Research - Popular Thriller Directors

Popular Thriller Directors

Alfred Hitchcock

Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock was an English film director and producer, born on the 13th of August 1899. Hitchcock was regarded as one of the most influential film makers in the history of cinema and was commonly called "the Master of Suspense". He directed over 50 feature films over a career spanning six decades, such as The Lodger: A Story Of The London Fog (1927).

This film was Hitchcock's first successful film and was based on the Novel, "The Lodger". It was released on the 14th of February 1927 and was about the hunt for "Jack The Ripper", naturally this film shaped the Thriller genre.

By 1939 Hitchcock was a filmmaker of international importance, and was persuaded to move to Hollywood by film producer David O. Selznick. A string of successful films followed such as; Rebecca (1940), Foreign Correspondent (1940), Shadow of a Doubt (1943) and The Paradine Case (1947), of these, Rebecca was nominated for 11 Oscars and won the Academy Award for Best Picture.

By 1960 Hitchcock had directed 53 films, four of which are considered to be the best of all time, Rear Window (1954),Vertigo (1959), North by Northwest (1959) and Psycho (1960). His 53 films have grossed $223.3 million worldwide and garnered a total of 46 nominations and 6 wins. He received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1979 and was knighted in December that same year, four months before he died.

Psycho (1960) - Trailer 

Brian De Palma

Brian Russell De Palma is an American film director and screenwriter, born on the 11th of September 1940. In a successful career spanning over 50 years, he is best known for his work in genres such as suspense, psychological thriller and crime drama. Throughout his career he has been inspired by other great directors such as Alfred Hitchcock and Jean-Luc Godard, his inspiration has led him to direct some very popular films such as;


Scarface (1983), The Untouchables (1987), Mission Impossible (1996) and many more. His films have frequently garnered controversy for their violence and sexual content, however have also been championed by prominent critics such as Roger Ebert and Pauline Kael.

Mission Impossible (1996) - Full Trailer

Guillermo del Toro

Guillermo del Toro Gomez is a Mexican filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, author and former special effects makeup artist. He is best known for the Academy Award-winning fantasy films Pan's Labyrinth (2006) and The Shape Of Water (2017), on top of this, winning the Academy Award for Best Director and Academy Award for Best Picture for the latter. Furthermore, he has also directed films like Hellboy (2004), Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008), Pacific Rim (2013), Pacific Rim Uprising (2018) and many more popular Thriller movies.

Del Toro's work has been characterized by a strong connection to fantasy and horror, furthermore he has had a lifelong fascination with monsters, which he sees as symbols of power, leading to his inspiration of films like Mama (2013), Troll hunters (2016-2018) and more.

Mama (2013) - Trailer

Steven Spielberg

Steven Allan Spielberg is an American Filmmaker. He is considered one of the founders of the New Hollywood era and one of the most popular directors and producers ever. Spielberg gained his notoriety through his work as the director for Jaws (1975), which was critically and commercially successful. His subsequent releases focus typically around science fiction and adventure films, such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), E.T the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), the Indian Jones and Jurassic Park series, all of which are seen as archetypes of modern Hollywood escapist film making.

Spielberg later transitioned into creating films that displayed humanistic issues such as the The Colour Purple (1985), Empire of the Sun (1987), Schindler's List (1993), Amistad (1997) and Saving Private Ryan (1998) and has largely adhered his outlook during the 21st Century wiht his critically accalimed films Munich (2005), Lincoln (2012), Bridge of Spies (2015) and The Post (2017).

Spielberg also co-founded Amblin Entertainment and DreamWorks Studios, where he too has served as a producer and created many successful films like Back To The Future, Men In Black and the Transformers series, he then later transitioned into producing several video games within the video game industry. 
Evidently, Spielberg is one of the most successful filmmakers, with praise for his directing talent and versatility and has one the Academy Award for Best Director twice. Some of his movies are among some of the highest grossing movies of all time and is the highest grossing film director in history, with an estimated net worth of over $3 billion.

Saving Private Ryan (1998) - Full Trailer

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock (Visited 15/01/19)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lodger:_A_Story_of_the_London_Fog (Visited 15/01/19)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_De_Palma (Visited 15/01/19)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guillermo_del_Toro (Visited 15/01/19)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Spielberg (Visited 15/01/19)