Christopher Nolan: The New Number One Guy?
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As I was making preparations to see Inception with a group of my friends earlier this week, something occurred to me. That something is that Christopher Nolan is the best director working right now. I verbalized this. I said it. I said “Hey man, Inception is going to be a beast, I promise you. Christopher Nolan is the best director in the industry right now.” Since everyone I was around was so jazzed to see the movie, I expected to get a bunch of people agreeing with me and telling me how I was the greatest and most knowledgeable film geek in all the land. That didn’t happen. What I got instead was names. I got Spielberg, I got Ridley Scott, someone said Stanley Kubrick, forgetting that he’s been dead for over ten years, someone said Michael Bay, and was immediately disinvited from seeing the movie with me, and subsequently kicked out of my life forever.
Maybe my partners aren’t the most knowledgeable on this subject. Or maybe it’s possible that despite all his critical acclaim and box office power, that Nolan is still unappreciated by a large portion of the moviegoing public, even the ones that are supposed to be up on this sort of thing. The fact is that Nolan has had the kind of understated brilliance in the last ten years that few auteurs have ever had in a career. It’s not just the big hits either; Although I’m sure all of us had a filmgasm watching the The Dark Knight. As a matter of fact, about 45 minutes into that particular movie, I had this conversation with the girl I was with.
Van: This movie is better then you.
Girl: I like it more than our relationship, and it’s significantly sexually more fulfilling.
Van: Let’s never leave the theater.
Girl: Deal. What happened to Katie Holmes?
Van: Cruise happened.
That’s the genius of Nolan. He turns lovers against each other. With a track record that also includes films like The Prestige, Insomnia and the spellbinding Memento, Chrissy boy is getting it done like no other chair sitter in Hollywood at the moment. If Inception is the commercial and critical hit that many expect it to be, he’s got a chance to cement himself as the heir to the likes of Spielberg and Cameron. He’d be the go to industry dude for the “Event Movie” AKA the film you just know is going to kick a whole bunch of ass. Note that this was supposed to be M. Night. Note that that notion now seems like the most hilarious thing in the world. His style may be a little dark for the super mainstream audiences, but the never ending barrage of substance and talent that he throws up on the screen right now is second to none.
I’m actually off to see Inception right now. Hopefully Nolan will deliver again, and do his part to save this dreadful summer.
I could comfortably say that Christopher Nolan is one of the most OVERRATED directors working today. MEMENTO and INCEPTION are his two great movies, and even those don’t match the lesser works of other directors.
I feel like Christopher Nolan is the director of choice for people who don’t watch the films of Almodovar or the Coen Brothers. And if you seriously think that Christopher Nolan makes better movies than Paul Thomas Anderson, then you’ve got a cinematic buttkicking coming when you watch THERE WILL BE BLOOD and BOOGIE NIGHTS.
Christopher Nolan makes great blockbuster movies that just about anyone can enjoy. He doesn’t do much more than that. INCEPTION is a huge step forward for him, but he sacrificed the character and narrative skills of his early works for the thought provoking ideas he has in his latest.
You know what? You make a lot of good points. The Coens and PTA are Auteurs in the classic sense of the word.However, in this piece I was talking in the sense that Nolan’s films are also the type that will do huge box office in addition to being critically acclaimed. Like that of Cameron and the Speilbergs. Good points though.
As far as those points are concerned, you’re totally right. That’s what Nolan has going for him- critics and cash. He makes good movies that people like to see. PTA, unfortunately, doesn’t have the audience interest.
Good post though! Enjoyed the read. =)
[...] I promise you. Christopher Nolan is the best director in the industry right now.” Since everyone I was around was so jazzed to see the movie, I expected to get a bunch of people agreeing with me and telling me how I was the greatest and most knowledgeable film geek in all the land. That didn’t happen. What I got instead was names. I got Spielberg, I got Ridley Scott, someone said Stanley Kubrick, forgetting that he’s been dead for over ten years, someone said Michael Bay, and was immediately disinvited from seeing the movie with me, and subsequently kicked out of my life forever. Maybe my partners aren’t the most knowledgeable on this subject. Or maybe it’s possible that despite all his critical acclaim and box office power, that Nolan is still unappreciated by a large portion of the moviegoing public, even the ones that are supposed to be up on this sort of thing. The fact is that Nolan has had the kind of understated brilliance in the last ten years that few auteurs have ever had in a Read ahead [...]
I would agree with you wholeheartedly.
To consider an artist great, I tend to look at their batting average over their home run count.
Nolan has delivered consistently. Granted I haven’t seen his earliest work but I would wager either would critically stand up to I don’t know.. Pirhanna’s 2 (James Cameron’s 1981 oeuvre).
What about JJ Abrams? He is kickin ass these days too.
A few directors working today who I think are better than and/or as good as Nolan:
Gilliam, Malick, Coppolla, Cronenberg, Aronofsky, Lynch, The Coens, Paul Thomas Anderson.
Personally I think Nolan is on a different level than Speilberg or Cameron. IMO he’s the next Kubrick, insofar as he hasn’t made a bad movie, his works are often epic in nature, and he has immense vision as an artist.
@hansfeuer, the next Kubrick? I don’t think so.
Although he is definetely one of the top 10 even top 5 directors in hollywood today he is never the less not even close to being the best, and this article is written with such blind praise that it actually takes away from the man’s quality. I would agree that he is has not made a bad film yet but neither has Aronofsky. Also please explain to me how Nolan is an auteur. QT, PTA, the Coens they all have a certain watermark that runs across their films that lets you know that its theirs and no one elses. Nolan does not have this watermark within his films. If you didn’t know his work, would you really know that Memento, Insomnia, Prestige and TDk are all from the same director? Highly unlikely, so lets not throw that word around. Finally I say this; while inception maybe a great movie, it is also a step back for Nolan. Why you may ask. The reason for that is that this is the first time as a viewer that Nolan made many, many compromises with the script that lessened it. In fact the mediocrity of the script lessens the movie, and is by far in large the weakest writing he’s done. Yes Nolan is one of the best right now, but he is far from the BEST.
OVERRATED??!!…..are you serious? In this day of rehashed crap and overdone sequels I can’t believe you have the audacity to even state that he is overrated, he is one out of maybe 5 writers/directors in this day of age that has original ideas, oh and by the way “There will be blood’ and “Boogie nights” were terrible films!…..”Blood” was 2 hours of watching paint dry! I want to see Daniel Day Lewis in his primal and brutal roles like gangs of New York….I respect your opinion but I think your full of rubbish
@ William
Nolan aint even 40 yet and you’re calling him overrated. He DELIVERS EVERY TIME. There are not many people out there who after watching The Dark Knight thought “His next movie will top this one and be his best.” That is exactly what he did with Inception. Give him some damn credit and stop acting like you’re some high class snobby movie critic because you have some 50″ LCD TV in your living room. Stop comparing against the great directors of the past. They are all well past their primes and are not current with the times. Nolan is the best of our generation and it’s not even close.
BEst,,,,undoudtly, He has found the perfect blend of critical acclaim and cash. He makes brilliant and unbelievably smart movies. It’s not his fault that ppl goes and watches his movies. Good, smart and clever movies can also be box-office success, and nolan is the best example. He’s a genius, and INCEPTION is a masterpiece.
LOL at the ones saying Christopher Nolan is overrated. Holan’s movies are geared toward the psychological and emotional, not the action. I will say Aronofsky is the closest to Nolan in consistency. Everyone else mentioned are smash and bomb directors, either great movies or horrible. (Bay is a cinematic nightmare, but that’s another story.) Nolan and Aronofsky have made good films with one mediocre film each (Momento and the Fountain) For seven movies, I say that’s enough credibility. Both of them are in my top 10 directors.
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