Hollywood is one of the places where, if you’re talented enough, you will more than likely get noticed and go on to succeed, even if your first effort debuts with an underwhelming thud upon arrival. Some of the most acclaimed and busiest directors working today, started out showing real promise and cultivated a cult following with their freshman movie efforts.
RELATED:Movies That Became Surprising Cult Classics
The following list comprises a set of marquee name directors, all with their unique styles and commonality, in that their names command the same attention (and sometimes more so) as the top billed name actor on any particular film release.
Memento - Christopher Nolan
While 1998’sFollowingis technically the first directorial effort from (Christopher Nolan), it’s his follow-up with 2000sMementothat introduced him to the world and truly established him as a filmmaker to keep an eye on. The story of a man searching for his wife’s killer, but who suffers from a condition that inhibits his minds' ability to create new memories. Add to that, the film unfolds backwards, where the audience starts at the end of the story and ends with its start.
Memento was produced on a modest $9 Million budget, and while it was a commercial success bringing in over $40 million at the domestic box office, it wasn’t seen by many people upon its initial release. The very definition of a “word of mouth” movie, Memento was a resounding success at its Venice Film Festival premiere and a critical darling, with high praise going to the story’s originality, the fantastic performances from the cast lead by Guy Peirce and Carrie-Ann Moss and the talent of the director being showcased. Going on to become one of the biggest directors currently working in film with movies likeInception,Interstellar,The Dark Knight,Tenetand the upcomingOppenheimer, Christopher Nolan is a giant of the industry that commands attention with every new release now.
HARD 8 - Paul Thomas Anderson
The general movie goer might assume thatBoogie Nightswas the first feature film made by directorPaul Thomas Anderson, but it was actually a little known flick that came out just one year earlier,Hard 8. Originally released under the title Sydney, and little seen at the time,Hard 8boasts a truly great performance from the late great character actorPhillip Baker Hall. Anderson had seen Baker Hall inSecret Honora 1984 film and had him in mind for the part of the Sydney from the start.
Mired in release issues due to the distribution company going broke, the film made a positive impression on critics, but audiences largely overlooked it, later to be discovered after Anderson became a lauded cinematic wunderkind. FollowingBoogie Nightswith the dramatic emotional opusMagnolia, and several other cinematic classics likeThere Will Be Blood,The MasterandPhantom Threadjust to name a few.
Chopper - Andrew Dominik
BeforeEric Banabecame the Hollywood A-Lister that starred in blockbusters likeStar TrekandTroy, he shocked the movie going public with his astounding debut portrayal of notorious Australian gangland member Mark “Chopper” Reed inAndrew Dominik’s first array into feature filmmakingChopper. Praised in Australia for its brutal and darkly comic tone,Chopper, the intense story of Read, a legendary criminal who wrote his autobiography while serving a jail sentence in prison, gained a cult following. In 2007,Brad Pittcame calling to have Dominik take the helm of Pitts upcoming western saga,The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Fordthat garnered two Oscar nominations and firmly established Dominik as a true auteur.
Five years later, the famously picky directors next film put together an all-star cast with Pitt returning to collaborate along with,Scoot McNairy, fellow AustralianBen Mendelsohn,Richard Jenkins, Sam Shepard, Ray LiottaandJames Gandolfinidelivering a small but memorable performance inKilling Them Softly. Dominik continues his rise, working withDavid Fincherdirecting two episodes of the amazingMindhunteron Netflix and following that up with the soon-to-be releasedBlondestarringAna De Armasin her portrayal of starletMarylin Monroe.
Alien 3 - David Fincher
Cinephiles around the world have a love/hate relationship withAlien 3. On one hand it had given the opportunity for a debut filmmaker to break into the industry with David Fincher. On the other hand,Alien 3was almost responsible for robbing fans of someone, who would go on to become one of the most influential directors of modern day, with Fincher having such an awful experience making the film that he went on to denounce the film and almost swore off the profession for good. Luckily, he was drawn back in with the chance to make the cinema classicSe7enwith Brad PittandMorgan Freemanwhich became a phenomenon upon release and reinvigorated Fincher’s career and passion for film.
Alien 3 was also a blow to the franchise which had produced two iconic films as fans and critics shunned it when it came out in 1992. It has since gone on to become a cult favorite after 20th Century Fox released an alternative version titled theAssembly CutWith over 37 minutes of new footage. Fincher himself has gone on to bless movie fans the globe over with amazing films likeThe Social Network,Zodiac,Gone GirlandFight Club. He is currently in post-production withThe Killer,a collaboration withMichael Fassbenderand re-teaming ofSe7enwriterAndrew Kevin Walker.
Office Space - Mike Judge
If you’ve worked in any type of office environment and haven’t seenOffice Space,you’re really missing out on a true cult classic. A film that was released in 1999 from writer/directorMike Judge, who at the time had entered the pop culture lexicon as the creator of MTV hitBeavis and Butthead, Office Space was his first foray into the world of live action filmmaking and his first taste of failure, at the box office at-least with the movie globally grossing just enough to cover its $10 million dollar budget.
Since that time however, it has gone on the establish one of the bigger film cult followings. Judge went on to give usIdiocracy,another cult favorite, TV’sKing of the Hilland HBO comedy smash hit,Silicon Valley.
Clerks - Kevin Smith
Clerksis an absolute stone-cold indie classic! Released in 1994 by first time writer/directorKevin Smith, it tells the story of two friends trying to get through a work day and the absolute plethora of nonsense they have to go through just to get to the finish line. Shot on location at the actual convenience store where Smith worked, Clerks was inspired to be made after a 21-year-old Smith watchRichard Linklater’sSlacker, a movie about people having conversations. Smith took his love for the written word and put together a small black and white film, which he funded by hocking his comic book collection and maxing out some credit cards. The Hail Mary that resulted became one of the most loved and influential staples in the world of cult indie films and launched Smith into the Hollywood having had one of the more well-rounded Hollywood careers.
Smith has become entrenched in the online and real world media landscapes. His filmography truly cannot be pigeonholed into one specific genre. He has eclectic tastes, undeniable talent and an ability to jump genres having worked on some of the world’s biggest IPs and with some of the most talented names in the industry. It’s nice to think that it all stemmed from a $28,000 passion project that he made with his friends.
