"The American Cinema" Anniversary Redux

[Eleven]

http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/8806/71xj0fa1fclaa240xg3.jpg

The bloglink in my signature has said "American Cinema" Blog-a-thon for a while, and I thought it would be cool to get anyone interested from Match Cut involved as well.

Basically, it's the 40th anniversary of Andrew Sarris' "The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929-1968," which itself classified 40 years of movie history by directors and evaluated them into categories. Whether one likes it or not, the basic premises of the auteur theory have become quite influential and discussion of directors has been a major part of film discourse since. Far from going to the polemical extremes of Sarris' French progenitors or the most hardcore auteurists of today, I was hoping to get a wide range of evaluations of directors from the past 40 years from as many bloggers/writers as possible.

This confluence of director-centric writing has been due at the arbitrary date of April 14, and I've already gotten such luminaries as Matt Seitz and our own Philosophe_rouge on board. I realize people have Top 100s and, you know, real life, to contend with, but I was just seeing if anyone here was interested in contributing. Feel free to click the link in my sig for more details.

MCers so far:

Raiders - Jonathan Demme
Bosco - Tobe Hooper
MadMan - Quentin Tarantino
Boner - Paul Thomas Anderson
Meg - Steven Soderbergh
Grouchy - John Carpenter

[Raiders]

I'm all over this.

[Boner M]

I might participate. Sounds great, anyway.

[Eleven]

So you can pretty much choose any director in the American film scene since 1968 you want to write about, preferably if you've seen a vast majority of their filmography. There's also a special "Fringe Benefits" category for foreign directors who have still made American films in addition to foreign ones, like, say, Alfonso Cuaron, now Michael Haneke, and Tsui Hark (I'm looking at you for that, Davis). It would cool to analyze how the change affected their output.

[Sven]

I would so love to do one on Verheoven, but with my top 100 and schoolwork, I'm afraid I'd rush it to a lackluster finish.

[Raiders]

Heh, I could always do Demme. But, I may decide to pick someone else.

[Sycophant]

Awesome, Eleven. I'll try to read some of Sarris's book and see if I'm to the task.

[Eleven]

I would so love to do one on Verheoven, but with my top 100 and schoolwork, I'm afraid I'd rush it to a lackluster finish.

Don't let the "deadline" be a burden, it's mostly just for the blog-a-thon. I'll link to Match-Cut that day if anyone has one finished, but I could certainly see this as being an ongoing project. If you want to do one, by all means take your time and focus on quality rather than timing.

[Raiders]

Heh, I could always do Demme. But, I may decide to pick someone else.

Nah. I'll just do Demme. Sign me up!

EDIT: I guess he should be Far Side of Paradise maybe? I'm open to suggestions on his placement.

[Eleven]

Nah. I'll just do Demme. Sign me up!

EDIT: I guess he should be Far Side of Paradise maybe? I'm open to suggestions on his placement.

I was thinking that your project was basically an extended, case-by-case version of what this should turn out to be. As for category placement, that's up to you; it just makes it easier to list all of the links in his ready-made categories on the 14th. I just hope everyone doesn't put their choices into the Pantheon.

[Raiders]

I was thinking that your project was basically an extended, case-by-case version of what this should turn out to be. As for category placement, that's up to you; it just makes it easier to list all of the links in his ready-made categories on the 14th. I just hope everyone doesn't put their choices into the Pantheon.

I left you a comment. Feel free to call me Phil and link to my newly created blog burningemulsion.blogspot.com. I'm going to start cataloging some reviews and maybe create a few film comment pieces.

[Eleven]

I left you a comment. Feel free to call me Phil and link to my newly created blog burningemulsion.blogspot.com. I'm going to start cataloging some reviews and maybe create a few film comment pieces.

Ha! I actually only meant to save that post as a draft and not to publish it! But I'll definitely put you on my links column.

It's cool to see you setting up a review blog. I check out Voyeuristic Malady every once in a while to compare yearly lists.

[Eleven]

When I first thought of doing this, I made this list of eligible directors, just off the top of my head, I swear:

Woody Allen
Robert Altman
Allison Anders
Paul Thomas Anderson
Wes Anderson
Hal Ashby
John G. Avildsen
John Badham
Paul Bartel
Warren Beatty
Richard Benjamin
Robert Benton
Kathryn Bigelow
Brad Bird
Don Bluth
Peter Bogdanovich
John Boorman
Danny Boyle
Martin Brest
Albert Brooks
James L. Brooks
Mel Brooks
Charles Burnett
Tim Burton
James Cameron
Jane Campion
John Carpenter
John Cassavetes
Michael Cimino
Bob Clark
Joel and Ethan Coen
Larry Cohen
Chris Columbus
Bruce Conner
Francis Ford Coppola
Sofia Coppola
Alex Cox
Wes Craven
David Cronenberg
Cameron Crowe
Alfonso Cuaron
Joe Dante
Andrew Davis
Brian De Palma
Guillermo del Toro
Jonathan Demme
Ted Demme
Danny DeVito
Richard Donner
Clint Eastwood
Atom Egoyan
Roland Emmerich
Nora Ephron
Peter and Bobby Farrelly
Abel Ferrera
Mike Figgis
David Fincher
Milos Forman
Marc Forster
Bob Fosse
John Frankenheimer
Carl Franklin
Stephen Frears
William Friedkin
Terry Gilliam
Stuart Gordon
David Gordon Green
Paul Greengrass
Christopher Guest
Taylor Hackford
Lasse Hallstrom
Curtis Hanson
Renny Harlin
Hal Hartley
Todd Haynes
Amy Heckerling
Monte Hellman
Werner Herzog
George Roy Hill
Walter Hill
Arthur Hiller
Nicole Holofcenter
Tobe Hooper
Dennis Hopper
Ron Howard
John Hughes
Peter Jackson
Jim Jarmusch
Spike Jonze
Neil Jordan
Lawrence Kasdan
Philip Kaufman
Irvin Kershner
Barbara Kopple
Stanley Kubrick
Neil LaBute
John Landis
John Lasseter
Ang Lee
Spike Lee
Mike Leigh
Barry Levinson
Doug Liman
George Lucas
Baz Luhrmann
Sidney Lumet
David Lynch
Adrian Lyne
Terrence Malick
Louis Malle
David Mamet
James Mangold
Michael Mann
Penny Marshall
Elaine May
Paul Mazursky
John McNaughton
John McTiernan
John Milius
George Miller
Anthony Minghella
Errol Morris
Paul Morrissey
Mira Nair
Mike Newell
Mike Nichols
Christopher Nolan
Alan J. Pakula
Alan Parker
Gordon Parks
Alexander Payne
Sam Peckinpah
Melvin van Peebles
Sean Penn
D.A. Pennebaker
Sydney Pollack
Bob Rafelson
Sam Raimi
Harold Ramis
Robert Redford
Rob Reiner
Ivan Reitman
Nicolas Roeg
George A. Romero
Herbert Ross
Alan Rudolph
David O. Russell
Nancy Savoca
John Sayles
Jerry Schatzberg
Paul Schrader
Joel Schumacher
Martin Scorsese
Ridley Scott
Tony Scott
M. Night Shyamalan
Kevin Smith
Steven Soderbergh
Todd Solondz
Steven Spielberg
Oliver Stone
Quentin Tarantino
Gus Van Sant
Andy and Larry Wachowski
Andy Warhol
John Waters
Peter Weir
Wim Wenders
Frederick Wiseman
John Woo
Robert Zemeckis
Terry Zwigoff

So feel free to choose from here if you want.

[Eleven]

That's a big range of people I've posted. Any more takers?

[Bosco B Thug]

Tobe Hooper Oh ho ho, hell yes. Hot damn that's tempting... but I don't know if I'd be able to pull off something legitimately substantial/intellectually astute out of my enthusiasm for the man's work.

It's totally a "It's not you, Tobe Hooper, it's me" deal, not the other way around, to be clear. He's a total "Lightly Likeable," as wack as Sarris' classifications of certain directors are.

[Eleven]

Oh ho ho, hell yes. Hot damn that's tempting... but I don't know if I'd be able to pull off something legitimately substantial/intellectually astute out of my enthusiasm for the man's work.

It's totally a "It's not you, Tobe Hooper, it's me" deal, not the other way around, to be clear. He's a total "Lightly Likeable," as wack as Sarris' classifications of certain directors are.

Intellectual, schmintellectual. I just want as many participants as possible. :)

[Bosco B Thug]

Intellectual, schmintellectual. I just want as many participants as possible. :) Coool, I shall take a jab at it.

[Ezee E]

Just an article over their body of work and such?

Scorsese seems obvious, but I'd rather go for someone like Fincher.

[Eleven]

Just an article over their body of work and such?

Pretty much. And don't feel like you have to only choose directors you admire, you can despise or be ambivalent about your choice as well.

[Eleven]

So the 'thon's supposed to start this coming week. I can always use more entries from people, even half-assed ones.

[MadMan]

If I finally sign up for Netflix I may finish Romero's work. I'd be willing to do something on either him or Leone, although granted I haven't seen all of Leone's films either.

PS: Scratch all that and sign me up for Tarentino. I say I'm a big enough fanboy to do him justice. It may be a little late though since finals and a bunch of papers are barring down on me though. But I'll get it done.

[Russ]

Arm...I mean, iosos, you should totally do De Palma.

[Eleven]

PS: Scratch all that and sign me up for Tarentino. I say I'm a big enough fanboy to do him justice. It may be a little late though since finals and a bunch of papers are barring down on me though. But I'll get it done.

Awesome. And no problem with the timing, just let me know whenever it's done.

[Philosophe_rouge]

I'm still trying to find a last minute dude, I think maybe Miyazaki, he's had effects... well, he's the only person I feel really qualified to write about at this time. Except maybe Sofia Coppola, but I haven't seen Lost in Translation ina while =.

[Eleven]

The whole shebang kicks off tomorrow. Anybody who can write anything about anybody is welcome.

[Qrazy]

The whole shebang kicks off tomorrow. Anybody who can write anything about anybody is welcome.

I can write three sentences about someone but no more than three, four is right out. And they will be very uninsightful and crappy sentences... with poor grammar... or I won't do it.

[Boner M]

I think I'll do PTA. I've followed his career pretty closely.

[Eleven]

I can write three sentences about someone but no more than three, four is right out. And they will be very uninsightful and crappy sentences... with poor grammar... or I won't do it.

And this is different from your regular posting because...

EDIT: Wait, I know the difference. Regularly it's more sentences.


I think I'll do PTA. I've followed his career pretty closely.

Awesome!

[Qrazy]

And this is different from your regular posting because...

EDIT: Wait, I know the difference. Regularly it's more sentences.



Sphincters say what?

[megladon8]

Any chance I could tackle Soderbergh?

[Eleven]

Any chance I could tackle Soderbergh?

Definitely.

[Eleven]

So this sucker's started, with entries on the Coens, von Trier, Peckinpah, among others. I've only written one of my hopefully many contributions thus far, on M. Night Shyamalan. Feel free to peruse and/or contribute.

[Philosophe_rouge]

I started writing mine earlier today, I'm going for Miyazaki. Reading the others is discouraging, they're so damn good.

[Boner M]

Aww man, does this mean my PTA piece is gonna be put next to Erich Kuersten's? Way to belittle me. :sad:

But really, I'll work on something tonight.

[Eleven]

Aww man, does this mean my PTA piece is gonna be put next to Erich Kuersten's? Way to belittle me. :sad:

Cookie crumbles. It's possible, if you put Anderson in a different category than the Pantheon, that the entries'll be too spaced apart to notice. Or you could just write better than Kuersten. :P

[Sycophant]

I want to take part, but the way I've been going lately, probably won't.

Meanwhile, you got linked on The House Next Door's links of the day today (http://mattzollerseitz.blogspot.com/2008/04/links-for-day-april-16th-2008.html). Go you!

[Eleven]

I want to take part, but the way I've been going lately, probably won't.

I'd still love to see something, even if it's sometime in the future.


Meanwhile, you got linked on The House Next Door's links of the day today (http://mattzollerseitz.blogspot.com/2008/04/links-for-day-april-16th-2008.html). Go you!

Yeah, 'cause I asked them to! :P But I think that's the case a lot of the time. Anything to get the word out.

[Grouchy]

Eleven, those seem like fairly short articles, easier than what I'd feared at first. I'd like you to sign me up for one on John Carpenter if deadlines are not a problem.

Not read Sarris book, so I'm not sure about the category. "Expressive Esoterica" sounds fun.

[baby doll]

Is it too late to get in on this?

[Eleven]

Is it too late to get in on this?

Not at all. I always planned to have it be open-ended.

[SirNewt]

I think I'd like to do Foreman. I, however, need to watch a few more films, so this may take a while.

[Raiders]

I'll have my Demme entry up by the end of the week. For the time being, you could put a placeholder there for him under The Far Side of Paradise if you wish.

[Boner M]

Aww man, does this mean my PTA piece is gonna be put next to Erich Kuersten's? Way to belittle me. :sad:

But really, I'll work on something tonight.
Faily McFailface

[Raiders]

My last name is Ward, by the way. Just in case you want it to all look the same.

[Qrazy]

My last name is Ward, by the way. Just in case you want it to all look the same.

For book keeping purposes we're also going to need your middle name and credit card number.

[Eleven]

My last name is Ward, by the way. Just in case you want it to all look the same.

I usually go with whatever their Blogger name is, or else whatever they literally go by on their own site. But I call you whatever you want.

[SirNewt]

I think I'd like to do Foreman. I, however, need to watch a few more films, so this may take a while.

Nevermind, there is no way I have time to catch enough films. Too much calculus. Put me down for Spielberg instead.