10 Underrated Movies By Great Directors

Clint Eastwood is probably the most successful director to have made the transition from in front of the camera to it. Since he first took the chair in 1971's Play Misty For Me he has made thirty six features and shows no signs of slowing down at the age of 87, having recently released The 15:17 To Paris. It certainly isn't one of his better efforts and there have been more than a few duds in his prolific filmography, albeit offset by gems such as Mystic River and Letters From Iwo Jima.

As an actor, the genre Eastwood will always be most associated with is the Western, having first come to attention through Sergio Leone's Dollars trilogy and subsequently cemented the association with films directed by both himself (such as Pale Rider and the timeless Unforgiven) and others (such as Hang 'Em High).

Hidden amongst these in his collection is his second film as a director, High Plains Drifter. In this, Eastwood appears to be playing a rehash of his 'Man With No Name' character (he is credited as 'The Stranger') and immediately establishes himself as far from heroic. The enigmatic clues that there may be something supernatural at play subvert this, however, and the before its time Shyamalan-esque ending twist that reveals his connection to the town that he takes over is nothing short of sublime.