Firstly, have you seen Polytechnique (2009) or Incendies (2011)? Both are incredible, and they showcase what I will rave about in the following paragraphs. Polytechnique, for example, is a black-and-white film based on the 1989 “Montreal Massacre”; the guy just covers so much ground.
I think he’s the best period. Can’t stand Scorcese, Tarantino, and Nolan, and for all the same reasons. All three of those directors, you don’t need to see anymore than 1-2 of their movies:
Scorcese: Taxi Driver; Goodfellas
Tarantino: Reservoir Dogs; Pulp Fiction
Nolan: Memento; The Dark Knight
Casino is great, but you don’t need to see it. Jackie Brown is great, but you don’t need to see it. Inception is great, but you don’t need to see it.
Tl;dr: if you’ve seen 1-2, you've seen them all.
Nolan tried recently to break his own mold with Dunkirk, which ended up being entirely mediocre IMO.
Part of what puts Villeneuve above the rest is his range. The calling card of a Villeneuve film is that it’s just incredibly well crafted. Those other three directors, you can tell who directed the movie 30 seconds into it (and basically know what will happen during the following 7,799 seconds).
His visual and aural aesthetics, casting, subject matter...he’s just truly a master of his craft.
I’ll tell you right now: Dune is going to be a 5-star event that even people who don’t give a f*** about Dune will have to see.
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Ari Aster is my other albeit lesser favorite, even though he’s only directed two feature films.
