Top 10 Best Italian Filmmakers

1. Federico Fellini

   8 1/2, La Dolce Vita. Fellini has made a number of masterpieces. His films were works of genius and heavily thought-provoking.

   He possesses the magic of cinema. Any Fellini film is an exercise in the essence of cinema and cinephilia.

   The true realist is the visionary.

2. Michelangelo Antonioni

   He has had the most prominent influence in modern European, American, and Asian filmmaking.

3. Luchino Visconti

   A true perfectionist. His attention to detail stands out like that of Orson Welles and Kubrick. He deals with classic themes and turns them into modern filmmaking.

   The last of the true romantics.

4. Sergio Leone

   A true artist in every sense of the word. His movies stand out in every element, from storytelling to magnificent cinematography, and from acting to the great Morricone scores.

   At the same time, his films are still enjoyable. He's the proof that Italians can also make Westerns.

5. Vittorio De Sica

   Look at the history of world cinema and try to find a more profound influence on social drama and comedy than De Sica's magic neorealism. You can't.

   What is he doing here? He directed Bicycle Thieves, which is, in my opinion, the greatest movie of all time.

   His movie Bicycle Thieves CHANGED my life.

6. Roberto Rossellini

   He helped Italian cinema come out of the shadows. He then set out to redefine modern filmmaking and, during the twilight of his career, announced the death of cinema.

   It's like movies start and end with him.

7. Pier Paolo Pasolini

   The most uncompromising filmmaker ever to appear in film history. He pushed the limits of what we could see on screen, but he never let the controversy take over any aspect of his philosophy.

8. Mario Bava

   Both of them are stylists of the highest rank. They influenced horror cinema more than anyone, proving that if you're going to kill, do it with style. Bava is the pioneer and keeps a good quality in his films, while Argento in recent years gives up one failure after another.

9. Paolo Sorrentino

10. Dario Argento

The Newcomers
11. ?

    Paolo Virzì

12. ?

    Gabriele Salvatores

The Contenders

13. Bernardo Bertolucci

    Bertolucci is quite a diverse filmmaker. He started with Nouvelle Vague influences, then set out to make some of the great masterpieces, only to finish his career with many mediocrities.

14. Paolo e Vittorio Taviani

    This bunch of movie poets may not rank with the above, but they have a filmography of flawless films that stand out for their extraordinary cinematography mixed with emotional stories.

15. Michele Placido