I believe one of the most under-recognized and under-appreciated directors in the business today is Danny DeVito. Most people don’t think of the word “Director” when they think of him. You’d be forgiven for instantly thinking of the various acting roles he’s played be it on television or in the movies… I mean after all, he has had a terrific acting career.
But as a director, I think he’s shown his true calling and talent. He has a rare gift for creating fantastic chemistry between characters that generally drive his films… and he’s hilarious to boot. Thankfully I’m not the only one that thinks so, as the IMDB give us this:
Veteran actor Danny DeVito was honored for his contribution to cinema at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival in the Czech Republic on Saturday. The diminutive 62-year-old, whose film The Good Night was in competition at the festival, collected the Crystal Globe prize in person to a standing ovation. Fighting back tears, DeVito said, “Don’t try to make me cry.” In a career spanning nearly four decades, DeVito has starred in movie classics including One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest and L.A. Confidential and has directed other hits such as The War Of The Roses and Matilda.
As a side note to that, while most critics hated it… both Doug and I thought that Death to Smoochy was one of the funniest films we’ve ever seen. Throw Momma From The Train and Hoffa are a couple of his other works. Damn I love this guy… I wish he would direct more.
