1971) ★★★ La nuit américaine (1973) ★★★★★ L'histoire d'Adèle H. (1975) ★★★ La chambre verte (1978) ★★★★ Le dernier métro (1980) ★★★★ La femme d'à côté (1981) ★★★ Vivement dimanche! (1983) ★★★★

43. Jacques Tourneur

Director | Cat People

Born in Paris in 1904, Tourneur went to Hollywood with his father, director Maurice Tourneur around 1913. He started out as a script clerk and editor for his father, then graduated to such jobs as directing shorts (often with the pseudonym Jack Turner), both in France and America. He was hired to ...

B+

14 Films / 5 Favorites

Cat People (1942) ★★★★ I Walked with a Zombie (1943) ★★★★ The Leopard Man (1943) ★★★★ Experiment Perilous (1944) ★★★ Canyon Passage (1946) ★★★★★ Out of the Past (1947) ★★★★★ Berlin Express (1948) ★★★★ Stars in My Crown (1950) ★★★★★ The Flame and the Arrow (1950) ★★★★★ Wichita (1955) ★★★★★ Stranger on Horseback (1955) ★★★★ Great Day in the Morning (1956) ★★★★ Nightfall (1956) ★★★ Night of the Demon (1957) ★★★★

44. David Cronenberg

Actor | The Fly

David Cronenberg, also known as the King of Venereal Horror or the Baron of Blood, was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in 1943. His father, Milton Cronenberg, was a journalist and editor, and his mother, Esther (Sumberg), was a piano player. After showing an inclination for literature at an early...

B+

19 Films / 4 Favorites

Shivers (1975) ★★★ Rabid (1977) ★★★ The Brood (1979) ★★★ Scanners (1981) ★★★ Videodrome (1983) ★★★★★ The Dead Zone (1983) ★★★ The Fly (1986) ★★★★ Dead Ringers (1988) ★★★★ Naked Lunch (1991) ★★★★★ M. Butterfly (1993) ★★★★ Crash (1996) ★★★★ eXistenZ (1999) ★★★★ Spider (2002) ★★★★ A History of Violence (2005) ★★★★★ Eastern Promises (2007) ★★★★★ A Dangerous Method (2011) ★★★★ Cosmopolis (2012) ★★★★ Maps to the Stars (2014) ★★★★ Crimes of the Future (2022) ★★★

45. 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 ...

B+

7 Films / 4 Favorites

Flandersui gae (2000) ★★★★ Salinui chueok (2003) ★★★★★ Gwoemul (2006) ★★★★★ Madeo (2009) ★★★★ Snowpiercer (2013) ★★★★★ Okja (2017) ★★★★ Gisaengchung (2019) ★★★★★

46. Claude Chabrol

Director | Le beau Serge

Claude Chabrol was born on June 24, 1930 in Paris, France. He was a director and writer, known for Le Beau Serge (1958), La Cérémonie (1995) and Story of Women (1988). He was married to Aurore Chabrol, Stéphane Audran and Agnès Goute. He died on September 12, 2010 in Paris, France.

B+

13 Films / 5 Favorites

Le beau Serge (1958) ★★★★ Les cousins (1959) ★★★★ Les bonnes femmes (1960) ★★★★★ L'oeil du malin (1962) ★★★★ Les biches (1968) ★★★★ La femme infidèle (1969) ★★★★★ Que la bête meure (1969) ★★★★★ Le boucher (1970) ★★★★★ La rupture (1970) ★★★★ Alice ou la dernière fugue (1977) ★★★★ Violette Nozière (1978) ★★ L'enfer (1994) ★★★★ La cérémonie (1995) ★★★★★

47. Douglas Sirk

Director | Schlußakkord

Film director Douglas Sirk, whose reputation blossomed in the generation after his 1959 retirement from Hollywood filmmaking, was born Hans Detlef Sierck on April 26, 1897, in Hamburg, Germany, to a journalist. Both of his parents were Danish, and the future director would make movies in German, ...

B+

13 Films / 5 Favorites

Schlußakkord (1936) ★★★★ Lured (1947) ★★ Sleep, My Love (1948) ★★★★ Shockproof (1949) ★★★ Has Anybody Seen My Gal (1952) ★★★★★ All I Desire (1953) ★★★★ Magnificent Obsession (1954) ★★★★ All That Heaven Allows (1955) ★★★★★ Written on the Wind (1956) ★★★★★ There's Always Tomorrow (1956) ★★★★ The Tarnished Angels (1957) ★★★★★ A Time to Love and a Time to Die (1958) ★★★★ Imitation of Life (1959) ★★★★★2

48. Max Ophüls

Director | La ronde

Director Max Ophüls was born Max Oppenheimer in Saarbrücken, Germany. He began his career as a stage actor and director in the golden twenties. He worked in cities such as Stuttgart, Dortmund, Wuppertal, Vienna, Frankfurt, Breslau and Berlin. In 1929 his son Marcel Ophüls was born in Frankfurt, ...

B+

9 Films / 4 Favorites

Liebelei (1933) ★★★★ La signora di tutti (1934) ★★★ Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948) ★★★★★ Caught (1949) ★★★★ The Reckless Moment (1949) ★★★★★ La ronde (1950) ★★★★★ Le Plaisir (1952) ★★★★ Madame de... (1953) ★★★★★ Lola Montès (1955) ★★★★

49. Krzysztof Kieslowski

Writer | Trois couleurs: Bleu

Krzysztof Kieslowski graduated from Lódz Film School in 1969, and became a documentary, TV and feature film director and scriptwriter. Before making his first film for TV, Przejscie podziemne (1974) (The Underground Passage), he made a number of short documentaries. His next TV title, Personnel (...

B+

9 Films / 4 Favorites

Amator (1979) ★★★ Przypadek (1987) ★★★★ Krótki film o milosci (1988) ★★★★ Krótki film o zabijaniu (1988) ★★★★ Dekalog (1989) ★★★★★ La double vie de Véronique (1991) ★★★★★ Trois couleurs: Bleu (1993) ★★★★★ Trois couleurs: Blanc (1994) ★★★★ Trois couleurs: Rouge (1994) ★★★★★

50. Josef von Sternberg

Director | The Devil Is a Woman

Josef von Sternberg split his childhood between Vienna and New York City. His father, a former soldier in the Austro-Hungarian army, could not support his family in either city; Sternberg remembered him only as "an enormously strong man who often used his strength on me." Forced by poverty to drop ...

B+

14 Films / 3 Favorites

Underworld (1927) ★★★★ The Docks of New York (1928) ★★★★★ The Last Command (1928) ★★★★ Thunderbolt (1929) ★★★★ Der blaue Engel (1930) ★★★★ Morocco (1930) ★★★★ Dishonored (1931) ★★★ Blonde Venus (1932) ★★★★ Shanghai Express (1932) ★★★★ The Scarlet Empress (1934) ★★★★★ The Devil Is a Woman (1935) ★★★ The Shanghai Gesture (1941) ★★★★ Macao (1952) ★★★ Anatahan (1953) ★★★★★

51. Wim Wenders

Director | Der Himmel über Berlin

Wim Wenders is an Oscar-nominated German filmmaker who was born Ernst Wilhelm Wenders on August 14, 1945 in Düsseldorf, which then was located in the British Occupation Zone of what became the Bundesrepublik Deutschland (Federal Republic of Germany, known colloquially as West Germany until ...

B+

11 Films / 3 Favorites

Alice in den Städten (1974) ★★★★★ Im Lauf der Zeit (1976) ★★★★ Der amerikanische Freund (1977) ★★★★ Hammett (1982) ★★★★★ Der Stand der Dinge (1982) ★★★★ Paris, Texas (1984) ★★★★★ Tokyo-Ga (1985) ★★★ Der Himmel über Berlin (1987) ★★★★ Tokyo-Ga (1985) ★★ Buena Vista Social Club (1999) ★★★ Pina (2011) ★★★★

52. Michelangelo Antonioni

Writer | Blow-Up

Together with Fellini, Bergman and Kurosawa, Michelangelo Antonioni is credited with defining the modern art film. And yet Antonioni's cinema is also recognized today for defying any easy categorization, with his films ultimately seeming to belong to their own distinctive genre. Indeed, the ...

B+

10 Films / 3 Favorites

Cronaca di un amore (1950) ★★★ La signora senza camelie (1953) ★★★★ Il grido (1957) ★★★★ L'avventura (1960) ★★★★★ La notte (1961) ★★★★ L'eclisse (1962) ★★★★★ Il deserto rosso (1964) ★★★★ Blow-Up (1966) ★★★★★ Zabriskie Point (1970) ★★★★ Professione: reporter (1975) ★★★★

53. Béla Tarr

Producer | Werckmeister harmóniák

Béla Tarr was born on July 21, 1955 in Pécs, Hungary. He is a producer and director, known for Werckmeister Harmonies (2000), The Turin Horse (2011) and Satantango (1994). He is married to Ágnes Hranitzky.

B+

10 Films / 2 Favorites

Családi tüzfészek (1979) ★★★★ Szabadgyalog (1981) ★★★ Panelkapcsolat (1982) ★★★★ Macbeth (1982) ★★★ Öszi almanach (1984) ★★★★ Kárhozat (1988) ★★★★ Sátántangó (1994) ★★★★★ Werckmeister harmóniák (2000) ★★★★ A londoni férfi (2007) ★★★★ A torinói ló (2011) ★★★★★

54. Jacques Rivette

Director | La Belle Noiseuse

Although François Truffaut has written that the New Wave began "thanks to Rivette," the films of this masterful French director are not well known. Rivette, like his "Cahiers du Cinéma" colleagues Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol and Éric Rohmer, did graduate to filmmaking but, like Rohmer...

B+

14 Films / 4 Favorites

Paris nous appartient (1961) ★★★★ La religieuse (1966) ★★★★ L'amour fou (1969) ★★★ Out 1, noli me tangere (1971) ★★★ Out 1: Spectre (1972) ★★★ Céline et Julie vont en bateau: Phantom Ladies Over Paris (1974) ★★★★★ Duelle (une quarantaine) (1976) ★★★★ Noroît (une vengeance) (1976) ★★★ Le pont du Nord (1981) ★★★ L'amour par terre (1984) ★★★★★ La Belle Noiseuse (1991) ★★★★ Jeanne la Pucelle I - Les batailles (1994) (Two parts) ★★★★★ Haut bas fragile (1995) ★★★★★ Secret défense (1998) ★★★★

55. Jafar Panahi

Director | Taxi

Jafar Panahi (Born 11 July 1960) is an Iranian film director, screenwriter, and film editor, commonly identified with the Iranian New Wave film movement. After several years of making short films and working as an assistant director for fellow Iranian film-maker Abbas Kiarostami, Panahi achieved ...

B+

10 Films / 5 Favorites

Badkonake sefid (1995) ★★★★ Ayneh (1997) ★★★★ Dayereh (2000) ★★★★★ Talaye sorkh (2003) ★★★★★ Afsaid (2006) ★★★★★ In film nist (2011) ★★★★ Pardeh (2013) ★★★★ Taxi (2015) ★★★★ Se rokh (2018) ★★★★★ Khers nist (2022) ★★★★★

56. Luchino Visconti

Writer | Il gattopardo

Born in his ancestral palazzo, situated in the same Milanese square as both the opera house La Scala and the Milan Cathedral, Luchino Visconti (1906 - 1976) was raised under the auspices of aristocratic privilege, theater and Catholicism. This triangulation of monuments would create an equally ...

B

10 Films / 3 Favorites

Ossessione (1943) ★★★★ La terra trema (1948) ★★★★ Bellissima (1951) ★★★★ Senso (1954) ★★★★★ Le notti bianche (1957) ★★★★ Rocco e i suoi fratelli (1960) ★★★★★ Il gattopardo (1963) ★★★★★ Vaghe stelle dell'Orsa... (1965) ★★★ La caduta degli dei (Götterdämmerung) (1969) ★★★ Morte a Venezia (1971) ★★★★

57. Yasuzô Masumura

Director | Daichi no komoriuta

Born in Yamanashi, Japan, Yasuzô Masumura would become known as a maverick director whose main legacy was films portraying and promoting individualism, which was the opposite of the norm in Japanese society. He earned a law degree towards the end of World War II from Tokyo University, yet joined ...

B

12 Films / 3 Favorites

Aozora musume (1957) ★★★★★ Kuchizuke (1957) ★★★★★ Kyojin to gangu (1958) ★★★★ Nise daigakusei (1960) ★★★★ Tsuma wa kokuhaku suru (1961) ★★★★★ Kuro no tesuto kâ (1962) ★★★★ Manji (1964) ★★★ Seisaku no tsuma (1965) ★★★★ Akai tenshi (1966) ★★★★ Môjû (1969) ★★★ Goyôkiba: Kamisori Hanzô jigoku zeme (1973) ★★★★ Daichi no komoriuta (1976) ★★★★

58. Joe Dante

Director | Innerspace

Joe Dante is a graduate of the Philadelphia College of Art. After a stint as a film reviewer, he began his filmmaking apprenticeship in 1974 as trailer editor for Roger Corman's New World Pictures. He made his directorial debut in 1976 with Hollywood Boulevard (1976) (co-directed with Allan Arkush)...

B

9 Films / 4 Favorites

Piranha (1978) ★★★ The Howling (1981) ★★★ Gremlins (1984) ★★★★ Explorers (1985) ★★ Innerspace (1987) ★★★★★ The 'Burbs (1989) ★★★★★ Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) ★★★★ Matinee (1993) ★★★★★ The Second Civil War (1997) ★★★★★

59. Edward Yang

Writer | Yi yi

Born on November 6, 1947 in Shanghai, China, Edward Yang has become one of the most talented international filmmakers of his generation. Along with Hou Hsiao-Hsien and Tsai Ming-Liang, Yang ranks among the leading artists of the Taiwanese New Wave, and one of the world's most brilliant auteurs. ...

B

5 Films / 2 Favorites

Qing mei zhu ma (1985) ★★★★ Kong bu fen zi (1986) ★★★★ Guling jie shaonian sharen shijian (1991) ★★★★★ Ma jiang (1996) ★★★★ Yi yi (2000) ★★★★★

60. 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 ...

B

11 Films / 3 Favorites

Le silence de la mer (1949) ★★★ Les enfants terribles (1950) ★★★★ Bob le flambeur (1956) ★★★★ Deux hommes dans Manhattan (1959) ★★★★ Léon Morin, prêtre (1961) ★★★ Le doulos (1962) ★★★★ Le deuxième souffle (1966) ★★★★★ Le Samouraï (1967) ★★★★★ L'armée des ombres (1969) ★★★★★ Le cercle rouge (1970) ★★★★ Un flic (1972) ★★★★

61. Henri-Georges Clouzot

Writer | Le salaire de la peur

Beginning his film career as a screenwriter, Henri-Georges Clouzot switched over to directing and in 1943 had the distinction of having his film The Raven (1943) banned by both the German forces occupying France and the Free French forces fighting them, but for different reasons. He shot to ...

B

8 Films / 2 Favorites

L'assassin habite... au 21 (1942) ★★★★ Le corbeau (1943) ★★★★ Quai des Orfèvres (1947) ★★★★ Manon (1949) ★★★★ Le salaire de la peur (1953) ★★★★★ Les diaboliques (1955) ★★★★★ Le mystère Picasso (1956) ★★★★ Les espions (1957) ★★★★

62. 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 ...

B

14 Films / 5 Favorites

Bleak Moments (1971) ★★★ 'Nuts in May' (1976) ★★★★ Abigail's Party (1977) ★★★★★ Grown-Ups (1980) ★★★★★ High Hopes (1988) ★★★★★ Life Is Sweet (1990) ★★★★ Naked (1993) ★★★★★ Secrets & Lies (1996) ★★★★★ Topsy-Turvy (1999) ★★★ All or Nothing (2002) ★★★★ Vera Drake (2004) ★★★★ Happy-Go-Lucky (2008) ★★★★ Another Year (2010) ★★★★ Mr. Turner (2014) ★★★★

63. Alex Garland

Writer | Ex Machina

Alex Garland is an English novelist, screenwriter, film producer and director. He is best known for the films Ex Machina (2015) and Annihilation (2018).

Garland's others works as a writer includes The Beach (2000), 28 Days Later (2002), Sunshine (2007), Never Let Me Go (2011) and Dredd (2012).

He is ...

B

4 Films / 3 Favorites

Ex Machina (2014) ★★★★★ Annihilation (2018) ★★★★ Devs (2020) ★★★★★ Men (2022) ★★★★★

64. Leo McCarey

Director | An Affair to Remember

Leo McCarey was born on October 3, 1896 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was a director and writer, known for An Affair to Remember (1957), Going My Way (1944) and Love Affair (1939). He was married to Virginia Stella Martin. He died on July 5, 1969 in Santa Monica, California, USA.

B

10 Films / 4 Favorites

Big Business (1929) ★★★ Duck Soup (1933) ★★★★★ Ruggles of Red Gap (1935) ★★★★ The Awful Truth (1937) ★★★★ Make Way for Tomorrow (1937) ★★★★★ Love Affair (1939) ★★★★ Going My Way (1944) ★★ Good Sam (1948) ★★★★★ My Son John (1952) ★★★★ An Affair to Remember (1957) ★★★★★

65. Kelly Reichardt

Director | Wendy and Lucy

Kelly Reichardt was born and raised in Miami-Dade Country, Florida, to a family of police officers. She had an interest in photography from a very young age. She started by using her father's camera, which he used for photographing crime scenes. She went to the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in ...

B

6 Films / 3 Favorites

Old Joy (2006) ★★★ Wendy and Lucy (2008) ★★★★★ Meek's Cutoff (2010) ★★★★★ Certain Women (2016) ★★★★ First Cow (2019) ★★★★★ Showing Up (2022) ★★★★

66. Pedro Almodóvar

Writer | Hable con ella

The most internationally acclaimed Spanish filmmaker since Luis Buñuel was born in a small town (Calzada de Calatrava) in the impoverished Spanish region of La Mancha. He arrived in Madrid in 1968, and survived by selling used items in the flea-market called El Rastro. Almodóvar couldn't study ...

B

15 Films / 5 Favorites

¿Qué he hecho YO para merecer esto!! (1984) ★★★ La ley del deseo (1987) ★★★★ Mujeres al borde de un ataque de "nervios" (1988) ★★★★★ La flor de mi secreto (1995) ★★★★ Carne trémula (1997) ★★★★ Todo sobre mi madre (1999) ★★★★★ Hable con ella (2002) ★★★★★ La mala educación (2004) ★★★★ Volver (2006) ★★ Los abrazos rotos (2009) ★★★★ La piel que habito (2011) ★★★★★ Los amantes pasajeros (2013) ★★★★ Julieta (2016) ★★★★★ Dolor y gloria (2019) ★★★★ Madres paralelas (2021) ★★★★

67. Robert Bresson

Writer | Au hasard Balthazar

Robert Bresson trained as a painter before moving into films as a screenwriter, making a short film (atypically a comedy), Public Affairs (1934) in 1934. After spending more than a year as a German POW during World War II, he made his debut with Angels of Sin (1943) in 1943. His next film, The ...

B

13 Films / 2 Favorites

Les anges du péché (1943) ★★★★ Les dames du Bois de Boulogne (1945) ★★★★ Journal d'un curé de campagne (1951) ★★★★ Un condamné à mort s'est échappé ou Le vent souffle où il veut (1956) ★★★★★ Pickpocket (1959) ★★★★★ Procès de Jeanne d'Arc (1962) ★★★★ Au hasard Balthazar (1966) ★★★ Mouchette (1967) ★★★★ Une femme douce (1969) ★★ Quatre nuits d'un rêveur (1971) ★★ Lancelot du Lac (1974) ★★★ Le diable probablement (1977) ★★★ L'argent (1983) ★★★★

68. Mikio Naruse

Director | Ukigumo

Considered a major figure of Japan's 'golden age of cinema', Mikio Naruse was a filmmaker, screenwriter, and producer who directed 89 films in the period 1930 to 1967. Although Naruse's work is lesser known in the twenty-first century than those of his contemporaries Akira Kurosawa, Kenji Mizoguchi...

B

18 Films / 4 Favorites

Koshiben ganbare (1931) ★★★★ Nasanu naka (1932) ★★★★ Kimi to wakarete (1933) ★★★★ Yogoto no yume (1933) ★★★ Kagirinaki hodô (1934) ★★★★ Tsuma yo bara no yô ni (1935) ★★★ Sanjûsangen-dô, tôshiya monogatari (1945) ★★★★ Meshi (1951) ★★★★★ Inazuma (1952) ★★★★ Okâsan (1952) ★★★★ Yama no oto (1954) ★★★★★ Bangiku (1954) ★★★★ Ukigumo (1955) ★★★★★ Nagareru (1956) ★★★ Onna ga kaidan wo agaru toki (1960) ★★★ Midareru (1964) ★★★★★ Onna no naka ni iru tanin (1966) ★★★★ Midaregumo (1967) ★★★★

69. Michael Powell

Director | Peeping Tom

The son of Thomas William Powell and Mabel (nee Corbett). Michael Powell was always a self-confessed movie addict. He was brought up partly in Canterbury ("The Garden of England") and partly in the south of France (where his parents ran a hotel). Educated at Kings School, Canterbury and Dulwich ...

B

10 Films / 3 Favorites

The Thief of Bagdad (1940) ★★★★ Peeping Tom (1960) ★★★★

With Emeric Pressburger: Contraband (1940) ★★★★ The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943) ★★★★★ A Canterbury Tale (1944) ★★★★ I Know Where I'm Going! (1945) ★★★★ A Matter of Life and Death (1946) ★★★★★ Black Narcissus (1947) ★★★★ The Red Shoes (1948) ★★★★★ The Small Back Room (1949) ★★★★

70. Samuel Fuller

Writer | Shock Corridor

At age 17, Samuel Fuller was the youngest reporter ever to be in charge of the events section of the New York Journal. After having participated in the European battle theater in World War II, he directed some minor action productions for which he mostly wrote the scripts himself and which he also ...

B

16 Films / 4 Favorites

I Shot Jesse James (1949) ★★★ The Baron of Arizona (1950) ★★★★ The Steel Helmet (1951) ★★★★★ Park Row (1952) ★★★★ Pickup on South Street (1953) ★★★ House of Bamboo (1955) ★★★★ Run of the Arrow (1957) ★★★★ Forty Guns (1957) ★★★★ China Gate (1957) ★★★ Verboten! (1959) ★★★ The Crimson Kimono (1959) ★★★ Underworld U.S.A. (1961) ★★★★ Shock Corridor (1963) ★★★★★ The Naked Kiss (1964) ★★★★ The Big Red One (1980) ★★★★★ White Dog (1982) ★★★★★

71. King Vidor

Director | War and Peace

King Vidor was an American film director, film producer, and screenwriter of Hungarian descent. He was born in Galveston, Texas to lumberman Charles Shelton Vidor and his wife Kate Wallis. King's paternal grandfather Károly (Charles) Vidor had fled Hungary as a refugee following the failed ...

B

18 Films / 4 Favorites

Wild Oranges (1924) ★★★ The Big Parade (1925) ★★★★★ La Bohème (1926) ★★★ The Crowd (1928) ★★★★★ Show People (1928) ★★★★ The Patsy (1928) ★★★★ Hallelujah (1929) ★★ Billy the Kid (1930) ★★★★ The Champ (1931) ★★★★ Our Daily Bread (1934) ★★★★★ Stella Dallas (1937) ★★★ The Citadel (1938) ★★★★ 'Northwest Passage' (Book I -- Rogers' Rangers) (1940) ★★★★ Duel in the Sun (1946) ★★★★ The Fountainhead (1949) ★★★★ Beyond the Forest (1949) ★★ Man Without a Star (1955) ★★★★★ The Metaphor (1980) ★★★★

72. Greta Gerwig

Writer | Barbie

Greta Gerwig is an American actress, playwright, screenwriter, and director. She has collaborated with Noah Baumbach on several films, including Greenberg (2010), Frances Ha (2012), for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination, and Mistress America (2015). Gerwig made her solo directorial debut ...

B

3 Films / 3 Favorites

Lady Bird (2017) ★★★★★ Little Women (2019) ★★★★★ Barbie (2023) ★★★★★

73. Anthony Mann

Director | El Cid

Anthony Mann was born on June 30, 1906 in San Diego, California, USA. He was a director and writer, known for El Cid (1961), Men in War (1957) and The Glenn Miller Story (1954). He was married to Anna, Sara Montiel and Mildred Mann. He died on April 29, 1967 in London, England.

B

28 Films / 3 Favorites

Strangers in the Night (1944) ★★ The Great Flamarion (1945) ★★★★ Two O'Clock Courage (1945) ★★★★ Strange Impersonation (1946) ★★★ Desperate (1947) ★★★★ Railroaded! (1947) ★★★★ T-Men (1947) ★★★★ Raw Deal (1948) ★★★★ He Walked by Night (1948) ★★★★ Border Incident (1949) ★★★★ Reign of Terror (1949) ★★★ Side Street (1949) ★★★ Winchester '73 (1950) ★★★★ The Furies (1950) ★★★★ Devil's Doorway (1950) ★★★ The Tall Target (1951) ★★★★ Bend of the River (1952) ★★★★ The Naked Spur (1953) ★★★★★ Thunder Bay (1953) ★★★★★ The Glenn Miller Story (1954) ★★★★ The Far Country (1954) ★★★ The Man from Laramie (1955) ★★★★ The Last Frontier (1955) ★★★★ Men in War (1957) ★★★★ The Tin Star (1957) ★★★★ Man of the West (1958) ★★★★★ El Cid (1961) ★★★★ The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) ★★

74. Leos Carax

Director | Holy Motors

Leos Carax made several short films and also wrote film criticism, then at the age of 24 years made a very strong first feature Boy Meets Girl (1984). The film played at the 1984 Cannes film festival and was a critical triumph. It paved the way for Carax's second feature Bad Blood (1986) (Bad Blood...

B

6 Films / 3 Favorites

Boy Meets Girl (1984) ★★★★ Mauvais sang (1986) ★★★★★ Les amants du Pont-Neuf (1991) ★★★★★ Pola X (1999) ★★★ Holy Motors (2012) ★★★★★ Annette (2021) ★★★★

75. Ousmane Sembene

Writer | Moolaadé

The first film director from an African country to achieve international recognition, Ousmane Sembene remains the major figure in the rise of an independent post-colonial African cinema. Sembene's roots were not, as might be expected, in the educated élite. After working as a mechanic and ...

B

7 Films / 4 Favorites

La noire de... (1966) ★★★★★ Mandabi (1968) ★★★★ Xala (1975) ★★★★ Ceddo (1977) ★★★★★ Camp de Thiaroye (1988) ★★★★★ Guelwaar (1992) ★★★★★ Moolaadé (2003) ★★★★

76. Richard Linklater

Director | Waking Life

Self-taught writer-director Richard Stuart Linklater was born in Houston, Texas, to Diane Margaret (Krieger), who taught at a university, and Charles W. Linklater III. Richard was among the first and most successful talents to emerge during the American independent film renaissance of the 1990s. ...

B

12 Films / 7 Favorites

Dazed and Confused (1993) ★★★ Before Sunrise (1995) ★★★★★ The Newton Boys (1998) ★★★★★ Waking Life (2001) ★★★★★ School of Rock (2003) ★★★ Before Sunset (2004) ★★★★★ A Scanner Darkly (2006) ★★★ Me and Orson Welles (2008) ★★★★ Bernie (2011) ★★★★ Before Midnight (2013) ★★★★★ Boyhood (2014) ★★★★★ Everybody Wants Some!! (2016) ★★★★★

77. Jacques Demy

Soundtrack | Les parapluies de Cherbourg

Jacques Demy was born on June 5, 1931 in Pontchâteau, Loire-Atlantique, France. He was a director and writer, known for The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964), The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967) and A Room in Town (1982). He was married to Agnès Varda. He died on October 27, 1990 in Paris, France.

B

6 Films / 3 Favorites

Lola (1961) ★★★★ Les parapluies de Cherbourg (1964) ★★★★★ Les demoiselles de Rochefort (1967) ★★★★ Model Shop (1969) ★★★ Une chambre en ville (1982) ★★★★★ Trois places pour le 26 (1988) ★★★★★

78. Jerry Lewis

Actor | The Nutty Professor

Jerry Lewis (born March 16, 1926 - August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, film producer, screenwriter and film director. He is known for his slapstick humor in film, television, stage and radio. He was originally paired up with Dean Martin in 1946, forming the famed comedy team ...

B

12 Films / 3 Favorites

The Bellboy (1960) ★★★★ The Ladies Man (1961) ★★★★★ The Errand Boy (1961) ★★★★ The Nutty Professor (1963) ★★★★★ The Patsy (1964) ★★★★ The Family Jewels (1965) ★★★★ Three on a Couch (1966) ★★★★ The Big Mouth (1967) ★★★★ One More Time (1970) ★★★ Which Way to the Front? (1970) ★★ Hardly Working (1980) ★★★★★ Smorgasbord (The Movie) (1983) ★★★★

79. Tsai Ming-liang

Director | Qingshaonian Nuozha

Born in Kuching, Malaysia, he graduated from the Drama and Cinema Department of the Chinese Cultural University of Taiwan and worked as a theatrical producer and TV director. His second feature film, Vive L'Amour (1994), won the Golden Lion (best picture) at the 1994 Venice Film Festival. His ...

B

13 Films / 4 Favorites

Qingshaonian Nuozha (1992) ★★★ Ai qing wan sui (1994) ★★★ He liu (1997) ★★★★ Dong (1998) ★★★★ Ni na bian ji dian (2001) ★★★★★ Tian qiao bu jian le (2002) ★★★ Bu san (2003) ★★★★ Tian bian yi duo yun (2005) ★★★★ Hei yan quan (2006) ★★★★★ Visage (2009) ★★★ Jiao you (2013) ★★★★★ Xi you (2014) ★★★★★ Rizi (2020) ★★★

80. Pierre Étaix

Actor | Le grand amour

Pierre Étaix was born on November 23, 1928 in Roanne, Loire, France. He was an actor and writer, known for Le Grand Amour (1969), As Long as You've Got Your Health (1966) and Yoyo (1965). He was married to Odile Crepin, Annie Fratellini and Denise bernard. He died on October 14, 2016 in Paris, ...

B

4 Films / 4 Favorites

Le soupirant (1962) ★★★★★ Yoyo (1965) ★★★★★ Tant qu'on a la santé (1966) ★★★★★ Le grand amour (1969) ★★★★★

81. Otto Preminger

Actor | Stalag 17

Otto Ludwig Preminger was born in Wiznitz, Bukovina, Austria-Hungary. His father was a prosecutor, and Otto originally intended to follow his father into a law career; however, he fell in love with the theater in his 20's and became one of the most imaginative stage producers and directors. He was ...

B

14 Films / 5 Favorites

Laura (1944) ★★★★★ Fallen Angel (1945) ★★★ Daisy Kenyon (1947) ★★★★ Whirlpool (1950) ★★★ Where the Sidewalk Ends (1950) ★★★ Angel Face (1952) ★★★★ The Moon Is Blue (1953) ★★★★★ River of No Return (1954) ★★★★ The Man with the Golden Arm (1955) ★★★★★ Saint Joan (1957) ★★★★ Bonjour tristesse (1958) ★★★★★ Anatomy of a Murder (1959) ★★★★★ Advise & Consent (1962) ★★★★ Bunny Lake Is Missing (1965) ★★★

82. 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 ...

B

13 Films / 6 Favorites

Nóz w wodzie (1962) ★★★★ Repulsion (1965) ★★★★ Cul-de-sac (1966) ★★★ Rosemary's Baby (1968) ★★★★★ Che? (1972) ★★★★★ Chinatown (1974) ★★★★★ Le locataire (1976) ★★★ Frantic (1988) ★★★★★ Bitter Moon (1992) ★★★★★ The Pianist (2002) ★★★★ The Ghost Writer (2010) ★★ Carnage (2011) ★★★★ La Vénus à la fourrure (2013) ★★★★★

83. Mohsen Makhmalbaf

Writer | Gabbeh

Mohsen Makhmalbaf is known as one of the most influential filmmakers and founders of the new wave of Iranian cinema in the world today.

Many of his films like Salam Cinema, A Moment Of Innocence, Gabbeh, Kandahar and The President have been widely well received across the globe and have brought him ...

B

10 Films / 3 Favorites

Dastforoush (1987) ★★★★★ Arousi-ye Khouban (1989) ★★★★ Bicycleran (1989) ★★★★★ Nassereddin Shah, Actor-e Cinema (1992) ★★★★ Salam Cinema (1995) ★★★★★ Noon o Goldoon (1996) ★★★★ Gabbeh (1996) ★★★★ Sokout (1998) ★★★ Safar-e Ghandehar (2001) ★★★★ Alefbay-e afghan (2002) ★★★

84. Takeshi Kitano

Actor | Zatôichi

Takeshi Kitano originally studied to become an engineer, but was thrown out of school for rebellious behavior. He learned comedy, singing and dancing from famed comedian Senzaburô Fukami. Working as a lift boy on a nightclub with such features as comic sketches and striptease dancing, Kitano saw ...

C+

10 Films / 3 Favorites

Sono otoko, kyôbô ni tsuki (1989) ★★★ 3-4 x jûgatsu (1990) ★★★ Ano natsu, ichiban shizukana umi (1991) ★★★★ Sonachine (1993) ★★★★ Kizzu ritân (1996) ★★★★★ Hana-bi (1997) ★★★★★ Kikujirô no natsu (1999) ★★★★★ Brother (2000) ★★ Dôruzu (2002) ★★★ Zatôichi (2003) ★★★

85. Agnès Varda

Director | Cléo de 5 à 7

Agnès Varda was born on May 30, 1928 in Ixelles, Belgium. She was a director and writer, known for Cléo from 5 to 7 (1962), Vagabond (1985) and Faces Places (2017). She was married to Jacques Demy. She died on March 29, 2019 in Paris, France.

C+

11 Films / 3 Favorites

La Pointe-Courte (1955) ★★ Cléo de 5 à 7 (1962) ★★★★★ Le bonheur (1965) ★★★★ Les créatures (1966) ★★★★ Mur murs (1981) ★★★★ Sans toit ni loi (1985) ★★★★ Kung-fu master! (1988) ★★★ Les cent et une nuits de Simon Cinéma (1995) ★★★★ Les glaneurs et la glaneuse (2000) ★★★★ Les plages d'Agnès (2008) ★★★★★ Visages villages (2017) ★★★★★

86. 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 ...

C+

20 Films / 6 Favorites

Mean Streets (1973) ★★★★ Taxi Driver (1976) ★★★★★ New York, New York (1977) ★★ Raging Bull (1980) ★★★★★ The King of Comedy (1982) ★★★★★ After Hours (1985) ★★★★★ Goodfellas (1990) ★★★★ Cape Fear (1991) ★★ The Age of Innocence (1993) ★★★ Casino (1995) ★★★★ Il mio viaggio in Italia (1999) ★★★★★ Bringing Out the Dead (1999) ★★ Gangs of New York (2002) ★★ The Aviator (2004) ★★★ The Departed (2006) ★★★ Shutter Island (2010) ★★★ Hugo (2011) ★★★★ The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) ★★ The Irishman (2019) ★★★★★ Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) ★★★★

87. Woody Allen

Writer | Annie Hall

Woody Allen was born on November 30, 1935, as Allen Konigsberg, in The Bronx, NY, the son of Martin Konigsberg and Nettie Konigsberg. He has one younger sister, Letty Aronson. As a young boy, he became intrigued with magic tricks and playing the clarinet, two hobbies that he continues today.

Allen ...

C+

24 Films / 4 Favorites

Take the Money and Run (1969) ★★★ Bananas (1971) ★★★ Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex * But Were Afraid to Ask (1972) ★★ Sleeper (1973) ★★ Love and Death (1975) ★★★ Annie Hall (1977) ★★★★★ Interiors (1978) ★★★ Manhattan (1979) ★★★★★ Stardust Memories (1980) ★★★ Zelig (1983) ★★★ Broadway Danny Rose (1984) ★★★★★ The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985) ★★★★ Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) ★★★★ Radio Days (1987) ★★★★ Another Woman (1988) ★★★★ Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) ★★★★ Shadows and Fog (1991) ★★★ Husbands and Wives (1992) ★★★ Bullets Over Broadway (1994) ★★★ Deconstructing Harry (1997) ★★★★★ Small Time Crooks (2000) ★★★ Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) ★ Midnight in Paris (2011) ★★★★ Blue Jasmine (2013) ★★★★

88. D.W. Griffith

Director | The Birth of a Nation

David Wark Griffith was born in rural Kentucky to Jacob "Roaring Jake" Griffith, a former Confederate Army colonel and Civil War veteran. Young Griffith grew up with his father's romantic war stories and melodramatic nineteenth-century literature that were to eventually shape his movies. In 1897 ...

C+

12 Films / 3 Favorites

A Corner in Wheat (1909) ★★★★★ The Lonely Villa (1909) ★★★ The Musketeers of Pig Alley (1912) ★★★★ The Avenging Conscience: or 'Thou Shalt Not Kill' (1914) ★★★ Judith of Bethulia (1914) ★★★ The Birth of a Nation (1915) ★★★ Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages (1916) ★★★★★ Broken Blossoms or The Yellow Man and the Girl (1919) ★★★★★ True Heart Susie (1919) ★★★★ Way Down East (1920) ★★★★ Orphans of the Storm (1921) ★★★★ The Struggle (1931) ★★★

89. 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 ...

C+

8 Films / 2 Favorites

The Strong Man (1926) ★★★ The Bitter Tea of General Yen (1932) ★★★★ It Happened One Night (1934) ★★★★ Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) ★★★ You Can't Take It with You (1938) ★★★★ Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) ★★★★★ Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) ★★★ It's a Wonderful Life (1946) ★★★★★

90. Lucrecia Martel

Director | La mujer sin cabeza

Born in 1966 in Salta in the North of Argentina,Lucrecia Martel settled down in Buenos Aires where she attended the ENERC (National Film School). She started by directing a few shorts among which Historias Breves I: Rey muerto (1995), which garnered several awards in the international film festival...

C+

4 Films / 2 Favorites

La Ciénaga (2001) ★★★★★ La niña santa (2004) ★★★★ La mujer sin cabeza (2008) ★★★★★ Zama (2017) ★★★★

91. Budd Boetticher

Director | Bullfighter and the Lady

Brilliant, distinguished American director, particularly of Westerns, whose simple, bleak style disguises a complex artistic temperament. The adopted son of a wealthy hardware retailer, Boetticher attended Culver Military Academy and Ohio State University, where he excelled in football and boxing.

...

C+

13 Films / 3 Favorites

Escape in the Fog (1945) ★★★ Behind Locked Doors (1948) ★★★ The Man from the Alamo (1953) ★★★★ Seminole (1953) ★★★ The Killer Is Loose (1956) ★★★★ 7 Men from Now (1956) ★★★★ The Tall T (1957) ★★★★★ Decision at Sundown (1957) ★★★★ Buchanan Rides Alone (1958) ★★★ Westbound (1958) ★★★ Ride Lonesome (1959) ★★★★★ Comanche Station (1960) ★★★★ A Time for Dying (1969) ★★★★★

92. Noah Baumbach

Writer | The Squid and the Whale

Born in Brooklyn in 1969 Noah Baumbach is the son of two film critics, Georgia Brown and Jonathan Baumbach (also a writer). His studies at Vassar College were the subject of his first film (made as he was 26 years old), Kicking and Screaming (1995). His second major picture, made ten years later, ...

C+

6 Films / 4 Favorites

The Squid and the Whale (2005) ★★★★ Greenberg (2010) ★★★★★ Frances Ha (2012) ★★★★★ Mistress America (2015) ★★★★★ Marriage Story (2019) ★★★★★ White Noise (2022) ★★★★

93. Aki Kaurismäki

Producer | Le Havre

Aki Kaurismäki did a wide variety of jobs including postman, dish-washer and film critic, before forming a production and distribution company, Villealfa (in homage to Jean-Luc Godard's Alphaville (1965)) with his older brother Mika Kaurismäki, also a film-maker. Both Aki and Mika are prolific ...

B

19 Films / 4 Favorites

Rikos ja rangaistus (1983) ★★★ Calamari Union (1985) ★★★★ Varjoja paratiisissa (1986) ★★★★ Hamlet liikemaailmassa (1987) ★★★ Ariel (1988) ★★★★ Leningrad Cowboys Go America (1989) ★★★★ Tulitikkutehtaan tyttö (1990) ★★★★★ I Hired a Contract Killer (1990) ★★★★ La vie de bohème (1992) ★★★★ Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses (1994) ★★★ Total Balalaika Show (1994) ★★★ Pidä huivista kiinni, Tatjana (1994) ★★★ Kauas pilvet karkaavat (1996) ★★★★ Total Balalaika Show (1994) ★★★ Mies vailla menneisyyttä (2002) ★★★★★ Laitakaupungin valot (2006) ★★★★ Le Havre (2011) ★★★★ Toivon tuolla puolen (2017) ★★★★★ Kuolleet lehdet (2023) ★★★★★

94. 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.

C+

8 Films / 2 Favorites

Gongdong gyeongbi guyeok JSA (2000) ★★★★ Boksuneun naui geot (2002) ★★★★ Oldeuboi (2003) ★★★★★ Chinjeolhan geumjassi (2005) ★★★★ Ssa-i-bo-geu-ji-man-gwen-chan-a (2006) ★★★ Bakjwi (2009) ★★★★ Ah-ga-ssi (2016) ★★★★★ Heojil kyolshim (2022) ★★★★

95. 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...

C+

9 Films / 3 Favorites

Sydney (1996) ★★★★ Boogie Nights (1997) ★★★★ Magnolia (1999) ★★★★★ Punch-Drunk Love (2002) ★★★ There Will Be Blood (2007) ★★★★★ The Master (2012) ★★★★ Inherent Vice (2014) ★★★★ Phantom Thread (2017) ★★★★★ Licorice Pizza (2021) ★★★★

96. Roy Andersson

Director | En kärlekshistoria

Roy Arne Lennart Andersson is a Swedish film director, best known for his distinctive style of absurdist humor and melancholic depictions of human life. His personal style is characterized by long takes, and stiff caricaturing of Swedish culture and grotesque. Over his career Andersson earned ...

C+

5 Films / 3 Favorites

En kärlekshistoria (1970) ★★ Sånger från andra våningen (2000) ★★★★★ Du levande (2007) ★★★★★ En duva satt på en gren och funderade på tillvaron (2014) ★★★★★ Om det oändliga (2019) ★★★★

97. Terence Davies

Writer | Distant Voices, Still Lives

Terence Davies was born on November 10, 1945 in Liverpool, England, UK. He was a writer and director, known for Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988), The House of Mirth (2000) and Benediction (2021). He died on October 7, 2023 in Mistley, Essex, England, UK.

C+

4 Films / 2 Favorites

Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988) ★★★★★ The Long Day Closes (1992) ★★★★★ The House of Mirth (2000) ★★★★ The Deep Blue Sea (2011) ★★★

98. Shôhei Imamura

Director | Kuroi ame

Shohei Imamura's films dig beneath the surface of Japanese society to reveal a wellspring of sensual, often irrational, energy that lies beneath. Along with his colleagues Nagisa Ôshima and Masahiro Shinoda, Imamura began his serious directorial career as a member of the New Wave movement in Japan....

C+

10 Films / 1 Favorites

Buta to gunkan (1961) ★★★★ Nippon konchûki (1963) ★★★★ Akai satsui (1964) ★★★★ Erogotoshi-tachi yori: Jinruigaku nyûmon (1966) ★★★ Ningen jôhatsu (1967) ★★★ Kamigami no fukaki yokubô (1968) ★★★★ Fukushû suru wa ware ni ari (1979) ★★★ Narayama bushikô (1983) ★★★★ Kuroi ame (1989) ★★★★ Unagi (1997) ★★★★★

99. Wes Anderson

Director | Fantastic Mr. Fox

Wesley Wales Anderson was born in Houston, Texas. His mother, Texas Ann (Burroughs), is an archaeologist turned real estate agent, and his father, Melver Leonard Anderson, worked in advertising and PR. He has two brothers, Eric and Mel. Anderson's parents divorced when he was a young child, an ...

C+

10 Films / 3 Favorites

Bottle Rocket (1996) ★★★ Rushmore (1998) ★★★★★ The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) ★★★★★ The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) ★★★★ Hotel Chevalier (2007) ★★★ Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) ★★★★ Moonrise Kingdom (2012) ★★★★★ The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) ★★★★ Isle of Dogs (2018) ★★★★ The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun (2021) ★★★

100. 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...

C+

10 Films / 3 Favorites

MASH (1970) ★ McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) ★★★★ Images (1972) ★★★★ The Long Goodbye (1973) ★★★★★ California Split (1974) ★★★★ Nashville (1975) ★★★★ 3 Women (1977) ★★★★★ The Player (1992) ★★★★ Short Cuts (1993) ★★★★★ Gosford Park (2001) ★★★★