Screenwriters : Favorite screenwriters?

Hi! Just curious as to who some of your favorite screenwriters are? I'm a big fan of classic films, and I find that back in the day screenwriters used to have more notoriety. My two favorites are Preston Sturges and Billy Wilder. What are yours???

I'm not too familiar with older screenwriters but I love a couple of modern day writers.

Charlie Kaufman: Adaptation, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Being John Malcovich

Paul Thomas Anderson: Magnolia, Boogie Nights, There will be blood, Punch Drunk Love, Sydney or Hard Eight




These are some movies of mine. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/lanser87

Budd Schulberg and Horton Foote

Accept Loss

Akira Kurosawa
Kogo Noda and Yasujiro Ozu
John Huston
Woody Allen
Hayao Miyazaki
Orson Welles


I just ate a whole pumpkin.

I'm a big fan of Billy Wilder as well. I also like William Goldman, Richard Matheson, Paddy Chayefsky, Jim Taylor & Alexander Payne and Christopher Nolan. I know there are more but those are the ones that immediately come to mind.

This is my happy face.

Can you believe Chris Nolan had not even been savvy enough to see 'Last Year at Marienbad' before setting off to make 'Inception'?

How do you even MISS a thing like that, and still call yourself a director?

Speaks volumes about all modern screenwriters. Big splash, yes--but what are they actually doing? Nothing new. All very thin and VERY commercial.



"God rot all 'good men'...."

Billy Wilder is great. My personal favorite is Paul Schrader (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Blue Collar, American Gigolo).

Also: Robert Towne (Shampoo, Chinatown), Quentin Tarantino, John Milius, Lawrence Kasdan, Bo Goldman, William Goldman, Woody Allen

Okay now you're gonna think I'm stalking you but I've noticed we have similar tastes, and before I opened this, I said to myself "Paul Schrader owns this thread." Excellent director too - wish he had done more.


Others not yet mentioned: Bob Rafelson, Alvin Sargent, Elaine May, Harold Ramis.




When life gives you lemons, make Limoncello.

Right, I'm starting to recognize your user name. Looks like we have similar tastes.

I like all those writers you mentioned.

In my opinion, Schrader is the greatest screenwriter of all time -- here's his output from 1975 to 1980: The Yakuza, Taxi Driver, Obsession, Rolling Thunder, Blue Collar, Hardcore, Old Boyfriends, American Gigolo, Raging Bull. He's directed some great films. Affliction was great. I loved The Walker, too.

Paul Schrader.
Dan Mainwarring.
Billy Wilder.
Lawrence Kasdan.

- Bill
Free Script Tips Every Day:
http://www.ScriptSecrets.Net

John Hughes. He did great with The Breakfast Club and the Home Alone movies.

Wes Craven

Volker Flenske: (While torturing David) I don't know why you're doing this to yourself!

Joss Whedon
Quentin Tarrantino
RJ Stewart
Steven L. Sears
JJ Abrams

Check out my novel: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ONCDITG

Dudley Nichols
Billy Wilder
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Dalton Trumbo
Carl Foreman
Michael Wilson
John Huston
Orson Welles
Frank Nugent
Blake Edwards
Charles Lederer
Robert Bolt

1. Coen Brothers
2. Paul Thomas Anderson
3. Charlie Kaufman
4. Chris and Jon Nolan (Memento, Inception mainly)

I'm not sure if I have a favorite per se but one current screenwriter whose work I'm often looking forward to is John Logan.

What's missing in movies is same as in society: a good sense of work ethic and living up to ideals.

1. Anders Thomas Jensen ( All of Susanne Bier's films - In A better World, After The Wedding, Brothers, Love is All You Need, A Second Chance, etc)
2. The Coen Brothers
3. David Mamet
4. François Ozon
5. Mike Leigh
6. Paul Thomas Anderson
7. Alejandro G. Iñárritu
8. Pedro Almodóvar
9. Bill Forsyth
10.Jean-Pierre Jeunet