Who is the greatest Sci-Fi movie director?

[DraculaAD1972]

Here are the contenders:

Ridley Scott-
Blade Runner
Alien
Prometheus

George Lucas-
Star Wars Episode IV
THX 1138
Star Wars prequels
(Empire Strikes Back is excluded, sorry George)

Stanley Kubrick-
A Clockwork Orange
2001 A Space Odyssey

James Cameron-
The Terminator
Terminator 2
Aliens
Avatar
The Abyss

George Miller-
Mad Max
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome

Paul Verhoeven -
Robocop
Starship Troopers
Total Recall

Stephen Spielberg-
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Minority Report
War of the Worlds
A I artificial intelligence
ET
Jurassic Park

John Carpenter-
The Thing
Escape from LA
Escape from New York
Dark Star

David Cronenberg-
Videodrome
eXistenZ
The Fly

Terry Gilliam-
Brazil
Twelve Monkeys




My personal take, from the worst to the best:

10. Paul Verhoeven
Robocop, Starship Troopers and Total Recall are all solid sci- fi films. They are characterised by Scorcese-level violence married to heavy-handed satire critical of American culture.

9. George Lucas
Star Wars is the most influential film on the list after 2001...but Lucas tampered with it and managed to diminish a true sci-fi classic. The prequels are terrible. THX 1138 is good...but not great. Empire doesn't count as Lucas wasn't the director, although his involvement in the creation of The Empire Strikes Back atones somewhat for his unforgivable butchery of Episode IV, saving him from last place.

8. Terry Gilliam
Brazil is a remarkable film. Twelve Monkeys is a solid entry.

7. George Miller
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior does what Aliens and Terminator 2 couldn't do- it improves on the original in every way. Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome was a disappointment.

6. David Cronenberg
Videodrome is a masterpiece. eXistenZ is a good film. The Fly is a good sci-fi horror.

5. John Carpenter
The Thing is a masterpiece. Escape from New York is great film. Escape from LA is an entertaining sequel. Dark Star is a great sci-fi comedy.

4. Stephen Spielberg
Close Encounters is a classic sci- fi film. The others aren't exactly seminal, although A I was a good effort and the others are respectable genre entries. Apart from Jurassic Park.

3. James Cameron
The Terminator is Cameron's best film. It's a brilliantly directed film. T2 and Aliens are great... but they aren't seminal. The Abyss is boring. Avatar is visually impressive, but narratively retarded. Cameron gets third place.

2. Stanley Kubrick
2001 and Clockwork Orange are both genre-exploding masterpieces.

1. Ridley Scott
Forget Prometheus. Alien and Blade Runner are perfect sci-fi movies. Alien is also a perfect horror film, and Blade Runner rivals 2001 for sheer visual artistry.


Edit: added Carpenter, promoted Cameron, added Verhoeven, added Cronenberg, added Miller, added Gilliam, promoted Lucas to ninth place, promoted Scott to first place

[Gears of the Beast]

I don't see how Prometheus could possibly count in Ridley Scott's favour, if anything it should disqualify him from the discussion. I agree though, Kubrick is no.1 for me.

[Aemon Stark]

T2 and Aliens aren't "seminal"? Oookay...

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

T2 and Aliens aren't "seminal"? Oookay...

Probably not seminal sci-fi. Seminal action movies for sure.

[Kalbear]

James Cameron is the winner for me. His movies have defined what sci fi effects and stories have been for 30 years now. Kubrick was phenomenal but as a sci fi director his work did not influence the genre nearly as much as Cameron. Cameron's movies are infinitely quotable, career defining and massively successful.

In addition to that Cameron has redefined so much of the technology of the sci fi world it's hard not to give him credit. The only other person close to that is Lucas with THX and ILM - but Cameron has supplanted that.

I also don't see how T2 and Aliens aren't seminal. Aliens essentially created a massive franchise that continues to this day. T2 did as well. And those are sci-fi stories as much as Clockwork Orange is if not more.

One more thing: Cameron has always been one of the best directors with respect to women. His movies have often featured female leads with intensely strong roles. Sarah Connor and Ripley redefined what a female movie star could be.

[DraculaAD1972]

James Cameron is the winner for me. His movies have defined what sci fi effects and stories have been for 30 years now. Kubrick was phenomenal but as a sci fi director his work did not influence the genre nearly as much as Cameron. Cameron's movies are infinitely quotable, career defining and massively successful.

In addition to that Cameron has redefined so much of the technology of the sci fi world it's hard not to give him credit. The only other person close to that is Lucas with THX and ILM - but Cameron has supplanted that.

I also don't see how T2 and Aliens aren't seminal. Aliens essentially created a massive franchise that continues to this day. T2 did as well. And those are sci-fi stories as much as Clockwork Orange is if not more.

One more thing: Cameron has always been one of the best directors with respect to women. His movies have often featured female leads with intensely strong roles. Sarah Connor and Ripley redefined what a female movie star could be.

On reflection I decided to move Cameron up to third place. But T2 and Aliens, great as they are, both stand in the shadows of superior original masterpieces.

2001 is surely the most influential sci- fi film ever made. Although I personally much prefer Blade Runner.

[Grand Moff Mithrandir]

Its very hard not to consider Cameron the best.

[Nas!]

No name on your list should ever be mentioned in the same breath as Kubrick.

Counter arguments: "Sci-Fi", semantics, and...curtain.

[Howdyphillip]

No name on your list should ever be mentioned in the same breath as Kubrick.

Counter arguments: "Sci-Fi", semantics, and...curtain.

I agree with you, but for what I can only assume is very different reasons. Kubrik is by far the worst director on that list. Every other director either created a new world with his imagination or significantly improved upon the source material. Kubrik's movies were not as good as the ideas that they were based on.

George Lucas created and told the best story, but Ridley Scott is the best director on your list.

[Kalbear]

The problem is that kubrick really isn't that influential as a sci fi director. 2001 was and is great, but where is the influence it has elsewhere? Sci if movies almost never look or sound remotely like it. Whereas everywhere you look you can see Cameron styles and visual effects.

I'm willing to say that Kubrick is a much better director (though I think his later work kind of sucked) but Cameron is much bigger in the sci if world.

And what was bigger than t2? T2 essentially created the age of cgi in sci fi. Virtually every action and sci fi movies in the 90s until the matrix owes it's visuals to what he established.

[Nas!]

Jesus, Phillip. I thought you were cool, man.

[Nas!]

Are you out of your fucking minds? No Sci-Fi movie on this list could or would have been made if not for 2001.

Undeniable fact.

[Nictarion]

I wouldn't consider Dr. Strangelove sci-fi, but I agree Kubrick is probably number 1. Ridley Scott is close though.

Alonso Cuaron maybe should get a mention with Children of Men, and Gravity.

[Nictarion]

Nm

[Nas!]

Edited for the benefit of Nictarion...

[Kalbear]

Are you out of your fucking minds? No Sci-Fi movie on this list could or would have been made if not for 2001.

Undeniable fact.

i deny it and it's not a fact. Star Wars was far more influential on sci fi movies. Here's a way to check this: how many other Clarke stories have been adapted to film?

If 2001 was so influential, you would expect Hollywood to mine the hell out of that. But they haven't - the only one they did do was 2010, which is another anti-Kubrick feather since it looks and feels absolutely unlike 2001! And nothing else has been done.

Because sci fi moved entirely on from 2001.

[Theda Baratheon]

As much as I fucking LOVE Blade Runner to DEATH and Alien; Ridley is waaaaay too over the place genre wise AND quality wise.

Kubrick is a great director who makes great films but I'm not sure he can be described as a sci-fi director who has had a massive influence on the genre.

Might have to agree with Cameron here. He's arguably the most sci-fi of the lot and a force in helping steer the genre into where it is now.

[Theda Baratheon]

I won't waste an opportunity to praise Blade Runner though :P ; think in terms of single films as an influence on the science fiction genre it is way, way up there. So I wish I could say Ridley just on Blade Runner and Alien alone, but like I said he's too all over the place.

[Nictarion]

Edited for the benefit of Nictarion...

Lol

[Nas!]

If you don't think that 2001 had a massive influence on the genre then you are just plainly wrong.

I obviously can't say that a tradition of Sci-Fi in film wouldn't exist without the influence of 2001, but certainly all the films on this list were made possible by its existence.