8 Underrated Films From Famous Directors You Probably Missed

2. American Graffiti - George Lucas

Yes, he became obsessed with "perfecting" the original trilogy and surrounded himself with yes men for the Star Wars prequels, but don't let his later, business-inclined career indiscretions get in the way that George Lucas is (was?) a great filmmaker. The original Star Wars was an effects spectacle enabled by Ralph McQuarrie's vision and saved in the edit, but it was ultimately his brainchild, and that's saying nothing of his earlier films.

A big hit at the time that was instrumental in getting his Flash Gordon homage off the ground in the first place, American Graffiti has been somewhat forgotten by modern audiences turned against Lucas and viewing him as a sci-fi guy (something the director would have hated at the time, being as he was the most purposely pretentious of the New Hollywood ilk).

It's essentially Dazed & Confused for the characters in Dazed & Confused, a throwback to 50s cruising culture telling of a bunch of teens grappling with the end of youth as college looms. The setting is just impeccably recreated and Lucas' characters are so strongly written they add depth to the archetypes; a big sign of what was to come.