Filmspotters' Top 100 Directors 2011: Comments and Discussion

[jbissell]

Did more women directors make the 100 this year?

The majority of new additions to my list were woman and I believe Elaine May was the only one not to make it. Good to see.

[oldkid]

Last year I didn't have Hitch on my ballot, but this year I decided to be fully honest and put him on.

I just discovered that I put Rian J on my list but not Andrew S.  I originally dropped them both off because they each only had two films, but I needed to fill in my ballot, so I put Rian on.  Shouda put on Andrew.

[Tim]

I switch the order of Tarr and Greenaway, and look what happens - one is substituted for the other!

[MartinTeller]

While I'm thrilled to have Tarr on the list, it sucks to lose Greenaway.  Next year, keep 'em both on your ballot!

[Life as Fiction]

Excited about participating next year.  Tried to make one, but just didn't feel ready.  Many classic masters I want to see a few more films from.

[Tim]

I had Tarr and Greenaway at 1 and 2 respectively! It's up to everyone else to get them both in the list.

[Melvil]

Kitano made the list. That's all that matters.

[skjerva]

had to leave the proceedings early, but overall i think i prefer 2011 to 2010.

i like that there are now a whopping 8 women represented over the previous 5, though not such a fan of Coppola (not seen SOMEWHERE but love THE VIRGIN SUICIDES). i can get behind Bigelow's inclusion, really like THE HURT LOCKER. never experienced Ramsay :/ my female directors, with my rank (which really isn't firmly set), followed by 2011>2010 rankings:

1. Kelly Reichardt 87>off
8. Agnès Varda 42>91
10. Catherine Breillat 96>off
12. Chantal Akerman off
14. Su Friedrich off
18. Claire Denis 26>37
33. Jil Godmilow off
49. Jane Campion 76>81

off. Sofia Coppola 98>off
off. Kathryn Bigelow 94>84
off. Lynne Ramsay 72>95

from worm's compilation biggest drops, i'm not invested enough in Gilliam or Lean to care and the others i think are over-rated.

from biggest climbers, i'm pleased as punch with all of them, all five being on my 50

i'm pleased to see a lot of the new entries - Catherine Breillat, Kelly Reichardt, Tsai Ming-liang,  James Gray, Errol Morris, Michael Haneke, and Andrei Tarkovsky - and am either not familiar enough with others, or am somewhere between fine and cool. on the exits, am very happy to see the morally bankrupt Eastwood gone i also find CUCKOO'S NEST nasty, so am happy to see forman gone for that alone. there are a few others here i think are over-rated, but, you know, this is all a matter of taste, so there's that the only one i'm sad to see gone is Smith.

on my first vomiting of my list, i included Hitchcock, but as i remembered a couple i'd rather have on, he was an easy choice to go, and not only because he was going to be overly/well represented by others.

all and all a pretty decent list for anyone who stumbles upon it, right?

how about this game:

if you could slide one director up ten and one director down ten (and not off the list), what would you do?

i think i'd drop Malick 10 spots and move Reichardt up 10

thanks again to worm and rouj

[jbissell]

I'd move Melville up 10 and drop Cameron 10.

[worm@work]

Tough decision on who to move up. My first thought was Cocteau up and Nolan down. But actually I think I'd rather move Denis up thereby securing her a place in the Top 20 and I'd still move Nolan down.