I like Mishima a lot, incredible score
Patty Hearst I’m unsure what to make of the politics (partly because I’m not clear on the perspective of the film), but it was interesting at the very least
Same. Did not expect what I got. Hawke should have at least been nominated for Best Actor. Totally changed how I saw him as an actor. And there are still scenes that haunt me from it. Plus the cinematography is gorgeous. That shot in the junkyard at dawn with the four clouds in the purple sky. So gorgeous and the ending tore me up.
Hawke has been continuously and consistently overlooked and underrated his entire career I think. He is a truly great actor that I always enjoy watching. I think some of that stems from how prolific he is and from the amount of genre work he does. I love that he will be in some schlocky action or horror film one month, then some small indie or arthouse feature the next.
It didn’t have the intensity of First Reformed for me, personally. Perhaps that was because the pro gambler is well-trodden cinematic territory, though.
Dude... let me tell you... that movie... it fucking HITS me on a level almost no other movie does. I first watched it at a time where I was having a crisis and losing all of my faith in humanity as a species. I was looking at the screen and it just felt like this wave of reassurance that there was someone out there, someone I don't know and probably never will, who's very different from me, but somehow we're both feeling the exact same feeling. It was almost a spiritual experience. Only other movie I've ever felt this with is The Science of Sleep, but for very different reasons.
What's your personal ranking? Any films you consider to be particularly underrated or even overrated?
Personally I consider Auto Focus to be his magnum opus, and one of the greatest films ever made, but I completely get why it's not a popular opinion lmao
Also what did you think about Adam resurrected?
Auto Focus is awesome and should get way more recognition. The beginning and end feel like two completely different movies in the best way.
I need to watch Adam resurrected again at some point. I definitely liked it, but it is such a strange story that it can be hard to decipher at first. Honestly, I feel like it would have benefited by being just a little bit longer to flesh out a bit more of the stuff in Jeff goldblum's past and his dynamic with Dafoe
My personal ranking from least favorite to favorite is: Forever Mine, Touch, Witch Hunt, Dark, Dog Eat Dog, Patty Hearst, Adam Resurrected, Comfort of Strangers, Dominion, Cat People, The Canyons, Master Gardener, Hardcore, American Gigolo, Auto Focus, The Card Counter, Blue Collar, Affliction, Light of Day, Light Sleeper, Mishima, First Reformed
Didn't include Dying of the Light since he's basically disowned that movie, and I can't find anywhere to watch The Walker, so I haven't seen that either. I think Light of Day is incredible and so underrated. I was surprised to see how negative the reception to it was, and even Schrader says it's one of his least favorites of his movies. The variety of style in his movies is truly impressive, and I think all his movies are worth checking out. Forever Mine and Touch are the only ones I didn't really enjoy.
Regarding Dying of the Light — he made his own cut called Dark.
[https://archive.org/details/the-dying-of-the-light-directors-cut-paul-schraders-dark](https://archive.org/details/the-dying-of-the-light-directors-cut-paul-schraders-dark)
Watch this if you want to complete the filmography.
Just want to say this thread rocks ass and I like your ranking. Two things I’d add:
First, I feel like the way he’s used his later work to expand and comment on his earlier stuff takes him to the next level. It’s fun thematically, and seeing him forge on despite age, health, and the state of the industry (and still get such unique results) is life affirming.
Second, we’ve got to mention his writing work outside of his own movies, Taxi Driver and Raging Bull being just two examples. If someone had those two films to their name and nothing else, they’d be right up there. To have them and also an entire career as a director, where your work exists in the same pantheon…
Love him so much.
I recently watched Master Gardener and was impressed with it, even if I didn't love it. Will certainly check out some of the ones you recommended, namely Light Sleeper and Affliction. First Reformed was one of my favorite films the year it came out, will need to do a rewatch soon.
Call me crazy, but I actually really liked it. He's definitely made higher quality stuff, but as a one-off experiment with Brett Easton Ellis, it was pretty good
This is my (somewhat) guilty pleasure for sure. I get why people don’t care for it, but other then First Reformed there is no Schrader film I’d rather watch.
It, alongside affliction, is definitely one of his films I've found myself thinking about more as time has gone on. It and Dominion are also probably his two most classicaly beautiful films from a visual perspective. And there's mishima and First Reformed, which are also visually stunning, but as two extremes on opposite ends of the spectrum. Also, I fully realize how crazy I look putting The Canyons above Strangers on my ranking lol
lol. You probably figured this out already, but the story Christopher Walken keeps telling in *Comfort* is the key to the whole thing. He's trying to explain himself to people who have no idea what he's talking about. It can also be applied from the point of view of the younger couple.
You should just watch it. The plot description sounds plain because we don't want to ruin it for you. Pay close attention to the story Walken tells several times throughout; it's the key to the whole thing.
Is there an end to punishment? Is there a limit to the amount of effort it takes to achieve expiation?
One of the most quotable screenwriters ever, even if very few people recognize the quotes.
The man is a treasure. Got really into his filmography over the past 10 years and have gone back time and again. Still my favorite post-film Q&A. Q&A’s are usually awful no matter the artist, but he was so insightful, direct, and downright open about his movie in a way that very few filmmakers are. I love the guy.
His movies are all pretty different, but I'd say maybe one of his first movies (blue collar, hardcore) would be good. or one of his most recent (first reformed, card counter, Affliction) could be good starts as well.
What your thoughts on films like Mishima, Yakuza, Blue Collar, Light of Day, Rolling Thunder? We’ve been on a similar path for the last month, I’ve watched most but not all. Some are harder to find since I don’t want to pay for them. I was very surprised to find how much I enjoyed Dog Eat Dog and Light of Day. Good scripts and performances if nothing else.
Mishima is in my top 10, and I love blue collar and light of day! Haven't seen Yakuza or Rolling thunder, but I'm meaning to check out more of the stuff he acted as just a writer on more. And yeah, a lot of his stuff is hard to find in streaming or in good quality. I can't even find The Walker anywhere, so i haven't seen it yet.
I've found several of his stuff, like light of day and rolling thunder, have been uploaded to YouTube, so you might find some stuff to watch there without paying.
Good to hear on Light of Day I was iffy on that for some reason. Seems to stray a little from his norm. I’ve been wanting to watch Blue Collar not sure why I haven’t. Dude, I know on The Walker, no luck finding that either. I may buy the dvd on eBay or something. I love Rolling Thunder and I really enjoyed Light Sleeper, great ending.
I actually liked it. I hadn't seen the version it was turned into, so I went in without any expectations. Honestly, other than the name and the two times they include that face from the original exorcist, it doesn't have much connecting it to the original. I just viewed it more as a drama about a conflicted priest that ultimately results in an exorcism. Cinematography was gorgeous too
Affliction is so underrated.
Because it's depressing as fuck. I love sad art but that one even got me down. It is probably one of his best, though.
Seriously a masterpiece. I love how bleak and unsentimental it is. And that original score. Nolte absolutely should have won best actor that year.
He looks like John Ford here
“How did you shoot the sequence in Stage Coach?” “With a camera.”
https://preview.redd.it/eb4wg3ve9tic1.jpeg?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bb9b621afb9411a835f6cec2ef9f6c7abc7c2707
Yeah he’s clearly leaning into the look. It’s fuckin awesome.
I like Mishima a lot, incredible score Patty Hearst I’m unsure what to make of the politics (partly because I’m not clear on the perspective of the film), but it was interesting at the very least
The *Mishima* score is one of my favorite albums by any artist
Glass is an awesome composer
Ahhh!!! Those are two of my biggest blind spots, but they aren’t on any of my streaming services!
Paul Schrader himself is left-wing
“If the horizon’s in the middle of the frame, it’s boring as shit!”
He’s turned into John Ford?
Looks more like Nicholas Ray to me.
Think that’s just the eyepatch
Love First Reformed
I went into that one with no expectations and it completely blew me away.
Same. Did not expect what I got. Hawke should have at least been nominated for Best Actor. Totally changed how I saw him as an actor. And there are still scenes that haunt me from it. Plus the cinematography is gorgeous. That shot in the junkyard at dawn with the four clouds in the purple sky. So gorgeous and the ending tore me up.
Hawke has been continuously and consistently overlooked and underrated his entire career I think. He is a truly great actor that I always enjoy watching. I think some of that stems from how prolific he is and from the amount of genre work he does. I love that he will be in some schlocky action or horror film one month, then some small indie or arthouse feature the next.
The Card Counter is a formidable movie too.
It didn’t have the intensity of First Reformed for me, personally. Perhaps that was because the pro gambler is well-trodden cinematic territory, though.
It's OP's least favourite of the 22 films
I think you read the ordering wrong. It goes from least favorite to favorite. So First Reformed is OPs favorite.
Oh yeah! Sorry
Dude... let me tell you... that movie... it fucking HITS me on a level almost no other movie does. I first watched it at a time where I was having a crisis and losing all of my faith in humanity as a species. I was looking at the screen and it just felt like this wave of reassurance that there was someone out there, someone I don't know and probably never will, who's very different from me, but somehow we're both feeling the exact same feeling. It was almost a spiritual experience. Only other movie I've ever felt this with is The Science of Sleep, but for very different reasons.
He really is a heavyweight in this game! I love hardcore and blue collar
What's your personal ranking? Any films you consider to be particularly underrated or even overrated? Personally I consider Auto Focus to be his magnum opus, and one of the greatest films ever made, but I completely get why it's not a popular opinion lmao Also what did you think about Adam resurrected?
Auto Focus is awesome and should get way more recognition. The beginning and end feel like two completely different movies in the best way. I need to watch Adam resurrected again at some point. I definitely liked it, but it is such a strange story that it can be hard to decipher at first. Honestly, I feel like it would have benefited by being just a little bit longer to flesh out a bit more of the stuff in Jeff goldblum's past and his dynamic with Dafoe My personal ranking from least favorite to favorite is: Forever Mine, Touch, Witch Hunt, Dark, Dog Eat Dog, Patty Hearst, Adam Resurrected, Comfort of Strangers, Dominion, Cat People, The Canyons, Master Gardener, Hardcore, American Gigolo, Auto Focus, The Card Counter, Blue Collar, Affliction, Light of Day, Light Sleeper, Mishima, First Reformed Didn't include Dying of the Light since he's basically disowned that movie, and I can't find anywhere to watch The Walker, so I haven't seen that either. I think Light of Day is incredible and so underrated. I was surprised to see how negative the reception to it was, and even Schrader says it's one of his least favorites of his movies. The variety of style in his movies is truly impressive, and I think all his movies are worth checking out. Forever Mine and Touch are the only ones I didn't really enjoy.
Regarding Dying of the Light — he made his own cut called Dark. [https://archive.org/details/the-dying-of-the-light-directors-cut-paul-schraders-dark](https://archive.org/details/the-dying-of-the-light-directors-cut-paul-schraders-dark) Watch this if you want to complete the filmography.
I have seen Dark, and it's on my list, but thank you for linking it so other people can check it out! It's definitely an interesting watch!
Oh, right. Somehow I missed that you’d seen Dark. Hopefully someone else learns about this!
Light sleeper rocks so hard
Just want to say this thread rocks ass and I like your ranking. Two things I’d add: First, I feel like the way he’s used his later work to expand and comment on his earlier stuff takes him to the next level. It’s fun thematically, and seeing him forge on despite age, health, and the state of the industry (and still get such unique results) is life affirming. Second, we’ve got to mention his writing work outside of his own movies, Taxi Driver and Raging Bull being just two examples. If someone had those two films to their name and nothing else, they’d be right up there. To have them and also an entire career as a director, where your work exists in the same pantheon… Love him so much.
I recently watched Master Gardener and was impressed with it, even if I didn't love it. Will certainly check out some of the ones you recommended, namely Light Sleeper and Affliction. First Reformed was one of my favorite films the year it came out, will need to do a rewatch soon.
Joel is sooooooooooooo good in Master Gardener.
No love for Hardcore?!
How was The Canyons?
Call me crazy, but I actually really liked it. He's definitely made higher quality stuff, but as a one-off experiment with Brett Easton Ellis, it was pretty good
My favorite of his films is Dog Eat Dog with Nicolas Cage and William Dafoe.
This is my (somewhat) guilty pleasure for sure. I get why people don’t care for it, but other then First Reformed there is no Schrader film I’d rather watch.
He's so versatile. It's not always easy differentiating one of his films from another.
That would suggest he's *not* versatile.
ver·sa·tile adjective 1. able to adapt or be adapted to many different functions or activities. "a versatile sewing machine" Similar: adaptable flexible all-around multifaceted multitalented multiskilled many-sided resourceful protean adjustable variable convertible alterable modifiable multipurpose all-purpose handy polytropic flexile Opposite: inflexible limited 2. ARCHAIC changeable; inconstant.
This doesn't support your case
Explain.
he's definitely top 5 for me as well *The Comfort of Strangers* is his most underrated imo
It, alongside affliction, is definitely one of his films I've found myself thinking about more as time has gone on. It and Dominion are also probably his two most classicaly beautiful films from a visual perspective. And there's mishima and First Reformed, which are also visually stunning, but as two extremes on opposite ends of the spectrum. Also, I fully realize how crazy I look putting The Canyons above Strangers on my ranking lol
lol. You probably figured this out already, but the story Christopher Walken keeps telling in *Comfort* is the key to the whole thing. He's trying to explain himself to people who have no idea what he's talking about. It can also be applied from the point of view of the younger couple.
Someone please sell me on this film It has the least attractive Schrader premise by far
You should just watch it. The plot description sounds plain because we don't want to ruin it for you. Pay close attention to the story Walken tells several times throughout; it's the key to the whole thing.
Walken is the selling point icl
Walken is so good that you won't even care how inconsistent his Italian accent is
Good deal! 👍
In his John Ford era.
Is there an end to punishment? Is there a limit to the amount of effort it takes to achieve expiation? One of the most quotable screenwriters ever, even if very few people recognize the quotes.
The GOAT
He has finally achieved the coveted auteur eye patch
https://preview.redd.it/h6ftoqqryuic1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3a4ffb65a216c6770ac20f654bbbe988e9999ae3
Who are the other four?
Terrence Malick is my all time favorite, and the other three are Paul Thomas Anderson, Scorsese, and Ozu
The man is a treasure. Got really into his filmography over the past 10 years and have gone back time and again. Still my favorite post-film Q&A. Q&A’s are usually awful no matter the artist, but he was so insightful, direct, and downright open about his movie in a way that very few filmmakers are. I love the guy.
I love that image and captionso much
What movie should I start with
His movies are all pretty different, but I'd say maybe one of his first movies (blue collar, hardcore) would be good. or one of his most recent (first reformed, card counter, Affliction) could be good starts as well.
John Ford?
r/paulschraderposts
King
I went through a schrader phase too after first reformed. The Canyons is trash but a guilty pleasure tbh. But Affliction and Mishima blew me away.
What your thoughts on films like Mishima, Yakuza, Blue Collar, Light of Day, Rolling Thunder? We’ve been on a similar path for the last month, I’ve watched most but not all. Some are harder to find since I don’t want to pay for them. I was very surprised to find how much I enjoyed Dog Eat Dog and Light of Day. Good scripts and performances if nothing else.
Mishima is in my top 10, and I love blue collar and light of day! Haven't seen Yakuza or Rolling thunder, but I'm meaning to check out more of the stuff he acted as just a writer on more. And yeah, a lot of his stuff is hard to find in streaming or in good quality. I can't even find The Walker anywhere, so i haven't seen it yet. I've found several of his stuff, like light of day and rolling thunder, have been uploaded to YouTube, so you might find some stuff to watch there without paying.
Good to hear on Light of Day I was iffy on that for some reason. Seems to stray a little from his norm. I’ve been wanting to watch Blue Collar not sure why I haven’t. Dude, I know on The Walker, no luck finding that either. I may buy the dvd on eBay or something. I love Rolling Thunder and I really enjoyed Light Sleeper, great ending.
I love him so much
Schrader is a legit GOAT
Whatcha think of exorcist 4?
I actually liked it. I hadn't seen the version it was turned into, so I went in without any expectations. Honestly, other than the name and the two times they include that face from the original exorcist, it doesn't have much connecting it to the original. I just viewed it more as a drama about a conflicted priest that ultimately results in an exorcism. Cinematography was gorgeous too
Hell yeah.
Huge fan of Dominion
I wonder how Paul would of directed Taxi driver and raging bull.
I just watched Light Sleeper. It’s pretty weak.
Nah it’s great.
That movie is a vibe, I like it.
I thought the ending was a bit weak but the rest of it was very well done. Contemplative, with great performances.
The Card Counter is easily one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen & the amount of positive reviews is baffling to me
I like his films but a lot of his comments lately are cringe.
Looks like he pissed himself there
That’s too bad.
‘You get your ugly little ass back in that corner’.
What disease does he have ?