lilmac Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 With six critically acclaimed movies under his belt, is it too early to list (not rank) among the greatest directors? I don't think so. By 1989, when Spielberg was the same age as Nolan (42) is now, we knew that he would be a legend. Same for Kubrick, Scorcese, and Coppolla. Nolan has impeccable filmmaking skills and a fantastic range. What do you think? Does he need more movies under his belt? Does he need more timeless classics to qualify (2001, ET, Godfather)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonwo Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 He's a great director but I think he should go in a different direction for his next films, Spielberg has alway been a mix of serious and populist with Indiana Jones, ET, Schindler's List, Jurrasic Park etc whereas Nolan's quite a serious director, I couldn't see him doing a family film. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4815162342 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 He needs more movies and he needs to branch out beyond "thinking-man" spectacle films. He needs to make more films on the scale of Memento/The Prestige but also in genres beyond sci-fi and thriller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonwo Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 It'll never happen but I think he should direct the Cleopatra biopic that been in development at Sony for a few years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gopher Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 I've loved almost everything he's produced but he needs more range. Just look at Kubrick, Speilberg, Scorsese and the like. So many unique pictures. Even the Coens have branched pretty widely, even if their quirk is signature to all of their work. I would argue Fincher isn't either (yet) because he applies the same feel to all of his movies whether the script calls for it or not. For my money he's directed two great movies (Zodiac and TSN). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Stingray Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haku Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 (edited) I want to be in love with all of Nolan's work, but I always seem to leave with a sense of disappointment when I watch his movies, aside from BB and TDK. I'm sure I'm in the minority on this, but there's always that one last piece that seems to be missing for me. I love his ideas, but some of the writing needs work. Inception for example had all the makings of being an amazing thriller with tons of brains behind it. The brains were there, but something was oddly missing. Compelling dialogue for one, and the James Bond/Golden Eye video game level inspired third act suffered. He's one of those directors that could benefit from exiting his comfort zone for sure. I reckon that he still has a magnum opus inside him somewhere. I really like to believe that TDK is just the tip of the iceberg. Edited July 21, 2012 by haku Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cedarpoint1111 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 He is practically a household name now. That to me puts him up there with the greats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Nevada Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Not yet, but if he doesn't have too many misfires, then in about 10 years he will be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoolioD1 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Nope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acsc1312 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Not yet, but he really showed with TDKR that he's maturing into a director that can handle extremely dramatic situations. I think TDKR will turn out to be his vehicle into his original dramas, and will ultimately be where he transitioned into one of the greats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishstick Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 He's a great director but I think he should go in a different direction for his next films, Spielberg has alway been a mix of serious and populist with Indiana Jones, ET, Schindler's List, Jurrasic Park etc whereas Nolan's quite a serious director, I couldn't see him doing a family film. So Hitchcock is not one of the greats because he didn`t make a family movie? Just because a director isn`t a genre crossover it doesn`t make him less great. Anyway, Nolan is undoubtly the greatest director to come out of the aughts cinema. However, it`ll take more than a decade for him to join all-time greats. Not because of the number of movies they made vs his (Cameron filmography is short but boy do those movies hold up) but because the merit is really how his opus is regarded decades later. And by that I mean when there are no sequels and prequels and reboots etc to renew interest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jb007 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 No. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Master Scottb Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Too soon to say, his work is too new. If we could fast forward 20-30 years look back, and see his movies as classics the same way we see Spielberg's work then I would agree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4815162342 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 (edited) So Hitchcock is not one of the greats because he didn`t make a family movie? Just because a director isn`t a genre crossover it doesn`t make him less great.Anyway, Nolan is undoubtly the greatest director to come out of the aughts cinema. However, it`ll take more than a decade for him to join all-time greats.Well, Hitchcock gets away with anything because he's made films like Rebecca, Rear Window, Strangers on a Train, North by Northwest, and so on. When you consistently make films that wonderful, you can stay in that zone.Now I won't be seeing TDKR until tomorrow morning so I don't know how Nolan concludes the whole Batman thing, but with 4 of his past 5 films being big spectacles, it'd be good for his career and development if he steps away from BIG films for at least a couple goes at it. If both of his films are along the scope and aim of say The Prestige I'd be cool with that, since The Prestige rocked and is his 2nd best outing so far.Even though Kubrick and I have a rocky relationship (I dislike a couple of his films a hell of a lot) I have to admire how diverse his filmography is. From war films (Paths of Glory, Full Metal Jacket) to sci-fi trippyness )2001) to dystopia (A Clockwork Orange) to period epics (Barry Lyndon) to black comedy (Dr. Strangelove) to horror (The Shining). Edited July 21, 2012 by 4815162342 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lab276 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 I didn't like The Prestige much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hey10224 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Christopher Nolan is awesome, but he needs to continue making his magnificent films to be considered one of the all-time greats. It's much harder in this day and age to make a real name for yourself when tons of blockbusters come out every year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tommycruise Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 If his next movie gets Inception/TDKR reviews and is a boxoffice success then Yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JCS Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 (edited) All his films have been great but he needs more time for his films to 'age' before he is seen as a classic/legendary director. Edited July 22, 2012 by JCS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wileECoyote Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 I'm in agreement with most people here. He's made some great movies and he's on the way to getting to that status, but he needs a longer track record and we need to know if his movies age well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...