The Kubrick/Malick HOF

For those of you around in “the 90’s” or even the “early Aughts” as young budding cinefiles you may remember the media circlejerk around the (much deserved) narratives of Stanley Kubrick and Terrence Malick. Being that they were reclusive figures who only emerge maybe once per decade to release a masterwork before going back into hiding. In fact Kubrick only released 4 films over a 24+ year period (Barry Lyndon, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, Eyes Wide Shut) and Malick only dropped 4 in 32 years (Badlands, Days of Heaven, The Thin Red Line, The New World). They were truly the Rihanna’s of their day, although neither had anything to do with a filmed boardgame adaptation unfortunately.

Now, being officially “an elder millennial” and it being about 25 years later we have a huge crop of elusive auteurs on Kubrick/Malick paces working (no pun intended) today to little or no fanfare about their reclusive and sparse film careers. They all started around the time of the Kubrick/Malick mythos reaching a fever pitch so you have to believe they took it to heart or perhaps, and probably, it’s just a coincidence. How would you rank them? Are they all in the HOF? Who am I missing, currently and from the past? Do you even gaf? If not there’s a probably a Normal Rockwell or Drake Maye thread just for you!

Guidelines: 1.) 4 or less films over any 25 year period in their career (Kubrick was technically at 24 and change but there was a 4 year layoff between A Clockwork Orange and Lyndon so we aren’t gonna nitpick a few months). 2.) It has to be someone who is primarily a director. Someone primarily an actor doesn’t count (eg. Clooney, Redford) unless they essentially retired from acting as their main gig and now are known mainly as a director (eg. Ron Howard, Rob Reiner). 3.) The pick should be objectively an auteur but a nomination is not a statement that you like all or believe all the films are bangers. Look at the body of work. 4.) Narrative features only

Candidates, in alphabetical order:

Andrew Dominik (2000 - )(4) - Chopper (2000), The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007), Killing Them Softly (2012), Blonde (2022)

Todd Field (2001 - )(3) - In The Bedroom (2001), Little Children (2006), Tàr (2022)

Jonathan Glazer (2000 - )(4) - Sexy Beast (2000), Birth (2004), Under the Skin (2013), The Zone of Interest (2023)

Spike Jonze (1999 - )(4) - Being John Malkovich (1999), Adaptation (2002), Where the Wild Things Are (2009), Her (2013)

Kenneth Lonergan (2000 - )(3) - You Can Count on Me (2000), Margaret (2011), Manchester by the Sea (2016)

Veteran’s Committee Inductee:

David Lynch (2001 - 2025)(3)* Mulholland Drive (2001), Inland Empire (2006) Twin Peaks: The Return (2017) *Twin Peaks: The Return is often referred to as an “18 hour long movie”.

Not Yet Eligible/On Pace:

Tom Ford (2009 - )(2) - A Single Man (2009), Nocturnal Animals (2016)

Charlie Kaufman (2008 - )(3) - Synecdoche, New York (2008), Anomalisa (2015), I'm Thinking of Ending Things (2020)