r/moviecritic • u/TheShadowOperator007 • 1d ago

Happy 59th birthday to Denis Villeneuve! What are your favorite movies he’s made?

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Mine are Dune and Dune Part Two and Arrival. I can’t wait to see how will he approach James Bond 007 for the 26th movie.

166 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

71 comments sorted by

38

u/gottapeenow2 1d ago

Sicario fucking rules.

https://giphy.com/gifs/JYI4xbkOxfShO

5

u/Effective-Celery-475 1d ago

I feel like the tone could be a template for the new Bond movie.

11

u/be_____happy 1d ago

Arrival - I think something changed in me after watching it.

2

u/random555 1d ago

It's based off a short story by Ted Chiang. Check out his short story collections, they are absolutely brilliant 

20

u/BornUnderPunches 1d ago

BR2049 is his masterpiece imo, but he’s cooking with Dune and I can’t wait to see part 3.

5

u/gottapeenow2 1d ago

BR2049 was cool first time watching, got better second time, and now I think its a masterpiece

2

u/leasetransfermiami 1d ago

At the movie theater it was a lysergic experience. 🧠💥

2

u/random555 1d ago

Missed it at the cinema unfortunately. Hopefully they screen it again next year as a 10 year anniversary thing

1

u/BrontosaurusGarbanzo 1d ago

The scene where Joi syncs up with the human woman (can't remember her name) was one of the best uses of 3D I've ever scene. Looks great at home on 4k but just feels flat

6

u/thekindlytrout 1d ago

Dude looks like he's about to drop the most contemplative lo-fi album of the decade. Arrival is the one that rewired my brain, the sound design alone could carry a whole film.

8

u/SeenThatPenguin 1d ago

I haven't had a bad time at any movie of his later than Maelstrom (his second), but my three favorites are Arrival for win, Incendies for place, and Sicario for show.

I love his patience with storytelling and the great performances he consistently gets. Actors usually speak very warmly about him, and you see those harmonious collaborations in the work.

17

u/yveshe 1d ago

Prisoners, Sicario, and Arrival.

2

u/Pristine-Item-167 1d ago

This is the correct answer

2

u/WhyAreYallFascists 1d ago

Bbbbbbiiiinnnnggggooooo!

1

u/Animanganime 1d ago

Man those are my exact picks

Edit: forgot about Blade Runner 2049

1

u/zRouth 1d ago

Those are the top 3 for sure!

5

u/irishweather5000 1d ago

It’s crazy that he’s already 59 but yet it still feels like he’s barely mid-stride in his career.

4

u/SuspiciousPrune4 1d ago
  1. Sicario
  2. Prisoners
  3. Arrival
  4. BR2049
  5. Dune
  6. Dune 2
  7. Enemy
  8. Incendies

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(Haven’t seen his earlier stuff)

But they’re all amazing. Dude just doesn’t miss. I’m sure his Bond movie will be an all timer.

3

u/shadez_on 1d ago

Prisoners.

3

u/Michael-Balchaitis 1d ago

Blade Runner 2049.

3

u/ribeye256 1d ago

Definitely Arrival. Also BR 2049.

2

u/Chronon_ 1d ago

Like...all of them?

2

u/Gezimd 1d ago

Enemy, Dune 2

2

u/spice_war 1d ago

Seriously, he’s had a phenomenal run.

1

u/GimmeShockTreatment 1d ago

Arrival + Sicario are the GOATs for me.

1

u/Used-Gas-6525 1d ago

Enemy and Polytechnique

1

u/No-Cartographer-7614 1d ago

Prisoners and Sicario

1

u/memberflex 1d ago

Does anyone have a gif of the special forces descending into the dark with the sunset in the background? Sicario is 🤌🏻

1

u/Distinct-Space7398 1d ago

Stop Glazing on daily basis

1

u/MountaineerMadness 1d ago

BR 2049 and Sicario

1

u/sightsy 1d ago

Annihilation

1

u/sam_ouchka 1d ago

Incendies

1

u/DismalMode7 1d ago

sicario

1

u/Xav_NZ 1d ago

I do not think Villeneuve has made a single bad (or even average movie) , truly impressive track record even his early works are good films albeit a bit on the weird side , everything from 'Polytechnique' onwards has been consistently good and when it comes to science fiction I think he is just the best at that since the late 2010's , Arrival , Blade Runner and Dune pretty much back to back with the consistent quality is insane.

For those curious to see his very very early work check this out (yes he is using the soundtrack from David Lynch's Dune) this was shot on a vhs handy cam in the 1990's.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0V5edtnh3A

1

u/mayweather2small 1d ago

I had no idea he was that old.

1

u/Beautiful_Finger4566 1d ago

Incindies is a fucking brutal watch

1

u/ts405 1d ago

incendies, prisoners, enemy

1

u/FaB1an13 23h ago

Eve-ry-one

1

u/Aggravating_Cream_97 19h ago

The first movie I ever worked on was Sicario, so I have a soft spot for that movie.

1

u/grey_pilgrim_ 15h ago

Dune.

But my dream would be for him to do something from lotr.

1

u/jmvbmw 14h ago

Incendies

1

u/Fangs_of_Love88 5h ago

Prisoners and Blade Runner 2049

1

u/DJ-Kouraje 57m ago

I haven’t seen his first two, but pretty much every single one.

-2

u/BHMusic 1d ago

Sicario and Arrival are amazing, genre defining films. Dune is a slog. Hopefully Bond is a return to the quality of his previous work.

2

u/CuriosityDriven0101 1d ago

Dune 1 is slow, but Dune 2 is incredible

-3

u/Training_Form2243 1d ago

Possibly the most underrated filmmaker of all time

-4

u/Hotdogopolis 1d ago

None. Very overrated.