This past weekend I watched Don Jon, which was written, directed, and starred Joseph Gordon Levitt. Something about this movie struck a cord with me, and I must say I thought it was an incredibly well made film, especially for a directorial debut. This list is all about great movies directed by filmmakers who, at that point in their careers, had yet to actually direct a feature film before.
Top Ten Directorial Debuts (Best First Feature Films from Great
Directors)
This
is a list of films by directors who, at that point in their career, had never
directed a feature film. They are being ranked both on how good the first film
was, and how successful their career has been since that first film. So no, you
won’t be seeing M. Night Shyamalan here.
Criteria: must be well known director
whose first movie was successful and well received, and have since directed
other successful films.
Honourable mention: Dawn of the Dead (2004), Zack Snyder. A
fairly impressive reimagining of the George Romero zombie classic and a fine
feature debut indeed. Snyder went on to direct the successful graphic novel
adaptations 300 and Watchmen, and even tackled Superman with
2013’s Man of Steel, which will see a
sequel confirmed for release in 2016.
10. Mission:
Impossible 3, J.J. Abrams
I
never was a huge fan of the Mission: Impossible
films. I didn’t mind the first one, revered the second, but found the third one
to be quite enjoyable. J.J. Abrams—co-creator of the popular show LOST—brought exhilarating action and
flashy special effects to M: I 3, and
has since found himself a niche in the sci-fi/action genres by successfully
rebooting Star Trek with two films,
as well as writing and directing the original coming of age summer blockbuster Super 8. He is also an executive
producer on some of the biggest shows in recent memory, including Fringe, Revolution, and the aforementioned LOST. He is set to co-write and direct the highly anticipated Star Wars: Episode VII for 2015.
9. The
Sugarland Express, Steven Spielberg
Spielberg
came from humble filmmaking beginnings. Before he ever introduced the world to
the most famous set of cinema chompers with Jaws,
the friendly aliens of Close Encounters
of the Third Kind and E.T., or
the prehistoric residents of Jurassic
Park, Spielberg directed the neo-noir drama The Sugarland Express. It follows a couple on the run from the law
through Sugar Land, Texas. Holding a strong critical rating and having won best
screenplay at Cannes, it was a mere preview of what was to come for the
director, who is now a house hold name and has won numerous awards for his work.
From Schindler’s List to Indiana Jones, his list of directorial
efforts is more than impressive, and despite a few misfires, is mostly solid
from his latest projects all the way back to his first.
8. The
40 Year Old Virgin, Judd Apatow
Who
would have thought the widely popular and successful films of Judd Apatow would
begin with a story about a man who is still a virgin at age 40, portrayed by
Steve Carrel, an actor (at that time) not well known? Apatow’s directorial
debut was near the beginning of a series of successful comedies with recurring
collaborators including Seth Rogen, Steve Carrell, and Paul Rudd, as well as
many others whom he had worked with previously, such as on the short lived TV series
Freaks and Geeks. Apatow has only
directed four films, but holds many more writing and producing credits to his name,
and his debut was nothing short of hilarious.
7. Sixteen
Candles, John Hughes
Popular
80’s director John Hughes is best known for his high school teen comedies,
which kicked off with Sixteen Candles,
starring Molly Ringwald, who would go on to star in his next flick, The Breakfast Club. Perhaps Sixteen Candles is not the best or the
most well remembered of his 80’s comedies, but it is still a funny, heartfelt
story of a low key girl whose birthday is forgotten by her busy, chaotic family.
As the events unfold, her sweet sixteen ends up being less bitter than she had
expected it to be. Many elements of this film have become famous in pop culture
and parodied, such as the Asian character Long Duck Dong, and the ritual of
acquiring underpants. Hughes also directed the comedy classics Weird Science, Ferris Beuller’s Day Off, and Planes,
Trains, and Automobiles.
6. The
Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), Tobe Hooper
Tobe
Hooper’s first film is so terrifying, you almost wonder if it actually
happened. I could write paragraphs about the frightening conditions in which
this film was shot, but I won’t, so if you are curious as to what they were
like I recommend watching Masters of Horror, a documentary on horror films
which can be found on YouTube (link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tKYnMwyzm4&list=FLL_OQ1wSwBTnITRm-1GmLsw&index=20).
As far as the film goes, it truly is one of the best slasher’s ever. Hooper
went on to direct other great horror flicks, including the Spielberg-produced Poltergeist.
5. Reservoir
Dogs, Quentin Tarantino
Honestly,
I feel Reservoir Dogs is a little
overrated. For a long time I refused to watch it, but when I finally gave in, I
was a little upset with myself that I waited so long. It’s not as smart of a
movie as it thinks it is, but it’s still so cool and entertaining. Tarantino’s
first movie introduced us to many of the elements his films are now so well
known for, including dialogue that has nothing to do with the film (a recurring
theme in all), out of sequence storytelling (most notably from Pulp Fiction), and over the top violence
(again, recurring throughout). Tarantino’s Reservoir
Dogs is sharp, pulpy, and probably more of a classic than it has the right
to be.
4. District
9, Neill Blomkamp
When
Neill Blomkamp came on the Hollywood scene with District 9, no one really had any expectations, and no one could
have anticipated how mind blowing his relatively low budget sci-fi thriller
would turn out to be. District 9
introduced us to terrific leading man Sharlto Copley and showcased Blomkamp’s
flare for visuals, as well as delivered compelling storytelling and gritty
realism. District 9 was not only
successful financially, but critically as well, even being nominated for three
academy awards including Best Picture. Blomkamp’s follow up, 2013’s Elysium, may not have impressed critics
quite like his breakout film, but I firmly believe he will continue to deliver
epic, brilliant, and entertaining films for the rest of his career.
3. The
Shawshank Redemption, Frank Darabont
Arguably
the best film adaptation of a Stephen King story, Frank Darabont already had many
writing credits before bringing King’s novella to the big screen. Why he waited
so long to direct a film is beyond me; I guess he was waiting for a story worth
directing, and he definitely found an excellent one. The film wasn’t the
immediate success one would have expected, but it has since become highly
regarded as one of the greatest prison films ever. Darabont also wrote and
directed The Green Mile, another
Stephen King adaptation tale set in a prison, which was also a terrific
adaptation of the novel, as well as a great movie in its own right. Shawshank was nominated for Best Picture
at the Oscars, but lost to Forrest Gump.
I can see how Forrest Gump would have
a wider appeal, and it is undoubtedly a great film, but I think Shawshank deserved that Oscar more.
2. Clerks,
Kevin Smith
What
I love most about Kevin Smith’s directorial debut is the story about how he got
it made. Produced on a mere $ 27,575 budget, Smith shot the film in the
convenience and video stores at which he worked, and to get the money went to
such extremes as max out credit cards, dip into college funds, and even sell
part of his comic book collection. Now that’s dedication. Luckily for Mr. Smith
it paid off, as the film went on to make 3 million at the box office and kick
off his career. It also began his unofficial View Askewniverse, a fictional
universe in which several of his films and other works take place. There’s no
way I would have such confidence in making a film essentially about nothing,
but luckily Kevin Smith did, because what he ended up with was one of the best
comedies of the nineties.
1. Night
of the Living Dead, George A. Romero
Romero’s
apocalyptic zombie series started out as nothing more than a film about the
dead coming back to life. Now, zombies are a staple of popular culture, and
those flesh eating, nightmarish hordes owe their success to Romero’s seminal
film debut. Made on a low budget, the filmmaker found it hard to try and get
the film distributed, as it was seen back then as being too graphic and
controversial. Nowadays, Night of the
Living Dead is deemed a classic of the horror genre, and the first of the
popular ...of the Dead series. Romero
directed all subsequent entries, including Dawn
of the Dead, Land of the Dead,
and the most recent, Survival of the Dead.
Romero himself is seen by many cinephiles—including myself—as one of the most
important horror directors of the century.
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