THE GREAT DIRECTORS APEX LIST! As an exercise in extreme futility, I present a list of certain film directors and my favourite film directed by same. Now, you'll notice I didn't say "best" film; I said "my favourite" -- that is, the film which connects the most with me. Also keep in mind that I may not have seen the most famous films by any given director (i.e. I've never seen Preston Sturges' SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS so therefore it ain't my choice). After having perused this monumentally lengthy list, I invite you to post a similar list of directors and your favourite films by them. You don't have to use the same directors or make your list quite as long as mine but go ahead and post it on your blog if you like and put a link in the comment section right here. I'd be very interested to see your faves. And now, on with the show:

• ROBERT ALDRICH - KISS ME DEADLY
• WOODY ALLEN - ANNIE HALL
• ROBERT ALTMAN - THE LONG GOODBYE
• WES ANDERSON - THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS
• MICHELANGELO ANTONIONI - L'ECLISSE
• DARIO ARGENTO - DEEP RED
• JACK ARNOLD - IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE
• DOROTHY ARZNER - DANCE, GIRL, DANCE
• HAL ASHBY - HAROLD AND MAUDE
• ROY WARD BAKER - QUATERMASS AND THE PIT
• MARIO BAVA - BLACK SABBATH
• JACQUES BECKER - TOUCHEZ PAS AU GRISBI
• ROBERT BENTON - NOBODY'S FOOL
• BRUCE BERESFORD - BREAKER MORANT
• INGMAR BERGMAN - WINTER LIGHT
• BUDD BOETTICHER - THE TALL T
• PETER BOGDANOVICH - TARGETS
• MEL BROOKS - YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN
• TOD BROWNING - DRACULA
• LUIS BUNUEL - THE EXTERMINATING ANGEL
• TIM BURTON - ED WOOD
• FRANK CAPRA - MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON
• MARCEL CARNE - LE JOUR SE LEVE
• JOHN CARPENTER - HALLOWEEN
• JOHN CASSAVETTES - SHADOWS
• WILLIAM CASTLE - HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL
• CLAUDE CHABROL - LA FEMME INFIDELE
• CHARLIE CHAPLIN - CITY LIGHTS
• CHANG CHEH - THE FIVE DEADLY VENOMS
• RENE CLAIR - AND THEN THERE WERE NONE
• JEAN COCTEAU - LE TESTAMENT D'ORPHEE
• JOEL & ETHAN COEN - THE BIG LEBOWSKI
• FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA - THE GODFATHER
• ROGER CORMAN - HOUSE OF USHER
• WES CRAVEN - THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW
• CAMERON CROWE - SAY ANYTHING
• GEORGE CUKOR - HOLIDAY
• MICHAEL CURTIZ - CASABLANCA
• JULES DASSIN - NIGHT AND THE CITY
• BASIL DEARDEN - THE LEAGUE OF GENTLEMEN
• CECIL B. DEMILLE - SIGN OF THE CROSS
• JACQUES DEMY - LES DEMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT
• BRIAN DE PALMA - GREETINGS
• VITTORIO DE SICA - UMBERTO D.
• WILLIAM DIETERLE - PORTRAIT OF JENNIE
• EDWARD DMYTRYK - MURDER, MY SWEET
• STANLEY DONEN - BEDAZZLED
• CARL THEODOR DREYER - DAY OF WRATH
• JULIEN DUVIVIER - PEPE LE MOKO
• CLINT EASTWOOD - UNFORGIVEN
• BLAKE EDWARDS - BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S
• FEDERICO FELLINI - I VITELLONI
• DAVID FINCHER - SEVEN
• TERENCE FISHER - HORROR OF DRACULA
• RICHARD FLEISCHER - 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA
• VICTOR FLEMING - THE WIZARD OF OZ
• JOHN FORD - THE GRAPES OF WRATH
• MILOS FORMAN - ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST
• FREDDIE FRANCIS - DR. TERROR'S HOUSE OF HORRORS
• GEORGES FRANJU - JUDEX
• JOHN FRANKENHEIMER - THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE
• STEPHEN FREARS - DANGEROUS LIAISONS
• KARL FREUND - THE MUMMY
• SAMUEL FULLER - PICKUP ON SOUTH STREET
• LEWIS GILBERT - SHIRLEY VALENTINE
• TERRY GILLIAM - BRAZIL
• JEAN-LUC GODARD - BREATHLESS
• ROBERT HAMER - KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS
• BYRON HASKIN - WAR OF THE WORLDS
• HOWARD HAWKS - ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS
• WERNER HERZOG - AGUIRRE, WRATH OF GOD
• ALFRED HITCHCOCK - REAR WINDOW
• MIKE HODGES - GET CARTER
• ISHIRO HONDA - MATANGO
• RON HOWARD - GRAND THEFT AUTO
• JOHN HUGHES - THE BREAKFAST CLUB
• JOHN HUSTON - THE MALTESE FALCON
• PETER JACKSON - THE LORD OF THE RINGS
• NORMAN JEWISON - JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR
• LAU KAR-LEUNG - THE 36TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN
• ELIA KAZAN - A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE
• HENRY KING - WILSON
• STANLEY KRAMER - GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER
• STANLEY KUBRICK - THE KILLING
• AKIRA KUROSAWA - IKIRU
• GREGORY LA CAVA - MY MAN GODFREY
• FRITZ LANG - M
• DAVID LEAN - SUMMERTIME
• SPIKE LEE - 4 LITTLE GIRLS
• PAUL LENI - THE CAT AND THE CANARY
• SERGIO LEONE - ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST
• JOSEPH H. LEWIS - GUN CRAZY
• JOSEPH LOSEY - SECRET CEREMONY
• ERNST LUBITSCH - TROUBLE IN PARADISE
• GEORGE LUCAS - AMERICAN GRAFFITI
• BAZ LUHRMANN - WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S ROMEO + JULIET
• SIDNEY LUMET - LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT
• ALEXANDER MACKENDRICK - SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS
• LOUIS MALLE - MY DINNER WITH ANDRE
• ROUBEN MAMOULIAN - DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE
• JOSEPH L. MANKIEWICZ - ALL ABOUT EVE
• ANTHONY MANN - THE NAKED SPUR
• MICHAEL MANN - LAST OF THE MOHICANS
• GEORGE MARSHALL - DESTRY RIDES AGAIN
• ARCHIE L. MAYO - THE PETRIFIED FOREST
• LEO MCCAREY - DUCK SOUP
• NORMAN Z. MCLEOD - MONKEY BUSINESS
• JEAN-PIERRE MELVILLE - LE SAMOURAI
• WILLIAM CAMERON MENZIES - INVADERS FROM MARS
• ANTHONY MINGHELLA - TRULY, MADLY, DEEPLY
• VINCENTE MINNELLI - THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL
• ROBERT MULLIGAN - TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD
• F. W. MURNAU - NOSFERATU
• MIKE NICHOLS - CATCH-22
• MAX OPHULS - LA RONDE
• YASUJIRO OZU - TOKYO STORY
• ALAN PARKER - THE COMMITMENTS
• SAM PECKINPAH - RIDE THE HIGH COUNTRY
• ARTHUR PENN - ALICE'S RESTAURANT
• ROMAN POLANSKI - REPULSION
• SYDNEY POLLACK - THIS PROPERTY IS CONDEMNED
• MICHAEL POWELL - A CANTERBURY TALE
• OTTO PREMINGER - LAURA
• SAM RAIMI - THE QUICK AND THE DEAD
• IRVING RAPPER - NOW, VOYAGER
• NICHOLAS RAY - JOHNNY GUITAR
• CAROL REED - THE WAY AHEAD
• MICHAEL REEVES - THE SHE BEAST
• ROB REINER - STAND BY ME
• ALAIN RESNAIS - LAST YEAR AT MARIENBAD
• MARK ROBSON - THE SEVENTH VICTIM
• GEORGE ROMERO - DAWN OF THE DEAD
• ROBERTO ROSSELLINI - THE FLOWERS OF ST. FRANCIS
• JOEL SCHUMACHER - A TIME TO KILL
• MARTIN SCORSESE - GOODFELLAS
• RIDLEY SCOTT - ALIEN
• M. NIGHT SHYAMALAN - LADY IN THE WATER
• DON SIEGEL - INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS
• BRYAN SINGER - THE USUAL SUSPECTS
• ROBERT SIODMAK - PHANTOM LADY
• DOUGLAS SIRK - ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS
• KEVIN SMITH - CLERKS
• STEVEN SPIELBERG - DUEL
• GEORGE STEVENS - WOMAN OF THE YEAR
• OLIVER STONE - JFK
• JOHN STURGES - THE GREAT ESCAPE
• PRESTON STURGES - THE SIN OF HAROLD DIDDLEBOCK
• SEIJUN SUZUKI - BRANDED TO KILL
• QUENTIN TARANTINO - JACKIE BROWN
• JACQUES TOURNEUR - THE COMEDY OF TERRORS
• FRANCOIS TRUFFAUT - FAHRENHEIT 451
• EDGAR G. ULMER - DETOUR
• PETER USTINOV - BILLY BUDD
• CHARLES VIDOR - GILDA
• LUCHINO VISCONTI - LA TERRA TREMA
• JOSEF VON STERNBERG - THE SCARLET EMPRESS
• LARRY & ANDY WACHOWSKI - THE MATRIX
• RAOUL WALSH - THE ROARING TWENTIES
• PETER WEIR - GALLIPOLI
• ORSON WELLES - CITIZEN KANE
• WILLIAM WELLMAN - THE PUBLIC ENEMY
• WIM WENDERS - BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB
• JAMES WHALE - THE OLD DARK HOUSE
• BILLY WILDER - THE APARTMENT
• ROBERT WISE - THE HAUNTING
• EDWARD D. WOOD JR. - PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE
• WILLIAM WYLER - THE LETTER
• FRED ZINNEMANN - HIGH NOON

See what our friends said with their very own lists:

Weaverman at the Fleapit: http://fleapit-movieexpress.blogspot.com/2011/02/totally-futile-waste-of-time.html

Well You Say That: http://wellyousaythat.blogspot.com/2011/02/favourite-waste-of-time.html