Favorite Directors

[Mr. Arkadin]

Another controversial choice would be Leni Riefenstahl. Although films like Triumph of the Will (1934) and Olympia (1938) were Nazi propaganda, there is no denying their genius--twisted as it may be. Throw in The Blue Light (1932) and Tiefland (1954), and you have a ligitamate contender.

This is a conflict for me. I like the Blue Light, I haven't seen Olympia or Tiefland, but I have seen Triumph of the Will and even if it's a work of talent, it's lulling. There are so many clips of marching that my mind glazes over. That's when I become the most conscious that it's pure propaganda because it's hypnotizing in its glorification of the millitary. How can one evaluate that film without taking into account what it endorses? Should one do that?

I understand your feelings and I do think we should "take into account what it endorses." It is one thing to realize genius and mastery in an individual, and quite another to endorse what their creation stands for.

LR's work did break all kinds of new ground. New kinds of cameras were invented for the underwater shots in Olympia. Many of the shots in Triumph use tracking and continual motion which was pretty much unheard of for shooting speeches where the subject is mainly still. The film is beautifully shot with amazing camerawork and specially designed lenses. There are many techniques that Triumph initiated that are still used today.

Although controversial, this film should still be seen and discussed. It explains in part how Hilter captured the loyalty of the German people and gained an almost unshakable hold on Europe in the coming years. It's also through that understanding (of which this film is a key document) that we can prevent future world leaders like him.

[Synnove]

You're right. Perhaps I can't remember much about the earlier parts of the film, because of the later parts, which I can only remember as ceasless marching. It was groundbreaking in its technique.

I don't think it should be called "the best documentary of all time" because as a documentary I think it fails, for lack of objectivity. That's obvious, of course. Even if she had wanted to, I doubt she would have been able to slant it in any other way! What Leni intended to do, propaganda for the third reich, she succeeded in doing extremely well. She was a talented film maker.

I agree with you wholeheartedly that it should be seen today. In some places I think it is still banned, which is strange to me, because that won't allow people to make up their minds about it - and as you say, it's necessary for understanding of how Hitler was able to captivate people, for future reference.

[Mr. Arkadin]

An interesting aspect of TOTW is that unlike BOAN it is actual history and one can see allusions of the coming war and holocaust if you listen closely to the speeches.

Hitler's views of "The Jewish Plague" were well known from his writings since 1924. In 1933 he forbade Jews to hold government jobs, attend university, and established a boycott of Jewish businesses. When TOTW was made, the Nazi party was not unified at all. In fact, it was in danger of fracturing. Hitler had just killed Rohm (head of the SA) and many other party leaders to establish control. In his speech to the SA & SS, he talks about "a few months ago a black shadow covered our movement" He obviously was talking about Rohm and he expected the SA & SS to understand him. Otherwise why say it? Remember Hitler was paying for this film. He was not going to say something outright that would bring other nations or the German people down on him. He wanted Germany to be seen as a friend to others.

In his closing speech he says: "In the past our opponents have sifted the chaff from our party by persecution and repression. Today we must do the sorting and eliminating of what is not good for us."

If you would like something a bit more direct, check out Julius Streicher's (also known as Jew Baiter Number One) short speech in the opening hall introductions where he says "A nation that does not attribute high value to its racial purity will perish."

Riefenstahl probably included this (she did have total control over the final cut) because Streicher was a personal friend of hers who would often visit and stay at her home (nothing romantic that we are aware of). There are also deep personal letters between them. Streicher's favorite speaking subject was how to kill Jews. He was executed after the Nuremburg trials.


I don't personally think Leni was a Nazi. I think she was an opportunist, which in a way was far worse. She was a female director working within a very talented group of males (most of which left Germany for America). Suddenly, all these men were gone and here was an offer to shoot a film any way she wanted with total control and the final cut. The only other director to have such an offer was Orson Welles, but he was hampered by budget. Leni had unlimited resources!

I personally think she is one of the world's greatest directors, but she made a horrible choice in doing what she did. I can understand some of her reasoning in the fact that this was an unbelievable chance for any director--for a woman in the thirties even more so. She was not an innocent as she claimed however.

When she worked on Tiefland during the war, she borrowed gypsies from a concentration camp for extras who were later sent back and executed. She did complain about the eastern front massacre incident and left that position to her credit, but everything I've read or seen about her suggests she was a cunning manipulator who could care less about anything but making the film she was working on and advancing her career.

[Synnove]

I also think that she was an opportunist from what I have read. During the Tiefland production she would encourage the gypsies, and talk to them about their futures. She seems to have liked talking to them but she didn't use her influence to help them later on. I suppose that to her films, it doesn't make much difference whether she was an opportunist or not.

I agree that Triumf of the Will has a historical documentary value. The camera isn't neutral though. It's filmed in a way that glorifies the subject. My parents always insist that that film technique has inspired modern advertising. They may be right. Modern day audiences can probably withstand the propaganda though.

It's true that she was a great director, and that her films should be seen today. The reason I felt uneasy was because even though I really liked The Blue Light, but I couldn't possibly call her one of my favourite directors. I suppose that's not such a difficult conflict for me really.

[charliechaplinfan]

Leni Riefenstahl has to be included. I like The Blue Light and The White Hell of Pitz Palu

The White Hell of Pitz Palu is indeed a beautiful movie and it stars LR, but it was directed by GW Pabst and Arnold Fanck. Glad to see another fan of my fave "Mountain" film.

Of course, I knew that, silly me

Triumph of the Will is the most chilling film I have ever seen and the most abhorrent but it is a chance to see history in the making. I've never expected to find myself watching a film that glorified Naziism but as I've got more interested in film I decided I should see it. From the reference to the SA I knew it must be around the time that Rohm was murdered, thanks for clearing that up for me, Mr Arkadin. It is interesting to see the Nazi heirachy at the beginning of power in Germany. Julius Streicher who at the Nuremberg trials came across as the most odious of the heirachy, speaking to the crowd, Rudolf Hess who flew to Britain, why, I don't think we'll ever fully know. My thought are he came to talk peace and when we wouldn't countenance peace and his mission went wrong Hitler denounced him.

I don't think a film like Triumph of the Will should be banned, I defend my right to watch it and form my own opinion.

I'll never get over the sight of the young men and boys, radiant, worshipful and hopeful, almost coaught up in religious fervour, paying allegiance to Hitler.

Underwriting the whole film for me was every moment Hitler spoke, for a split second I could see Adenoid Hynkel, I could see a comic caricature then I'd be snapped back to the reality of what this man actually did with his power.

I'm not an expert on Leni Riefenstahl but from what I've heard, she made her pact with the devil and lived with it.

[myrnaloyisdope]

IMHO, I don't believe anything should be banned.

Triumph of the Will is absolutely fascinating even though it is equally reprehensible.

My impression of Leni Riefenstahl is that that she was a pragmatist, someone who was willing to bend with whatever the situation called for. So in Nazi Germany she went with the Nazis, but in the post-Nazi era she distanced herself from Naziism because it was no longer the prevailing ideology. It's apparent she was a talented filmmaker, but equally apparent that she was unwilling to accept the consequences of her work.

[Mr. Arkadin]

Mr. Arkadin:

Crash is like almost all of Cronenberg films. It’s visceral, surprising, intense, and thought provoking. It’s not any more (or less) graphic then any of his other films, and I found the film’s themes, (what I could make of them) pretty interesting, even though I don’t necessarily agree with them.

I agree that The Verdict is Newman’s best performance and one of Lumet’s best films. Have you seen his latest, Before the Devil Knows Your Dead? Very worthwhile suspense thriller, with fine performances by Philip Seymour Hoffman, Albert Finney and Marisa Tomei. It’s a time shifting film, like Pulp Fiction, so you get to see the same scenes, from different character perspectives.

Thanks for your comments. I did not immediately reply because I thought others might weigh in on Crash, but the discussion turned to another equally controversial subject instead.

I have not seen Lumet's latest film although I've heard good things about it. It sounds very interesting. I will definitely check it out.

[jdb1]

Hmmmm . . . . . interesting. I see only myself and Synnove have listed Ingmar Bergman. Did anyone else do so? I didn't notice his name mentioned elsewhere.

The interesting part to me is that up until only a few years ago, you couldn't have a discussion about "great" cinema or "good" directors without Bergman's name being cited. Is he out of style already? I know that in my own circle of movie lovers there are quite a few people who have never seen a Bergman film, and who may be put off by his reputation for being rather "deep" and "obscure," and more than a little sombre, but I don't think that's fair. His films are beautiful cinematically (mostly in B&W), thought-provoking, and for the most part magnificently acted. And he even made a few comedies and lighter melodramas, all of which are very entertaining.

Maybe the subtitle aspect also puts people off, but honestly, English isn't all that far away from Swedish, and you sort of get into the dialog after a while even if you don't understand every single word. All I can say is that those who have found something of value in Woody Allen's "mature" dramas should investigate Bergman's works, which are undoubtedly the source.

[MikeBSG]

Regarding Ingmar Bergman, it may be a case of "save me from my friends."

It took me a while to get into Bergman. When I first saw "The Seventh Seal," it seemed like there had been a splice in the film every three minutes.

However, I like "Cries and Whispers" a lot, was very impressed by the full "Fanny and Alexander" when I saw it on DVD, and think "Wild Strawberries" and "The Magician" are terrific.

BUT I still can't get past the Bergman fans I knew in college who had an insufferably superior attitude toward Bergman and his films. They might have poisoned the well for me where Bergman is concerned.

[Ann Harding]

I had not submitted any list so far as I was too busy to give it a real effort. But now, I'll do it!

My top favourites are:

Frank Borzage: The River, Man's Castle, Little Man, What Now?, History is Made at Night
King Vidor: The Crowd, The Big Parade, Show People, The Stranger's Return, The Fountainhead
Julien Duvivier: Au Bonheur des Dames, David Golder, Pépé Le Moko, La Fin du Jour
Jacques Feyder: Visages d'Enfants, Gribiche, Pension Mimosas, La Kermesse Héroïque, le Grand Jeu
Raoul Walsh: Sadie Thompson, The Thief of Bagdad, Colorado Territory, Pursued, White Heat
George Cukor: Sylvia Scarlett, Camille, Les Girls, A Double Life
Gene Kelly: On the Town, Singin'in the Rain, It's Always Fair Weather
Ernst Lubitsch: Lady Windermere's fan, Design For Living, To Be or Not to be
Rouben Mamoulian: City Streets, Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde, The Song of Songs
Vincente Minnelli: The Clock, The Pirate, Some Came Running
Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger: I Know Where I Am Going, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, The Red Shoes
Max Ophüls: Madame De..., The Reckless Moment, Le Plaisir
Nicholas Ray: Party Girl, Johnny Guitar, The Lusty Men
Douglas Sirk: Summer Storm, All That Heaven Allows, A Time to Love and a Time to Die
Marcel Carné: Les Enfants du Paradis, Drôle de Drame, Quai des Brumes
Jean Grémillon: Gueule d'Amour, Remorques, L'Etrange Monsieur Victor
Marcel Pagnol: La Femme du Boulanger, Le Schpountz, Angèle, Regain
Henri-Georges Clouzot: L'assassin habite au 21, Le Corbeau, Quai des Orfèvres
Bertrand Tavernier: Coup de Torchon, Que la fête Commence, L'Horloger de Saint-Paul
Jean-Pierre Melville: L'Armée des Ombres, le Deuxième Souffle, Le Doulos
Victor Sjöström: Terje Vigen, The Wind, The Scarlet Letter
Henry King: Tol'able David, The White Sister, State Fair, Stella Dallas
Henri Decoin: Battements de Coeur, Premier Rendez-Vous, La Vérité sur Bébé Donge

[myrnaloyisdope]

I have no issues with Ingmar Bergman, and have actually liked quite a bit of his work, I just find his work very bleak, and somewhat of a bummer. I would need to rewatch some of it to know how much I truly enjoy it.

I did think Persona was excellent, and Winter Light, Cries & Whispers, Hour of the Wolf, and Wild Strawberries I liked as well.

Bergman's movies aren't the kind of ones you can just pop in and enjoy. But his talent is quite apparent.

[jdb1]

Re: Bergman

I wasn't lobbying for his inclusion in anyone's list. I was merely remarking on how very few of us cited him, when in very recent memory he was considered a titan of cinema.

I think Mike has a point: if someone, or something, is called "superior," suddenly all those who would like to think themselves in the same category try to take over, and generally spoil things for the rest of us. It happens with good food, good wines, good books, and just about everything else. We shouldn't let that impede the formation of our own opinions.

I can also certainly empathize with myrnaloyID, since once during my college years I attended a weekend-long Bergman festival at an art house in Greenwich Village, and needed several days recuperation to recover my generally sunny disposition. But existence does have its bleak side, and that was one of the things that fascinated Bergman, and which he explored over and over. His films are certainly not trivial -- they are intended to make one think. "Through a Glass, Darkly" could be the appropriate title to a compendium of his work. However, his films are also cinematically sound, good to look at, artistic and all that, and yet they deal with basic human emotions and with people's varying methods of coping with the human condition.

During that film festival I mentioned, I saw two or three of Bergman's earlier films, much lighter in scope, and one was definitely a comedy-drama (can't remember the names), and they were all very well done as well. For my money, besides writing satisfying and cogent screenplays that explored the human condition, Ingmar Bergman was also a great director, who brought his own works to memorable life onscreen. Too bad he has already become old news.

[Mr. Arkadin]

I am actually a huge Bergman fan, but I tried to list directors that had not been mentioned to keep the thread fresh.

Personal favorites would include:
Crisis (1946)
To Joy (1949)
Summer with Monika (1953)
Sawdust and Tinsel (1953)
Smiles of a Summer Night(1955)
The Seventh Seal (1957)
Wild Strawberries (1957)
Through a Glass Darkly (1961)
Winter's Light(1961)
The Silence (1963)
Persona (1966)
Shame (1968)
The Passion of Anna (1970)
Cries and Whispers (1972)
Autumn Sonata (1978)
Scenes from a Marriage (1973)
Fanny and Alexander (1982)

[myrnaloyisdope]

A couple of forgotten 30's directors:

Mervyn LeRoy: Gold Diggers of 1933, Little Caesar, Big City Blues, Three on a Match, I am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang. I wouldn't call him an auteur, but he was very competent, and prolific.

Alfred E. Green: Baby Face, Union Depot. Same as LeRoy, although I find Green's direction a bit more ambitious, with more camera movement, and directorial flair.

And the more I think about Lumet is indeed fantastic. 12 Angry Men is among my favorite movies, and everything else I've seen (Network, The Verdict, and Dog Day Afternoon) by him is excellent. I should check out his lesser known work.