First things first, obviously very happy to find this place. I thought it'd be good to have an initial director discussion thread.
Personally David Fincher and Darren Aaronofsky — I can watch their films time and time again. I'm currently watching The Whale for the second time and I think it's one of the most powerful movies I've ever seen.
First two directors I used to be into but no longer:
I loved Tarantino's work but I feel that I've "outgrown" it. I'm just not that interested in ultraviolence anymore.
Similarly, big fan of Wes Anderson, especially Moonrise Kingdom, but the incredible whiteness (both in cast and settings) of the majority of his movies has me longing for something more diverse (again, in both literal casting and in thematic backgrounds).
And now, who I'm still excited for:
DANIELS - I really enjoyed Swiss Army Man, tho it was flawed. I was hyped for Everything Everywhere and it delivered and then some. Can't wait to see what they do next if that was just their second one.
Makoto Shinkai - All of his work is so achingly beautiful. Love it.
Jordan Peele - Loved Get Out of course. Us was interesting but didn't stick as much. Even NOPE was flawed but still very unique and intriguing. I want to see what else he has.
Ari Aster - Hereditary was good, and Midsommar was amazing. I heard very little at all about Beau is Afraid (which is almost worse than hearing bad things), and I haven't seen it yet. Still intrigued to see what's next.
I haven't seen some of his earlier movies, but Denis Villeneuve has made some of my favorite recent movies, including Arrival
I also am a huge fan of the Wachowskis, loved Cloud Atlas, Sense8, and Speed Racer. Only movie i didn't really enjoy was Jupiter Ascending, but even then, there were aspects i still liked
Jupiter Ascending and Cloud Atlas are both great examples of my general rule that I'll take an interesting but imperfect movie over an uninteresting but well made movie any day. As long as you're exploring some new ground, I'll get something out of it.
I am in love with the style of Edgar Wright. To me, he is the best director. Not only because I enjoy his work, but also because in my eyes, he is one of few directors who understand the medium movies, and use that knowledge with every frame.
He is one big reason, why I began to look at movies as an Art form.
I've been watching a lot of Mike Flanagan's stuff recently. I'm a sucker for Stephen King and he's the only one I've seen able to match the feel of King's storytelling and atmosphere.
I've enjoyed everything from Benson and Moorhead. Unique ideas, creative shots, and interesting stories that aren't spoonfed, but without getting lost up their own asses. Probably my favorite lesser known filmmakers.
I'd recommend starting with The Endless. It's about two brothers returning to the UFO death cult they'd escaped as kids, and having to face the possibility that maybe the cult had been right all along.
Since no one else mentioned him, I'll go with Akira Kurosawa this time. Rashomon is a great watch on the short side and my personal favourite, based on a short story by Akutagawa. The most enjoyable part of the movie to me is the obvious - different ways the characters twist their retelling of the crime, which do a great job of telling you what kind of person the speaker is.
In addition, I'd bet most people if not have watched it, have atleast heard of Seven Samurai. If not, surely have seen something inspired by the movie.
I tend to enjoy movies directed by Terry Gilliam, Stanley Kubrick, Clive Barker, Quentin Tarantino, Guillermo del Toro, Ridley Scott, John Carpenter, or Christopher Nolan. I'm sure there's way more out there that I've forgotten. With that said, the older Steven Spielberg movies were great, but I kind of fell off that wagon awhile back.
*edit for spelling
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