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Even his first two major films, Boogie Nights and Magnolia, manage to be similar and completely different. Both are inspired by Robert Altman, both are set in the San Fernando Valley, both feature huge casts, both are long, and both are very R-rated. But one is about porn and the other is about fate, coincidences, and destiny. Okay, in all fairness, I'm being reductive. Both films are about much, much more than that, and both do share the common thread of painful familial relationships, usually between fathers and sons. Punch-Drunk Love does feature a protagonist with truly awful sisters, but no father figure. There Will Be Blood, of course, is awash in father-son relationships, and even brother-brother relationships. More than anyone else in his age range, what impresses most about Paul Thomas Anderson is that his films will be analyzed and picked apart years from now.


Joel and Ethan Coen

Those same avid readers who recognize my previous love for There Will Be Blood probably also remember that, last month, I spent a little bit of space here on my soapbox bashing A Serious Man, one of the ten Best Picture Oscar nominees, directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. And yet, as I've mentioned elsewhere on the list, even a bad film from the Coen brothers is well-made, striking in its visuals, and worth watching. I'm not happy with what I saw, but I am glad I saw it. They're on the list not only for that distinction, but because the majority of their films are instantly considered classics. From Blood Simple to Raising Arizona to Barton Fink to Fargo to O Brother, Where Art Thou...well, the list goes on. The point is that the Coens have managed to grow in their films, from themes to performances to something as seemingly unnoticeable as production design.

The Coens have a new film coming out this Christmas, and is sure to be worth checking out, even if it leads these two men down a dangerous path they've been down before: the path of the remake. In 2004, they released The Ladykillers, their Tom Hanks-led version of the 1955 British comedy. Though I'm no hater of the film, it's...well, it's not good. So, that's the caution I have when considering that their latest film is a remake of True Grit, the John Wayne Western that garnered him a Best Actor Oscar. In place of Wayne, the Coens have reunited with the Dude himself, Jeff Bridges, recent Best Actor winner. Suffice to say, the Coens doing another Western and doing it with Jeff Bridges is enough for this writer to line up, but I'll not forget The Ladykillers when I sit down to see it. All else aside, though, if it's a film by the Coens, it's worth watching, as is anything they do.

David Fincher

Here's another visual master who doesn't get the proper amount of love from mainstream audiences. On the one hand, sure, most people flocked to Fincher's latest film, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which brought him back with Brad Pitt, the star who was the lead in Se7en and Fight Club. On the other hand, it was Forrest Gump starring Brad Pitt. The movie was impressive to look at, and about as cold a film as Fincher had ever made. Though his films don't exactly scream "personal touch", movies like Fight Club and Se7en are far more true to his spirit than Benjamin Button, which can't really ever find a balance between Fincher's coldly cynical take on the world with the Forrest Gump view of things. But, as with the other men on this list, there is nothing he makes that I wouldn't watch, whether I love it or not.

And, as with the Coens, I and everyone else will have a chance to check out his latest film this year. As mentioned in a previous A-List, Fincher's newest film is The Social Network, an Aaron Sorkin-penned film about the creation of Facebook. Who knows if it will attract the same amount of people to the theaters as do use Facebook, but Fincher working with Sorkin is exciting, all by itself. Add to that the rumors (which are closer to confirmed, according to The Playlist) that Fincher may direct the American version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, the wildly successful best-selling novel, and it looks like Fincher's visual prowess isn't likely to be diminished, even if the films he's making vary in topic and tone. Also, anyone who's read Girl knows that Fincher won't flinch from showing the gruesome aspects of the show, which is probably for the best.

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