David Fincher vs. Christopher Nolan

[Arkaign]

These two directors have an overall excellent track record when you look at their body of work, even raising mediocre scripts (Insomnia and Panic Room come to mind) to occassional brilliance. In twenty or thirty years time, it is not unimaginable that one or both will be something akin to the reputation of Scorcese in terms of legend (albeit without the emphasis on crime films).

I have followed both from their early films. This year looks to end in a likely oscar showdown between these two at the oscars, with Inception and The Social Network being the overall best reviewed films of the year so far in wide release. I think only Toy Story 3 has recieved similarly wide acclaim, and we know that animated films are a looooooong shot at big oscar glory.

So who does ATOT prefer, if either?

EDIT : Adding list of wide-release directed feature films by both ..

David Fincher, born in 1962 :

Alien3 - 1992
Seven - 1995
The Game - 1997
Fight Club - 1999
Panic Room - 2002
Zodiak - 2007
Benjamin Button - 2008
The Social Network - 2010
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2011 Release based upon the massive bestseller from the late Stieg Larsson)

Christopher Nolan, born in 1970

Following - 1998 (not in wide release really)
Memento - 2000
Insomnia - 2002
Batman Begins - 2005
The Prestige - 2006
The Dark Knight - 2008 (lot of ATOT hate on this one, but I think it's almost inarguably the best superhero film of all time)
Inception - 2010
Untitled Superhero Project - 2012 (this is likely to be the Superman reboot or Batman and Superman, outside shot it's just the third in the Batman Reboot)

 

[Fingolfin269]

Am I being a big wuss by saying I like them both about the same?

 

[gimmewhitecastles]

i like fincher's body of work better but inception is the best overall film from both of them combined.

 

[Arkaign]

Am I being a big wuss by saying I like them both about the same?

Not at all, I happen to agree. I am a big big fan of both, I don't think I've ever left a film by either thinking 'well that was crap'. Panic Room was a disappointment to me, but I could still see a lot of brilliance in it and the acting was exceptional. I usually expect an 8/10 film when I see a work by either, and Panic Room was more of a 6/10 to me, but I don't pin it on Fincher very much.

They both bring similar styles, albeit unique in their own ways. I think Fincher is flashier visually, but Nolan has some serious chops as well. They seem to have a way of eliciting great performances from solid actors, and I look forward to any releases by either.

 

[KeithTalent]

Boy, tough call. I like them both quite a bit. I'd have to do a full breakdown of all their films to give a real answer.

I'd lean Nolan because Memento's probably my favourite film out of all of the films on either filmography, but if Social Network is as good as it appears and he does a good job with Dragon Tattoo, Fincher could take the top spot. Fight Club and Zodiac are both amazing films, particularly Zodiac, but Inception was pretty awesome too. :hmm:

KT

 

[Arkaign]

Yeah this is a tough one. I think Christopher Nolan does bring something extra to the table with the ability to do his own scripts and original writing, along with obvious stuff like rewrites. Not enough to sway me entirely though.

Any Fincher fan should definitely re-watch the classic 80s Aerosmith video 'Janie's got a Gun'. You can see the genesis of his style in a few short minutes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqQn2ADZE1A&ob=av3e

 

[gorcorps]

It's tough. Overall I like all of Nolan's movies quite a bit, but the movies I like of Fincher's I REALLY like. One thing that people don't always notice in Fincher movies (at least my friends didn't) is the really cool filmography he sometimes brings to the table. In Fight Club, but more in Panic Room he has these shots where the camera seems to pan from one room to the other... like the camera went through a wall. You even see the inside of the wall, and it's seamless. It's something that sets apart what could be a fairly boring group of scenes.

I haven't seen The Social Network yet, but I plan to soon. So right now I'll probably turn towards Nolan just because Inception was so damned awesome. Before that I would have said Fincher.

 

[zinfamous]

for now, I have to go with David Fincher. Both are excellent craftsmen, but Nolan has yet to figure out how to give emotion and personality to his characters. I like all of his work, but he creates non-dynamic, rather uninteresting characters to inhabit his interesting little plots.

 

[darkxshade]

Hard to say, Fincher has made more movies, Nolan has fewer but better. They are both on my top 5 list of directors. I say Nolan by a hair as of Inception, Fincher before Inception.

 

[CZroe]

i like fincher's body of work better but inception is the best overall film from both of them combined.

You never saw "The Prestige," did you?

 

[Platypus]

for now, I have to go with David Fincher. Both are excellent craftsmen, but Nolan has yet to figure out how to give emotion and personality to his characters. I like all of his work, but he creates non-dynamic, rather uninteresting characters to inhabit his interesting little plots.

This x100

Nolan has some great work under his belt and due to the excellence of the actor's he has used, sometimes he gets lucky with the emotion/character element but largely he falls flat here.

 

[Kev]

You never saw "The Prestige," did you?

The prestige was great until it went off the rails in last couple minutes.

 

[Arkaign]

Nolan with a commanding lead. I'm a little surprised by the large separation in votes, but also proud of ATOT for zero votes so far for "I dislike both".

Interestingly, once upon a time back in the pre-Batman reboot days, I pined for Fincher to get a shot at the Batfilms, having grown tired of the cheesy juvenile films that populated the series. I like Burton, but think that only the first Batman film was decent. The one with the Penguin was just terrible. Then Nolan signed on and I was intrigued to see where it went, and pretty pleased with the results. I'd still love to see an alternative universe version where Fincher was at the helm of the reboots though.

 

[gimmewhitecastles]

You never saw "The Prestige," did you?

The Prestige was good but I wouldn't consider it an all time favorite. I actually rate Fight Club above The Prestige.

 

[PricklyPete]

you just made my day by alerting to me that The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is going to be directed by Fincher. REALLY looking forward to that.

 

[KeithTalent]

you just made my day by alerting to me that The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is going to be directed by Fincher. REALLY looking forward to that.

Yeah, apparently Daniel Craig is going to play Blomkvist and Christopher Plummer will be the old dude. :thumbsup:

KT

 

[Ichinisan]

Though Fincher's Fight Club was my favorite out of the bunch, I think Nolan is the better director.

I didn't really like Inception very much (over-rated). I don't care to watch it again or own it...and it's entirely too long. If Nolan took out 30 minutes of the excessive James Bond action and replaced it with explanatory or filler scenes, the concepts and settings would have time to sink in with the viewer and we'd have a better idea of what's going on. People call it "the thinking man's summer blockbuster" because they believe the nonsense is "science fiction." Zimmer's score is epic (as always).

I loved Batman Begins and I think it's far better than The Dark Knight. Like Inception, DK really needed to be shorter and have less going on. They should have left out Harvey Dent's transformation into Two-Face and used his presence in this movie to endear viewers to the Dent character. The transformation would have MUCH more impact if it was saved for another movie! If S. Goyer worked with Nolan on the story as they did with Batman Begins, I'm sure these flaws would have been worked out. Because the critics and general public believe DK was far superior, Nolan isn't likely to realize his work with Goyer was much better and will probably just keep doing what he did with DK. In that way, Heath Ledger's amazing performance could worsen the franchise going forward.

The Prestige is also one of my favorite movies, but I have to watch it over-and-over-and-over to really understand it. That's why Nolan needs to be careful when he makes complex movies like Inception that are just too long to watch repeatedly.

I never liked Memento because the story was just ludicrous and beyond believability.

Of Fincher, I loved Fight Club. It's one of my favorite movies. Se7en was good. The Game was OK. Panic Room and Benjamin Button were BAD. I haven't seen Alien 3 or Zodiak.

 

[darkxshade]

Maybe the best way to decide is to consolidate all films from both directors and create your top 10 list

For me it would be:

1. Fight Club
2. Batman Begins
3. Inception
4. The Dark Knight
5. Se7en
6. Memento
7. The Prestige
8. Benjamin Button
9. The Game
10. Zodiac


I never saw Insomnia and Following from Nolan and obviously the social network from Fincher. So before Inception it was Fincher, after it was Nolan by a hair and likely back to Fincher after I see Social Network.


edit: I just noticed Fincher has a propensity to use Brad Pitt and for Nolan... Christian Bale & Michael Caine.

 

[gimmewhitecastles]

Maybe the best way to decide is to consolidate all films from both directors and create your top 10 list

For me it would be:

1. Fight Club
2. Batman Begins
3. Inception
4. The Dark Knight
5. Se7en
6. Memento
7. The Prestige
8. Benjamin Button
9. The Game
10. Zodiac


I never saw Insomnia and Following from Nolan and obviously the social network from Fincher. So before Inception it was Fincher, after it was Nolan by a hair and likely back to Fincher after I see Social Network.


edit: I just noticed Fincher has a propensity to use Brad Pitt and for Nolan... Christian Bale & Michael Caine.

Every director has their favorites. Scorcese used De Niro a lot and now its Leo DiCaprio.

My list would go like this.
1. Inception
2. Fight Club
3. Se7en
4. Dark Knight
5. The Prestige
6. The Game
7. Batman Begins
8. Benjamin Button
9. Panic Room
10. Memento

 

[KeithTalent]

Yeah, so for me, of the films I have seen:

1. Memento
2. Fight Club
3. Zodiac
4. Inception
5. The Prestige
6. Se7en
7. Dark Knight
8. Batman Begins
9. The Game
10. Insomnia
11. Following
12. Panic Room
13. Benjamin Button

I think that feels right, though it's been a while since I have seen some of those. :hmm: So that gives Nolan 3 of my top 5 and 6 of my top 10, which means Nolan by a hair, until I see Social Network anyway.

KT

 

[Arkaign]

Yeah, so for me, of the films I have seen:

1. Memento
2. Fight Club
3. Zodiac
4. Inception
5. The Prestige
6. Se7en
7. Dark Knight
8. Batman Begins
9. The Game
10. Insomnia
11. Following
12. Panic Room
13. Benjamin Button

I think that feels right, though it's been a while since I have seen some of those. :hmm: So that gives Nolan 3 of my top 5 and 6 of my top 10, which means Nolan by a hair, until I see Social Network anyway.

KT

I think that would be my exact list, other than I would swap The Game with The Prestige, and maybe move TDK up a spot or two. I really loved The Game, although I know it has it's flaws. The ambience from when I first saw it might have something to do with it, and I have a big spot in my heart for a good Douglas performance.

 

[KeithTalent]

I think that would be my exact list, other than I would swap The Game with The Prestige, and maybe move TDK up a spot or two. I really loved The Game, although I know it has it's flaws. The ambience from when I first saw it might have something to do with it, and I have a big spot in my heart for a good Douglas performance.

I remember loving it when I saw it in the theatre, but it has been ages since I last watched it. It probably fell down the list due to lack of exposure; I keep meaning to pick it up for a re-watch, but always forget.

KT

 

[Arkaign]

I remember loving it when I saw it in the theatre, but it has been ages since I last watched it. It probably fell down the list due to lack of exposure; I keep meaning to pick it up for a re-watch, but always forget.

KT

Cool, it's been a few years (maybe 2006ish?) since I've seen it as well, and I'm dying to see it again in 1080p. Watch for the really good small support work that Penn did here, it was spot on. I always wanted to get a t-shirt made that matched Douglas' shirt :

"I was drugged and left for dead in Mexico and all I got was this lousy T-shirt"



Let's re-watch it and compare reviews.

 

[Ichinisan]

OP

Did some work for you:

David Fincher
IMDB Wikipedia


Alien 3
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Se7en
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

The Game
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Fight Club
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Panic Room
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Zodiak
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Benjamin Button
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

The Social Network
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes




Christopher Nolan
IMDB Wikipedia


Following
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Memento
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Insomnia
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Batman Begins
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

The Prestige
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

The Dark Knight
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Inception
IMDB Rotten Tomatoes

Untitled Batman Project
IMDB

 

[KeithTalent]

Cool, it's been a few years (maybe 2006ish?) since I've seen it as well, and I'm dying to see it again in 1080p. Watch for the really good small support work that Penn did here, it was spot on. I always wanted to get a t-shirt made that matched Douglas' shirt :

"I was drugged and left for dead in Mexico and all I got was this lousy T-shirt"



Let's re-watch it and compare reviews.

Totally. Sean Penn was awesome in that! :awe:

KT