Five Film Favorites: Directors

Being the manager of a repertory cinema, Richmond's Biograph Theatre, for nearly a dozen years (1971-83) was quite a film education. By watching selected movies several times I came to understand, somewhat, the factors that made particular movies so outstanding and what made others difficult to watch. 

During those years, by also reading a lot about movies and frequently discussing related topics with people who knew a lot about cinema, it further developed my appreciation for the ingredients that usually made the great films just that. It all went to understanding why I loved my favorite films so much.

Put simply, let's stipulate that popular feature-length movies usually contain at least a couple of really good scenes that people like to talk about. In the best films, such scenes are strung together gracefully.  

Most of my all-time favorite films were made by directors who developed a distinctive style that is noticeable in several films they directed. Thus, my favorite movie directors are pretty good examples of what film aficionados once liked to call, "auteurs." 

Frequently such directors wrote or co-wrote the screenplays. Somehow, perhaps chiefly because they were so talented, they managed to get their artistically ambitious projects financed, without having to make the sort of stylistic compromises many of their fellow filmmakers had to make, in order to keep steady work. 

And, yes, my five favorites in this category are all dead. Which means they can‘t keep doing what one prolific filmmaker, Martin Scorsese, has been doing to tarnish his once-stellar reputation. (Have you seen "The Irishman" (2019)? 

It's awful!

Now it appears that making a movie, using the up-to-date gadgetry most productions seem to use, has gotten to be so expensive that the rainmakers who gather the financing for motion pictures don’t want to risk gambling on projects that exceed the bounds of focus group wisdom. 

Anyway, for whatever reasons, we hear much less about "auteurs" these days. That's OK by me; the word always has sounded a bit overcooked. 

Now, in alphabetical order, my list of favorite five directors, along with five of their most representative/best films are as follows (my favorite flick for each director is in bold): 

Luis Buñuel (1900-83; born in Spain, made some films in Spanish, some in French): “Los Olvidados” (1950), “Belle de Jour” (1967), “Tristana” (1970), “The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie” (1972), “The Phantom of Liberty” (1974).

Federico Fellini (1920-93; born in Italy, made films in Italian): “Nights of Cabiria” (1957), “La Dolce Vita” (1960), “8½” (1963), “Juliet of the Spirits” (1965), “Amarcord” (1973).

John Huston (1907-87; born in the USA, made films in English): "Key Largo" (1948), “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre” (1948), "The Asphalt  Jungle" (1950), “The African Queen” (1951), “Wise Blood” (1979).

Elia Kazan (1909-2003; born in Istanbul and immigrated to the USA at the age of four, made films in English): “A Streetcar Named Desire” (1951), “On the Waterfront” (1954), “East of Eden” (1955), “A Face in the Crowd” (1957), "Wild River" (1960).

Stanley Kubrick (1928-99; born in the USA, made films in English): “The Killing” (1956), “Paths of Glory” (1957), "Lolita" (1962), “Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb” (1964), “Full Metal Jacket” (1987).

In 1977, at the Biograph Theatre, it was my job
to select the films for our repertory festivals
and design the promotional programs, such
as this one with the auteur theme.  

Note: The director I am liking more in recent years (especially since I first wrote this piece about 10 years ago) is Louis Malle. "Elevator to the Gallows" (1958) has shouldered its way onto my all-time top ten features list.