Last month, Edgar Wright teased that he directed a shot in a summer movie. Now he revealed that movie to be “Star Trek Into Darkness”. It’s only a shot, so nothing to get too excited about. But, cool none-the-less. Based on the photo he tweeted, it looks like it’s one of the klingon scenes. Wright has his own summer movie coming out with “The World’s End” hitting theaters in August and of course, he has that “Ant-Man” film coming out.
Lukas Eggen can be reached at eggen.lukas@gmail.com.
It’s a debate that will probably have no definitive answer, but I’ll have it anyways. With the release of “The Dark Knight Rises”, director Christopher Nolan looks to keep up an amazing career. Since 2000, Nolan has directed “Memento”, “Insomnia”, “Batman Begins”, “The Prestige”, “The Dark Knight”, “Inception” and TDKR. Talk about good track record. The question I’m asking is: Is Christopher Nolan the bets young director in Hollywood? As a note, there is an emphasis on young here. I am leaving out such legends like Martin Scorsese.
Christopher Nolan
To put it simply, no director has had the advantages of playing with big budget productions while presenting challenging and intelligent ideas. That mix makes Nolan one of the best filmmakers of our generation. He’s not afraid to push the boundaries of the conventional blockbuster and film is in a much better place for it. He brings real emotions and a grounded reality that makes for intense viewing experiences that demand to be seen multiple times. Perhaps no other filmmaker out there challenges the preconceived notions of the average movie goer like Nolan does.
Jason Reitman
Since 2000, Reitman has directed “Thank You For Smoking”, “Juno”, a couple of episodes of “The Office” in its heyday, “Up in the Air”, “Young Adult” and the upcoming “Labor Day”. Reitman is a master at creating funny, sometimes darkly funny, clever, heartwarming and heartbreaking films. He takes a film in what seems like an average direction and then veers wildly off track. Reitman has that perfect touch of balancing humor with drama, light-hearted with dark, hopeful and sad. Though “Young Adult” was his least well-received film, his previous efforts prove Reitman is no fluke and he is capable of making movies that appeal to people across age and gender gaps, something that few directors have ever been able to do.
Duncan Jones
True, he’s only had two feature films. But, when those films are “Moon” and “Source Code”, it’s clear Jones has a world of potential ahead of him. Both those films are great science-fiction films with “Moon” being one of the best I’ve seen in the past decade. Jones seems to master what makes a classic science fiction film a classic and handles the material more than aptly. Even the larger budgeted “Source Code” is more thought provoking than mindless special effects extravaganza. Jones is one of those directors you should be excited for and can’t wait to see what more he has up his sleeve.
Darren Aronofsky
The director of such films as “Requiem for a Dream”, “The Fountain”, “The Wrestler”, “Black Swan” and the upcoming Biblical epic “Noah”, Aronofsky proves he can make entrancing films across multiple genres. Even “The Fountain”, which polarized critics and audiences, cannot be denied as a visual wonder. “The Wrestler” showed he could do drama, “Black Swan” proves he’s a more than apt thriller director and with the upcoming “Noah”, he’s looking to add the epic to his list of genres. He challenges audiences to think while they watch his films, a rarity among today’s directors.
Edgar Wright
The director of “Shaun of the Dead”, “Hot Fuzz”, “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” and the upcoming films “The World’s End” and “Ant-Man”, Wright is a master at taking classic genres and making them accessible to everyone. Wright’s mixture of humor, visual style, clever scripts and just overall sense of style, Wright consistently makes some of the most entertaining films I’ve seen.
I realize there’s probably a lot of directors I left out, so if you disagree, share who you think is the best young director. You can’t really go wrong with any of these directors. I don’t know if I could choose just one and this is an extremely close call between two directors in particular for me. I’ll go with Reitman.
Lukas Eggen can be reached at eggen.lukas@gmail.com.
Lukas Eggen 