[Cinema]Clutchfans Movie Directors Tournament Sweet 16

Stanley Kubrick
Ridley Scott

Steven Spielberg
Quentin Tarantino

Alfred Hitchcock
Francis Ford Coppola

Martin Scorsese
Mel Brooks

I've come to dislike Spielberg's work - he just relies on too much soundtrack... but I can't deny that he's made more (and better) hit movies than Eastwood (which is painful to say, because Eastwood has directed some great movies).

Brooks vs. Nolan was difficult because they make totally different types of movies. Brooks wan because his movies are more legendary.

 

[Cinema]Clutchfans
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SMH

 

Stanley Kubrick
Coen Brothers
Steven Spielberg
James Cameron
Alfred Hitchcock
Francis Ford Coppola
Martin Scorsese
Mel Brooks

 

Same votes. With a switch from JC to QT though.

 

Orson Welles
Coen Brothers
Clint Eastwood
Quentin Tarantino
John Ford
Michael Mann
Brian DePalma
Mel Brooks

 

Stanley Kubrick vs. Orson Welles - As many have said before, Kubrick is the GOAT. Orson Welles is a legend, but he falls short of Kubrick's greatness.
Ridley Scott vs. Coen Brothers - Tough one here, but I think I will go with the Coen brothers, as I think the Coen brothers have a more distinctive style that I really enjoy. I guess it could be argued that's a weakness too.

Steven Spielberg vs. Clint Eastwood - That's a tough one, I really wanted to vote Clint, but the more I thought about it, the more I just couldn't justify it. Both great directors, but I think Spielberg has made too many great movies in order for Eastwood to compete.
James Cameron vs. Quentin Tarantino - Easy choice, I think James Cameron is overrated as a director. Titanic is not a great movie by any means, Avatar was great fun at the movies but was pretty forgettable otherwise. QT all day, even if he's a giant douche.

Alfred Hitchcock vs. John Ford - Two legends, but I have to go with Hitchcock.
Michael Mann vs. Francis Ford Coppola - Easy choice here. The Godfather alone would be enough for Coppola to win this match.

Martin Scorsese vs. Brian DePalma - No contest, I don't think DePalma belongs in the same category as Scorsese.
Mel Brooks vs. Christopher Nolan - I have no idea how Mel Brooks made it this far in this tournament. Not a fan of his movies in general. No brainer for me.

 

Stanley Kubrick vs. Orson Welles - Kubrick was a game changing director. IMO he (and Leone) were the fathers of modern cinema.
Ridley Scott vs. Coen Brothers - Ridley gets my vote here. Coen movies are all very smart and rewatchable, but Ridley's movies are timeless juggernauts. I am biased as I prefer action and sci-fi/fantasy

Steven Spielberg vs. Clint Eastwood - Sorry, Clint, you've met your match. Spielberg's movies are magic.
James Cameron vs. Quentin Tarantino - Like others on this list, Cameron gets my vote due to rewatchablity and action. Tarantino's movies can be a snore-fest at times.

Alfred Hitchcock vs. John Ford - Ford is the old-school king in this match.
Michael Mann vs. Francis Ford Coppola - Mann shouldn't really be in the top 16, got lucky. Coppola's movies are masterpieces and he deserves to be here.

Martin Scorsese vs. Brian DePalma - Much like the previous matchup, Scorsese's movies are the pinnacle of film.
Mel Brooks vs. Christopher Nolan - This is a joke, Brooks got the nostalgia vote so far, Nolan smashes him.

 

Welles--this pains me, but Welles is more important than Kubrick. Just the way it is.
Scott--this pains me even more, I'm probably the biggest Coen Brothers fan out there, but if you look at Scott's total filmography, there's just too many important films there compared to the Coen brothers.

Spielberg--this took some thought. I know Spielberg is Mr. Commercialism, but he also has a good number of super important and ground-breaking films. Too many to discount. As much as I love Eastwood.
Tarantino--this one was the first one that didn't cause me pain.

Hitchcock vs Ford--may be a dead tie. For all you folks saying Ford just directed westerns, think Grapes of Wrath and The Quiet Man. I'm giving this a tie, sorry OP, you'll just have to cope.
Coppola--not close

Scorsese--this one was tough but not as tough as the others.
Nolan not close

 

Stanley Kubrick vs. Orson Welles
Ridley Scott vs. Coen Brothers

Steven Spielberg vs. Clint Eastwood
James Cameron vs. Quentin Tarantino - Cameron's pioneering underwater work and visual effects mastery is more than enough in my book.

Alfred Hitchcock vs. John Ford
Michael Mann vs. Francis Ford Coppola

Martin Scorsese vs. Brian DePalma
Mel Brooks vs. Christopher Nolan - I have to go with Nolan here, but he better bring his game face from here on out.

 

Stanley Kubrick vs. Orson Welles (Kubrick is a deserved number 1 seed)
Ridley Scott vs. Coen Brothers (easy call for me, Coen simply have movies I like more)

Steven Spielberg vs. Clint Eastwood (Spielberg simply has too large a resume of amazing movies)
James Cameron vs. Quentin Tarantino (the goat)

Alfred Hitchcock vs. John Ford (Hitchcock simply too strong)
Michael Mann vs. Francis Ford Coppola (not a big fan of either, but Coppola gets the nod)

Martin Scorsese vs. Brian DePalma (absolute no contest, easiest call of the round)
Mel Brooks vs. Christopher Nolan (best in the world, and Brooks comedies fall short at this level of competition)

Next round is where things get tough, pretty much everybody I voted for except Coppola is at the very top tier as far as I'm concerned. Even their bad movies are really f**king good.

 

Obscure?

Mark Knopfler, Local Hero (half of which is set in Houston):



and the Heir to Sousa, John Williams, with the March from 1941:

 

Kubrick
Coens (this kills me)
Speilberg
Tarantino
Hitchcock
Coppola
Scorsese
Nolan (also kills me)

 

Stanley Kubrick vs. Orson Welles
Ridley Scott vs. Coen Brothers

Steven Spielberg vs. Clint Eastwood
James Cameron vs. Quentin Tarantino

Alfred Hitchcock vs. John Ford
Michael Mann vs. Francis Ford Coppola

Martin Scorsese vs. Brian DePalma
Mel Brooks vs. Christopher Nolan

 

There's no respect for comedy here.

Mel Brooks
Monty Python
Etc...
Etc....

 

Monty Python was a troupe. Does that count as directors?

Coen bros bring some dark comedy to their films.

Farrelly brothers should have been on the list, but I'll digress.

 

Stanley Kubrick vs. Orson Welles - A very tough one. Both are masters with a lot of influence and in my mind this should be a final four matchup. I'm giving it to Kubrick narrowly.
Ridley Scott vs. Coen Brothers - The Coen Brothers are great creative directors but the influence of Scott is greater.

Steven Spielberg vs. Clint Eastwood - Eastwood has produced a great body of work but Spielberg still takes this one.
James Cameron vs. Quentin Tarantino - This is a tough one. Both have a pretty successful body of work and I think on pure artistic talent Tarantino is better. The problem that I always have with Tarantino is for his greatness he often seems to get in his own way especially with movies that end up being revisionist history revenge fantasies.

Alfred Hitchcock vs. John Ford - I'm very glad to see John Ford get this far and honestly he should've been ranked higher. This is another one that should be a final four matchup. I'm going to give it to Hitchcock as I think his influence is still much greater.
Michael Mann vs. Francis Ford Coppola - I like Mann a lot, Last of the Mohicans and Heat are great movies, but it's very very hard to argue against just The Godfather.

Martin Scorsese vs. Brian DePalma - This is Scorcese easily. DePalma is good but Scorcese is much better.
Mel Brooks vs. Christopher Nolan - For as much as I love Mel Brooks Nolan's style and influence on recent film making is too big.