3. Charles Laughton, The Night Of The Hunter
Charles Laughton, a well respected English star of stage and screen, was already an Oscar winning leading man when he made his directorial debut in 1955 with The Night Of The Hunter. The film, a gripping thriller about a murderous preacher (Robert Mitchum) on the trail of 2 small children who will hopefully lead him to their dead Father's hidden fortune is a richly made film of style as well as substance. Lending much of his vision from the early expressionistic style of Fritz Lang, Laughton creates a stark, almost nightmarish atmosphere in the film. Scenes featuring long shadows in the cinematography heighten the children's perspective of what trauma they are going through, while extreme tilted camera angles accentuate the dark nature of the obsessed preacher. Although it wasn't well received initially, The Night Of The Hunter stood the test of time and is still considered today as a highly influential thriller, which is quite an achievement for first time director Laughton. What makes this debut all the more outstanding is that this was the first and only film that Charles Laughton ever directed, he passed away 7 years later.