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Top 10 Francis Ford Coppola

Famous for classics such as The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, Francis Ford Coppola is one of cinema's most revered directors. Beginning his career in the seventies - a decade which welcomed a new era of heavyweight directors - Coppola accompanied the likes of Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg as a key player in the industry. We salute this powerhouse director with his top 10 films...

His Top 10 Films

The Godfather (1972)

Arguably Francis Ford Coppola’s most famous offering, the Oscar-winning The Godfather – written by Mario Puzo - is considered a monumental piece of film-making. When casting began Coppola expressed his desire to see Laurence Olivier in the role of Don Vito Corleone, but the legendary actor passed on the opportunity due to ill health. In turn Coppola cast Marlon Brando, making him an offer he couldn’t refuse.

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The Conversation (1974)

This Oscar-nominated film sees Gene Hackman getting his kicks as a professional privacy invader. Hackman has revealed that Harry Caul was his favourite character to play, and nothing has topped it since. Coppola had already written an outline for the story back in 1966 but he couldn’t get funding for the film until after the success of The Godfather.

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The Godfather: Part II (1974)

Considered by many to be a better film than its prequel, The Godfather: Part II is a masterpiece in its own right. This six-time Oscar-winning film sees Robert De Niro as a young Don Vito Corleone, and Al Pacino as newly appointed Don, Michael Corleone. Coppola almost didn’t direct this sequel, asking Martin Scorsese to take over directorial duties, but producers barred his request. 16 years on Coppola rounded off this epic saga with a third film which was poorly received by critics.

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Apocalypse Now (1979)

Two-time Oscar-winning Apocalypse Now originally had director George Lucas attached to the project, but the deal fell through. Loosely inspired by Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness, Coppola gave the film his own stamp, veering away from the book. Coppola cast Brando in the role of renegade Colonel Walter E. Kurtz. However, the stalwart actor showed up on set fat and unprepared, forcing Coppola to film Brando in the shadows.

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The Outsiders (1983)

Coppola can take credit for spawning the original Brat Pack including; Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez , Matt Dillon, Tom Cruise and Patrick Swayze. Rumours emerged during filming that the cast lived up to their “Brat” reputation by pulling pranks on unsuspecting hotel staff. Furthermore, gossip surrounding the film’s origin makes for an interesting story; Coppola is said to have made this film at the request of some American school kids.

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Rumble Fish (1983)

Often seen as a companion piece to The Outsiders, Coppola continued his theme of gang rivalry with another film adaptation of S.E. Hilton’s work. Starring Brat packers Diane Lane and Matt Dillon – who also appear in The Outsiders – and a cool cast including Nicolas Cage, Mickey Rourke and Dennis Hopper, this film deservedly lands on our list. The film was booed when it premiered at the New York Film Festival, due to its abstract influences of French New Wave cinema and German Expressionism - but has since been labelled an original in its own right.

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Peggy Sue Got Married (1986)

Coppola and his nephew Nicolas Cage famously disagreed about the way Cage wanted to play the character, Charlie Bodell. It is rumoured that Coppola almost let Cage go but backed down to his nephew’s persuasive charms. This film sees the heavyweight director veering away from his trademark gangland dramas, and going back to High School with a quirky comedy. Coppola’s brash decision to venture into new territory paid off, winning three Oscar-nominations.

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Dracula (1992)

Hailing from the “old-school” era of filmmaking, Coppola refused to use any computer generated graphics for Dracula, so he sacked the visual effects team and hired his son, Roman Coppola - who used camera trickery to achieve spine-tingling results. Actress Winona Ryder is said to have brought the idea of making a film adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula to Coppola’s attention, after reading a script for a televised version of the gothic-horror.

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The Rainmaker (1997)

Armed with another stalwart cast, including Danny DeVito, John Voight, Matt Damon and Mickey Rourke, Coppola set about adapting the John Grisham novel into a big-screen adaptation. In the initial stages of post production Coppola had six hours of film to play with, but only two hours and 15 minutes of footage made the cut. Receiving largely positive reviews, the film made a reasonable turnover at the box-office but only just scraped past its budget.

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Youth Without Youth (2007)

Coppola’s abstract take on love, time and consciousness, in Youth Without Youth, received mixed responses from critics, being compared to the likes of work by directors Federico Fellini and David Lynch. The film, which is based on the novel of the same name, by Romanian author Mircea Eliade, marks Coppola’s return to directing chair after a 10 year absence – barring one un-credited stint on Supernova in 2000.

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Jennifer Trevorrow