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.

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Xavier Dolan

The one misfire:
48 It's Only the End of the World (2016)

The French-Canadian director (and occasional actor) has become an arthouse staple during his first decade behind the camera, stumbling only with his most recent release. Based on a play, End of the World features a top-notch cast (led by Marion Cotillard) and received a Cannes premiere, where the film won a major award but underwhelmed critics, who felt the film "inert," "infuriating," and "joyless."

Dolan is expected to make his English-language debut this fall with The Death and Life of John F. Donovan.

Everything else:
77 I Killed My Mother (2010)
70 Heartbeats (2010)
73 Laurence Anyways (2012)
74 Mommy (2014)
67 Tom at the Farm (2013)

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