One thing right away: The personal taste the author of these lines politely steps back when it comes to James Cameron as “best” filmmaker of all time to choose. Because in this column it doesn’t matter how the director’s works are to be classified artistically. It’s about much more than art. It’s about the survival of cinema. It should be noted that James Cameron is rushing from success to success with Avatar – The Way of Water. The legendary filmmaker has just managed to take places 1 – 3 in Germany on the list of the highest-grossing films of all time. That says a lot about the skills of the director, screenwriter, producer and Oscar winner.
Cinema is more successful than ever – despite the pandemic, inflation and energy crisis
Behind the cinema industry lie hard months and years. 2020 pulled the corona pandemic the operators of cinemas (and by no means only those) who livelihood abruptly underfoot. And up to the year 2022 meant (certainly urgently needed) worldwide containment measures the pandemic painful cuts for the cinema ticket business. Hardly do they belong Corona regulations apparently a thing of the past, meets that triggered by Russia’s brutal war of aggression in Ukraine energy crisis and related inflation the industry with full force.
In recent months, it would have been all too understandable if, due to rising heating costs and food prices, people decided to go to the cinema, sometimes more than 10 euros per person to book, would simply have done without. Streaming services such as Netflix, Disney Plus or Sky offer countless films and series for the price of a single cinema ticket per month. But contrary to all fears, the world’s cinemas have been bursting at the seams week after week since December. How can that be?
Why James Cameron “must” be ranked as the best filmmaker of all time!
The current success of the cinema has a name: James Cameron! You don’t have to like his films and you can still acknowledge without envy that Avatar-The Way of Water despite the catastrophic general conditions, has been stomping every other film at the box office to the ground for weeks. Apparently, the Canadian filmmaker has created a cinematic experience with his blockbuster, the qualities of which seem to be so outstanding that the masses are independent of culture and national borders even long after initial hype drove to the cinemas in droves.
That this without colorfully disguised, before green screens superheroes jumping around is possible, further enhances this achievement. Creating an experience that is only possible in this form in the cinema obviously pays off. The phenomenal success of Top Gun: Maverickwhich one must not omit at this point.
Considering now masterpieces like Aliens – The Return (1986) or Terminator 2 – Judgment Day (1991), then it really shouldn’t be difficult to name James Cameron as the “best”, maybe even the most important filmmaker for the medium of cinema to acknowledge. When it comes to modern blockbusters, for me personally, his compatriot is Denis Villeneuve due to works like Dune or Blade Runner 2049 the far more able filmmaker. After all JamesCameron has thanks Avatar-The Way of Water saved the cinema from possible demise. And he deserves full credit for that recognition as the best filmmaker of all time.
