<b>Battle of Directors:</b> Robert Altman vs. Sidney Lumet

Battle of Directors: Robert Altman vs. Sidney Lumet

Battle of Directors is a weekly column that pits two filmmakers against one another, sheds light on their respective filmographies, and then asks readers to state which director they prefer. Thoughtful discourse and discussion is encouraged and desired. Enjoy!

For your reading enjoyment …

player

Ten example films from Robert Altman: 

The Player

MASH

Gosford Park

Short Cuts

3 Women 

Nashville

California Split 

Images

The Long Goodbye

McCabe & Mrs. Miller 

vs.

12-angry-men

Ten example films from Sidney Lumet:

12 Angry Men

The Verdict

Running On Empty

The Fugitive Kind

Serpico

Dog Day Afternoon

Network

Prince of the City

The Wiz

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead

…

So which filmmaker do you choose?

The choice is yours.

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21 thoughts on “Battle of Directors: Robert Altman vs. Sidney Lumet”

  2. I’m not very well-versed in either’s filmography, but I think Lumet is a stronger director. Everything I have seen of his has blown my mind and also changed perspectives on many things.

  3. Ooh, good choices. On the one hand, Lumet could always get great work from his leading actors. But on the other hand, Altman got great work from all of his actors. Hard to choose, but I’m going with Lumet mainly because I’ve seen more of his films.

  4. Besides the inclusion of the Coppola-directed COTTON CLUB, you’ve pretty much listed all of Lumet’s great movies.

    For Altman, you could replace IMAGES with BREWSTER MCCLOUD, THIEVES LIKE US, A PERFECT COUPLE, POPEYE, STREAMERS, SECRET HONOR, THE COMPANY, or A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION.

    Altman’s my pick.

  5. I’d go with Altman simply because I haven’t seen his more maligned work and have loved most of what I have seen. I have seen some of Lumet’s lesser work (Power, Daniel, Q & A) and it’s definitely a step down.

  6. I haven’t seen much of Altman’s work. Only Gosford Park, which I loved and 3 Women, which I didn’t much care about. But this is easy decision for me – Lumet, because he is my favourite director, probably one director I have seen most movies of(15) and certainly the one that has highest movies in my top 100(6). So, Lumet !!

  7. I’m more familiar with Lumet than Altman. But even so, I doubt there are many directors who can top Sidney for me – Network is in my Top 3 films ever, while Dog Day Afternoon and 12 Angry Men would both easily threaten my Top 25. Guy just makes amazing dramatic films

  8. I haven’t seen a lot of Lumet’s work. So far, I’ve seen “12 Angry Men”, “Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead”, “The Wiz”, and “Running on Empty”. I’m more familiar with the films of Robert Altman and I love a lot of them. I just love that chaotic style that he has with actors.

      • For starters: “M.A.S.H.”, “McCabe & Mrs. Miller”, “Nashville”, “Short Cuts”, and “Gosford Park”

        Then go to films like “3 Women”, “California Split”, “The Company”, “A Prairie Home Companion”, and “Cookie’s Fortune”.

        I would also recommend “Dr. T & the Women” and “Pret-a-Porter”. “Popeye” is interesting though it’s kind of uneven. “The Gingerbread Man” is so far my least favorite Altman film since it doesn’t have that chaotic style he’s known for as him and John Grisham don’t really mesh.

  9. McCabe & Mrs. Miller or 12 Angry Men, The Long Goodbye or Serpico, Nashville or Network, picking between these two filmmakers is hard because while they maybe are not in my top 5 or even 10 filmmakers of all time, their definitely two of the best. I would choose Altman just because I tend like his style more than Lumet’s, but again two great filmmakers that have created some of my favorite films. Also if the only Altman film you’ve seen is The Player, my favorite of his is McCabe & Mrs. Miller, so check that out when you have the time.