25 Misfires From Otherwise Great Film Directors

by Jason Dietz, Metacritic Features Editor – April 22, 2018

Last week, we looked at 30 filmmakers who made only one well-reviewed movie over their entire careers. Today, we examine the opposite group: directors who have nearly flawless careers, with only a single misfire (with a Metascore of 60 or lower) standing in the way of a perfect record of all-green scores.

Note that we only looked at directors who have made at least five films since 1980.

17 of 26 photo by Image Entertainment

Tom McCarthy

The one misfire:
23 The Cobbler (2014)

An actor who has appeared in TV shows such as The Wire and Boston Public (and movies like Meet the Parents), McCarthy has earned raves for most of his films as a director, including his recent drama Spotlight, an Oscar best picture winner. But his one out-of-character misfire is truly, truly dreadful. A magical realist comedy starring Adam Sandler as a cobbler who literally gains the ability to walk in others' shoes (with everything that entails), The Cobbler was assailed by critics as cringeworthy, unfunny, and schmaltzy.

Everything else:
81 The Station Agent (2003)
79 The Visitor (2007)
75 Win Win (2011)
93 Spotlight (2015)

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