Films/DVD Asylum

Posted by Harmonia (A) on November 22, 2002 at 12:56:21

In Reply to: You knew it was coming posted by mvwine on November 22, 2002 at 07:43:48:

No problem with John Ford, Billy Wilder, John Houston (God, yes!), or Orson Welles. These are all unquestionalby great American directors.

I'm not sure about Woody...truly. I'm inclined to leave him out for now. I adore Chaplin and think he is a great director, but I'm not sure he is American in sensibiity, although he made almost all his films in US. He was not an American citzen at any rate. Unlike..Hitchcock...another Brit expat I don't know where to place, is he British or is he American? I think he belongs in any best director top ten...but perhaps in a British list. (Whew)

As for changes...I would have to add Martin Scorsese (see post below), substitute Preston Sturges for Frank Capra, and include Coppola: Apocalypse Now, The Godfathers I & II and The Conversation (my personal fave) cannot be ignored. And although many here will be horrified, I'm going to put in Robert Altman. (I don't feel it necesary that every film in a director's oevre be outstanding, only that a certain number of that group be great - Nashville, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Thieves Like Us, A Wedding, Vincent & Theo and The Player are enough for me.)

The last slots are incredibly hard: I want to include Stan Brakhage, my old teacher, although he doesn't work in narrative cinema. So perhaps I will merely give him a nod of special recognition outside the list of storytellers.

Kubrick has to be on the list. I hate The Shining and EWS, but Spartacus, Dr. Strangelove, 2001, The Killing, Clockwork Orange and (maybe) Barry Lyndon earn him a place in my top ten. I think Spike Lee is one of the most talented filmmakers we have - but has he made an unquestioned masterpiece yet? Do The Right Thing was close.

The last slot is beyond difficult: Howard Hawks is an obvious selection. But what about Elia Kazan? D.W. Griffith? Sam Peckinpah? Stanley Donen? Doug Sirk? John Cassevetes? Buster Keaton? George Stevens? Wise? Wyler? Cukor? Mankiewicz? Bogdanovich? Who????

Nobody's mentioned any documentarians yet either. What about Robert Wiseman? Have any of you ever seen Titticut Follies?

OK. Here goes: (My highly personal top ten in no particular order)

Orson Welles
Billy Wilder
John Houston
John Ford
Preston Sturges
Stanley Kubrick
Martin Scorsese
Francis Ford Coppola
Robert Altman
David Lynch (Take that! Harmonia runs off to don flameproof suit.)

Special Lifetime Achievement: Stan Brakhage

Honorable mention:
John Cassevetes
Buster Keaton
Howard Hawks
Woody Allen

The "Oh, how low have the once mighty fallen" Award: Brian de Palma

I think I'll do a separate British list so I can have my cake and eat it too.

So many movies...so little time.