Most Pretentious Filmmakers!

[Antonio]

1. Lars Von Trier: BREAKING THE WAVES was so overrated and way too artsy for its own good (despite Emily Watson's performance), while DOGVILLE was the biggest pile of dog shit I've seen in years!

2. Jane Campion: THE PIANO has no replay value, and her characters are either too unlikable and quirky to care about. Not everything she does is so fucking important!

3. A tie between Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. They both peaked early on in their careers, and should retire gracefully and let the real filmmakers of the new Millennium (like Tarantino, Shyamalan and P.T. Anderson) take over! Their combined egos alone make their films too self-important to warrant any likability factor.

4. Gus Van Sant: In a word-ELEPHANT! Another huge pile of pretentious animal dung! I loved his earlier films (DRUGSTORE COWBOY, MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO), but he has fallen in a big way since that unforgivable PSYCHO remake!

[gyro_44]

Well, what's your definition of "pretentious"?

I mean, look at P.T. Anderson. His films are very artsy, and I'm sure I've heard people call MAGNOLIA and PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE "pretentious pieces of shit". I'm not talking about myself... I think he's a great filmmaker.

But where is the line drawn between "pretentious" and "artsy"?

[Andrew Tom]

I agree with your list with the exception of Lars Von Trier, who I think is a brilliant director. I loved Breaking the Waves and I'm looking forward to seeing Dogville. Kingdom is something that I'll need to get my hands on.

My list would therefore be:

1. George Lucas

2. Steven Spielberg

3. Jane Campion

[gyro_44]

I'd definitely disagree about Spielberg. He's made some of the most unpretentious, just plain entertaining blockbusters I've seen. I think films like CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE and JURASSIC PARK fall into that category. He's a great showman, but he ain't pretentious.

Again, I don't think it's a clear argument over what is considered pretentious and what isn't. It will only be a few more posts until someone says Stanley Kubrick, of course.

[Raoul Duke]

I'm not sure, but, is a pretentious film one that thinks it's smarter than you? Or something? Someone please give me a clear definition, I've never actually been sure what 'pretentious' means.

[my_name_is_neo]

Originally posted by Raoul Duke
I'm not sure, but, is a pretentious film one that thinks it's smarter than you? Or something? Someone please give me a clear definition, I've never actually been sure what 'pretentious' means.

Dictionary definition:

Pretentious (adj.) 1. Showy or ostentatious. 2. Claiming to have great merit or importance.

After looking up what the hell "ostentatious" means ("making a showy display of something to impress people" is what it means), I'd say yeah, it basically is a movie that thinks it's smarter than you.

[Tayzlor]

Sofia Coppola is tad pretentious. Still good, though.

[Joshmo]

Eli Roth.. he's a legend in his own mind.. I hate his movie and dont care for him.

Punch Drunk Love WAS pretentious, but still an interesting watch.

[notchreturns]

Sam Mendes

[BadCoverVersion]

Originally posted by notchreturns
Sam Mendes

Back of the net!

I have to agree...Mendes lays it on with a trowel.

[ANavissi500]

After watching his student film, I decided that Todd Haynes is incredibly pretentious.

[BakeTheMooCow]

Originally posted by Antonio
1. Lars Von Trier: BREAKING THE WAVES was so overrated and way too artsy for its own good (despite Emily Watson's performance), while DOGVILLE was the biggest pile of dog shit I've seen in years!I'm going to disagree with you on Breaking The Waves, which I loved largely due to Emily Watson, who is a goddess I pray to every night.

But a big fat WORD on Dogville. If you looked up pretentious in the dictionary, you'd see a still from that film. It is without a doubt, the most self-indulgent, pompous, contrived pile of wank ever to grace the big screen. I don't like to use the word pretentious when describing films, but Dogville was practically created for the sole purpose of giving that word a fuller definition. It is one of the worst films I've ever seen and I doubt any other is going to come along in a long time to challenge that opinion.

Also, I'd say Kubrick was pretentious in his own right. A Clockwork Orange and Dr. Strangelove were amazing.. but for 2001: A Space Odyssey and Eyes Wide Shut alone, he should be slotted in that category. The man had a gargantuan ego.

[HHHLovesMovies]

Steven Spielberg
George Lucas
Joel Schumacher

[Buck Turgidson]

Paul

Thomas

ANDERSON

Accept no substitutes.





Lars Von sucks a donkey these days, but he still gets a pass from me for doing Element of Crime.

David Lynch is stupefyingly self-referential and pretentious. He signed off after Blue Velvet, for me.

Oliver Stone began believing his press a while ago and went around the bend.

And then...there's Vincent Gallo. He's Leroy Nieman but he thinks he's Michaelangelo.

[Succubus]

I think the problem with some of the aforementioned directors is that they start out well, but then along comes the acclaim which seems to equal an awful lot of head-up-own-arse syndrome.

Anthony Minghella. Someone, somewhere, tell me why this director is considered quite so wonderful? In my experience, his films are consistently boring, nothing original, and epic for the sake of being so. He makes films like he's the first person to discover a love story. Needless to say, 'Cold Mountain' was basically a photo negative of 'The English Patient,' both of which I consider highly overrated.

Good call on Lars Von Trier. Shaky handheld camera and dodgy edits do not a clever film make. Christ, I could do that myself. I suppose being the creator of a manifesto that's rules are constantly broken does something to the ego.

[Reigh Kaufman]

Peter Greenaway.

The man is incapable of pointing a camera at a story and simply filming it. I rue the fucking day I went to the cinema to watch The Pillow Book/Drowning By Numbers double-bill.

Fling Mike Figgis on there as well. Split-screen, DV experimental films is fine for a video installation at The Tramway, you tit, but it's hardly worth ruining your career over.

Fuck, I'm inspired: Altman. The only man not to evolve his directorial style with the times. If I see one more spasmodic zoom on a piece of minutiae, I'll kill you. We don't need a sledgehammer to crack a walnut, you sodden old tart. Try subtlety. And another thing, why not just make a few documentaries instead of turning your hobbies into fictional 'fly-on-wall-exposes'? I collect lint in my belly-button, it's my favourite thing to do, but I promise that, when I make it in Hollywood, I won't make a 3-hour movie on the accrued fabric and how scintillating it is to discover the varying shades of grey and blue. Even if I add a redundant murder mystery sub-plot on top of it.

Derek Jarman. Right, you fucker. Go away.

[Cronos]

Originally posted by Joshmo
Eli Roth.. he's a legend in his own mind.. I hate his movie and dont care for him.


i completely agree, hes an idiot

[GoldenGhost]

I'm not calling him pretentious coz I lurve the boy, BUT Quentin Tarantino has been pissing me off lately saying "Kill Bill is an epic" and "I'm making one of the best movies ever". I don't know about you but if I was a director, I wouldn't be waltzing around claiming my flick is an Epic and such.

Ugh, big-headed-ness.

[therealjohng]

Originally posted by GoldenGhost
I'm not calling him pretentious coz I lurve the boy, BUT Quentin Tarantino has been pissing me off lately saying "Kill Bill is an epic" and "I'm making one of the best movies ever". I don't know about you but if I was a director, I wouldn't be waltzing around claiming my flick is an Epic and such.

Ugh, big-headed-ness.




I'd say it's epic. Anyway, the pretentious filmmaker I can think of is Michael Moore. Piece of fucking shit, thinks he's the smartest man alive, when all he does is make shit up and tells one side of the story.

[chinton]

You knew this was coming



Robert Altman






To me pretentious can be not a negative thing. I think a pretentious movie means that it's extremly self-aware. I think Altman, Anderson, amd Tarantino are all very self-aware filmakers who deliberately in a showy manner experiment with the medium. What makes Altamn a bad pretentious filmaker is that he lets obsession to have meandering storylines or even worse 10 people talk at once take precedence over character depth. I remeber in one of my film classes here at college were watching Mash and everybody kept awwwwing ove r the face so many were talking over each other in one scene. I have to say so what. Thats great but what does that have to do with character devlopement.

[MickeyKnox]

Lars Von Trier-Dogville.

[Joshmo]

I totally agree about Greenway.... Pillow Book was abysmal... did he also do Prosperos Books? I cant recall... but that was pretentious as hell..

Lars: Very curious to see Dogville... and The Idiots..why the heck isnt The Idiots on dvd?

Element of Crime: I dont mind style over subtance, but this was laid on so thick I couldnt follow the story and lost interest.

Breaking the Waves for me was awesome..Emily Watson is a goddess..

Dancer in the Dark... there's a picture of this movies poster in the dictionary next to the definition of pretentious.

[Indy in IN]

Originally posted by therealjohng
I'd say it's epic. Anyway, the pretentious filmmaker I can think of is Michael Moore. Piece of fucking shit, thinks he's the smartest man alive, when all he does is make shit up and tells one side of the story.

He has to be the most pretentious director alive right now. It's either his way or the highway. If you like his work or not, you can't really argue that.

In a side note, I find it funny that Disney won't distribute his next film. People are saying it's stopping freedom of speech. Does that mean if I direct a film, using just my personal opinion about say, treehuggers, and Disney won't distribute it, that they are violating my freedom of speech? Just because you are a director, doesn't mean someone has to put out your film. JACKASS.

sorry about the rant.

[Squid Vicious]

Two words:

David Cronenberg.

[GoldenGhost]

Originally posted by therealjohng
I'd say it's epic.

As would I.

I just wouldn't splur it out like I KNEW IT if I was Quentin.

[Erin123]

Originally posted by gyro_44


I mean, look at P.T. Anderson. His films are very artsy, and I'm sure I've heard people call MAGNOLIA and PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE "pretentious pieces of shit".



Magnolia is a pretentious piece of shit! I mean, how many people out there have said they liked it just because they thought people would tell them "Oh no, you just didn't understand it" if they said they didn't like it?!!

The same goes for Mullholland Dr. and David Lynch. I agree with Succubus...some of them start out well but then get a sever and incurable case of Tall Poppy Syndrome :mad:

[SykkBoy]

Robert Altman
Vincent Gallo

[Grim H.]

Joseph Kahn...in a wannabe poseur sort of way. He directed Torque, as well as many music videos, and he wishes he was pretentious, so he just tries to act like it. Watch his episode of MTV Cribs and you'll see what I mean.

[Buck Turgidson]

I named five people, and four of them have at least one film that I really like.

(Only Gallo sucked from the word "Go".)

[Ripper1888]

Originally posted by therealjohng
Anyway, the pretentious filmmaker I can think of is Michael Moore. Piece of fucking shit, thinks he's the smartest man alive, when all he does is make shit up and tells one side of the story.

Totally agree I can't stand Michael Moore he's an egotistical asshole who thinks he knows everything and that everybody else is wrong.I hate people like that.

[Ted Pikul]

The bloke who directed Donnie Darko surely out pretensions every pretentious film maker out there.

God what a pile of half-baked cobblers that film was.

[The Heart Collector]

Whoever directed the movie BROTHER with (I think) Omar Epps. I think it was Takeshi Kitano or someone similar. I only saw the last 20 minutes, and they were agonizingly pompous, ridiculous, and self-aggrandizing. It bordered on self-parody. I haven't seen the whole thing, so can anyone tell me if this guy is just janking our chains or if he really is that much of a pretentious cunt?

[Duke Nukem]

Eli Roth!
Eli Roth!
Eli Roth!
Eli Roth!

Oh, and did I mention Eli Roth??

He went on about how "Wrong Turn" would have nothing on his film, "Cabin Fever," and that his film was a superior homage to 70's films. "Wrong Turn" wrong-turned "Cabin Fever"'s ass. Roth's film was a joke. Literally.

[Briare Rabbit]

Originally posted by Antonio


3. A tie between Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. They both peaked early on in their careers, and should retire gracefully and let the real filmmakers of the new Millennium (like Tarantino, Shyamalan and P.T. Anderson) take over! Their combined egos alone make their films too self-important to warrant any likability factor.


Oh, and Tarantino and Anderson aren't pretentious in the least.

Jane Campion is a good one, however.

Kubrick, although good was very pretentious. EVerything LOlita onwards- pretentious as hell.