Directors whose best film is also their most popular

[Kormod]

Anyone care to take a crack at this one? The only one I can come up with is Vincent Gallo for Buffalo '66. I'd also say Sergio Leone for the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Orson Welles for Citizen Kane, and Quentin Tarantino for Pulp Fiction; but I get that those directors made/have made other great films that people might think are even better.

[cavorting with nudists]

My guess is that either Taxi Driver or Goodfellas is Scorcese's most popular.  I can't decide which one is his best though, so as a good contrarian whichever is more popular, I'll say the other one is.

[Chris L]

My guess is that either Taxi Driver or Goodfellas is Scorcese's most popular.  I can't decide which one is his best though, so whichever is more popular, I'll say the other one is.

Shutter Island is his biggest hit.

[Shaggy 2 Grote]

My guess is that either Taxi Driver or Goodfellas is Scorcese's most popular.  I can't decide which one is his best though, so whichever is more popular, I'll say the other one is.

Shutter Island is his biggest hit.

Really?!

I think Jackie Brown is Tarantino's best film, and I think I'm not alone in this, but it's far from his most popular.

[Chris L]

My guess is that either Taxi Driver or Goodfellas is Scorcese's most popular.  I can't decide which one is his best though, so whichever is more popular, I'll say the other one is.

Shutter Island is his biggest hit.

Really?!

I think Jackie Brown is Tarantino's best film, and I think I'm not alone in this, but it's far from his most popular.

Yup.

"The film opened #1 at the box office with $41 million, according to studio estimates. The movie gave Scorsese his best box office opening yet.[30] The film remained #1 in its second weekend with $22.2 million.[31] Eventually, the film has grossed $128,012,934 in North America and $166,790,080 in foreign markets, for a total of $294,803,014[2] and became Scorsese's highest-grossing film worldwide."

I didn't check but I'm sure Boxcar Bertha is #2.

[Smelodies]

Didn't see Shutter Island, but it can't be worse than Bringing Out the Dead.

[JonFromMaplewood]

Shyamalan.

[Chris L]

Didn't see Shutter Island, but it can't be worse than Bringing Out the Dead.

My memory of Bringing Out the Dead is pretty hazy, but I think Shutter Island might be worse. With the exception of Mark Ruffalo saying "boss" the whole movie, I detested it.

[Smelodies]

In some ways Chase became more like Scorsese than Scorsese himself.

[wood and iron]

I would postulate that Bringing Out the Dead is a forgotten Scorsese gem. It's not perfect but it's certainly more interesting than, say, Gangs of New York.

[cavorting with nudists]

I had read the book before seeing Bringing Out the Dead and thought it must be the most exact, literal book-to-film adaptation ever.  I mean faithful to a fault, almost imagination-free.  This told me that Paul Schrader was truly picking up a paycheck for doing the screenplay and Scorsese's heart just wasn't much in it. I don't think it was quite as bad as The Color of Money, though.

Anyway, calling Shutter Island the most popular based on box office makes me feel like Dave from Knoxville in that other item. How many people saw it based on the studio hype and thought it stunk?  Over time, I can't believe more people haven't seen and remembered Taxi Driver and Goodfellas.  Who the hell ever makes a pop-cultural reference to Shutter Island?

I agree about Jackie Brown, btw.

[dave from knoxville]

I'm a Brownie too!

[Chris L]

I had read the book before seeing Bringing Out the Dead and thought it must be the most exact, literal book-to-film adaptation ever.  I mean faithful to a fault, almost imagination-free.  This told me that Paul Schrader was truly picking up a paycheck for doing the screenplay and Scorsese's heart just wasn't much in it. I don't think it was quite as bad as The Color of Money, though.

Anyway, calling Shutter Island the most popular based on box office makes me feel like Dave from Knoxville in that other item. How many people saw it based on the studio hype and thought it stunk?  Over time, I can't believe more people haven't seen and remembered Taxi Driver and Goodfellas.  Who the hell ever makes a pop-cultural reference to Shutter Island?

I agree about Jackie Brown, btw.

Shutter Island held up pretty well over several weeks at the box office and had plenty of that twisty bullshit that people have come to expect, but obviously it won't be as highly regarded in the long run. Still, once you get past dollars the measure of true popularity can get pretty damn subjective. I would think Goodfellas must be a more popular film than Raging Bull and Taxi Driver. In addition to being a great film, it's also fairly straightforwardly entertaining, whereas RB and TD are more confrontational films likely to make average viewers uncomfortable/confused. Hell, Cape Fear may still be more popular than those two.

[Smelodies]

They're confrontational, but I think it's more the slower pace which challenges the masses.

[HaroldBlvd]

Alfred Hitchcock North By Northwest.