5. Baz Luhrmann - Overstylized Period Pieces
Baz Luhrmann loves style. Over-saturation, big set pieces, actors performing as if in a stage play and cinematic flourishes are his natural go to methods for creating a movie. He's done it with every movie since Romeo + Juliet (which I will always read as Romeo Plus Juliet) and it just doesn't work. It distracts from the heart of the picture. And it's hard to mess up the stories he chooses! Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge and The Great Gatsby are based on incredible stories; Australia is based on the true events of the Japanese attack on Australia, which was a tragic event, but Luhrmann's film makes it seem so trivial. It's as if he's saying, "Yes, yes, it's very tragic, but look what I can do with the camera here!" It's distracting. He's a distracting director. The Great Gatsby was ruined by the choice to present it in 3D. Some stories lend themselves to the technology; this one did not. Again, it all comes down to distraction, which downplays any thematic elements that may have at one time been present. His best work was his début, Strictly Ballroom, which was good because it was scaled back. It wasn't a flourishing bit of nonsense. There was an actual story with an actual heart and it was a success. Those are the kind of films Luhrmann should be making, the same stories he operates with now, just scaled back. He's a talented director, but overambitious by half.