Favorite Horror Film Directors

[rhett]

Hey guys and gals, its been a couple years since the Best Horror Film Tournament in the Horror Polls section, so I figure it is about time to start a new one. This new poll will be the next logical step, Best Horror Film Director. I will just take the names from this thread and put them in the Director thread in Horror Polls.

I am shooting for 128 directors, but maybe 64 might be best? Also, I think it would be best to just list directors who have worked prominently in horror films, not just directors who have made one horror film among many (like Robert Zemeckis). Anyway, let's get listing. Only list directors that haven't been listed yet. I will start off with the obvious:

John Carpenter
George A. Romero
Dario Argento
Lucio Fulci
Wes Craven
Roman Polanski
David Cronenberg
Brian DePalma
Alfred Hitchcock
Tobe Hooper
Sam Raimi
Tom Holland
Larry Cohen
Umberto Lenzi
Stuart Gordon
Peter Jackson
John Landis
Joe Dante
Terence Fisher
Mario Bava
Roger Corman
Ruggero Deodato
Todd Browning
Bruno Mattei
Clive Barker
Jess Franco
Joe D'Amato
Bob Clark
Don Coscarelli

[SaviniFan]

David DeCoteau
Sean Cunningham
Uli Lommel

[Mark Relford]

H.G. Lewis

[indiephantom]

Awesome! I missed the other polls, so I was hoping another would pop up. I'd like to add two directors who are not solely horror, but have dabbled in the genre with some terrific work>

Abel Ferrara is possibly my favorite director. Think The Driller Killer, The Addiction, Body Snatchers, Ms. 45 and the overall tone of his bleak ouvre.

David Lynch can spook and shock like the best of them. Think Twin Peaks, Lost Highway, Eraserhead, Mulholland Drive

I think they've both got enough horror marks to at least be considered. :glasses:

[Dust Bunny]

my favs:

Dario Argento
George A. Romero
John Carpenter
Peter Jackson
Sam Raimi


also quite like:

David Cronenberg
Joe Dante
Roman Polanski
Tobe Hooper
Wes Craven

[poorlogic]

What? No Vincent Dawn...err, I mean Bruno Mattei?

Anyway,

Jeff Lieberman
Bill Lustig

[hell ya!]

Jean Rollin
Frank Henenlotter
Brian Yuzna
Joseph Zito
William Castle
Dan O'Bannon
Roy Ward Baker
Jörg Buttgereit
Aldo Lado
Michele Soavi
Antonio Bido
James Whale
Steve Miner
F.W. Murnau
Lamberto Bava

[Paff]

Hideo Nakata
Takashi Miike

[Jason25]

Fred Olen Ray
Jim Wynorski

[Jason25]

Fred Dekker

[Vdlman]

John Carpenter
George Romero
David Cronenberg
Wes Craven
Tobe Hooper
Peter Jackson
Sam Raimi
Stuart Gordon
Brian Yuzna
Frank Henenlotter
Fred Olen Ray
David DeCoteau
Jim Wynorski
Joe Dante
Herschell Gordon Lewis
Lucio Fulci
Dario Argento
Jorg Buttgereit
Ruggero Deodato

[Jason25]

Jorge Grau

[Jason25]

Sergio Martino

[Jason25]

Pupi Avati

[Jason25]

Luigi Cozzi

[Lyle Horowitz]

Horror Directors:

Dario Argento
Roman Polanski
Mario Bava
James Whale
Tod Browning
George A. Romero
Roger Corman
Terrence Fisher
William Castle
F.W. Murnau
Brian DePalma
Robert Wiene
Robert Siodmak
Paul Leni
Jacques Tourneur
Herk Harvey
H.G. Lewis
John Carpenter
Fritz Lang
Rouben Mamoulian
Robert Wise
Giorgio Ferroni
Karl Fruend
Tim Burton
Sergio Martino
Jorge Grau
Eli Roth
Alfred Hitchcock
Larry Cohen
Pupi Avati
Masaki Kobiashi
Kaneto Shindo
Freddie Francis

...Do these count?
David Lynch (Mulholland Drive, Twin Peaks)
Sam Peckinpah (Straw Dogs)
Ingmar Bergman (The Magican, Seventh Seal, Persona, Hour of the Wolf)
Frederico Fellini (Toby Dammit)
Henri-Georges Clouzot (Diabolique, Le Corbeau)
John Frankenheimer (Seconds)
Terry Gilliam (:D)
Samuel Fuller (Shock Corridor)
Abel Fererra (Bad Lieutenant)
Charles Laughton (Night of the Hunter)

...These films/directors are on the fine line between horror and other genres...

...That's right. No Fulci, Raimi (Although 'A Simple Plan' and 'Spiderman' are good), Wes Craven (I adore 'The Hills Have Eyes', but the rest of his work is inexcusable), or Brian "I only made one good film" Yuzna. Sorry. *shrugs*

[Jason25]

Anyway, let's get listing. Only list directors that haven't been listed yet.

Several people keep listing the same directors even though Rhett clearly states to list only directors not listed yet.

[latenite]

Several people keep listing the same directors even though Rhett clearly states to list only directors not listed yet.

Another major point that was missed by only reading the thread title : Also, I think it would be best to just list directors who have worked prominently in horror films, not just directors who have made one horror film among many

[mcchrist]

I don't even know anymore.

Herschell Gordon Lewis and Ruggero Deodato

I'll just leave it at that, I guess.

[latenite]

going out on a bit of a limb here - Tommy Lee Wallace

[Rockmjd]

Todd Sheets

[Paff]

Anyone mentioned J.R. Bookwalter, Dante Tomaselli and Danny Draven yet?

[gloomy grrl]

How about Bob Clark?
-Black Christmas
-Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things
-Deathdream
-Christmas Story :eek2: ...I kid... but the rest are fun!

[Tuzotonic]

There are some good ones but my favorites are


Dario Argento
Mario Bava
George Romero
John Carpenter
Bob Clark
Roman Polanski
Alfred Hitchcock
Terrence Fisher
Roger Corman
early Brian De Palma
early Tobe Hooper
Lucky McKee (I know his only film so far is May but I'm predicting great things from him)
Tod Browning (deserves credit for Dracula and Freaks alone)

[PhoneStud]

Lucio Fulci
Dario Argento
George A. Romero
Umberto Lenzi
Mario Bava
John Carpenter

[The Chaostar]

Favorite directors DEVOTED to horror.

Argento

Htchkock

Buttgereit

Rollin

Tsukamoto

Reeves

Browning

Fischer


Favorite directors that have occasionally did great horror films.

Claire Deins

Nicolas Roeg

Andrzej Zulawski

Stanley Kubrick

Federico Felini (only one horror movie - and a short one to boot - but WHAT A JOURNEY!)

Mario Bava