98: Top 10 Favorite Movie Directors

Alex and Nick list their favorite film directors of all time and pick three movies from each filmmaker to represent their work. Stray topics include: Context for the “Everybody Wants Some!!” episode, accidentally getting drunk during a commentary, and putting in the work to fight depression.
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Transcript

0:09

Hey, everyone. Welcome to. What are you watching? I'm Alex Sweatshirt. I'm joined by my best man, Nick Dostal. How are you doing there? William Blake. Oh, I was wondering what you were going to go with it like that. I like it. The deep cut is a deep cut. I like it. Also, me being a bit presumptuous, I assume that name will be associated with a name you'll bring up later. We'll see. We shall see. Because we've got. Well, first off, let me start with the patented. I'm excited to be here. Oh, yes. But this is among them more than ever, because this is just a conversation that I don't think you and I have really ever had. No, we've never had it like in person. No. Yeah. And this is an idea that came up when we saw each other over over New Year's. And we're like, what if we just did like, a loose, just a complete shoot, shoot by the hip? Yeah. Like this isn't. There's no deep dives here. This is just. Who are our top ten favorite directors? That's it. That's it. It's a very loose, very open POV, totally subjective. So first off, yeah, this did get brought up on New Year's and I was like, Just make a list on your phone right now. Let's each do it. And we kind of like batted around and I said, All right, let's save this for a pod, but literally just bring up the top ten directors that mean the most to us. That's it. There really aren't any rules. We kept them a secret from each other. A secret in as much as like, how well we know each other. So I don't know if any will be a surprise for you. Like every director I'm going to list today, people have heard me talk about on this podcast. We have actually covered several of them on this podcast. So it's not about like surprising you or surprising people. Some of them may be a surprise, but honestly with my list, it's like what I left off is the biggest surprise of like, Oh my God, how could I not have this person on there? But that's it. This is just going to be an easy, loose conversation about two filmmakers who have meant the most to us, to us. And that can mean anything. That can mean the amount of movies like who's a director, whose movies we've seen the most, who's a director, who has the most, whose films have the most emotional impact? It can be anything. That's really where the conversation is going to be born from, not just like listing names, but then why? Why does this director's films mean so much to you? And then I thought it would be fun to pick again, just like we're allowed to pick any director, pick any three films from that director to help explain or justify why they are making your list. This does not have to be our three favorite films by each director. Mine certainly are not. Some of them are kind of crazy. I just did that on purpose. Some of them I chose because we specifically have not talked about them a lot on the podcast. So that's it. Open conversation. But yeah, it's just going to be really fun. Yeah, this is a great idea to do this and I love the format that we're doing because that's something that like we've always stated from the beginning of this pod is that the movies that we talk about, we don't talk about because like, Oh, this is why this is the greatest movie ever made. It's no, it's, it's about generating a conversation about why does this movie mean so much to you and communicating on that. And that's what our mad movie buffs do, too, with us. So this is very much just like that, except like, why is this director mean something to you? They're not it's not necessarily this is the best director to ever do the job. No, there's tons of lists. If you just Google best directors that will come up. And there are and usually they're always kind of the same top five. Yeah, there's the same top five or ten. And a lot of them you're not going to hear on my list today. I'm not saying that you know that Carl Dreyer is an amazing director. Of course he is. I'm not saying that Robert Bresson or Jean-Luc Haddad aren't amazing directors. They're just it's just totally subjective. Yeah. All we're doing today, we're picking the filmmakers that mean the most to us. That's it. I don't really have anything else. By way of introduction, I had a few prompts here to like, get it started before we get into our lists. And this I've definitely never asked you, like, who was your first favorite director? The first person you said, Yes, that's my director. Like that is who I'm repping as this is someone I love, someone whose films I love, someone who I will show up to the theater for regardless. It doesn't matter. Or whatever it is. I'll rent the day it's available, whatever it is, whatever it is. I think by way of not acknowledging it quite like that, like making that statement for myself, it has to be James Cameron. Oh, cool. He has to be that first one. Oh, this makes total sense. I can't believe I guess that. Yeah, yeah, yeah, course. Because. Because even though I never, like, said like, oh my God, James Cameron's my guy. It was his movies that I watched over and over and over and couldn't get enough of. But if, if we are going to that part of the conversation is who's the first director that I kind of proclaimed as my guy? I think it had to be Scorsese Oh, cool. Yeah, I didn't I would not have guessed that. I would have guessed what my introductory name for you. I would have guessed that. That's who I imagine we'll get to. But yeah, that's cool. Scorsese. Z Okay, okay. Because what was it like one of the movies in particular that like, unlocked it and you're like, All right, yeah, I can't ignore this anymore. This is my guy. Yeah, I think it was Goodfellas. I saw Goodfellas because we talked we have this conversation about when we both saw Pulp Fiction and how like we both sort of acknowledge that in our life is like, okay, things have now changed, but I don't really think I proclaimed. Quentin Tarantino is my director, but Scorsese was someone where he was the first director that I watched a movie from where I was. It made sense to me where I was like, Oh wow, this is a good filmmaker. This is what it actually means to be a really, really a master of your craft. And then after that, you know, it was more of those things where his name kind of became, I had it, I, I put it up on a pedestal. If, if this was a martin Scorsese movie, I was like, Oh, you take notice. Everyone sit up. Buckle up, buckaroo. We're about to watch a good movie. Yeah, I love it. I love it. I mean, I'm not trying to phone it in here. I will. Because the first one I wanted to pick, I was trying to think of someone who isn't on my list and Steven Spielberg is not on my top ten list. But things like E.T., which I burned through three VHS copies of it was the green VHS is burned through them because I broke them from watching it. So much has worn them out. I mean, and then getting really obsessed with not the movies like you would think I would like the Indiana Jones ones I never latch on to. But Jaws, Close Encounters, of course, Jurassic Park when that came out. Oh, my God. Oh, yeah. But yeah, the person who really, like, unlocked the art form for me was Marty. Like, it was. You talked about Taxi Driver, like me watching it so young being like, what? And then seeing Raging Bull. So shortly after that, at such a young age, under, under adult supervision, because I was watching that with my dad sitting there like, Wow, look at this. Great times, Great times. So yeah, but there are I mean, everyone I'm going to mention today, I really like ripped as my own, but Tarantino, Marty, those were guys really early on. But yeah, that I really announced is kind of my own but I was more curious to hear your answer. But Cameron makes total sense. I can't believe I didn't track that. But it is funny as I've gotten older and have ventured into, you know, this whole entire industry and artistry, the ones that I know that are in my top ten list that I really proclaim as as my directors, even more so than maybe Marty or Cameron, because we've developed a connection with them on a different type of level. We see them a little bit more. Sure. Absolutely. Okay. Last prompt I have How many without telling me their names? How many of the directors on your top ten list have we covered so far on What are you watching? All right. That we've done like director profiles for specifically Director profiles. Specifically director profiles, not deep dives. Yes. Okay. Correct. All right, then. I like Avatar. The way of water would not count because we haven't technically done a James Cameron profile. So just once we've done profiles on three, well, you can tell who controls the guy. You can tell who controls the episode list ideas, because we've done six of mine and or I'm sorry, by the end of next. Yeah, I was going to say by the end of next episode we will have done seven of mine. So that's fun. And the three remaining you and I have talked about, one of them we talked about, it's been on the docket for a while, but his filmography is just so vast. So four from you. Four. Okay, Do you want to just get into it? You want to do it? Fucking do it. Anything else? No. I'm so excited. Yeah, I know. We're going to start with two that I did not have to guess would be on your top ten and you did not have to guess would be on my top ten. We have already covered them extensively, so we're just going to get them out of the way now. Yeah, those are Ingmar Bergman and John Cassavetes. And I think, you know, it's very safe to say those are going to be on both of our lists. So let's do Bergman first. Ingmar Bergman. First of all, these two directors are the as I've said, they're the head and tails, the yin and yang of what I would consider to be my favorite director of all time. If I had to pick just one, I suppose it would be BERGMAN But they are two sides of the same coin to me. I like what their work has done to my life, to both of our lives, is just I can't even fully express it. I'll never be able to. We've done hours and hours of podcasting about them and I've written thousands of words about them. At any rate. Ingmar Bergman We did cover and Fool on Episode 81. That was fun. He did. I don't even know how to count them all. Damn near 50 feature length films. 45 of those were narrative films that few documentaries zero Best Director Oscar wins. A few of his films did win Best Foreign Language film. But yeah, Ingmar Bergman. Those are my general thoughts before we get into our three films. But why does he make your list, huh? I mean, again, he he I don't think he would be on my list if it wasn't for you. Oh, love to hear it. Yep, it's true. Write that down, folks. Men. Even though we just had that pod that we did on him, he still is. That is the filmmaker that when I even utter his name, my breath gets taken away because of the feelings and thoughts that he provokes in his movies. They're. They do they take your breath away. They're very they're very real. They're very hard, but they can be very funny. I've said before on here that I do think that he is, in my opinion, he is my favorite screenwriter of all time. Yeah, that's fair. And that's not something I will debate either. He's definitely my favorite screenwriter. And so it's not just the screenwriting, it's the way that he takes. So if you really boil it down to its most simplistic, the way that he takes those words that he writes and puts them to visuals. Mm hmm. Every time I watch a Bergman movie, I am left emotionally floored and and changed. So that's that's what what else can you say about any time you watch this person's movies, you walk out of their different. Yeah. Amen to that. Give me one of the movies you picked. These are movies that I picked some of them. These are not what I think are my top three favorites necessarily. Right. But I did want to just put these out there because I want to talk about them. I don't want people to see them. Number one, without question. Like if there's one that you should just go see right now, the Virgin Spring. Oh, that's what I have first two. Oh, yeah, hell yeah. Here's why I have it. I have because we, we got into a little bit of a debate on the Bergman podcast. I said that was one of his most accessible movies. You looked at me like I was a sociopath. And what I meant by that was, this is a very tough film, subject matter. Wise. Very tough. But what I mean by if you are a newcomer to Bergman, Virgin Spring is only 89 minutes long. And more importantly, when you watch this movie, you will see the influence this film has had on the art form in general, specifically the horror genre. You will see if you're a fan of movies, you'll see why this movie means so much to people like As Varied as Ang Lee, Wes Craven, John Boorman, Quentin Tarantino and Max Von Sydow is perfect in it. Oh, that's why I want to mention it. There's another director we're going to talk about later that I've always said this about, but I say that about this movie particularly. There's no other way that you could capture what this movie does if it wasn't for the the medium of film. Yeah, the feelings and ideas and thoughts that it provokes. It could only be done by this way. And you can't even talk about really, like how powerful they are. It's just a very, very powerful movie that you have to you have to see the whole thing. You have to really start from the beginning and get to the end. Hell yeah. What's number two from you? Number two or just another one? Okay. You know, Yeah. The next one that I that I have is the one that, that outside of the Virgin Spring when we did this, this is the one that would not leave my mind forever. And that was winter light. Oh, great call. Great call. Oh, yeah. I mean, that just stays. That stays with you again. That's an 80 minute lean, meaner than hell movie. Holy God. Great pic. Great pic. Remade without Credit by Paul Schrader as first reformed. Yeah. 2018 has to be has to be acknowledged. It does. It does. So I love that you picked out one. My next one, not a novel one for me. What I did do I tried for each director in my three to bring up. Like if I had to pick an all time favorite and my all time Birdman is persona, of course, just watch it again. I'm hammering home these runtimes, as I always do, because Bergman has made five and a half hour long films. Fanny and Alexander Television Cut, but Persona is only 84 minutes. And yes, it is maddening. It is puzzling, but it's kind of infectious because like you said, it just creeps in you. It it like stays and maybe it changes you. It I don't know that my favorite Bergman performance is in this movie in the form of Bibi Andersson. Oh, Nurse Alma. Which is just that saying a lot that my favorite Bergman performances in this. Oh, persona. Yeah. It's hard not to put that in there, too. I think I might. I might have to. Oh, yeah? Yeah. Is that going to be your third? I actually know for my third I wanted to bring up something, and I did this with a couple other ones throughout it, not just a straight movie. It's one of his long television films, I guess, if you want to say. And the reason I did this is because I think in today's world, I think this might in some weird way be the most accessible in terms of the way you'd view it. Yeah, and I'm going to go with it. It's not even my favorite, but I'm going to go with scenes from a marriage, right? And the only thing that's inaccessible about it is how long it is because. But it is episodic. That's very much one episode a night. You know, they're like 50 minutes long. Yeah. This is this is what everyone's into now. Everyone's all about, you know, give me the give me the the shorter thing and more of it. And, and a lot of talking and a lot of time. That's what people want, you know, It's a lot of talking. Yeah. But it's this is something that I always think that this is like a big challenge if you can get through scenes from a marriage, then you've really kind of set yourself up for potential new things to view. Oh yeah, you can get along with that. Like you can really go from here in terms of what you might intake for your art. Mm hmm. For sure. I love that My next one, my final one. I wanted to go with one that is not talked about enough and people need to see this Autumn Sonata for 1978. When I think of Ingrid Bergman, I think Casablanca. I think Bells of Saint Mary's Notorious, Joan of Arc. I think the strong, Determined Woman sometime with a romantic love interest and and none of those attributes describe her ice cold character in all of Sonata. I mean, this is just one of the best portrayals of a full blown, lifelong narcissist that I have ever seen. She is so vile. It's it's a great film. It's a great film. Go watch it. That's a tough one. I mean, I pick three. I'm ending with a tough one. But it also looks beautiful. Is it Does it look beautiful? The colors, I mean, the autumn colors, literally. Oh, I was just going to say that's one of the if not his most colorful movie, but it was one of the most beautiful movies. If you ever want to see a movie that has to do with those fall colors, you got it, baby. Yeah. And it's just a beautiful looking movie with this really, really tough content. And leave it to Bergman. I love you. Bergman. So good to get him in here early. Next, we'll go right to him. John Cassavetes Yes, he made 12 films total. We covered him on podcast Episodes 17 and 18. Also know Best Director Oscar surprise prize. I'll go first year. I'm starting right at the top. I was not planning on talking about this one, but I'm going to go with Shadows 1959 and when we recorded our Cassavetes episode back in November 2020, a Jesus Christ. Wow, what is time? I know I knew that Shadows was an influential movie. We talked a lot about that, but I did not. I still didn't realize how far its impact went. For starters, this movie gave Martin Scorsese the final push to start making movies. That was it. He and his friends saw shadows and they knew how Cassavetes had made it fully independently with his friends, and they went, okay, here's a template, let's go. And from that we got Scorsese, his first film, Who's That Knocking at My Door in 1967? And that's one example of the impact Shadows had. And yeah, please go watch that one. It that's why I wanted to mention it here specifically, just the impact. There's the close ups. I mean, in all the Cassavetes movies, he really he really loves those uncomfortable but just very revealing close ups and oh, yeah, I still have every time I think of that movie, I think of that that scene where she says, I never imagine it could be so often so awful. Oh, that's that's the most heartbreaking scene in the movie. One of the most heartbreaking of his career. There are things like that that are echoed again in Who's That Knocking at My Door. It's not exactly the same, but there are similar there's similar themes, I'll put it that way. And it's shot like very, very similarly just on the street using handheld cameras, grainy film stock, all that and the way it tackles race, too. Like at first before anyone was. Yeah, yeah. When we talked about, you know, he's two sides of the same coin like this is very cool that you and I both feel this way like it is. It's a testament to who we are. If for all the differences that we always have when it comes to like movies and shit like that, these are the two that just like, No, we feel the exact same way about these guys. What Nick is doing is something called foreshadowing. For our next episode, which we haven't recorded, but he's riling me up early. Continue what you started yesterday. I'll be up Holy Hara. Things could get out of hand. Oh, my God. Give me. Give me your first Cassavetes. I'm going with my favorite Cassavetes to start this one. And that is Faces. Oh, God. This movie just I ha. I still can't think that I've seen anything like it. I still like every scene is like, burned in my mind. I have a feeling about it. I can feel the way the movie moves in and also in the context of its time. The conversations that these people are having that Cassavetes is writing and letting his actors play, which is not done. And you feel that like even if you don't know it, like, even if you like, you're a bit of a younger person and you might not realize that these were kind of the social norms of the time. The movie makes you realize it as you're watching it, you actually feel like, Wait a second, like this, This is not how things were done back then. Like, you can feel the taboo ness of it. Yeah. And I'll never forget the first time you watch this. You were texting me and you're like, God damn men are just dogs. Like, they're just dogs. And I mean, Faces has gotten a lot of airplay on this part. We brought it up extensively in our favorite movie Arguments episode because that's one of the all time great arguments. I was like to say. That was Roger Ebert's favorite film of 1968, beating 2001 A Space Odyssey. Big deal, Big deal, Huge. You listed your favorite Cassavetes is I'll Do My Favorite Cassavetes A Woman Under the Influence, 1974. This movie's in my top ten of all time. I think Gena Rowlands gives one of the great performances in all of film, Montgomery Clift and a Place in the Sun. Gena Rowlands in A Woman Under the Influence. Those are my two favorite acting performances of all time there. I just made it nice and neat with a little bow on it. Oh, and this is this is the other one. I was my second one. I was going to reference. Hell, yeah. I second, I think Gena Rowlands in this movie is probably in my top two. Top three. If you don't talk to your Gena Rowlands, she's Oh, man. I feel like it's become a little bit of a trend. I've heard it a couple of times now where this movie, there's a performance in it and a new movie and then this movie gets referenced. Have you heard that? Oh, well, no. That's been going on for forever. Like they're channeling. Yeah. Gena and Woman under the Influence. Yeah. Yeah. Whenever. I mean, that happens. That happened with Mother with, you know, just. It's like it happens. Yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely. And it's pretty lazy criticism, to be honest. But yeah, yeah, it happens. And every time I hear that, I go, bullshit. Exactly. Exactly. That's what I mean. It's use your words. Don't just use comparisons though. That's right. Yeah. And no disrespect to these performances that are being not they're being compared to but I'm like come on now. Like what are we doing here? Like, yeah, if you're really going to see this, you, you better, you better mean it. So my final pick is one that I know so many people who who love Cassavetes but have never heard of love streams in 1984. It's never streaming anywhere, even on the Criterion app. But I promise you, if you blind by this criterion like I did, it'll be worth it. Whenever there is one of those 50% flash sales up, whether it's the month long one or the day long one, you can buy it. You'll love this, especially if you're a fan of Cassavetes. It's also packed with so many truly incredible special features that I just can't believe are on a disc. And I'm like, Wow, this is gold. Like watching this master work in direct was effectively his last Cassavetes film. He did one after that. There was a studio for Higher Job Big Trouble, but Love Streams was it? And I adore it. I don't think that there's I think in the in their whole entire time of me knowing you, there's only two movies that I can really think of that that you have seen and then had such an impact that like I would say like this movie and Waves are the two movies that, since I've known you, that you've seen, that you have a real, real life like these were movies that changed the game. Wow, That's interesting. I mean, yeah, I saw Love Streams specifically for this podcast because we were researching Cassavetes and I was one of those people who said he loved Cassavetes, and I had never even heard of that movie. So when I say statements like that, I'm typically calling myself out just which is true. There waves is interesting because we didn't have the podcast going yet, but I did mention it on our second episode ever because it was my second favorite film of that decade. Right behind Shame there. What a crowd pleaser. Waves. Yeah, don't keep that one in your head because once we get into the one hundreds into the triple digit episodes, waves might be coming back up. Had some fun thoughts with it. I fucking love that movie. Thank God his name is in around again. I don't know what the hell happened. I was like, Where's Trey? Edward Shults, man, Like, what's going on now? He's got a movie and like, a TV show, he's writing stuff at the weekend. Like, it's just it's. It's all good. I'm on board. That's cool. Fucking waves. This is my my layup to people. If what we're talking about with Cassavetes might be a little too hard. Might be. You know, I'm not really feeling like I really want to get into the muck and look no further than Gloria. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I did not know where you were going with that. Honestly, I thought for a second you were going to say like, husbands. I was like, What? That was. Yes. Great call. Yes, Gloria, Great studio movie that he made with his wife, Ted Rowlands. I fucking love that movie. It's so fun. It's so much fun. But it's also got substance. Like it's not. Oh, yeah, it's a Cassavetes blockbuster type movie. You get you get a little bit of everything with this one and again, Gena Rowlands, it's in my top three of hers with him performances. All right, well, that's fine. I'm really I'm so glad you snuck in like, inaccessible Cassavetes. I'm serious. I'm serious. I Yeah, that's. You're welcome. You're welcome. Look, starting early here, all right? Now the fun begins. Now that we got those two codgers out of the way. Now the fun begins. There's no name that you're going to say. We're all going to go. What? It won't be like that. I'll just be like, if anything, I'll go. Wow, that. That made it to the top ten, huh? And then, of course, I made a very quick top ten of who did not make it. That was obviously easier, much easier for me to make this. And there are some huge names on it that I was like, Wow, I really do have to. I have to let that one go. I will just say that mine so my next seven are in chronological order and then I'm ending with a very specific person. It'll all make sense, but I'm going basically in terms of age. So I'm starting with my oldest person and I'm going to end with my youngest person. That's just how I wanted to do it. You can do it any way you damn please. I chose to make a top ten because I felt like that. So they're always fun. Okay. But again, these might change in, as we always say, like these are just the top ten for right now. Because, God, I can't believe that people are off this list. I know. So who wants to give the first director here? You want to go first? So this is technically, if we're speaking in my language here, this is my third favorite director of all time, and that is old JJ Jim Jarmusch. Yeah, here it is. I do that too. I was referencing up top a little dead man reference. I knew this is going to make your list. I like that you're ranking them. I don't have the the patience to rank my directors here, but I love it. Again, I'm just going chronologically but. Jim Jarmusch Yeah this is this is a Nick does style director. It's my favorite Jim Jarmusch fan. I can't wait to hear what three picked because I know the ones you like but I can't can't wait to hear. Yeah, and I tried to go with some ones that I didn't talk about and he's not a director that we have broken down in our in our history. But I have spoken about some of his movies before this. So there's only one that I'm going to bring up and I'll get that out of the way right now just because I can't tell enough people to watch this. And that's one that your dad also loved. And that is, Oh, that was a great moment. Yeah. The great Patterson from 2016. Yeah. Go listen to our what are you watching recommendations on the place in the sun. That was that was a really, really great moment. I had no idea he was going to do that. Neither did you. But yeah. And loves that movie. We were talking about it yesterday. I love this movie. I love it so much. I love all of his movies. But this one, I think, is it's not my number one favorite, but it's probably a solid number two. You know, he he isn't the most accessible director either, but not in terms of the heaviness of his content, but just it's the sparseness of this content. He's sparseness. He's not a violent guy. He's not no pain, There's not overt sexuality. It's a very unique sense of humor that is really people have tried to imitate it, certainly, but it's just his own. And what I like about his stuff too, is sometimes a lot of it doesn't work. I like that too. He takes big swings and I appreciate that. I really do. But Patterson is one where I think this is a perfect movie for him. I don't think that there's any negative space here. I don't think that there's any moments that aren't really hit. I think it's all very alive. So I very, very much recommend Patterson And the reason why my dad and I were talking about it yesterday is because he just saw the new Kelly Reichardt film showing up and he watched that and he was like, It really gave me like Patterson vibes. I went, Want to tell Nick that? Yeah, well, she's a director. That's like that. I really love her. Yeah, Yeah, I do too. I do too. And Michelle Williams just does incredible work in her movies. I mean, we've brought her up on the pod a lot, too, but. Yeah. All right. And then now I'm going to go with one that I don't even know if you've seen this one Mystery train. I've seen all of its films. Okay. Yes, I see Mr. Chance. So I. Don't me. Yeah, This is this is one where I've noticed that he does. The thing that I personally love is that he likes to break his movies up. Some of them are very, very direct where they are. All right. No, no, no. These are like tiny little short films. Yeah, like little chapters. Yeah, Little chapters. And this is a movie that basically consists of about three. And you follow these different chapters with these different people. And it's just a formula that he really loves to do. I love to watch it. I think it's a great movie that does have some missing beats, but you put it all together and it's one of those things where you walk away from it. You're like, Man, I got to talk about this. Like, Yeah, like, what did I think? What did I feel about this sparseness? But yet these very, very interesting characters that we meet along the way. That's what I love the most. His movies have so many living, breathing characters that are just they range from over-the-top to as real as it gets. It's great. Yeah. And I will say to scale my wise ass three back, I have only seen that once in like a while ago. I watched all of his films in college and then have kept up with them since. And you know, when a new one comes out, I watch it. So yeah, I really do like that one. I love the episodic vignette stories that he tells, even where they're not explicit, like broken flowers. That's what that is too. It's like a cycle five times over. It's a rinse repeat thing that I really love. That's probably my my favorite film from His Broken Flowers. Oh, that's your favorite one. That's your last pick? Yeah, probably. Honestly, I really, really respond to that movie. I really like it. I think Bill Murray. It's great. Do you think? I think Bill Murray. I might like him better in that than Lost in translation. Sorry, It's a hot take. It's a good one. I know I love them, but it's not that hot because I think they're both amazing performances. But yeah, but. All right, give me your last one. The last one is one that I would challenge you to watch again, because I remember you said you didn't really like this movie, and I watched it on a plane, and I really loved it. And that's only lovers Left alive. Yeah, that one was challenging for me. I thought, you're going to go with his newer one, the zombie one, which is, Oh, really, really wild. And so meta for people who haven't seen it like that. That is the personification of meta, that film. It's it's very interesting. But yeah, only lovers left alive. I did. That's this one that I thought was like a bit sparse, but. Oh it is. It's, it's a JJ movie through and through. Yeah. So I get it you know it's but I'm glad you're mentioning it. I am. Yeah. That's why I wanted to bring it up. It's. It's one of those like outliers of his that you know, it's got Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton and they're vampires and it might be the smartest movie about vampires ever made. Yeah. And it's just basically them just living day to day. That's about it. That's about it. True. But I, I liked it like a lot of people. Yeah. Yeah. It's got a huge following. A lot of his movies do have huge followings like Dead Man. Would I reference up top like, Yeah, that's one. I mean, I think that's my dad's favorite film from Jarmusch because my dad, my dad and you were very similar in Akin to like you like those stories about just, you know, simple guys just like living life. I do too. But that my dad is the one who got me into those movies, you know? Yeah. Yeah. And I'd say Dead man's probably hit. That's his biggest one. That's probably like the one where Ghost Dogs really big. That's true. Ghost Dogs, Coffee and Cigarets is. I mean, a lot of people know that. I don't know. I don't know how many people have seen every episode, but a lot of people are chapter or whatever. Okay, cool. Mind this guy? Few people may have heard of him. He's born in 1899, died in 1980. Good life that Alfred Hitchcock there led 53 films You know many best director wins He had zero none. What what's fucking ridiculous It's I pointed out all of the Oscar wins that each of my directors have won in zero is a very, very common number. You're going to hear. Why is Alfred Hitchcock on my list? Because he's Alfred Hitchcock. Because my mother was completely obsessed with his films, the majority of them. And we watch them all the time, some of them that she loved To Catch a thief I think is beautiful to look at. But like mom, do we have to keep watching this one over and over and then, you know, Rear Window, which I love, was just on all the time, one that I never watched with her and then I never hear people talking about is the wrong man from 1956, which is incidentally, the year she was born. Anyway, this is one of those movies that deserves to be remembered with Hitch's finest work, but it just always flies under the radar. Have you seen it? I've never seen it now. Okay. You would really like it. It's a true story. He didn't make a lot of true stories about a musician. Played beautifully by Henry Fonda. It's one of my favorite performances from him. And he is accused of a robbery that he did not commit. And the movie is just about the fallout of that accusation. This film is a huge influence on me. All the hotel room scenes I shot in, I'm alive for that second chapter, all based on this movie, like the pan up from the ceiling, the tracking over there. I mean, there's this great scene where he just sits down in his jail cell and we know he's innocent. He just like, looks around this tiny cell and that's it. He's just looking around the cell and we're looking at it. You're really taking in his environment that I stole that just verbatim for I'm Alive. And this movie's a huge influence on Taxi Driver as well. So watch it. The wrong man. That's why he's Hitchcock's maid. Definitely more popular films, but the wrong men should not be slighted. It should not be. Now I'm going to mention two extremely popular ones one of my mom loved absolutely 1959 North northwest. Oh, sometimes you just got to reengage with the classics. I had not seen this one since college. I have no idea what led me to put this on for Ali or most everyone. Even if you haven't seen this, you've seen a clip of Cary Grant almost getting mowed down by that crop duster plane. You know, him dodging it. And I think it got brought up that way. And she's like, can we watch it, Dude? This movie's like 2 hours and 20 minutes. It's a long hitch. She loved it. It's one of her favorite movies that I've shown her. Just made me reengage with it and love it so much more. And I want this one. You love this. Oh, it's so fun. It has just the right amount of, like, cheese. It it also thrills. I love it. Ali is his wife, by the way, who Thank you for that context. Hey, there might be people that listen to for the first time. They're like, Who the fuck is Ali? This? This is this could be an episode that gets new listeners. This could be because of this subject title. So Ali is my wife and my mother, who I reference frequently on the podcast, bless her heart, did pass away and Hitchcock was I'm trying to turn it from a joke into something heartfelt now, and Hitchcock was one of our favorite directors to watch together in the Twilight Zone, the woman had a photographic memory of every Twilight Zone episode she didn't like. She loved movies and TV, but she didn't have like she didn't memorize like a lot of directors or she know cinematographers like me. But I mean, she had every episode of Twilight Zone committed to memory. It was astounding. I mean, you could just ask her, not necessarily like what season or number they would be. Be like, What's the one word? Yeah. Yep. The glasses break at the end. It sucks. I mean, she would just man, she would know it. It was great. Psycho was a movie. The movie that I watched the most with her. Absolutely. No question. It's another movie that's in my top ten of all time. It has been in my top ten since as long as I've made a top ten movies list. So and it'll always be there. So those are my three Alfred Hitchcock. Love him. I love it. I love it. And that's and that's a director to that where, you know, we had the whole entire thing about these are the directors that mean the most to us. Not necessarily Yeah the, the maybe the best who have ever done it. But he is one of the best I've ever done it got. All right, give me your fourth. Oh, man. All right. Another classic. And I have to say, a lot of these directors that I picked are purely because they inspire me. Yeah. I've realized looking at my lists and they don't just inspire me for filmmaking. They just inspire me in kind of the world as I see the world through their work. And it's like I, we, they hit that chord with me and there might be no one on this list actually speaks to me more in terms of the way that I see the world on a certain set of philosophical level, and that is Richard Linklater. Oh, wow. Yeah. Another one that didn't make my list. Wow. Very cool. I can't wait to hear your three. And this is are you counting? This is one that we talked about on the pod. Yeah. Yeah, because we did okay. Yes, we did. He was third. He was episode three, and we've always said we got to go back and give like a proper treatment to him. Maybe we can make him episode 103. I don't know. It was good. Like I agree with everything we said. And it yeah, it was. We were new to directing two things and now, like I watch every movie before we do a director profile, even if I've seen them damn near hundreds of times. Oh, yes, I guess I do. Yes, I do. And I didn't for that one. And I spent a lot of that part being like, Oh yeah, I need to rewatch School of Rock and that it hearing that now three years later doing this podcast, I'm like you got to fucking watch the movies, man. But anyway, I love that you picked him. It's a great call for you as well. He he's, he's my guy. He is. He is absolutely one of my guys. So like, yeah, going back to the beginning, like director that's like, this is my guy. Yeah. Linklater I'll start with you. Tell me if this is too much of a cheat. No, you're all done before movies. That's it. Movie. Oh, that's director No. You kids. One, two and three. Yeah. What? Two, three. DUD No, you can count those as one block, you know. You know what? I still have never fucking done. I have never said no, not true. That's not your. Never mind. I did. I went boom, boom, boom a little bit ago. I did. I can't believe. Yes, I had a literally like a free Saturday where we weren't partying and it was the first time this is just like a year ago though, where I watched all three in in one sitting. So much fun. I know a lot of people who watch before Sunset first. Oh, I saw that movie in the theater with a lot of people who were like, Wait, there was a movie before this? And yeah, but yeah, that's true. Yeah, that's you can count those as one if you want. That's. I don't do it. I'll just do it so we can talk about the other movies. But, but you can only do that if one of your other options is the Newton Boyz. Oh, with Ethan Hawke and Matthew McConaughey. Oh, and Vincent D'Onofrio. I think he gets in it. Oh, my God. Hey, hey, No. Okay, so the movie's not too bad driving off course here. It's not too bad. So it's a jogger movie. Yeah, it's right. We're talking, of course, about the before trilogy. Yeah, before sunrise, before Sunset, Before midnight. It is my favorite trilogy of all time. Ooh. And if they decide to make a fourth one, I won't be against it at all, because I love that they have made these movies ten years apart from each other. Ten years of life lived and ten years of life that will continue to live. It's speaks to how he is as a filmmaker. He loves to just kind of look at the fullness of life with the way that his movies move. These are like snapshots of time. This is who people were and how they felt about each other at this time. And there's just no better example of of this type of storytelling than these three movies. Yeah, I love him specifically because time is such an important factor to the stories he tells, and they take a lot of his movies take place in very specific amounts of times, like Slacker is Damn near real time. Dazed and Confused is 24 hours. Yeah, For Sunrise, obviously it's like a night, you know, it just keeps going up. Tape is real time before sunset is real time. Everybody wants them. It's three days. Boyhood is 14 years, you know? Yeah. Yeah. It's very, very important to him. Yeah, And I like that. I love that. And I think that's why if we're just jumping right into it, I'm going with this is. I've thought about it. This is my favorite. Linklater It just is. And that's the movie we talked about many times. Good old everybody wants some. Everybody wants some baby first puzzle, first cousin. Well, you keep losing money. Yeah. I don't know, man. I, I This movie's been around now for almost ten years, and I don't ever get sick of it. Episode 64 was our deep dive on. Everybody wants them. And that's the one that I'm proud to report. Again, I'm not obsessed with numbers. I don't even share our numbers with you because there's no need to like, be obsessed about them. But that one did like and still continues to do surprisingly well. And we have talked about way more quote unquote, popular movies that just don't get as many listens. I have no idea why this happens, but I absolutely love it. I really love that. That's a very high. Listen to episode, the movie, right? I love that, too. It like there's no yeah, there's a well, there's an interesting bit about trivia for that episode that I don't know if I'm comfortable admitting. Just well, you the only way you could do it is you could say it and then you can edit it. I could add it. So there needs to come a time like that. And I talk to my dad about this episode a little bit. You know, there comes a time when we just have to be honest about things and that I do not partake in alcohol often. I really don't. It's just not my thing because I enjoy vices of the more herbal variety. That's what I'll say. And there, you know, go on. You gave me a challenge and you said, What if you were doing your thing while we recorded that podcast and we could take breaks and you could literally indulge while we're doing it and we can edit around it. So that's my long way of saying that if you do listen to episode 64, everybody wants some. I am extremely high three, So during the recording of it there I said it, whatever. Hey, it's fine. It's all, yeah, I was a wow that's what I think at the end, the bonus content. I was like, Fuck, this is tough. And that's what all that was. So there is. And then there's another bonus thing about how I myself accidentally got entirely too drunk on a podcast genuinely by accident because I had a bottle of champagne. You don't drink champagne and I had a bottle and we were in person and I had like we were in a hotel. I was just drinking out of one of those little dorky plastic hotel cups. Oh yeah. And I'm doing that and just filling it up like a little bit, you know, getting the bottle of champagne, dipping it because it's right next to me because we're recording. It was a commentary, so we're recording a commentary. And then I remember by the end we're like, you know, we were done and we go, Oh, do you want a drink? And I go, No, I have my bottle of champagne here. And I picked it up and it was empty. Yes. Oh my God, my fuck If I fucked up right now, I'm going to save what that was for. I'll save that one. But yeah, everybody wants it. It I'll save my my favorite podcast moment of this conversation. And it will save her later too, because I think it was the same one we're talking about that you were just talking about what happened with Saving Private Ryan. Oh, but what are you going to say about it? Well, that was my favorite one. We're we're basically both of us. We just got drunk and. Okay, well, yeah, I mean, we could just. Should we just say it to it? Yeah. Yeah. Because this more reason that you should listen to the Saving Private Ryan, like, save it, Right? Commentary. Yeah. Yes. There's. There's a whole when I think of the history of our podcast episodes and someone asked me which one was my favorite one, It's not my favorite, but it's in my top three. I'm saving Private Ryan because we were. This is such a long tangent from this. It's fine. It's fine, it's fine, It's fun. It's because we knew going into it, wow, we're really about to sit down and do a podcast for Saving Private Ryan, a commentary. So we're going to sit here for the next three plus hours and just talk during this movie and yeah, and we just we didn't prep at all. No, I threw that one on you. I was like, I want to start with this one. We're just doing it Where? Yeah, and to put a keep going. Then I'm going to add just a little more context. Keep going. And so, you know, and, and, you know, we did our thing. You know, we get we get through the Normandy scene and, you know, give it it's just do. But I think it's both felt like for both of us. All right, now, that that part's over. We still have to go. Yeah, Yeah. Where do we go from here? So off our top, it's like, Oh, shit. Yeah. Yeah. It's so there's a lot of repetitive, like, we just kept coming back and. And. Yeah, you were. You were. Turn it on to me. I didn't mean to get drunk, though. I didn't. And because I drink so infrequently, I got like, fucking hammered. I did get a lot like. By the way though, I still think my favorite thing is I started talking about pens. You prefer better pencil, You know, it's like, what's? Oh, yeah, better. I talk a lot about Nick Nolte to you, is not it? We'll see it. Right? Start talking about affliction, which has nothing to do with Saving Private Ryan. Two other bits of context for that. That was the first time we had like recorded a commentary from my computer and the way that I set up the audio. I did not realize until basically after the Normandy sequence or no, after they read the gun sequence in the field with the cows and everything that I could not hear you like I could not hear you effectively. So that's why when you listened the first part of that episode, I'm cutting you off constantly, Just all the time. All the time. And finally you're like, Are you going to let me talk? And I go, Oh shit. Like, I just I couldn't hear you because I had things mics improperly, Like I could barely hear you. Barely. Another thing I want to say about that is that that was the first day I got to L.A. and and you kind of mistimed things and you picked me up from the airport that day. Probably more hung over than I've ever seen. You told me some story that you like. Woke up on a couch you didn't recognize. You got home in a bathroom or something. It was a whole thing. Yeah. So you were already run it at like, half speed. Admittedly, you admitted this to me. And then basically, when we were done recording that part, that commentary. You fell asleep like 5 minutes after you were, like, out. So that's. So you're like, drunk and tired. I'm drunk and like, Yeah, I'm in L.A. Like, I'm excited to be here. And it just, yeah, that was that's it. That was a long tangent. Episode 77 Everyone's Saving Private Ryan commentary. Listen to it. Good. All right, Richard Linklater. Richard Linklater. I'm rounding it out with the last one. In terms of someone who speaks my philosophical language, I can't not leave out waking life. Yes, yes, yes. That's one of his crazy, weird animated movies that he does sometimes. It's similar to Slacker, where it just kind of moves from chapter to chapter, story to story. But the profound in and very, very real existential, poignant things he likes to impart in all of these scenes just ring true. So if you're someone that likes that shit, not like Alex. And you too. I know I don't I'm not a big fan of animated movies, especially ones geared toward kids. But those movies are a trip and I think existential stuff. Oh, I thought you meant no. Existential stuff typically is not my thing, but I would say Richard Linklater characters talk about it all day. Yeah, talk about it that way. To me, that is pleasing. I don't know. But it's very true. Things don't. Yeah, yeah, I don't know. I can't explain it. I don't know. No, that's actually a great point. It's the way that his characters talk about it that actually make it very accessible and. Oh, and Ethan Hawke can sell that better than anyone. He can sell that dialog to existentialism dialog better than anyone. He just kind of makes you believe it's really wild. I know it's crazy. Yeah. So Richard Linklater love him. Well, then my next one, someone we've covered on the pod podcast, Episode 35. Here's another one. Nick was really hung over for Stanley Kubrick. Oh, I do wonder if this is on your list. This is 13 films total. Did he make it? Not only did he make it, he's my literal next one. Oh, so he's your number five. What a perfect segway. Didn't plan it. Swear? Nope. Couldn't I mean we really did it. Yeah, that was. That was a director that. I mean, we really started. We were taking things seriously, but I was like, okay, I'm going to do it. I'm gonna, like, study them all. Watch them all in order. Yeah, I think I watched them like three times in order. Got so great. But no best director Oscar. Of course not. Best director. This is crazy. Yeah. And my picks may not seem like a surprise, but I did put one in for kind of a fun reason. But why don't you tell me briefly why he's your number five and then give me your first movie so briefly before any of these previous directors had really kind of come into my life. Stanley Kubrick was who I always said was my favorite director. Yeah, I discovered him in college. And. And you talk about someone that, like his movies, don't necessarily speak my emotional language, but they certainly do speak to my filmmaking like technique language. There is, I think, in terms of the art form, there aren't much better that have ever done this than Stanley Kubrick. If not, maybe he still could be considered the best his movies are damn near perfect no matter what they are, and he's never made the same movie twice. He is constantly reinvented the form and does it in ways that no one has done since and can't do better. Then there's a reason why, even if his movies. Let's just say they aren't for you. But you do like movies. But Kubrick isn't one of your guys. Let's say that there is a reason why I can't think of a living filmmaker who does not cite him as one of the all time greats inside him as an influence and as a reference, or even someone like Bergman, who was going, How the hell is he doing this? He is a master. How is he doing this? Like, I just well, again, whether or not they are for you or not, I guarantee they are for directors that you do like and that that has, you know, lent some weight to the conversation because it is Kubrick. It's wild that it's only 13 movies, three of which aren't really talked about that much. It's the first three. It's really wild, or at least the first two. Which one did you pick first to go with? The first one that I picked was I almost want to do it just to get it out of the way. But just because I can't really reference Kubrick without referencing and I think is more is the times we're living in. Go on. I think this movie actually appeals more because of how dangerous and offensive it might be. And that's A Clockwork Orange. Oh, yeah, Very well, brother. Very well. It's just unlike anything you will ever see. And you're going to be challenged with a lot of different things. But it's something that I think it's just I think it's important. I think it's I think it's one of the most creative and unique and challenging movies that you'll ever see. Yeah, it really I mean, that was one that I had seen so many times. But when we recorded that podcast, I had some new insight into it, just about the torture they were inflicting on him to quote unquote, correct him. I never I never really examined what they were doing to him that much. And it's really fascinating when you do and you dig even deeper. There's just so many layers to it. Mine is also not really a shocker. It was the movie you made right before 2001, A Space Odyssey, my favorite film from Kubrick. That's in my top ten of all time. And, you know, it's been there since I first saw it. One thing I really love about this movie, it's usually in any given year, even where I live, I can find it. Playing in a theater? Yeah, like for not all the time, but for one weekend. In fact, it's playing a few Sundays from now. And in the Alamo near me, I have plans that day. I'm out of town. But I was like, okay, I'll catch it next year. But I would go, you know, So I wasn't busy and that's just really nice. This is probably the old movie I've seen on the big screen the most. I think we've even seen it like twice at least one. Yeah, but twice together. It's just. Oh, and that is an experience in and of itself. And to say that that thing still holds up visual effects wise is a gross understatement. It just looks better than the majority of movies now. It's really, really wild. And what's cool about that you're talking about when it's playing in theaters is that I've seen it a bunch of time in theaters, though. Granted, this is L.A. I live in, so it is a movie town. But even still, we're talking about a movie from 1968. Yeah. Every time there's a 2001 screening, it's packed. Packed. Even where I live, it's packed. Yeah, Yeah That's awesome. And that, again, says something. Okay, what's your next one? Next one? I'm going with one that was. These are my these were my two favorite. When we actually did the podcast. Oh, these were the ones that really hit home for me in a way that I was like, I love these movies more than I ever thought I could. And one of them is Dr. Strangelove. Oh, yes. Oh, yes. I may trade The thing that I think I love the most about this movie is that in the writing process for Stanley Kubrick, he was so afraid of nuclear war. And so that's what he was writing the script about with his writing partner. And they're writing a drama. And yet the lines that they're coming up with, the just by the sheer facts of them were so ridiculous that they're like, but real. But like, that's not exactly. Yeah, it's real. Yeah. And they're like, they're like, No one's going to believe this in a drama. Yeah. Yes. And they're like, Maybe this is actually a comedy and they're in lies. The absolute brilliance of this movie is that by making that switch and turning of this real horrific, plausible shit into a satire is just is just fantastic. And then you got Peter Sellers playing three different characters. I mean, this movie, it's crazy and it's so much fun. Well, yes. Sterling Hayden is Brigadier General Jack the Ripper. Like you watch Dr. Strangelove, you go, Wow, Yeah. This is just like a satire, so over-the-top like that. It's based on a real person who actually did that shit. Like, it's not I mean, just investigate the movie. It's crazy. It's crazy. You have to turn something like that into a comedy in the way that he did. Yeah, it's. Yeah, it's one of the all time. Probably the best satire ever made, I think. Yeah, I think so too. What's yours? What's your next one? My next one that I'm bringing you up very deliberately. I'm going to talk about Barry Lyndon here for a second, because that's one that I think people need to give more chances to like keep going back to it. But I want to bring it up for a specific reason. You know, a few months ago, Scorsese did a Q&A with Ari Aster following Aster's film HBO's Afraid, which was when I saw it a while ago. Yeah, a few months ago. But that movie, it was a fucking trip. I mean. Oh, my God. Good movie. Big movie, weird movie. And oh, is it weird? But Scorsese loved it. And that was Q&A. He was comparing HBO's Afraid to Barry Lyndon, you know, to long films by directors with extremely confident visions and similar to how Barry Lyndon took some years to gather acclaim. He thinks that's going to happen with HBO's Afraid as well. But it did make me reexamine HBO's Afraid in a In a New Light just hearing Scorsese is praised about it. Like it's a really out there movie and I've been waiting for, you know, streaming or something at all. I study it a little bit more. It's available. It's it's out there. But yeah, I just wanted to bring up Barry Lyndon because that is one that I had these huge preconceived notions about it that was going to be boring or slow or all that stuff. And wow, it is not. It's just a thrill goddamn thriller. It's just a very, very intentional pace. Yeah. And if you if you kind of know that going into it and you let the movie in because it's really you mean get lost in those visuals. And if you do, then the movie does not it does not feel slower boring. You're absorbed into it. Good stuff. What's your next one? I'm going with the one that it was the first time I ever saw the movie was when we were doing the pod, and one that I still think is one of my favorite war movies ever made. Pass the Glory. Oh, so good. So good. Great choice. What a surprise prize that was. I mean, I didn't think it was going to be bad, but I didn't. I didn't know. I just didn't know. And as it unfolded, I was like, this is just remarkable stuff. Yeah. Especially considering when it was made and again, like, how short it is because a lot of it was very short can be long. And it just that is a lean, mean movie that is rooted just so deeply in realistic pessimism, honestly, because everything that's going on in that is completely futile and ridiculous and you just got to watch it unfold. There's nothing anyone can do about it, and it's absurd. There's some lines of dialog in that movie that I had to pause and just like, take in. Yeah, yeah, I remember you saying that. Yeah. Like, can't believe someone just said that. Like that. Wow. Yeah. When you're just. It's crazy how the war can devalue human life so much that your own men on your side are devalued. It's fucking crazy. It's a really wild concept. Honestly, it's something else. My final big surprise, surprise, Maybe the most maybe the wildest concept of all. Eyes Wide Shut 1999. Yeah, well, everything about it always will. I will never tire of watching it. It's, you know, sometimes it just hits me and I go, yep, it's going to be and eyes wide shut Day, Eyes wide shut night. One of the greatest movie reclamation of my life is that I got you to examine this movie, reexamine it, find a new appreciation for it. I'm not saying everyone has to like it. I am saying it is incredibly fucking weird, but incredibly deliberate and full of intentional artifice. And for all those reasons and many more, that is why I love it. Oh, interestingly, I did just learn a new piece of trivia about this. I kind of talked about it in our Deer Hunter episode, but the sets that Michael Cimino built for Year of the Dragon in 1985, when Kubrick saw that movie, he did not believe Michael Cimino, that those were sets. He thought that was actual New York Chinatown, and that apparently got the ball rolling for Kubrick to, you know, construct this fake New York right shot, because obviously they're not there. He just makes like two, you know, city blocks. They just keep looping and going on. But all part of the plan, you know, and then he's intercutting these inserts shots of the real New York. Oh, great stuff. But yeah, just a little bit of trivia. I love it. You know, what's cool about that is that we had the same director at the same place in our lists and we referenced all different movies. I love it. That's that is cool. That is cool. So then I would have gone. Then you would have gone with Kubrick. So does that make it my turn again? Man, you just made my head explode. I don't know that you go crazy talk. All right, fine. I'll do it. Why don't you go? Give us a number six. Number six. I'm going with the guy that we did go into a deep dive on a certain trilogy of his not too long ago, and that is Krzysztof Kieslowski. While Kozlowski made your cut. Okay. Yes, he did allow Yes, he did allow it. I just don't know how much of his work you've seen. Well, so that's why you know, this is fair. This is fair. I have not seen everything. I've seen half of certain things, but I've I think I've reached a point where I've seen enough. But I'll list the things that I've seen and then we'll just go from there, because I really don't really have much to say about each one other than how I feel about him as a whole. Well, yeah. Why don't you tell me? Yeah, let's do that. Tell me which ones you've seen, and then I'll just tell you which ones I think you'll really like and respond to that you should check out, that's all. So the three that I've referenced, again, I'm shooting again. I am referencing the entire Three Colors trilogy, which we did cover in episode 70 of the podcast. They're another episode that got a lot of listens, which I. But episode 70, I loved doing that episode and we got to go see them in the theater. I mean, you were on your journey in L.A., you did one a week. I'm a lunatic. So in DC, I did all three in the same day. It was just great. It was great there. I love this pic. I love that you are raking him so highly. I love it. There's just nobody that I've ever seen. That just. And this is what I saw on that podcast and I still say it to this day. There's no one that communicates the language of film potentially better than him. Then there's the Decalogue series, which I've only seen half of. But even in that half, what he's doing in these episodes, it's just a original and and yet it's so startlingly human. I mean, yeah, the Decalogue he made for $100,000. Which $100,000? It's 10 hours long each hour. You know, there's ten chapters. There's no fan of cinema or human being. Who's going to watch that entire thing. And everyone will be impressed by it. And the fact that he made each chapter for $10,000 are baffling. This is not someone who uses visual effects. This is not someone who does. You know, these are just human stories. And if he sees a fly that's kind of stuck and needs to get out, he's going to focus on that however long he needs to as a metaphor or, you know, a sugar cube being dissolved by coffee, it's going to take as long or as little as he wants it to. Yeah. Yeah. So five of the Decalogue. Okay, I'm with you. And then the one single movie that I'm bringing up is one that the Safdie Brothers talk about a lot. And it's one that made me watch it. And that's camera, Both Camera buff. Did you like it? This is one I was going to recommend for. Yeah, I loved it. I absolutely love the end. It's like, Oh my God, the end. But yeah, they love this movie. That's and you know, a lot of people think a lot of Americans start with Kozlowski because the Three Colors trilogy, those were his final three films. Yeah, he died right after he retired. It's so, so sad. Decalogue was made in 1988, and I think that's where a lot of people start. But yeah, camera Buff is 1979, so he has films. If you keep going back and this one is just perfect. I love this movie. There's just yeah, like I watch his movies and like, you know, you see certain things and you're just sort of like how when it clicks the way that he makes things click and I'm not seeing click by like there's like twists and turns or things like that, but he just communicates ideas and reveals the plot of his stories in a certain way that you're just sort of like it just washes over and you're like, How in the hell? And the light bulb that goes off in your head is it's one of the most thrilling experiences I've ever had. Watching anything is when I'm watching his stuff because he just does things that you're like mind blown. You're like, Oh my God, I just as a director, I don't know how you can be like, Oh, I see how I can make this work. I'll get this through. But yeah, but you've also seen The Double Life of Veronique. Yeah. Didn't you go to the theaters for that one? Yeah. Yeah, that's. That fits in so well with Three Colors Trilogy. They're all like. I mean, I mean, that movie is beautiful, and that's one that I call that persona light because it feels like something made in the vein of Bergman's persona. And I have so much fun just going back to it, I don't think it's meant to be, quote unquote, figured out. I just it can't be absorbed. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Like I gave up a certain point on my right. There's no there's no trying to figure this one out. I'm just going to let it happen. Yeah, he has some earlier work. The only one of the earlier work I was going to recommend to you was camera buff. But then, I mean, honestly, it just sounds like you need to finish out the Decalogue, and you will have a really good balance of his career. You already know what I'm saying, you know? Yeah. Yeah, He doesn't have that much in there. All on Criterion. Yeah. That's why I felt like I wanted to put him in here, because I was like, you know, I've seen to know what he's what he is and what it means to me. And I'm like, Yeah, he's in there. He's absolutely in the top ten. Good stuff. Well, my next director is also a foreign born director, one of my absolute favorites, Verner Herzog. Oh, my God, I knew this. I knew this is going to be your. Oh, yeah, I mean, it's like it's almost impossible to count how many movies he's done. He's done almost an equal amount of documentaries, both short and feature length to narrative films, both short and feature length. He's done at least 20 feature films, and they're two feature films, at least 34, by my count, feature documentaries. Jesus, of course, no best Director Oscar. He's been nominated for best documentary once for Encounters at the End of the World. Just a truly great film. One of my favorite documentaries. I'm going with some wild ass picks today because of course, he did make five films with the great and very tormented Klaus Kinski and my favorite of them is the one that people talk about the least, and that is watching what what I think that's they say watching from 1979. This is based on a play from George Bruckner from 1837 and Herzog's vision of it. It's just Klaus Kinski losing his mind for 82 minutes as a soldier who keeps getting bullied by everyone, his superior officers, his love interest. It takes place in damn near real time. And you're just watching Klaus Kinski lose mine. That's all. That's all. That's pretty, pretty fun. Watch. Oh, I love it. Aguirre The Wrath of God. Fitzcarraldo, Nosferatu. I love all of those movies. Those get talked about way more than this one, but just urge people to go check it out. And then my final two picks. This is a double header. Great double feature that showcases both of his talent. First we have Little Dieter Needs to Fly a documentary May 1997. This is a documentary about a German American man, Dieter Dengler, who fought for America in Vietnam. He was shot down and held captive as a P.O.W. Rescue Dawn, starring Christian Bale as Dieter Dengler, is a narrative retelling of the same story, and I like both films equally. So they were made about ten years apart. It's just really cool to check them both out. Which order would you recommend if you were to double feature that son of a bitch? Which which would you go documentary first, the narrative or other way around? Yeah. It's always better start with the documentary because then you're getting, you know, Herzog was always very quick to point out how sometimes his narrative films were more truthful than his documentaries, because in documentaries you do have to edit. So there is some creative license being taken place. And I think he I don't want to say everything that happens in Little Dieter needs to fly, but it would be good to watch that first, have a perspective of who this guy is, and then you get to see how Christian Bale, you know, imagined him and played here and it's a really and that's little dieter needs to fly It's like a calm, very well-made documentary rescued on has like really incredible action set pieces that are thrilling. And it's just good to end like that. I think I agree. Good for you. I love Herzog. I don't know how much of his work you've seen, but this is one he has such a vast filmography that it would be very difficult to watch all of them and then talk about all of them. So it's one where we would just have to get on and be like, All right, favor Herzog, let's go. But I don't love all of his movies, but I will love him and his work ethic forever. Oh, God, Give me your next one. All right. This is one. This we're going back to ones that just kind of speak to me and that is, Oh, I love her to death. Sofia Coppola. Oh, great, great. She almost she almost made my list. She was definitely circling. Oh, great. I'm so glad you picked her. There's there's just a certain like, you know, I'm looking at all of these like, you know, we've got Cassavetes. This is for me, Cassavetes, Bergman, Linklater, Jarmusch Kubrick and Kieslowski live in their own. But then Sofia, there's just like, there's a certain feeling that I get when I watch her movies, and I think this is such a very important quality for a director, is that, like, you really feel that this is how the person sees their world and they and, they fill it with all of the things that maybe something mean how they see the world as much as this is how they would like to, who knows? But either way, they are expressing themselves and Sofia's movies always feel like Sofia's movies, and they're so small and contained. And even when they're big, even like Marie Antoinette, my movie that I that my first one that I picked very large in scope, talking about a whole entire, you know, real person. But it what she did with these crazy sets and these colors and the soundtrack and everything like that, it's just it's such a style thing. And then I'm going to bring this one up because it's the one that everyone shits on and it's the one that I still championed and that's The Beguiled. Good for you. Good for you. I love it. Have you ever seen the original? I'm just curious. I actually did because I got so kind of gold. Clint Eastwood. Yeah. And I didn't it. Yeah, it's it's. It's a 1971 movie, I'll put it that way. It yeah it's it is not very nice word the women especially a little a lot of, a lot of Yeah yeah yeah yeah. That's why I like a woman taking the reins and doing it and putting her own spin on it. I like that a lot. It's a very it's just a slow movie, that's all. I think that threw a lot of people off. Like, it's really slow, but goddamn, it's gorgeous. It's gorgeous. It is. And it's just don't understand what we're all this negativity comes from because I was like, These are great actors really playing well, I can't forget frickin his name. Did Colin Farrell. Colin, Colin Farrell. Colin Farrell. You know, like the way that he is trying to manipulate and using these tactics and the way it is working and not working on these women and what they're all after. Like there's so much going on. It's just, I love it. Just absolutely love it. And then running it out, a movie that we did a it's own deep dive on way back in the beginning days of Tarzan. I want to say it's number seven. I want to say it's episode seven. Shit. Let me see if I can do this all. Tell my head. Yeah, because I think Christopher MacDonald's eight and Michael Biehn is nine. I'm going to look. But yeah, I think somewhere I think six was Deakins and I think I think seven was somewhere. You got it, You got it. Six was Deakins one of our most listened to ever. Seven was somewhere. Our first movie, Deep Dive was Somewhere, which I love. And then eight. Yeah. Christopher McDonald. Chris Mac, Chris Mac. Go listen to our episode seven, you know, go watch somewhere and then listen to our episode seven. It'll work better that way. Yeah, Great picks. That's my favorite from her somewhere. It's always been my favorite. Good stuff. You can tell it's a What are you watching list because Sofia Coppola made your list about Francis Ford Coppola. And here we are. Yes. And you know what? Yeah, I agree. I'm here for you for my next pick. Oh, it's someone people have heard me talk about a lot. I have two directors that I have given my most title to their work that I've seen literally the most amount of times. And it's a tie. First up, Steven Soderbergh. He's made 33 movies. Yes, Here we go. Someone who has a best director, Oscar 2000 Traffic. Yes. Got nominated twice that year for Erin Brockovich and Traffic, very, very rare. Yeah. This is like one of my living gods. I mean, thank God the man took such a short retirement, came out of it, and his work output has been just remarkable ever since. And he's gives us a movie or TV show or an HBO Max direct movie. It seems like every year and cool. Keep doing it forever. Watch them all and about them right here, I promise. And the three movies I have to pick are Yeah, they're going to be different and fun, I hope. Well, what are they? I know you love Soderbergh. I know you're on this train with. Me Well, what are they? Of course I love Soderbergh. I can't believe he's one of the ones where I'm really upset. Didn't make my list. They didn't make your cut. Yeah. Yeah. First up is Solaris from 2002 because I love damn near all of his movies and I rewatch them all the time. Traffic is my favorite, but you know, normal people don't rewatch Solaris a lot, but I do and I just love everything about it. And I, I do prefer it to tarkovsky's original. I'm not taking anything away. I'm not even saying it's better, but it is certainly one that I've seen more. I love the way it looks. James Cameron produced it. You can feel his influence on it. They do a great commentary for it. Soderbergh and Cameron. I love Slahi's. Get some say about that. It looks like you have to say something. Why is this? Is it Solaris or Solaris? It's whatever you want it to be. I call it Solaris. All right. Is it Philip Seymour Hoffman or Philip Seymour Hoffman? It's I know it's Hoffman, but I just when I say Philip Seymour Hoffman just comes out right afterwards, that I don't know. I do my best. You know, it's like we all can, you know, we all just kind of just do our best. Solaris, Solaris, tomato, tomato. Ocean's 12 is my second because this is my favorite Ocean's film. And a favorite movie of mine just for so many different reasons, endlessly entertaining. I've always said I thought it'd be a lot of fun to do a commentary for this movie. Dude, we just do it. Should we pull the trigger? I think it would be fucking hilarious to do a commentary on Ocean's 12 without doing one on Ocean's 11 and then never one on Ocean's 13. Just dropping at Ocean's 12 and People's podcast. I'd like to be like, What is it? Because that's the one that no one would do. Put it on the radar. I I've put it on the radar, Yeah. And then my third one is something people love the shit on this movie, but god damn it, sometimes you just need a lean, mean, 90 minute spy thriller with kick ass fight scenes like Haywire. Steven Soderbergh, one of my favorite directors. Why am I mentioning Haywire? A movie so many people love to hate? Because this is what that I'm staring at my Blu ray right now. I just put it on. It's so short, it's so easy. Is all the acting perfect? Is the lead performance perfect? No, I don't care. It honestly plays kind of like a James Bond type movie. To me, it's basically the closest Soderbergh is going to get to James Bond, and I rewatch it all the time. I love it. Michael Fassbender kicking ass. And this is just it's a joy. The support that the cast for this movie is just it's just so much fun. There's just so many people in it. Ewan McGregor, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, he starts, Bring it in, people. And it's, I mean, great ending. Oh, Bill Paxton is the dad Yeah and shows up as the dad. Yeah Oh God I love Haywire I think it's I don't know I think it's a fun movie, but those are my three. Gah, Give me your number. You're number eight. This just rings true to me because of my background in theater. The great Mike Nichols. Oh, wow. Wow. Yeah. Good call. Good call. Yeah. And it's not even like I mean, he's got great films that he has that he has made, but I really, really love that he brings his life work of being a director of theater into his movies. Mm hmm. I just don't think there's another director that has ever tackled the adaptation of film from stage to film as well as him. And you can feel it in all of his movies. They feel like films, but you also feel that bit of theater. Every time I'm watching a mike Nichols movie, I feel like I'm at home. Oh, I feel like I've been. I'm connected to what I started and I and it's done with such class. Like, I feel like all of his movies, even when they get vulgar and they get funny, whatever there is there's a certain amount of class that he always feels like there is into his movies. And one the first one I got to go with is is a top, top ten, for sure. Closer? Yeah. You love it. You love it. God, I love that movie so much. I want to watch it right now. I could watch that movie any time. That's a weird thing. There's a What are you watching? Clear indication that you know what movie I could watch any day, all the time. Closer, Huck. Yeah. And then the complete opposite side of that spectrum, The birdcage. Oh, it's one of my absolute favorite comedies ever made. It's perfect. It's what he gets from his performances. This is the connection to theater. Like, this is just a director working with an actor. Every Mike Nichols movie, the performances are just outstanding, top to bottom, bringing into a different realm. But still keeping it in theater is the Oh, man, it's brutal, but it's fucking fantastic. The Angels in America miniseries. Oh, yeah, HBO. God, I own that. Looking at that right now, too. I remember watching that when it came out being like, Holy shit, this is so intense. I love playing different parts. I love it, I love it, I love that stuff. I and this is a really, really, really great adaptation of a, this play in the theater world is kind of regarded as sort of like a thing where it's like, wow, you're you're going to tackle Angels in America, you're going to Tony Kushner. You can do that beast, Tony Kushner is it? It's the plays always run super long over 4 hours. So it's a beast to tackle. And many people are very, very criticizing of whether you've done it right or not. And I think Mike Nichols knocked it out of the park with his mini series adaptations. I love Mike Nichols. Mike Nichols, great pick. I mean, so many I saw so many things I could bring up. I think first is his first film, his best film. And I love all of his work, but Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? It's just one of the best debut films ever made, ever made. And we've talked about it on this podcast before. Even really early on, her favorite movies based on plays. Oh, here we go. I definitely not have many notes for this, and I can knock out my three films really quickly. Quentin Tarantino, He's made we've got one left, the movie critic. Apparently that's it. It's going to be the movie critic, which he's written hopes to shoot next year on podcast eight. When we covered him, we talked a lot about what is his last movie going to be? None of my crazy ass ideas are what is reality. I like pretty much new. Yeah, I pretty knew that was going to happen, but yeah, it sounds like it's going to be something simple. I'm intentionally not doing a lot of research on it. Quentin Tarantino Hugely influential in my life. And when I say that like when I was so crazy about movies in the nineties and I'm a kid and all these discoveries are my own, it's really wild to think that I only had the three I had, Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown, that's what I watched obsessively. They each had those two disc DVD releases and I watched them the time so that when 23 hit for Kill Bill, I've just never been more excited to see a movie. I don't think in my life Scream two has a child. God, I'm so excited to see Scream two. But I mean Reservoir Dogs in Pulp Fiction, I recently purchased on 4K and it was like seeing both of those movies for the first time. It was I'm not exaggerating. My jaw dropped several times. So yeah, not not an original choice, but I do love him. I love that he's writing novels now. I've read them, he's writing film criticism. I really, really hope he's not ten and done. But we are going to see and also know Best Director. Oscar Yeah, it's kind of it's almost maybe is it better just to just not have ever it? He said. One of the reasons why the Once Upon a Time in Hollywood awards campaign was so tough is because I've heard him say this on his own podcast and in interviews that he doesn't think he's ever going to get a best director or best picture win, but he thinks it would be really cool to have three Best Original Screenplay Oscars. The only person who does is Woody Allen. So if he would have won for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, he would have had three because he won for Pulp Fiction, he won for Django, and then he would have won that and he should have won for that. Like, you know, I go back to this argument all the time. You can like parasite as much as you want, but it didn't deserve all those. It didn't need international film, screenplay director, picture, yada, yada. I've said this argument like a million times. But anyway, Quentin Tarantino love it. I love him. I can't believe he's not on my list. That is shocking. You did say this on years when we were together, that you didn't think he was going to make it. And that is like for someone where you talk about Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, the time you saw it so many times in the theater, it's very strange. I don't I don't have an answer for you. I don't I don't I really don't know what this is. I don't either. I think there's actually a part of it where there was a three way tie that a between three different directors that I could not choose between the three. So I just went around all of them. Yeah. And ended up with these, with this top ten list. But there's also good reason like they're like, No, I don't feel bad about having Sophia in my in my list because you shouldn't. I there's a certain feeling I get when I watch a Sofia movie that I just can't put my fingers on. And I love that feeling. Number nine. Okay, this would be the equivalent of your tree. Edward Schulz. But but I would say you're Steve McQueen, your Trevor Schulz. I would say these are this is the contemporary filmmaker that you see the most of yourself in Michael Bay is how I feel about my up. That was good. The one, the only. Derek Cianfrance Yes, yes, yes. Good pic. Yeah, that's perfect. Cause my, my next one is not necessarily younger, but someone with not a lot of films either. So that's, that's perfect. Derek Cianfrance Yeah, great call. There is, there is just no one that I think right now that like when I watch these movies, I'm like, This is, this is me. This is, this is how I want to do it. This is someone who just speaks my exact same language for the types of stories, the emotional weight, the way that he views humanity, the way that he views acting, and just the overall. His approach to filmmaking as a director is what I want to be in do there. I mean, there's not really much because there's a short list of movies, but these are the three that have meant the most to me, and that is the place Beyond the Pines. We have a whole entire podcast episode devoted to that movie. Episode 13. Someone did his homework and looked these up. Yeah, I, I actually, I swear to God, I did not. These are all right. Sorry. I'm here. It is 13 minutes. I always remember that too. Maybe because like 2013, 13. I don't know. Oh, I didn't even. That was a fun one to record. That's all right. The piece. Ray Liotta. Rest in peace and then a one that we should just, you know, we should do we should do a commentary on this on Blue Valentine and Blue Valentine. Yeah. Yes. Think about it. Oh, man. We both had none of our commentaries about explicit sex scenes, though. Like, I feel like those would be awkward to talk to. I mean, that's like, well, we only saw about other things during it that will make it fun. Okay, We'll give people a different reason to have to watch movies in Blue Valentine commentary. I'll fucking do it. I fucking love that shit and be hilarious. Hey, at least it's not long. I mean, Private Ryan's like 250. That was. It was a long commentary. It sure was. And then and this is this is a situation I call it a situation because I don't even know it's a miniseries, but I've read this ever since. I've seen it as hard as I can. The HBO miniseries. I know this much is true. Yep. I think for Derek Cianfrance, I think I know this much is true really speaks to the way that he is a storyteller. He always has such ambitious stories that really span a lot of time for a life and I think mini-series or even television, it may be of a more fitting format for him to really encapsulate what he wants to say. And I've still said it. It's my favorite Mark Ruffalo performance I've ever seen. He's so good. Oh, he's so good in it. Yeah, he's so good. I rewatched that shortly after, like COVID hit Good rewatch. It's so intense. It's. Yeah, he's great. And a double performance. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Good pick. Derek Cianfrance Well, this is the one they send me to hell for because on podcast 59 and 60 we covered the films of, the great Guys far and Away it's made yes, six features and one featurette looks turn and yeah of course he's one of my top ten directors. I mean, I can't apologize for who I am, honestly. And I mean, no, you shouldn't. And of course, the first movie I'm going to pick from him is Irreversible, a movie I have studied endlessly, which was how context may sound like an alarming statement, but it's just me, just movie freak me. And then now I'm going to do a double feature. His drug double feature Enter the Void in 2008 and climax in 2018. Because it's really interesting how he handles two different drug because Enter the Void. It is really all point of view, like point of view of the drug point of view of life after death. It's it's really all objective. POV for the main character, climax is the exact opposite. It is pure observation. We are watching as a group of dancers lose their minds after being spiked with LSD and we have no idea what they are actually seeing. He doesn't imagine that for us. Like he doesn't enter the void or we don't know what he what they're experiencing. We just watch them experience it. We also went like all out on those pods. We really research that gas far and away and we took it seriously. And I'm really proud of those because those are difficult films to talk about, a lot of them. And I thought we handled ourselves well and with maturity. But yeah, I guess far away, that's kind of my I was like, I have to be true to myself. There are directors here that I probably have talked about more that certainly have bigger bodies of work, but there's just something about the way he does it that no one else does, and I have to appreciate it. Yeah, I'm fucked. You know, you couldn't just resist. Good. You you couldn't just. You couldn't just leave it alone. I was about to say something nice, and. Yes, it is, man. Yeah, it is. I mean, whatever. But. Well, I to say, man, moving forward, I'm at a crossroads right now. I don't know what to do. This whole Quentin Tarantino thing has got me all all mixed up in that you you're some big ones. There's enough. My last one I'm another one is stunned. Is not on your list so far no one. Yeah, I know that it's on mine, but do it. Why don't you go first? And I just need a little bit more time. No, no, that's fine, because I technically have two left, so. And you only have one. Yeah, Yeah. My next one that we've talked about a lot, including our podcast, 46, is the great Paul Thomas Anderson. And this is the director that my wife Ali says I talk about the most because I asked her. I was like, I her my list and she's like the director you talk about the most they never shut up about is that PTA guy. And I'm like, really? Goes, Oh my God, You talk about his movies, like all the time so, you know, also no best director Oscar Of course not. Which ones to talk about? Oh, God, I don't know. Boogie Nights is so endlessly rewatchable. I do think it's the most rewatchable movie he's made. It just flies by. There Will be Blood movie we've talked about a lot, especially on podcast episode seven, where we did a quite sober commentary for that show. That was a lot of fun. We had a lot of fun just talking about that one. And then finally, my darling Phantom thread from 2017 were the most oddly beautiful films I will ever see. This thing speaks to me in so many ways. I cannot believe the person Who wrote and directed Boogie Nights also wrote and directed Phantom Thread, And if that really is Daniel Day-Lewis final performance, God bless Mr. Woodcock and Mr. Woodcock. Some of these I'm going through quickly because we did a whole episode about him. But I love him. But but the time is now. Give me your 10th and final director. All right? I'm doing it. I can't. I can't. Not in good conscience. I can't, because it's not just of of of his movies because that's obviously that. But it's also what he says in the way he talks about movies. And I am going to put Quentin Tarantino. I'm going to do. Oh, it snuck in. Okay. Yeah, okay. Snuck in. I stand by the fact that once upon a time in Hollywood has meant so much to me that it has you know, it's not just break the top ten for me of my favorite movies of all time. It's number two. I have been very unhappy with the fact that Pulp Fiction is not in my top ten because I truly feel like that is one of my favorite movies I've ever seen. So just by the mere fact that I'm in such conflict about this category and these movies, I mean, if I see that I've got two movies of his that are in my top ten, like how is he not one of my favorite directors? So I am seeing my 10th and final slot. Four is Quentin Tarantino and the movies Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, because anyone who knows this podcast knows how I feel. And Pulp Fiction. Oh yeah. And then what's that third one going to be off the top of my head? You know, it's Reservoir Dogs. It's Reservoir Dogs because I loved when we were doing that podcast, there was a critic that said that the great artists of any time look at what the situation is and see what needs to change. And they know how to do it. They know what the climate needs and that is what Reservoir Dogs did. Reservoir Dogs was that thing that independent movies needed to kind of be like, Oh, wow. And that's a revolutionary artist. And and that's yeah, that's what he is. And if it wasn't for Quentin Tarantino, no, I don't think I would have had the permission that I needed to give myself when we were making There I go, because he was one of the people that I watched the most when it came to interviews that, just talked about just fucking do it, just fucking do it. I love it. I love that he snuck in there and I'll be very curious to hear in the Who We Miss section, who you're, you know, who was vying for that last spot. But I still have one left and I did deviate from chronological order to talk about him. We've referenced him a lot kind of on purpose. He is last but certainly not least, Martin Scorsese we talked about all the way up top. This is my other director who I'm tied with for most watched. He's 25 feature length films, 16 by my count documentaries. His 26th movie is going to come out this year. He has one best director Oscar for The Departed. 26 least he has one. And why did I save him for the end? Why am I not talking about him in full today? Because he is the subject of our next episode, Episode 99. This is a full Marty Scorsese breakdown and wow we are excited. I'll give three Marty films that researching that episode, I have formed completely different relationships with All for the better, and that is Who's that knocking at my door? Jaiswal In a completely new light. The Aviator, Which is like watching a new fucking movie. Honestly, I can't wait to talk about that. And then I finally got silence. I finally got what he was doing with it. I got the punishment of the exercise. It was a lot in the theater. I was like, Fuck, man, this thing is wow. And I that's one where I just like it a little better at home because I wasn't, you know, I was pausing and like, rewinding a few times because I didn't really understand stuff. But those are just three. I want to mention that, yeah, I've formed very new relationships with, but so excited to talk about those and more. And our episode. Stay tuned. Foo. Foo. Foo it to hear it. All right. Who we miss. Oh first off in our in our top tens we only had four in common. I thought we were going to have more. We had Ingmar Bergman. John Cassavetes are two Kubrick and Quentin Tarantino. That's crazy. And Quentin Tarantino barely snuck in there, so barely It merely made it. I Yeah, barely. I just did ten for who we missed and I get I put them in chronological order but we can just would just do our list really quickly. But why don't you do yours. You can just do them all. I'll just put it this way. I could not this was the bane of my existence for the last two weeks. Was trying to figure in. Quentin Tarantino made it, but I could not decide between Martin Scorsese, Quin Tarantino and Paul Thomas Anderson. I'm like, How do I pick one and not other like Agius? And so that's why I actually ended up going all around be like, You know what? None of them fuck it, none of them. And so what? It was going to be my end pick, which now is not was Terrence Malick. Oh, good call. Good call. I did think that was going to make your list and close to making mine because he is in my who we missed he's one of my ten who we missed because yeah we we both really love him. Yeah. Okay well then keep going. Just give me give me your rest. We got Billy Wilder. Oh, my God. I have to. I have him, too. He's first for me. Yeah, He was my favorite old Hollywood director, so I think the same. And that is not easy for me, because I love Fred Zinnemann. I love Joseph L. Mankiewicz. I love so, so many of them. I love John Houston. But yeah, Billy Wilder, He's just tops for me. Tops, just tops. This is one that I actually really like, but I realized I couldn't play me because I need to see more of his movies. But you know how I feel about them. I love them very much. But. Wim Wenders. Oh, good call. Okay. Yeah. Okay. I fell in love with you. Do you do Soderbergh The fact that Soderbergh didn't make my list is very upsetting. Oh, but he's in You're Who We Missed. Okay. Yes, we missed school. And and then one that I actually gave a lot of thought to, and I realized I wasn't going to do it. But he's a director that I really like. I know you're hit or miss. I mean, he's got some bad movies, but John Carpenter, I really love his. He's such an artistic director. Yeah. Everyone thinks he has hit or miss movies because like the last one with Amber Heard called The War is not a good movie. It's, you know, it's okay. Yeah, it is what it is. But I fought and in COVID, I formed a totally new relationship to things like they live. Yeah. All right. Who else? Carpenter. All right, Kit Cameron. James Cameron. Okay. I was surprised you didn't make your top ten. I was. I was. All right. Who else? Cameron Who else? There's so many more. But one thing I actually realized when I was getting it. You look up a lot for things like this, because I'm like, you know, you're trying to think of your favorite directors. Like, I need to see all of them, right? Need to, like, look up on the Internet and just run through a list. And there's one director out here who I've only seen one of their movies, and I feel like this needs to change, but I've only seen one Kurosawa movie. Oh, wow. Which one brand? Fuck, that's like one of his one. That's really good. King Lear. Yeah, it's really good. Wow, that Oh, wow. That surprised me. But I thought we talked about stray dogs, and you said you had seen that. I was definitely, you know, because that was about it. I was confusing that for a different movie. I think. You know, straw dogs. Straw dogs? Yeah. Wow. Fuck. Oh, it's funny you mention that, because he Kurosawa's on my list on my top ten list, and I haven't I have not seen all of them. There are quite a few, but I've seen probably 80%. And he's just what's so cool about him is how much you go. I mean you go watch like Hidden Fortress and you go, Oh, there's Star Wars. That's weird. And you see his Scorsese influence. And when you watch Rashomon and you see how that influenced literally that style of storytelling, it's called Rashomon style of storytelling. You have the same exact event, in this case, a sexual assault, and we're hearing four different people recount it, and it's all different in the movies, like 90 minutes long. And it's brilliant. It's one that I try to put on a lot. Seven Samurai. I mean, it's like 3 hours, 40 minutes, just fucking gorgeous. One of the truly one of the best movies ever made. High and Low is such a good moral dilemma movie. Let me give you the set up this really quick. So this really rich guy, right? He's like, This is a contemporary movie from when it was made in the sixties. There's a rich guy and these kidnapers are like, okay, we're going to kidnap the rich person's kid. And then they're going to pay the ransom, right? So they do this. But what they have done is they have mistakenly not kidnaped the rich man's kid. They have kidnaped the rich man's butler's kid. Or maybe he's the driver, the chauffeur who does not have money, who cannot pay a ransom. So now the rich guy is in a position of like, do I put up the ransom because this guy works for me and because he's a friend of mine. It's just great movie. It's great high and low. Oh, I love Kurosawa. Yeah. You got to see more from him. Yeah, I guess. I mean, that's what you know, they remade that as the few dollars trilogy for a few dollars more. And all that Fistful of Dollars is a remake of a pure silent movie. And, you know, and one of the other directors that I love on here that I didn't put on here is Wong Kar wai. Oh, yeah. Really, really love him. Yeah, but what about you? What are some of the ones that were big misses for you? Yeah, I've. I've seven left because you mentioned Billy Wilder. Akira Kurosawa. I want to watch, like, Rashomon right now and Terrence Malick. So my rest in chronological order that I really can't believe I left all them off. Michael Mann Love. Michael Mann. Oh, yeah. Sorry. This year. Adam Driver Yeah, I mean, he The Insider, Miami Vice Love. Michael Mann Oh, that's your guy. Oh, that's crazy. David Lynch is huge. Huge. I've seen yeah, I'm close to having seen all of his movies in the theater, which is cool. They get replayed a lot. Spike Lee of course, we just talked about Malcolm X for like three and a half hours. He got Game is just one of my genuinely one of my favorite movies ever that I have seen countless, countless times. He got game. I got to tell you, I am slowly getting through Spike Lee's stuff. Yeah, I mean, there's a lot he's that he's made a lot of work, but wow, Malcolm X, it has affected me so much that I immediately started back at the B because I loved He Got Game. Like I really, really like that man. And like, that was a movie that you were like, Just watch this. And I truly loved it. And I'm going back to She's to have it. I am blown away by this movie I'm and I want to go through his entire thing is I am really, really loving it. Yeah. And you'll learn a lot, too. I mean, she's got to have it. It's two biggest influences were Shadows. And who's that Knocking At My door are two of the biggest influences. It's all it's all, baby. It's all in the same vein. Yeah. I'm ready to do Spike Lee Pod any time. It's not a perfect filmography. That's okay. What he did. Yeah, she's got to have it all the way through 25th hour represents some of the best cinematic vision I've ever seen. Yeah, and I'm having we talked about the Malcolm X pod. I'm having a transformation with a few of his films specifically Bamboozled, which is like, Oh wow, did I miss the mark on that one? I saw it when it came out. The thing has got a lot more to say than. I initially realized as a young man watching it for the first time. Next up for me, pretty embarrassing that I did not have a woman in my top ten. But here is Andre Arnold, who even I'm even counting like her. Short Milk is a movie that changed me. Read Rode Fish Tank. Forget about it, love. Andre Arnold recovered her on the pod. David Fincher is another one. Yeah. We're getting the killer this year, Thank God. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu Yeah. Bardo. Remember Bardo? I wanted to love that movie. Thank you for doing a whole episode on that with me. I love it. And then finally last, but not least, it is my maestro, Steve McQueen, whose films Hunger, Shame and others changed my life. I could go on and on and on. I could have made 50 directors a quite easily and been taught been here for hours. We could make this a whole podcast series. You know, this is just for fun. And I love our lists. I love that there is not there's not nearly as much crossover as there is. I thought they would be. And I was a little embarrassed. I'm like, Are you going to go this young with like, Soderbergh? Tarantino No way to, but I just have to go where my heart is. A lot of mine was based on how often do I go back to their work. Every director I mentioned, I'm obsessed with their work and I watch it all the time move on to What are you watching here? Okay, Would you pick? I'm excited about this one. This was a director. I intentionally left off the list of our missed ones because I want to single her out specifically. I recently rewatched this movie and I remember thinking about we saw this in theaters, and I think that this is one of the most well directed movies in a long, long time. And I'm talking. Lynne Ramsay 2018. You were never really here. Yeah. If I if I'm thinking about like this conversation, Top ten directors, I got to put in a movie that when I watch it, I'm like, this person directed the shit out of this movie. Like, you got an amazing performance by Joaquin Phenix. You've got great cinematography, you've got all of these things. But at the end of the day, like this was a really well-directed piece business by a director that it was either her or Sofia. Yeah, because I would wanted to include a female director in my list. And Sofia kind of branch it out just because of just that. Like I said, the feeling I get when I watch her a Sofia movie. But Lynn Ramsay, like when I saw more of her and Carla. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. So I still to see Ratcatcher. They're good, but we need to talk about Kevin. Ooh. I mean, this is a director that she's. She's got the stuff I love. Love Lynne Ramsay. Yeah, I do, too. That movie's just so such a brute thing. I mean, it just, you know, I read that the novella, it's based on by Jonathan Ames. Like, I read that and stuff is more. It's small, it's short, but stuff is fleshed out. And you can see where she made these hyper audacious cuts in health that she's showing you stuff. Oh, it's awesome. I love You were never really here. That was my favorite movie of the year. Yeah, I love it. Yeah I remember. I know. I know these things. Hmm. Okay. You're going to to bear with me a little bit here. We're going to see where this is going to go. I'm being serious. And I'm not fucking around. We'll see. We'll see where it takes me. I'm not fucking around. I'm not. I've been thinking a lot about and a little, well, nervous. It's okay. I'm actually not going to talk about a movie here. My recommendation is not a movie today, and I hope that's okay. I've talked about not movies on this a few times. Well, this is bullshit. This Is bullshit. Yeah, I know. I want to. It's a tough thing. I don't know how much, like, get into it because people, you know, we've had fun in this episode so far and it's been funny. We've been having a good time. But I think a question I'm probably asked a lot in my life is like your favorite directors. What's your favorite movie? All that because I'm a movie guy. But there is something that influences me more than any director, more than any film ever, more than anything involved in the art form of film. And that is the music of a band called M83. Oh, and I'm doing this is my what are you listening to recommendation here? Because they came out with the new. I'm like, I'm like Shaking came out with the new album Fantasy. And it was just oh, it was so good. It came out, you know, this year, earlier this year, I went to see them a few times and like, I live for this band. It's like a experience when I go, I love them. I love the frontman. His name is Anthony Gonzales. It's like the work that he has put out there has had more influence on me than any movie ever. That's a really weird thing for me to admit. Every single screenplay I have written since I discovered his music was written with M83 playing in the background. Most every blog post I've written a lot of the podcast outlines I do just in my day to day and, you know, I didn't know if he was going to have another album. He doesn't talk a lot. And then Fantasy drops and he released the first batch of songs and then he released for like a month. And then the second batch of songs. And I was like, It's becoming obsessed with them. But, you know, shortly I'm going to see them in Denver with our friend Dan, friend of the Pot, Dan and he has been wondering and asking like the way that you talk about them and feel about them, it's like they changed your life or saved your life and you tell me like you cry when you listen to them. Like, how is this? I just don't understand. Then I've been thinking like, what's what's an easy way to explain this? Because the first time I on a fantasy track for us and the rest, like I was sobbing the first time I put it on and even I'm listening to and I'm like, This isn't sad music. It's like uplifting. It's got these big, sweeping cinematic movements to it. And I'm sitting there going, Why are you like, happy, crying, listening to this music? Why do you go sing them in concert by yourself? And why do you go see them with your wife and cry and and lose my mind? Let me be clear. But why do you go through all these emotions? And you know, I've talked about them on the podcast before a little bit, but this is crazy. Like July 2nd, 2010 was the first time I ever heard their music. I was at a July 4th house party with our friend Brant, and we're having a conversation and he's talking and I hear this song, come on. So I'm like the corner and it just goes by. No, no, no, Nana. And it's I, I'm like, stunned. And I walk away the conversation and go to the computer to try to find this out. And the guy running the computer tells me the band's called M83. The song is called We Own the Sky. And I'm like, The fuck is going on? I've never heard anything like this. It was like my ears were hearing music for the first time. So I become obsessed. Then 24 hours, I have every song they've ever made, like legally downloaded, you know, use your computer back then. And I'm just like, putting them on to my phone and Oh, God. And then they they release an album a few years later. Hurry or Dreaming. That's my favorite album of all time. They just keep going. And then, you know, Life goes on and M83 is my favorite band. It just it's just moving. And I moved L.A. and I'm living there. I make a feature film called Weight, which is named after a song on Hurry Up or Dreaming. And then this isn't related M83, This isn't related to anything. But things start to get very dark in my life, extremely dark. And we're moving into the opening of 2015 and everything on paper is good. I made a feature film which I had always wanted to do, and it's playing at festivals and they're giving me awards for this shit and I'm like, Fuck, this is crazy. Like, I'm taking meetings with people. I'm like going, I'm being invited to lunches at the fanciest places in L.A. like it was crazy. Everything getting like, congratulated all this stuff. That's what it looks like on the outside and the inside was crumbling. There's a lot going on at the time, and I am someone who has struggled and wrestled with depression. It pretty much locked in. When I was 18. That's when I applied a word to it and I went oh, this is maybe this kind of explains why I give some insight into why I felt this way. So before, before I start with this next part, may I kill it? We're going to go here. Everything's fine. I'm fine. Everything is fine. It's 2023. I'm describing a 2015 event. Everything's all good. I'm fine. I was 19 the first time I had suicidal ideation and it was it it was very, very real and very, very profound. And it made so much sense to me. And it was something that was always in the back. My head for my entire twenties never talked about it when I was in therapy. I never went that far because I thought it might be alarming and I just never saw my depression always. You know, the way movie showed a lot is a person get sad and then they just don't leave their bed and there's like a bottle of pills next to the bed and they can't leave and maybe they're drinking much and they're crying all the time. That has never been me. Mine manifested in worthlessness. You don't mean shit, you aren't shit. You're never going to be shit. That's how mine manifested. And to correct that I overcorrected and always stayed busier than shit with work with blogs, but I still have a little bit of this now. Like I chill when I watch movies, but I'm like taking notes or like I have this podcast, I work, it's busy, I have all these different things and I would overcompensate with that and keep myself busy. So I do this for so many years. Going, going, going. Now I'm 29, 2015, the movie's out and then, you know that when you're done making a movie and it's released, it's like, What the fuck do I do now? And that's always been the scariest feeling for me depression wise. My depression is always the worst when it when things are going well, which is weird. So after all these screenings and everything, we basically, you know, we arrive it March 2nd, 2015, and March 2nd, 2015 is the event that that is shown in the first chapter of I'm Alive and it's a little different. It was a little different in real life, but my the afternoon of March 2nd, 2015, suicidal ideation is so weirdest fucking thing in the world. Something flipped and it not only did it make sense, and not only was I definitively going to do it that evening, I was excited about it. I was happy and I had a sense of euphoria that I had not had in years and years. And this I'm getting like choked up because just accepting that it's that it's done and that you're done is a fucking crazy, scary thing. It is. So it makes me afraid to even think that I could let myself get there. And that my mindset was that I was at work. I made the decision and I, you know, left work on time and I got things ready. I'm not going to describe it too much because it's it's I'm aware that some people listening to this could have some of the same issues that I've had in the past. And I don't want to I'm not trying to trigger anything because I do believe in that. That's remember sitting there and being like, is there anything else that I mean, I'm right there. I'm like, I'm like minutes or seconds away from this thing. I'm like, right there. Is there anything else? And it flashes in my head. I'm like, Why don't you just put on M83? You know, you have all their songs on your computer, just hit random, put it on, and then a song I've heard thousands of times that just thousands and never really had any emotional significance to it started playing and it all that ideation I had of harming myself evaporated. And I got so scared at how close I had come to doing this, and I just started sobbing and sobbing and it was just a fucking song that triggered something within me of like, No, this song is making you feel something. This song is making you appreciate that you're alive. And that's enough to hold on right now, in this moment, right now. And that's all I needed now. Now the next. The next day I called a therapist, and the day after that, I was in very intense therapy because I know and I still know today that no one should ever bank on a band or a song for literally saving their life. It's not a healthy way to go through things. It's not. I have tools, I have resources now I have I am medicated, which I'm not embarrassed at all to admit. It gives me a chemical balance. I have you. I have my dad, I have my wife, I have resources now and tools to where like, you know, depression doesn't evaporate. It just doesn't the reasons why it exists, you know, you can get into all that stuff in therapy like I did. It's fine. Something I had to deal with every day. And it's something that I have to manage every day. And it's not like everything went away on March 3rd, 2015. But I again, I have the tools now. That song by M83 and that moment saved my life, truly. And it made me so fucking happy that I was alive. So when I hear their music now, whether it's something old or new, I was just seeing them with Ali and DC. We had great seats and every time I see them, I've seen them 13 times, including one with you. Now I've got 14 coming up. I pick one song, a different song every time to not be losing my mind, not be screaming, not be doing anything. I just stare and look at the crowd and I tell myself over and, over and over that I am alive. And that is why I called that movie, why I called it that. And I just take a minute to appreciate like you are here. This is your favorite place to be with someone you love. Watching a band. It means more to you than anything. And I am good. You know, depression is something just like anxiety that it works a lot better if you take an active stance on it. I'm speaking for myself. I speak for myself. I shouldn't speak generally, and I have to check myself all the time about a mood, about something that I have to check myself all the time. When good things are happening. Talked about this on that beep, that BBC live interview I had last year, which was really cool, made me really sad that I couldn't experience it with my mom. I had to check myself on that. And you know, sometimes I have to have difficult conversations with myself and admit that things aren't necessarily going okay in this two week period. And that's you know, that's just what I go through. But it's never, ever been as bad as it was in 2015. It never got that bad internally within me. When my brother died the next year by suicide in 2016, it never got that bad within me. When my mom died the year after that in August 2017, because I had given myself the tools on how to deal with this stuff and not get in these depression spin cycles. And yeah, it's just maybe I shouldn't be so coy with the song that saved me there. It's called Dark Moves of Love, and it's on an album called Saturdays Equal Youth Same, the same album that we own. The Sky is on it. Just yeah, I love them. 83. I've been having the time of my life the past few months, just getting so and the albums coming out, Oh my God, and the album's out. And then I get to go see them and I don't care. I'll travel anywhere. And you know, when I. When I saw him in DC very recently, I was just hanging out for a long time after. And I wondered, you know, sometimes bands will go say hi to like those die hard fans were waiting. And so I waited because I know where the bus is. Wait at this venue in DC and Anthony Gonzales, the frontman of M83, just came out after the show. He was wearing a mask because he's funny and he's like, I'm really tired. So there's like ten of us. They were like, Is it? I don't know. Could it not be him? Is it him? And Ali got a bunch a series pictures of me like he takes off the mask. I'm like grabbing my face because I thought I was going to faint. Jeff had some experience with recently and you know, you don't. I've met him once before, too. I met him in L.A. at his brother's movie premiere. That was in April 2014. And that was like it was like a life changing experience for me. And like, my head is literally dizzy as I'm like, sitting here. I don't want to ask for an autograph, but I do ask for a picture. He's like, Yeah, yeah, no problem. And then I then 83 tattoos on my body. So I just say, Thank you so much for your work. I have your lyrics tattooed on my body in my hand was up like kind of behind the small of his back. My left hand, and his right hand was behind my back. And so I like kind of separated from him when we were done getting our picture taken and held up my left bicep, which has lyrics for his song for the Kids on it, which is a song that really helped me after my mom died, helped me more than any song was for the kids by M83. And I very quickly told him that. And when he saw the prominence that it takes all by live by set, his eyes got big and he kind of like grabbed, not grabbed you just touched my elbow. And he was looking at it and you just looked like stunned. And he was like, This is so cool. Thank you. And I was like, No, no, no, thank you. Like, thank you. And he did the thing where, like, he still had his hand on my back and he, like, tapped it a few times and I was like, it was a really fucking nice moment that just went. And then, you know, I went back to the hotel room, cried for a little bit and it was all good. Probably my longest. What are you watching? Recommendation. But I did feel it was important and I just, you know, I want to say if anyone's listening to this and you're feeling feeling a certain way, feeling like ways maybe I described I hear you and I see you and I promise, I promise there are people who care. They're strangers who care. And then there are people in your life who care. And, you know, we fuck around a lot on this podcast. We like to have fun. We like to joke around, take the piss out of things. But I don't like mess around with this stuff too much. So yeah, just hold on to those things. They give you love, they give you joy and be proud of them. That's it. Wow, man, You know, there's just not really a I. But I love that you said that. I love that you express that. I love you. I love you too, brother. Art is doesn't matter what form it comes, but it it matters. It really matters. And, you know, with the world the way it is and with everything that's going on, like this is who we are and this is what we go through and this is what we have to keep going, dying this is it's hard what you've been through and it's not uncommon, but it's beautiful that come through it and you have the tools that you have. But the art to support. Yeah, yeah. And that's another reason why I wanted to bring this up is to kind of say that if you are feeling a certain way, in my experience, life doesn't just get easier, but it does get better if you work. It does. My life got extreme like I will my mother's death. I will never get over it. It really hasn't gotten easier. It hasn't. It was 2017. Has it gotten easier? But. But I made the choice to get stronger, and that's all I could do. And I think we can end it there. This is how I'll end, because that wasn't really a movie recommendation. A few months after my March 2nd, 2015 episode, I met a guy who had a script about a young man walking around Los Angeles one night contemplating suicide, and I went, Gee, I know who that guy is, so go watch. There I go. This film that he wrote, directed and started and that I shot and edited. And yeah, that was a huge, like saving grace. It's a huge reason why we became friends because I just put myself into this movie. I know how to put this together. Oh, that was a lot of fun. Glad I felt safe to get a little serious there. I was, like, sweating, huh? All right. Talk with us on Twitter, on Instagram, on Letterboxd. We're on there at WFYI W underscore podcast. But as always, thank you so much for listening. We're almost to 100 episodes and happy watching. Hey everyone. Thanks again for listening. You can watch my films and read my movie blog at Alex Withrow dot com Nicholas Dose Tor.com is where you can find all of Nick's film work. Send us mailbag questions at What Are You Watching Podcast at gmail.com or find us on Twitter at w aiw underscore podcast Next time is all about the great Martin Scorsese, all the films, all the collaborators, all the stories. Here's a teaser for you. The biggest argument Nick and I have ever had, whether on the podcast or in person, is featured in this episode. We go at it. Stay tuned, and I'm going to play this closing song out in full. I hope you enjoyed Dark Moves of Love by M83. Take care of yourselves. It's a time of drying out, dividing you and me. It's great to see.