4. Im Still Here (Casey Affleck)
Through the impressive triple-bill of Gone Baby Gone, The Town and Argo, Ben Affleck has proven himself as an impressive director who deserves lots more behind-the-camera work. His younger brother Casey Affleck (who has truly impressed acting-wise in this likes of Jesse James and Gone Baby Gone), however, hasnt been as successful in the directors chair. After testing the water with a short film collection called The Book Of Charles, Casey made the giant leap to directing Im Still Here, the 2010 comedy/drama/mockumentary-of-sorts starring Oscar nominee Joaquin Phoenix. This, arguably, was too big an undertaking for a first time feature director, and as a result the film was a dud. It was slammed as self-indulgent, messy, bratty, ugly and disturbing by its vocal critics, though it must also be said that some reviewers were much kinder (they were a minority, though). After this slamming, its understandable that Affleck hasnt yet stepped back behind the camera. Hes set to take the plunge again soon, though, as hes signed up to helm a Western called Far Bright Star (all about a team of horsemen sent to hunt down a Mexican revolutionary). That film is in pre-production, and should hopefully result in a better, more coherent piece than his last directorial effort. It's certainly a more straight-forward filmmaking task.