The Official Choose A Director Thread

[\S/JcDc\S/]

Hmm

David Yates, Albert/Allen Hughes, Jimmy Hayward, and Louis Leterrier wouldn't surprise me.

 

[Dark Knight]

I think directors like McTiegue, Snyder, and maaaaaybe Lawrence would work well with Nolan potentially being an Exec Producer.

Especially McTiegue and Snyder.

Those guys have tremendous upside as directors. They already have the visuals and action/fight scenes down pat.

They would just need assistance and mentoring with pacing, tone and character development.

 

[\S/JcDc\S/]

I thought Snyder would be too established to work under Nolan, otherwise I'd list him with the other in house dudes.

 

[Dark Knight]

It would be great to see the beginning of the film open (with no credits in the beginning, save those until the end) with a backdrop of a young Jor-El (Jim Caviezel please) trying to tell the Krypton Science Council that an alien AI is planning to destroy Krypton or something close to that.

The AI would of course be Braniac and that would be the set up for the film with a great special effects disaster and destruction of Krypton being shown to get the audience emotionally and visually invested right away from the start of the film.

Then maybe we should see a portion from BIRTHRIGHT, where we can see an already established Clark doing some reporting on the warlord crisis taking food away from the starving people in a certain region in Africa or something.

 

[Dark Knight]

double post

 

[Dark Knight]

I thought Snyder would be too established to work under Nolan, otherwise I'd list him with the other in house dudes.

Well Snyder is not THAT established at least not yet IMO.

As much and I like 300 and Watchmen, he still has some room to improve as a director.

As much as I liked Watchmen, WB's suits probably thought that it underperformed at the box office compared to what there expectations were.

To me I don't think Zacks ego would come into play if he has Nolan working with him as a exec producer. I think him working with Nolan should be taken as a positive experience for him to grow as a filmmaker.

 

[Webhead2006]

thanks for some names guys, i am just trying to get a feel at names who could be very likely choices from what we know so far of things.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

With Nolan working as a mentor I can't imagine a lot of these directors who almost have more experience and on top of that ego would really want to be a part of it. Gore Verbinski for example directed pirates, does he really need to mentored... probably not. ISS did danny boyle do slum dog? if so would an oscar nominated director/winner really need a mentor. I see them going for a relatively up and comer that almost has to do what they say. As a side note people really need to stop mentioning James Cameron, he's never going to do it.

Yeah he was nominated for an oscar. You have a good point though, a big time director probably isn't going to be doing it for the reasons you just mentioned.

 

[SuperDaniel]

Robert Zemeckys, IMO, would be the perfect choice.

 

[Alonsovich]

If Clash of the Titans does well for WB... I see both Leterrier and Worthington in this one in some capcity...

 

[Webhead2006]

well i dont really see worthington in superman movie besides maybe a villain role like metallo maybe. Leterrier i already said i like him so i wouldnt mind if he is picked.

 

[flickchick85]

My top choice would be Brad Bird, since he seems to be interested in making the jump to live-action now. But I realize he's probably an unlikely choice.

I just hope it's not someone like Snyder or Leterrier. I haven't been particularly impressed with either of their work, and until Snyder gets over his love of the slo-mo/fast-mo, I don't want him anywhere near any franchises I like. They are both action directors who have yet to show that they're capable of telling a good story.

Whoever suggested Danny Boyle - he could be interesting and certainly demonstrated that he could handle the sci-fi/effects aspect with Sunshine, but I doubt he'd be interested since he turned down James Bond.

 

[Brian2887]

Alfonso Cuarón (Children of Men, Prisoner of Azkaban)

Rian Johnson (Brick, The Brothers Bloom)

Sam Mendes (Away We Go, Jarhead, American Beauty, Road to Perdition)

 

[Christmas]

I agree with flickchick85. Bird will likely have the time to do the job. 1906 isn't likely to happen.

http://news.google.com/news/more?um=1&cf=all&ned=us&cf=all&ncl=dFVg3M1o-o_bbIMqtnHgq2tb3evAM

 

[Dark Knight]

I just hope it's not someone like Snyder or Leterrier. I haven't been particularly impressed with either of their work, and until Snyder gets over his love of the slo-mo/fast-mo, I don't want him anywhere near any franchises I like. They are both action directors who have yet to show that they're capable of telling a good story.

Bird would be a risky choice, especially with his first live action film being an important Supes Reboot film?

I think Snyder has good upside and will continue to improve and grow as a director. Letterier I'm not as high on, but that may change after I see Clash. Honestly, I don't think it would be that difficult for Snyder to ease up on some of the slo-mo/fast-mo techniques and sequences.

Especially with a director and producer like Chris Nolan mentoring him.

The important thing is Snyder knows how to do action/fight scenes and has a great visual style. Those three things are very important to have in ANY Superman film IMO....and they need to be done well.

IMO Nolan can mentor him with pacing, tone, and cutting down on the slo-mo/fast-mo usage and technique.

I don't think it would be that hard for Zack to cut it down. Not hard at all actually IMO.

 

[Sawyer]

If Clash of the Titans does well for WB... I see both Leterrier and Worthington in this one in some capcity...

I dont think it will... I could be wrong about that, but it looks like crap in my opinion.

Though, I could see them being interested in Worthington regardless.

 

[Dark Knight]

well i dont really see worthington in superman movie besides maybe a villain role like metallo maybe. Leterrier i already said i like him so i wouldnt mind if he is picked.

Worthington as Metallo or maybe as the Eradicator?

Thats' it really....

 

[flickchick85]

Bird would be a risky choice, especially with his first live action film being an important Supes Reboot film?

I think Snyder has good upside and will continue to improve and grow as a director. Letterier I'm not as high on, but that may change after I see Clash. Honestly, I don't think it would be that difficult for Snyder to ease up on some of the slo-mo/fast-mo techniques and sequences.

Especially with a director and producer like Chris Nolan mentoring him.

The important thing is Snyder knows how to do action/fight scenes and has a great visual style. Those three things are very important to have in ANY Superman film IMO....and they need to be done well.

IMO Nolan can mentor him with pacing, tone, and cutting down on the slo-mo/fast-mo usage and technique.

I don't think it would be that hard for Zack to cut it down. Not hard at all actually IMO.

I have yet to see anything that convinces me that Zack Snyder is a decent storyteller. The only good things about Watchmen were carbon copies of someone else's creativity. Snyder seemed to do his best to stifle them at every turn with stiff acting (yes, I blame HIM for that because for the most part he was working with damn fine actors), cheesy prostheses, and overdone MTV-style fights. He showed potential in two moments - the opening sequence and Dr. Manhattan's origin. So yes, I think he can get better...but he's definitely not there yet, imo. And frankly, I don't think Nolan would be reigning in any of his off-putting tendencies...Nolan's role sounds more like a producer than anything else, so most of his say will likely be in pre-production (and some in post, but I doubt he'll want to step on another director's toes). It won't be his job to change or control the chosen director's trademark style (a style which, I might add, is largely green-screen based. I don't care to see a green-screen Supes movie, and I doubt Nolan would suggest someone who's known for that, either).

And animation be damned, Brad Bird has proven several times now that he knows first-and-foremost how to tell a good story. And we know he can come up with great comic book-style action. Animation, live-action, doesn't matter - they're both built on a screenplay and storyboards.

So to me, Snyder would be a much bigger risk than Bird, since Snyder has yet to make a film I would actually qualify as "good," and Bird has made 3 films I'd qualify as masterpieces.

 

[Mr. Earle]

I have yet to see anything that convinces me that Zack Snyder is a decent storyteller. The only good things about Watchmen were carbon copies of someone else's creativity. Snyder seemed to do his best to stifle them at every turn with stiff acting (yes, I blame HIM for that because for the most part he was working with damn fine actors), cheesy prostheses, and overdone MTV-style fights. He showed potential in two moments - the opening sequence and Dr. Manhattan's origin. So yes, I think he can get better...but he's definitely not there yet, imo.

Couldnt agree with you more.

 

[Lighthouse]

I just got the horrifying thought of David Goyer being a potential director. He's got a connection to Nolan and a back ground in comics. But....the guy's just terrible. His writing is very mediocre, and I haven't liked a single film he's made. Hopefully my fears are unfounded.

 

[Dark Knight]

I have yet to see anything that convinces me that Zack Snyder is a decent storyteller. The only good things about Watchmen were carbon copies of someone else's creativity. Snyder seemed to do his best to stifle them at every turn with stiff acting (yes, I blame HIM for that because for the most part he was working with damn fine actors), cheesy prostheses, and overdone MTV-style fights. He showed potential in two moments - the opening sequence and Dr. Manhattan's origin. So yes, I think he can get better...but he's definitely not there yet, imo. And frankly, I don't think Nolan would be reigning in any of his off-putting tendencies...Nolan's role sounds more like a producer than anything else, so most of his say will likely be in pre-production (and some in post, but I doubt he'll want to step on another director's toes). It won't be his job to change or control the chosen director's trademark style (a style which, I might add, is largely green-screen based. I don't care to see a green-screen Supes movie, and I doubt Nolan would suggest someone who's known for that, either).

And animation be damned, Brad Bird has proven several times now that he knows first-and-foremost how to tell a good story. And we know he can come up with great comic book-style action. Animation, live-action, doesn't matter - they're both built on a screenplay and storyboards.

So to me, Snyder would be a much bigger risk than Bird, since Snyder has yet to make a film I would actually qualify as "good," and Bird has made 3 films I'd qualify as masterpieces.

If you weren't entertained and didn't enjoy 300 or Watchmen.....then there is nothing I can do to convince you otherwise, so I won't waste my time or yours. I have yet to see anything from Bird that proves to me his style adapts to a true LIVE action film and I would love to see Birds' skills translated to a LIVE action film BEFORE handing him over directing duties for an important Superman reboot film. I hate to break to you filmchick, but expecting to see a Superman film in this day and age with absolutely NO green screen SFX film making taking place is naive IMO.

The only thing that stopped Watchmen from making more money IMO, was the R rating/graphic violence and the long run time.

Don't know if you can blame Snyder for "wooden acting" since his cast wasn't that great in the first place overall. JEH and Patrick Wilson did a good job, but Goode, Ackerman, Crudup and even JDM could have all done a better job acting wise. Snyder had more overall talent in 300 as far as actors.

If people are looking for a director candidate for Nolan to help mentor along for Supes 3.0.....Snyder would be a good candidate and I'll leave it at that instead of going around in circles. I'm not saying Bird wouldn't be a good candidate, but lets see him do a LIVE action film first and see how his style adapts.

 

[flickchick85]

If you weren't entertained and didn't enjoy 300 or Watchmen.....then there is nothing I can do to convince you otherwise, so I won't waste my time or yours. I have yet to see anything from Bird that proves to me his style adapts to a true LIVE action film and I would love to see Birds' skills translated to a LIVE action film BEFORE handing him over directing duties for an important Superman reboot film. I hate to break to you filmchick, but expecting to see a Superman film in this day and age with absolutely NO green screen SFX film making taking place is naive IMO.

The only thing that stopped Watchmen from making more money IMO, was the R rating/graphic violence and the long run time.

Don't know if you can blame Snyder for "wooden acting" since his cast wasn't that great in the first place overall. JEH and Patrick Wilson did a good job, but Goode, Ackerman, Crudup and even JDM could have all done a better job acting wise. Snyder had more overall talent in 300 as far as actors.

If people are looking for a director candidate for Nolan to help mentor along for Supes 3.0.....Snyder would be a good candidate and I'll leave it at that instead of going around in circles. I'm not saying Bird wouldn't be a good candidate, but lets see him do a LIVE action film first and see how his style adapts.

Well like you said, we'll have to agree to disagree on most of these points. But I just need to point out that Watchmen had a PHENOMENAL cast, not just JEH and PW - I've seen all of them do truly wonderful work before (Akerman aside) - and they were screwed by really stilted, awkward scenes (not in writing, just in pacing/staging/tone). THAT is a fault of the directing. IMO, he doesn't remotely have a handle on timing, tone, emotional truth, or subtlety, all of which are vital for a storyteller.

And of course green screen will be used, I'm not that naive. But Snyder's "fantastic visual style" is actually a style that's DEFINED by green screen. He needs CGI to make his films look the way they you're talking about. For him, it's not just a tool - it's a crutch. Dawn of the Dead's visual style certainly didn't get him labeled as "a visionary."

So you want to see Brad Bird shoot live-action before giving him the gig. I guess that's understandable. I want to see Snyder shoot something that doesn't look made-for-MTV first. Oh yeah, and learn how to tell a good story. Which do you think will happen first?

 

[Webhead2006]

i would definately like to see brad bird have a chance. But like others i would like to see him do a live action movie first. Thought it isnt the first time someone done animation and gone to live action or the other way around. I agree bird has a good handle on alot of story/development stuff so I would like his name to be in the picking.

 

[Dark Knight]

Well like you said, we'll have to agree to disagree on most of these points. But I just need to point out that Watchmen had a PHENOMENAL cast, not just JEH and PW - I've seen all of them do truly wonderful work before (Akerman aside) - and they were screwed by really stilted, awkward scenes (not in writing, just in pacing/staging/tone). THAT is a fault of the directing. IMO, he doesn't remotely have a handle on timing, tone, emotional truth, or subtlety, all of which are vital for a storyteller.

And of course green screen will be used, I'm not that naive. But Snyder's "fantastic visual style" is actually a style that's DEFINED by green screen. He needs CGI to make his films look the way they you're talking about. For him, it's not just a tool - it's a crutch. Dawn of the Dead's visual style certainly didn't get him labeled as "a visionary."

So you want to see Brad Bird shoot live-action before giving him the gig. I guess that's understandable. I want to see Snyder shoot something that doesn't look made-for-MTV first. Oh yeah, and learn how to tell a good story. Which do you think will happen first?

Yeah, I think JDM did a decent job, but it he could have been better. It seemed JDMs' delivery of his lines were a bit off from scene to scene. I couldn't get a handle on it. Perhaps it was due to direction? Ackerman was below average.

Goode and Crudup did what they could with what they were given basically.

 

[Dark Knight]

So you want to see Brad Bird shoot live-action before giving him the gig. I guess that's understandable. I want to see Snyder shoot something that doesn't look made-for-MTV first. Oh yeah, and learn how to tell a good story. Which do you think will happen first?

Who knows. I certainly would like to see Bird shoot a LIVE action film and make it as good as his animation films to see how his style adapts IF it can? Brad Bird is trying to get 1906 going and that will be a far different tone then his Oscar runs in animation.

Incidentally, Snyder is jumping into Birds animation territory with Guardians of Ga'Hoole, then back to a live action thriller with Sucker Punch, then he possibly might be going back to graphic territory with Xerxes? Who knows how Xerxes will go though with Frank Miller writing the story and script I think.

Chances are none of these guys will wind up directing Supes 3.0 anyhow....so this can all be mute points anyway. t: