Film's One-Hit Wonders: 30 Directors With Only One Good Movie

by Jason Dietz, Metacritic Features Editor – April 15, 2018

Even the worst directors have one good film in them. Well, at least some of them do. In the gallery above, we've identified 30 filmmakers from the past four decades who have directed at least five features but have managed to receive positive reviews for just a single one of their films.

12 of 31

Renny Harlin

The Finnish native and action movie specialist (if that's the right term) last directed a good film nearly three decades ago. Indeed, that movie—the second in the Die Hard series—is the only positively reviewed release in the director's entire filmography. Somehow, despite five Razzie nominations and a career average Metascore of 41, Harlin keeps getting work. In fact, he's the most prolific filmmaker profiled here, with 19 credits to his name (and several more on the way).

The one good film:
67 Die Hard 2 (1990)

Everything else:
35 Born American (1986)
47 Prison (1988)
56 A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (1988)
24 The Adventures of Ford Fairlane (1990)
60 Cliffhanger (1993)
37 Cutthroat Island (1995)
44 The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)
54 Deep Blue Sea (1999)
29 Driven (2001)
30 Exorcist: The Beginning (2004)
33 Mindhunters (2004)
19 The Covenant (2006)
49 Cleaner (2008)
38 12 Rounds (2009)
31 5 Days of War (2011)
49 Devil's Pass (2013)
22 The Legend of Hercules (2014)
50 Skiptrace (2016)

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