36. Tony Scott (1944 - 2012)
The tragic and untimely loss of Tony Scott last year has made everyone stop and think about the influence the man has had in movies, and though it appears that he was very unhappy in his life, the movies he made were filled with a sizzling energy that's hard to match. Directing the best Tarantino film not directed by Tarantino in True Romance and working with Denzel Washington on five different occasions, most notably in Crimson Tide and Man On Fire, Tony Scott had a very music-video-esque style to his filmmaking with flashy cutting and abrasive zooming towards the second part of his career. At times it worked and at times it didn't, but he managed to distance himself from the shadow of his brother Ridley and made films uniquely his own that will stand the test of time.
Must See: True Romance (1993)
35. Walter Forde (1896 - 1984)
As if to counter the very American-influenced Tony Scott in the previous entry, here comes Walter Forde a British director who worked best when under the British studio system and was very popular during the 1930s and 1940s of his career by making movies that were quintessentially British. Kicking off his career as an actor in small parts that he'd write himself (
usually for characters simply called Walter) Forde moved to Hollywood in the 20s to try and make a career there but ultimately failed and came back home. Working under the Geinsborough studio system, Forde made successful comedies, thrillers and musicals in the 1930s that made him into one of the most popular and influential directors working at the time. It was all over by the mid 1940s however, and he retired early.
Must See: Rome Express (1932)
34. Alan Clarke (1935 - 1990)
Working mostly on television, Clarke makes the list here because of three films he made that were so gripping, raw and powerful it would be an oversight not to include him as part of the important cannon. Made in Britain which was intended for television and featured a very young Tim Roth, Scum a film featuring an equally very young Ray Winstone about the regime of treatment for young offenders and Elephant, a film about senseless violence in Northern Ireland. If there is a thread that weaves all of Clarke's films into a singular ball it's that he was fascinated by the consequences of violence on society. An important filmmaker who wasn't afraid of braking the mirror as long as it was directly facing the society around him.
Must See: Made in Britain (1982)