Favourite Directors

Alfred Hitchcock: One of the fore-founding director's of modern cinema for his ground breaking ideas in creating suspense filled thrillers that some classed as horror in films like Psycho. But Hitchcock also had a very successful career in early silent movies that he has quite often forgotten for but the beauty of his work has stood the test of time and are as engaging to watch now as they ever were.

Favourite films: Psycho, North by Northwest & The 39 Steps.

Stanley Kubrick: Arguably the most meticulous director of all-time as he pursued perfection from his work.  He always said that films were best adapted from books and that average books worked best so they could be improved. Kubrick was renowned for his films having a deeper meaning than what was being shown at face value which was explored in the documentary Room 237 about the hidden meaning behind The Shining.

Favourite films: Paths of Glory, The Shining & 2001: A Space Odyssey.

David Lynch: A modern maverick who made his name with his surreal style of film making. Thrust into prominence with his bizarre but eerily terrifying Eraserhead that was made on an incredibly low budget. This theme continued through Mulholland Drive and Lost Highway as his films became a desperate search for the underlying meaning before he produced Inland Empire, an incredibly complex 3 hour film that switches from a linear narrative into utter confusion in seconds.

Favourite films: Mulholland Drive, Blue Velvet & Eraserhead

Sidney Lumet: One of the most over-looked directors when I was researching this topic, Lumet was most at home when producing incredibly tense set-pieces like the stand off at the bank in Dog Day Afternoon. He creates an atmosphere that is oppressively claustrophobic and leaves the viewer to consider their own actions under the circumstances. His films were culturally relevant for the times with Network taking a swipe at the TV networks (who are the same now as they were then) and the racial discrimination that was prevalent in 1950's America with the enthralling 12 Angry Men.

Favourite films: Network, Dog Day Afternoon & 12 Angry Men

Fritz Lang: The man behind the most expensive silent movie of all-time, Metropolis and then moved on to talkies with the chilling M. Both were films well ahead of their time considering they were made in 1927 and 1931 respectively and are still surprisingly relevant today. Lang also moved onto Hollywood in 1936 and continued his impressive legacy that is quite often forgotten today.

Favourite films: Metropolis & M