8 directors who reinvented themselves after doing the same movie for too long

Countless Film directors Are known for repeatedly making similar movies, although some manage to reinvent themselves with something new. It can be a filmmaker who was pigeonholed in the action genre, who later went completely against the expectations of the audience to release an epic romance that defines the rest of their career and has an incredible impact on cinema. Other directors are known for catering primarily to a male audience, who then show themselves a new dimension with a highly feminist story that embraces female empowerment.

Many of the best directors of all time are categorized by their longevity and their ability to reinvent themselves over the years. From household names like James Cameron and Steven Spielberg, truly creative artists often find the need to break away from audience expectations and produce a movie unlike anything else in their acclaimed filmographies. Reinvention is one of the most interesting things a filmmaker can doAnd the directors change their styles after years of making the same kind of movie.

8

Steven Spielberg

Reinventing Yourself with Schindler’s List (1993)

While it’s true that Steven Spielberg is one of the most famous film directors who ever lived, over the course of his career, he built a reputation for producing family-friendly movies and box office smashes. While Spielberg’s career really took off with the release of the intense seaside thriller Jaws In 1975, throughout the 1980s and 1990s, his output was mostly aimed at viewers of all ages. of et the extra-terrestrial to Indiana Jones Right to Jurassic Park, Spielberg’s bread and butter for this period of his career were all mainstream crowd-pleasers.

However, with the release of Schindler’s List In 1993, Spielberg showed a new side to his cinematic skills with an epic WWII historical drama. As the recipient of seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Schindler’s List Reestablished Spielberg as a major cinematic voice in mature adult cinema. After that, Spielberg balanced his more family-friendly output with challenging releases like Saving Private Ryan, Lincoln, Bridge of SpiesAnd even the autobiographical story The FablemanProving his skills across any genre he tries his hand at.

7

David Fincher

Reinventing yourself with The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

David Fincher is among the greatest filmmakers, and every entry in his filmography has something interesting to say. While Fincher got off to a rocky start with his directorial debut Alien 3After the release of Se7en He continued his success with a hot streak of fantastic psychological thrillers, including The game, Action ClubAnd Panic room. With a talent for directing truly compelling stories with sinister undertones, after making the criminally underrated mystery thriller ZodiacFincher shifted gears and reinvented himself.

The interesting case of Benjamin Button is an interesting oddity in Fincher’s career as it switches up its usual formula to tell the thematically rich story of a man (Brad Pitt) who ages in reverse. With elements of fantasy, the adaptation of a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald showed a different side of the feature and proved that he is far from a one-trick pony. Although Fincher has since returned to more thriller-style releases such as Gone girl And The killerLater movies like the biographical dramas The Social Network And Lack Highlight his talents for reinvention and taking artistic risks.

6

Ridley Scott

Reinventing Yourself with Thelma & Louise (1991)

Ridley Scott gained widespread recognition for directing legendary sci-fi movies like Alien And Blade runningTwo releases that cemented his place among the best filmmakers of the 20th century. With a reputation for making large-scale action movies primarily aimed at a male audience, taking a deeper look at Scott’s career, it’s actually much more nuanced than that. A prime example of Scott’s incredible versatility is the way he reinvented his style with Thelma & LouiseA feminist road trip story that addresses chauvinistic male behavior and embraces female empowerment.

As a landmark film in feminist cinema, Thelma & Louise is just one of several times that Scott reinvented himself and proved his talents across different styles. From the rom-com appeal of A good year With Russell Crowe to the Scorsese-like crime epic American gangsterScott is no stranger to reinvention and taking chances. However, despite Scott’s willingness to try new things, he’s also just as comfortable embracing his legacy, as seen from his legacy. Alien Prequel movies like Prometheus to the upcoming Legacy sequel Gladiator II.

5

Woody Allen

Reinventing Yourself With Interiors (1978)

Woody Allen carved out a unique persona for himself in the 1970s, as his cinematic style involved a neurotic everyman dealing with the complexities and challenges of everyday existence. This was seen when he wrote and directed comedies like Sleeper, Love & DeathAnd the best picture winner Annie Hall. As Allen’s comedy skills improved over the decades, he gained further acclaim and, after this major Oscar win, would be expected to continue his filmmaking career in the same comic vein.

But, still Annie HallAllen completely changed tack and reinvented his style with this intense family drama interiorsA film that he wrote and directed but he did not appear in. interiors played into Allen’s more intellectual side as he emphasized his interest in dramatic, non-comedic work. While Allen never again made a drama so intensely serious interiorsThe film’s after-effects are apparent in later releases viz Crime and misdemeanors Or Blue Jasmine.

4

George Miller

Reinventing Yourself with Babe (1995)

Australian director George Miller burst onto the filmmaking scene with his directorial debut Mad Max In 1979, a movie that not only acted as the starting point for the long-running franchise but also Mel Gibson’s breakout role. As a revolutionary action movie made on a shoestring budget, its sequel, mad max 2, Expanded on its dystopian apocalyptic worldbuilding, and Miller cemented himself as a brave new voice in contemporary cinema. While Miller has broadened his horizons with other releases like the supernatural comedy The Witches of Eastwick And the drama Lorenzo’s OilIn 1995, he reinvented himself for an entirely new audience.

With the release of BabeA kid-friendly film co-written by Miller, he opened the door to children’s entertainment and even directed the sequel Babe: Pig in the big city In 1998. Despite Miller’s reputation as the director of the gritty, punk rock, violent Mad Max franchise, he further confused audience expectations by making two Happy Feet movies, a light-hearted series about a tap-dancing penguin. Although Miller has since returned to be Mad Max Roots, much of his filmography now comprises child-friendly family entertainment.

3

Adam McKay

Reinventing yourself with The Big Short (2015)

Adam McKay started his career as a writer for Saturday Night Live In the 1990s and used this experience to become a major comedy director, made films with the alumni of the show, such as Will Ferrell. McKay directed with Ferrell Anchorman, Talladega Nights, Step brothersAnd The other guys and was at the forefront of comedy movies during the 2000s. The beloved films were very successful, but they typified McKay as a director of only one particular movie style. That was until he reinvented himself with the release of The big short in 2015.

While The big short was still a comedy, it was a much different beast from anything McKay had done before, and his Biting satire of the 2008 global recession Proved that he has the skills needed to create highly relevant social commentary. As a Best Picture nominee at the Academy Awards, the release of The big short signaled the dawn of a new, more satirical and socially aware phase of ​​MKay’s career. This new style was extended into all of McKay’s subsequent feature films, including the Dick Cheany biopic Vice And the climate change satire Don’t look up.

2

James Van

Reinvent yourself with Furious 7 (2015)

Australian filmmaker James Wan has made a name for himself as a leading voice in the world of horror. As the co-creator of the Saw And Insidious franchises and the creator of The Conjuring universe, Van was responsible for some of the most successful horror movies of the 21st century. As a director, writer and producer, Wan has been involved in dozens of horror films, although he still found the time to reinvent himself and prove his action movie credentials with the excellent Fast & Furious installment Furious 7 in 2015.

Despite being a big change of pace for Juan, Furious 7 is still one of the best movies in the whole Fast & Furious franchise, as it continues to raise the stakes and become increasingly outrageous with each subsequent movie. From the director of low-budget horror movies to the man behind a major action blockbuster, Wan’s first big-budget movie allowed him to direct more movies outside of the horror genre. This was seen with his subsequent superhero movies Aquaman And Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.

1

James Cameron

Reinventing Yourself With Titanic (1997)

While James Cameron may now be primarily focused on his Avatar franchise, the first installment of which is the highest-grossing movie of all time, the early days of his career were filled with some classic releases. Like the man behind The Terminator, AliensAnd True read, Cameron was primarily an action filmmaker in the 1980s and early 1990s. However, with the release of titanic, He reinvented himself as a titan of cinema who consistently broke major box office records and only worked on projects he was absolutely passionate about, no matter how long they took.

Titanic was a significant change of pace for Cameron. His epic historical romance, set around the 1912 sinking of the RMS Titanic, was the most expensive movie ever released. Titanic too Became the highest-grossing movie of all time until Cameron’s own Avatar Passed it. The unprecedented success of Titanic Meant that Cameron never had to work again if he didn’t want to. This allowed Cameron to reinvent himself and focus on refining visual and technical aspects, and it would be 12 years before his follow-up film Avatar was released and another 13 years before its sequel came out.