No reason at all for a post like this. Other than we’re in the third row, it’s just another reason to put together an obscure movie list. My first idea was to find director’s who weren’t very good until their third film. That proved to be rather difficult as it turns out most directors are pretty good right off the bat or in some cases (Christopher Nolan), they’re awesome directors but the third entry in their catalog is not very good. So that initial idea went out the window and I decided to simply highlight awesome thrid time efforts – whether their other films were good or not.
So in no particular order, here are 30 prolific directors (still working) and their awesome (not necessarily best) third film. All of which were fantastic follow-ups to previous titles in their filmography (videos, shorts and TV episodes don’t count).
Quentin Tarantino – Jackie Brown
Coen Brothers – Miller’s Crossing
Paul Thomas Anderson – Magnolia
Robert Zemckis – Romancing the Stone
Bob Clark – Black Christmas
Jonathan Levine – 50/50
Cameron Crowe – Jerry Maguire
Terry Gilliam – Time Bandits
Tony Kaye – Lake of Fire
Paul Greengrass – Bloody Sunday
Wes Anderson – The Royal Tanenbaums
John Carpenter – Halloween
Kevin Costner – Open Range
Mike Mills – Beginners
Neil Marshall – Doomsday
Ang Lee – Eat Drink Man Woman
Ridley Scott – Blade Runner
Ron Howard – Splash
Christopher Guest – Best in Show
John Hughes – Weird Science
Jean Pierre Jeunet – Alien: Resurrection
Mel Gibson – Passion of the Christ
Stan Dragoti – Mr. Mom
James Cameron – Aliens
Robert Rodriguez – Desperado
Richard Linklater – Dazed and Confused
Phil Alden Robinson – Sneakers
Brad Bird – Ratatouille
David Fincher – The Game
Kelly Reichardt – Wendy and Lucy
I’m sure there are more; can you think of any?
That’s a really clever idea! I’d add Woody Allen’s Bananas, Mel Brooks’s Blazing Saddles, George Lucas’s Star Wars, Jacques Tati’s Mon Oncle, Spike Jonze’s Adaptation, David Mamet’s Homicide, Robert Benton’s Kramer vs. Kramer, and, I suppose Steven Spielberg’s Jaws.
What Nat said above, a really clever idea for a post!
I’d also add Park Chan-wook’s JSA (Joint Security Area), Terrence Malick’s The Thin Red Line, Wong Kar Wai’s Chungking Express and to go very recent Lynne Ramsay’s We Need To Talk About Kevin.
P.S. Neil Marshall’s Doomsday is not good…
Hey Ross – those are all great titles! Totally forgot to look into Mallick for some reason.
And Doomsday kicks all sorts of ass. Can’t understand the lack of love for that movie. Everything about it just screams awesome. Malcolm McDowell as the King of a medieval castle, gladiator-style thunderdome-esque fights, rage infected psychos, fast cars, horseback chases, flying beheadings, a cannibal circus complete with a live “roasting”, hot chicks in leather, removable recording eyeballs, Mad Max meets Escape from New York, great action sequences. Seriously!? What’s not to love?
Great header image. Not only Burton’s 3rd full feature, but hey, that’s how you summon the Mr. B.Juice. I bow down.
It’s kind of amazing how many of those third films are, like, the iconic one the director is known for (or first became known for, or remains among their most highly-regarded). Blade Runner, Desperado, Best in Show, Halloween…probably others.
You know that now I want to go back and look at EVERY director’s filmography to see what their third film is, right? I don’t have time for this! :p