Greatest Film Directors and Their Best Films

These honored selections are designed as a tribute to some of the greatest directors of predominantly English-language films, with suggested or recommended Best Films or 'Must-See' Films from their filmographies.

In the April 19th, 1996 issue, Entertainment Weekly produced a cover-story article titled "The 50 Greatest Directors and Their 100 Best Movies". These top 50 "Greatest Directors of All Time" from their list are marked with this red 'directors-chair' symbol -- and the magazine's ranking number.

In 2005, Britain's Empire Magazine commissioned a poll of its readership to come up with a list of the top 40 greatest directors of all time. The Top 40 "Greatest Directors of All Time" (with their ranking number) from their list are marked below with an asterisk -- and their ranking number.

There were some very glaring and obvious omissions from Empire's list (i.e., Frank Capra, George Cukor, Michael Curtiz, Cecil B. DeMille, D. W. Griffith, John Huston, Elia Kazan, Buster Keaton, Ernst Lubitsch, Vincente Minnelli, F.W. Murnau, Roman Polanski, Powell and Pressburger, Otto Preminger, Douglas Sirk, George Stevens, Preston Sturges and William Wyler - to name a few), and their ranking was extremely questionable.

	HENRY KING 1886-1982 Durable, Consistently-Commercial Director from the Silents to the 60s Suggested Filmography: Tol'able David (1921), Stella Dallas (1925), Alexander's Ragtime Band (1938), In Old Chicago (1938), Jesse James (1939), Stanley and Livingstone (1939), A Yank in the RAF (1941), The Black Swan (1942), The Song of Bernadette (1943), Wilson (1944), A Bell for Adano (1945), Margie (1946), Captain From Castile (1947), Twelve O'Clock High (1949), Prince of Foxes (1949), The Gunfighter (1950), David and Bathsheba (1951), The Snows of Kilimanjaro (1952), King of the Khyber Rifles (1953), Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955), Carousel (1956), The Sun Also Rises (1957), The Bravados (1958), The Old Man and the Sea (1958), This Earth is Mine (1959), Beloved Infidel (1959).
	STANLEY KRAMER 1913-2001 Influential, Highly-Regarded Director-Producer of Social Themes and Issues in the 50s and 60s Suggested Filmography: Champion (1949) (producer), Home of the Brave (1949) (producer), The Men (1950) (producer), Death of a Salesman (1951) (producer), High Noon (1952) (producer), The Wild One (1954) (producer), The Caine Mutiny (1954) (producer), Not as a Stranger (1955), The Pride and the Passion (1957), The Defiant Ones (1958), On the Beach (1959), Inherit the Wind (1960), Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963), Ship of Fools (1965), Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), The Secret of Santa Vittoria (1969), Bless the Beasts and the Children (1971), Oklahoma Crude (1973), The Domino Principle (1977).
# 23 # 4	STANLEY KUBRICK 1928-1999 Enigmatic, Creative, Cinematic Perfectionist and Hollywood Outsider of the Post-War Era; Director of Deeply-Layered, Complex, and Wide-Ranging Films in Many Different Genres Suggested Filmography: Day of the Fight (1951), Fear and Desire (1953), Killer's Kiss (1955), The Killing (1956), Paths of Glory (1957), Spartacus (1960), Lolita (1962), Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned... (1964), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), A Clockwork Orange (1971), Barry Lyndon (1975), The Shining (1980), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Eyes Wide Shut (1999).
# 6 # 6	AKIRA KUROSAWA 1910-1998 Acclaimed and Magnificent Writer/Director of Japanese Cinema Suggested Filmography: Rashomon (1950), Ikiru (1952), Seven Samurai (1954), Throne of Blood (1957), The Hidden Fortress (1958), Yojimbo (1961), Sanjuro (1962), Dersu Uzala (1975), Ran (1985).
# 30 # 29	FRITZ LANG 1890-1976 Pioneering Abstract German Expressionist and Resourceful Early Director of Dark Film Noirs Suggested Filmography: Dr. Mabuse: the Gambler (1922), Siegfried (1924), Kriemhild's Revenge (1924), Metropolis (1927), M (1931), The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933), Fury (1936), You Only Live Once (1937), The Return of Frank James (1940), Man Hunt (1941), Western Union (1941), Hangmen Also Die (1943), Ministry of Fear (1944), The Woman in the Window (1944), Scarlet Street (1945), Cloak and Dagger (1946), Clash By Night (1952), Rancho Notorious (1952), The Big Heat (1953), The Blue Gardenia (1953), Moonfleet (1955), Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (1956), Human Desire (1954), While the City Sleeps (1956).
	JOHN LASSETER 1957- Pioneering Director of Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI) in Animated Films Suggested Filmography: Luxo Jr. (1986) (short film), The Brave Little Toaster (1987) (animator), Tin Toy (1988) (short film), Toy Story (1995), A Bug's Life (1998), Toy Story 2 (1999), Monsters, Inc. (2001) (executive producer), Spirited Away (2001, Jp.) (executive producer), Finding Nemo (2003) (executive producer), Howl's Moving Castle (2004, Jp.) (executive producer), The Incredibles (2004) (executive producer), Cars (2006), Ratatouille (2007) (executive producer), Toy Story 3 (2008).
# 34 # 12	DAVID LEAN 1908-1991 British-Born Director of Lavish, Breathtaking and Exotic Epics Suggested Filmography: In Which We Serve (1942), This Happy Breed (1944), Blithe Spirit (1945), Brief Encounter (1946), Great Expectations (1946), Oliver Twist (1948), The Sound Barrier (1952), Hobson's Choice (1954), Summertime (1955), The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Doctor Zhivago (1965), Ryan's Daughter (1970), A Passage to India (1984).
# 48 # 25	SPIKE LEE 1957- Talented, Provocative, African-American Film-maker/Producer/Writer Who Explored Racial Themes Suggested Filmography: She's Gotta Have It (1986), School Daze (1988), Do the Right Thing (1989), Mo' Better Blues (1990), Jungle Fever (1991), Malcolm X (1992), Crooklyn (1994), Clockers (1995), Get on the Bus (1996), Girl 6 (1996), 4 Little Girls (1997), He Got Game (1998), Summer of Sam (1999), Bamboozled (2000), The Original Kings of Comedy (2000), The 25th Hour (2002), She Hate Me (2004).
# 41 # 17	SERGIO LEONE 1929-1989 Creator of Genre of Italian "Spaghetti" Westerns Starring the "Man With No Name" Suggested Filmography: The Dollars Trilogy: A Fistful of Dollars (1964), For A Few Dollars More (1965), The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966); Once Upon a Time in the West (1969), A Fistful of Dynamite (1971), Once Upon a Time in America (1984).
# 50	JERRY LEWIS 1926- Director, Comedic Actor, and Producer Suggested Filmography: The Bellboy (1960), The Ladies' Man (1961), The Nutty Professor (1963), The Family Jewels (1965).
# 16	ERNST LUBITSCH 1892-1947 German-Born Director, 'Continental' Comedy Film-maker, Known for His Sophisticated, Graceful, and Witty 'Lubitsch Touch' Suggested Filmography: Carmen (Gypsy Blood) (1918, 1921), The Marriage Circle (1924), The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg (1927), The Love Parade (1929), Monte Carlo (1930), One Hour With You (1932), If I Had a Million (1932), Trouble in Paradise (1932), Design For Living (1933), The Merry Widow (1934), Angel (1937), Bluebeard's Eighth Wife (1938), Ninotchka (1939), The Shop Around the Corner (1940), That Uncertain Feeling (1941), To Be Or Not To Be (1942), Heaven Can Wait (1943), A Royal Scandal (1945), Cluny Brown (1946), That Lady in Ermine (1948).
# 31	GEORGE LUCAS 1944- Influential Executive Producer/Director and Re-Definer of the Special Effects Industry Suggested Filmography: Herbie (1966), THX-1138 (1971), American Graffiti (1973), The Star Wars Trilogy: Star Wars (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980) (producer only), Return of the Jedi (1983) (producer only); Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) (producer), Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) (producer), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) (producer), Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999), Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002), Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005).
# 42	SIDNEY LUMET 1924- American Producer/Director of Films Based in the Urban East/New York Suggested Filmography: 12 Angry Men (1957), Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962), Fail-Safe (1964), The Pawnbroker (1965), The Hill (1965), Bye-Bye Braverman (1968), Serpico (1973), Murder on the Orient Express (1974), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), Network (1976), Equus (1977), Just Tell Me What You Want (1980), Prince of the City (1981), Deathtrap (1982), The Verdict (1982), Garbo Talks (1984), The Morning After (1986), Running on Empty (1988), Q&A (1990), A Stranger Among Us (1992), Guilty as Sin (1993), Night Falls on Manhattan (1996), Gloria (1999), Strip Search (2004), Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007).
# 24	DAVID LYNCH 1946- Acclaimed Writer/Director of Experimental, Avante-Garde, Dark and Disturbing Art House Films Suggested Filmography: Eraserhead (1977), Elephant Man (1980), Dune (1984), Blue Velvet (1986), Wild at Heart (1990), Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992), Lost Highway (1997), The Straight Story (1999), Mulholland Drive (2001), Inland Empire (2006).
# 40	LOUIS MALLE 1932-1995 French-Born Director of French and American Films Suggested Filmography: Elevator to the Gallows (1958), The Lovers (1959), Zazie (1960), A Very Private Affair (1962), Viva Maria! (1965), The Fire Within (1966), The Thief of Paris (1967), Dearest Heart (1971), Murmur of the Heart (1971), Lacombe Lucien (1974), Pretty Baby (1978), Atlantic City (1981), My Dinner With Andre (1981), Alamo Bay (1985), Au Revoir, Les Enfants (1987), May Fools (1990), Damage (1992), Vanya on 42nd Street (1994).
	ROUBEN MAMOULIAN 1898-1987 One of the Greatest Screen Innovators and Stylistic Directors of Hollywood's Golden Age Suggested Filmography: Applause (1929), City Streets (1931), Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1932), Love Me Tonight (1932), Queen Christina (1933), Becky Sharp (1935), The Gay Desperado (1936), Golden Boy (1939), The Mark of Zorro (1940), Blood and Sand (1941), Laura (1944) (replaced by Otto Preminger), Summer Holiday (1948), Silk Stockings (1957).