BO.com 100 Greatest Directors PRESENTATION

[luna]

D.W. Griffith....one of the most influential directors of our time is in the 80's? How is that even possible? There is no way you can make a case for him being anything less than top 25. Everyone knows that this list is for the top 100 directors of all-time, right? 

 

I am glad Lewis Milestone made the list though. Very well deserved.

 

if you're worried about influence, then why wasn't, say, george melies on your list?

[baumer]

Of course I do. I never took a film theory class. But, you can't compare Kevin Smith's low budget schlock to Birth of a Nation (I mean, you can, but you know what I mean). I mean it's DW Griffith. There was something sorta like directing before him and then there was directing after him. Best director implies the best...not the most recent.

 

If people don't know anything about DW Griffith, then that's embarrassing.

 

But he's not the best.  He's the first which obviously makes him influential.  But there's nothing he did that is considered a great film in today's world.  Things improve over time.  Original, as I said, doesn't make you the best.

[Walt Disney]

if you're worried about influence, then why wasn't, say, george melies on your list?

 

Because there were other directors that had to be there ahead of him. DW Griffith could be considered the father of modern directing.

 

Although, Wes Anderson being on the list is more embarrassing than DW Griffith being so low on the list. Maybe people didn't know who DW Griffith was, and as bad as that is, it's possible. People knew who Wes Anderson was and actually voted for him.

[Walt Disney]

But he's not the best.  He's the first which obviously makes him influential.  But there's nothing he did that is considered a great film in today's world.  Things improve over time.  Original, as I said, doesn't make you the best.

 

I agree that he isn't the best....only 1 of the best. But, more than influential, his movies stand the test of time better than many others. He's far and away one the best. He's so much one of the best that people are still using his techniques today. Birth of a Nation is THE movie from that time period, and that was all DW Griffith. If you're talking about the best, that's some of the best directing the film world has ever seen. 

Edited February 4, 2014 by Walt Disney

[Jake Gittes]

But there's nothing he did that is considered a great film in today's world. 

By you? Intolerance was just released on blu-ray in November and the reviews I read were full of admiration for the movie. Birth of a Nation is more controversial but plenty of people would argue that it has its merits. I haven't seen either so I don't have my opinion, but I've seen a handful of films from the 1920s and there are masterpieces in there (like Sunrise) that would stand up to anything made today. 

[baumer]

IMO, and mine alone, DW Griffith doesn't deserve to be on this list.  He's a pioneer and he is incredibly influential but he is far from one of the 100 best directors of all time.  IMO.

[Jake Gittes]

I don't love everything Wes Anderson's done, but I'd be stupid to deny that he's got an original voice and a hell of an eye, both things still too rare in cinema. He deserves being on the list for Rushmore alone.

[baumer]

It seems to me that Anderson has an interesting writing style.  He writes films that are definitely not conventional.  But imo, I don't see him as one of the top 100.  But that's what great about the list, sparks conversation.

[riczhang]

By you? Intolerance was just released on blu-ray in November and the reviews I read were full of admiration for the movie. Birth of a Nation is more controversial but plenty of people would argue that it has its merits. I haven't seen either so I don't have my opinion, but I've seen a handful of films from the 1920s and there are masterpieces in there (like Sunrise) that would stand up to anything made today.

This. Well I would disagree with sunrise but both Intolerance and Birth of a Nation and many other old films still best the shit out of anything that Cameron, Bay, Von Trier and indeed many others have done. Just because something's super old, silent and black and white doesn't automatically make it a lesser film than modern film. If anything they are much more engaging.

[Ozymandias]

Lol, it doesn't get anymore "Olderer = betterer = I are smarterer" than D.W. Griffith.

[Jessie]

Wes Anderson, imho, doesn't belong anywhere near this list.  

 

This, his films are pure shite imo.

Edited February 4, 2014 by Jessie

[baumer]

This. Well I would disagree with sunrise but both Intolerance and Birth of a Nation and many other old films still best the shit out of anything that Cameron, Bay, Von Trier and indeed many others have done. Just because something's super old, silent and black and white doesn't automatically make it a lesser film than modern film. If anything they are much more engaging.

 

Actually, yes it does.  

 

These guys today have developed their skill so much more than he did simply because he was the pioneer.  Comparing Cameron to Griffith is like comparing the first draft of a script to the finished, polished draft that gets made.  There's no comparison.  And this isn't even really an opinion.  It's fact.  

[luna]

Cameron, Bay, Von Trier

 

lol, you did that on purpose.

[luna]

so far, i've had herzog, luhrmann, bertolucci, milestone, von trier and wes anderson on my list of 90-ish.

 

for griffith i've only seen broken blossoms, which was really nice but didn't strike me as anything particularly great or unique. doesn't compare to the insane visual artistry of something like metropolis, though i suppose that's a decade later.

[riczhang]

Actually, yes it does. These guys today have developed their skill so much more than he did simply because he was the pioneer. Comparing Cameron to Griffith is like comparing the first draft of a script to the finished, polished draft that gets made. There's no comparison. And this isn't even really an opinion. It's fact.

That's a ridiculous and uninformed opinion. Old films can be and sometimes are much better than new films. Give me Transformers and Intolerance and I'd choose the latter every single time because it is a better movie. Besides this is a list of greatest which connotes most influential anyways so I'm not sure why people started this anyways. Not 100 best or 100 favourite but 100 GREATEST

[riczhang]

so far, i've had herzog, luhrmann, bertolucci, milestone, von trier and wes anderson on my list of 90-ish.for griffith i've only seen broken blossoms, which was really nice but didn't strike me as anything particularly great or unique. doesn't compare to the insane visual artistry of something like metropolis, though i suppose that's a decade later.

There's not a lot of insane artistry but his movies are still very well shot.

[The Stingray]

Psycho (1960) is the oldest movie I've seen. I know nothing about movies or directors before that time.

 

Acting was shit back in those days, I'm sure directing was too.

 

[Plain Old Tele]

I'm not going to get caught up in a bunch of debate. I'd say this list is worthwhile for discovering or rediscovering directors. If there's someone who you're not particularly familiar with, try to watch a couple of their films. Who knows, maybe you'll discover a new favorite.

[Michael Gary Scott]

Wes Anderson, imho, doesn't belong anywhere near this list.

and I disagree sir

[The Stingray]

I'm not going to get caught up in a bunch of debate. I'd say this list is worthwhile for discovering or rediscovering directors. If there's someone who you're not particularly familiar with, try to watch a couple of their films. Who knows, maybe you'll discover a new favorite.

lol. Tele, the wise old man card is played out. You need to get yo freak on.