This is a short, fun and entertaining book that offers short descriptions of 50 directors who influenced the movie industry with their edgy style, each chapter accompanied by a whimsical drawing of the person discussed. Ian Haydn Smith makes clear that his list is just a suggestion that should add to and encourage further discussion, and indeed, I found myself googling trailers and search for film reviews on YouTube. It's also worth noting that the author makes an effort to include female directors and filmmakers from the non-English speaking world.

So while this is not an academic book or a thorough examination of the work of these directors, it's certainly fun to skip through the passages and ponder the author's choices.

The directors presented are:
Ana Lily Amirpour, Kenneth Anger, Gregg Araki, Darren Aronofsky, Mario Bava, Kathryn Bigelow, Anna Biller, Lizzie Borden, Tim Burton, John Carpenter, Park Chan-Wook, Benjamin Christensen, Vera Chytilova, Sofia Coppola, Roger Corman, Alex Cox, David Cronenberg, Claire Denis, Amat Escalante, Abel Ferrara, Georges Franju, Lucio Fulci, Terry Gilliam, Lucile Hadzihalilovic, Dennis Hopper, King Hu, Jim Jarmusch, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Harmony Korine, Barbara Loden, David Lynch, Guy Maddin, Russ Meyer, Oscar Micheaux, Takashi Miike, Gaspar Noe, Gordon Parks, George A. Romero, Ken Russell, Susan Seidelman, Seijun Suzuki, Larisa Shepitko, Quentin Tarantino, Melvin van Peebles, Lars von Trier, John Waters, Nicolas Winding Refn, Edward D. Wood Jr., Brian Yuzna.

As a former film critic, I gobbled this book up, eager to see cinema journalist Ian Haydn Smith’s take on what makes for a cult director. And I was thrilled by his choice of 50, from Burton to Lynch, Carpenter to Coppola, Cronenberg to Waters ... from superstars to the little known.

Explains the cult film mentality, with bracing text that reflects this cornucopia of cinematic genius. Perfect for serious as well as budding film buffs. 5/5

Pub Date 03 Sep 2019

Thanks to Ian Haydn Smith, Quarto Publishing Group - White Lion Publishing, and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.

#CultFilmmakers #NetGalley

This is a perfect book for anyone who has a live for film that expands beyond the Netflix lineup or the comic-book heavy box office.
It doesn’t offer a definitive definition or list of the cult director, but adds its voice to the on going conversation.
There’s people within the list that even mainstream film viewers will recognise, and there are names that readers might not recognise, but they may have seen the films mentioned.
What I love most, is that even someone as widely ‘read’ in films as myself has found some new films to watch.