Director's Signature Shots...

That little gag they put in each film (even if it's not funny)
Seems to me that Michael Bay has a thing about guys in night vision goggles poking their head up into shot (preferable out of water)
Trey Parker does Cartman's voice at the end of BASEketball and in Southpark, Cartman has a poster of Orgazmo on his door...
I've been told (but never noticed) that all of Tony Scott's love scenes are shot with a blue filter...
What ones have y'all noticed?

John Woo's jumping sideways, slow-motion, double handgun firing sequences.

That's the one that springs instantly to mind.

With doves flying by. How could you forget the doves?

Ahh how can you guys forget the close up gun showdown only to realize that both their wepons are empty....

this was stolen by Robert Rodriguez as well...

david fincher slow track from one location to another, through something that a camera can't move thru.

as seen in panic room, fight club and something else but i can't remember...

Alien 3. Great director, shit movie.

richard linklater - pinball machines

Alfred Hitchkock: Himself.

and Boramere always refurs to his first acting job, detective Sharp. Like in LOTR when he feels his blade and says Still sharp. (in anther version he feels the broken blade and says it)

see i quite liked alien 3. there were flaws, but not as many as ressurection (sp?)

By no means will I ever defend Alien Ressurection. I thought it was shit, too. That said, I don't blame Fincher for the cinematic train-wreck that was Alien 3. He did the best with what he had. I blame incredibly bad writing and producing. Shame on FOX for foisting those last 2 Alien movies on us.

My hope, my dream is that some day the execs at FOX will pull their heads out and realize that they still have a valuable and marketable franchise on their hands and do something constructive with it. There's no reason to write off Ripley, Hicks and Newt.

I say get them all back together on Earth. Hell, use Carrie Henn as Newt, for that matter. What's wrong with a grown-up Newt? You could start the movie off with Newt waking up screaming in bed, and it's revealed to the audience that Alien 3 and Alien Ressurection were nightmares Newt had. Newt's all grown up now, living with Ripley and Hicks as her adopted mother and father. Take it from there. What's so terrible about that?

C'mon, FOX! Wake up! It would work!

Sam Raimi: A moving shot of a character from behind something. Like in Evil Dead, when the camera moves past the ceiling boards; or in Spider-Man when Peter's running and the camera follows him from behind a fence. Oh, and that you don't realize are cuts (a lot of directors do this, but Raimi does it best).

Peter Jackson: A move of the camera from ground level to slightly above the subject of the shot, keeping the subject in view from mid-height. I think the shot's in all his movie's that I've seen (Bad Taste, Meet the Feebles, Dead Alive, the Ring trilogy).

Guy Ritchie: Fucking awesome, ADHD-style camerawork, usually with some wierd-ass cuts. Seen this in Lockstock and Snatch.

Robert Rodriguez: Brilliant, near-perfect editing.

Tim Burton's famous spirals. Also, dramatic moves of the camera over a large area. Seen in all his movies except Planet of the Apes... Well, as far as I know. That movie's so bad I've never gotten past the middle.

[Edited on Mar 11, 2004 by TANK_Ex_Mortis]

kubrick has a few.
1. his signature close up creepy face camera shot
2. his movies' conflicts always involve three parties
3. 114
4. theres almost always some long zoom

edwin porter invented crosscutting (editing in such a way as to imply seperate events occouring simultaneously) back in 1903 for 'the great train robbery'. i'd say that was a hell of a thing to do

Darren Aronofsky uses the trail camera attached to an actor facing backwards as they walk.

Tarantino has a million - but a few of his are using lines from classic films - The Big Kahuna Burger - the Trunk Shot - Red Apple cigarettes - Bare Feet ... he just makes so many obscure references he's the dude ...

george lucas - extracting horrible performances from good actors
- destroying everything he touches

Arnofky's also got the 'ritualistic activity' quick-cut sequences...like taking migraine pills in Pi, or shooting up in Requiem for a dream.

Hehe, that just reminded me of Lucas' signature: References to THX 1138 (normally as a code reference or serial number)

*Got the number wrong, but I think Lucas is an ass-mokey, so that's my excuse*

[Edited on Mar 11, 2004 by Spike]

Sam Raimi’s yellow 1973 Dodge 88 Oldsmobile is in almost all of his movies. I think it might be in all of them except for The Quick and the Dead.

THX 1138 ... was the best thing Lucas ever did that's for sure ...

Hot nakie bald sex ... woo ...

Cameron Crowe

Always having a kick ass soundtrack in all his movies....

Dogdge 88 Oldsmobile? Neat! Where can I get one!?

Dodge = Mopar

Oldsmobile = General Motors

And never the 'twain shall meet. It's an Oldsmobile, not a Dodge, hun.

Kevin Smith is obvious with Jay&Bob in all movies, but he also has used that convenience store in all too

Consider me suitably chastised.