15 Movies That Say More About Their Makers Than They Realise

8. Daisy Miller - Peter Bogdanovich

Almost-forgotten director Bogdanovich's love affair with his regular leading lady Cybill Shepherd started on one of his first movies, The Last Picture Show (pictured above), in which she played the small-town object of many young men's affection, during the filming of which he was still married to production designer Polly Platt, but the film that really says the most about both Bogdanovich and their relationship is Daily Miller, his 19th-century romance starring Shepherd as the titular flirtatious socialite. By the time Daisy Miller came around, Bogdanovich had left Platt and made Shepherd his girlfriend, 'schooling' her in cinema history and casting her in near enough every film he made (often to the pictures' detriment as the actress wasn't especially well regarded for her acting ability). The director's obsession with his muse and what he saw to be her enigmatic and free-spirited nature is reflected in his film, as is his insecurity about holding onto her, as seen in his casting choices for the leading men opposite her - not especially gorgeous actors who Bogdanovich "could feel superior to," according to his agent Sue Mengers.