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I have to vote for Soderberg (although I have no particular love for him either) for the simple fact that I am barely aware that Linklater exists. I have seen none of his work since Dazed and Confused, a film that did not resemble any of my high school experience and totally failed to resonate with me. None of his subsequent work has managed to generate enough interest for me to see it, though recently the unveiling scope of the Before trilogy and the never-been-done-before aspect of Boyhood might draw me in to viewing them. Soderberg is also more prolific and I like some of his recent projects (such as Haywire and Side Effects) much more than his earlier ones (Traffic and Erin Brockevich are overrated).
PS. Soderbergh is in Waking Life. So there's that.
I'm genuinely surprised by Linklater's lead. People must really like the Before trilogy, because the rest of his filmography isn't quite on par with Soderbergh's. Linklater did that awful remake of Bad News Bears, remember? At least Soderbergh's failures are interesting failures most of the time. I like Linklater a lot, but for me there's just no competition.
Screw you guys. I'll take the bullet.
Why is there never mention of Soderbergh's great film, King of the Hill? My vote for Soderbergh was for that film alone.
I have a suspicion that because Boyhood just came out that people are gonna sway Linklater because it's right in front of them. If we had a Soderbergh film that came out in the same month, the results might be a little mixed. People talk about all the heart and the characters of Linklater, but I don't hear any talk about the visuals. I just can't get behind the guy who made The Newton Boys, The Bad News Bears and that terrible Me and Orson Welles and wipe out Out of Sight, Traffic, Bubble, The Girlfriend Experience, Che and so many others.
I cast my ballot for Soderbergh for his ability to move seamlessly between popcorn fun and brilliant story telling, sometimes in the same film (e.g. The Informant!). While School of Rock is one of my all time favorite movies and Boyhood ruled, I'm on Team Soderbergh.
While Soderbergh is a cinema genius and he has pushed the boundaries of genre, many of his innovations have already been copied. Linklater's genius is in communicating humanity. He teaches us about ourselves and so about how we perceive the world around us. I have to choose Linklater, because he opens up our souls and shows them to us.
If i start to do the math, Linklater wins. But you know, i don't want to do any math so i went with Soderbergh. May see it completely different after I get the chance to see Boyhood though.
As much as I love many of Soderbergh's movies, and think he is an expert and sometimes brilliant craftsman, there is no way I would choose to wipe Celine and Jesse off the map. I've grown with the two characters, as I know many others have, and it would feel like betraying my good friend. Plus, how could I vote Soderbergh before having the chance to see Boyhood? That's just cruel.
The toughest poll yet. Well done, guys. I really couldn't choose so I cheated by looking at who was winning and gave my vote to Soderbergh who was behind 60 to 40 percent. Sorry for desecrating the sanctity of the Filmspotting poll much like all those Robert Pattinson fans a couple years back.
What I look for in my movie of the year is a film that has something to say about our society and speaks to me. I saw my number 1 films of 2013 in early 2014. Last year Spike Jonze took top ranks for his film Her about societies conventions around modern romances. Steven Soderbergh took my number 1 spot as well for his underrated film Side Effects about our reliance on medication and what how the whole system is as insidious as tobacco. Great performances all around. but who stood out for me was Jude Law as both the caring psychologist, but also as the capitalistic psychologist.
Remi Caron
I voted Soderbergh. Linklater is one of those directors I can watch and enjoy but, with the exception of School of Rock, I don't think I ever re-watch any of his films.
Got to catch School of Rock whenever it's on, though. Classic.
For me, it's Linklater, no contest. Soderbergh is reliably good but versatile to a fault. If you'll allow a cliché, he's a jack-of-all-trades but a master of none, seemingly following whatever whim he has at the moment regardless of whether he has the talents to do it justice. He's had an interesting career, but I couldn't call a single of his films a personal favorite, although Out of Sight comes close. Meanwhile his filmography is littered with duds like The Informant, Contagion, and Erin Brockovich, as well as movies that, while unique, aren't really that enriching, like Schizopolis or Bubble. Linklater has also had some less-than-stellar projects when he tried to branch out, but he at least has a home base to return to, that being, as you mentioned in your analysis, the warm earnestness of movies like the Before Trilogy, and even some of his less typical works like A Scanner Darkly or Waking Life have that personal quality that eludes Mr. Soderbergh. His movies do a great job of getting to the underlying truths in life and have real emotion. His passion for his subjects comes through in each frame. In comparison, Soderbergh's movies are nothing more than clinical exercises in style, and that's hardly anything worth preserving.
This is possibly one of the toughest director death matches I can think of. Two intellectual, extremely prolific directors, who love experimentation, and have worked across a range of budgets in both indie and studio fare. I think the timing of the poll, coming right as Boyhood comes out and after the much loved conclusion to the Before trilogy last year, gives the edge to Linklater, but Soderbergh's great filmography is perhaps ultimately a richer one. To wit (top 10 only):
Out of sight (A+)
Traffic (A)
Che (A)
sex lies & videotape (A-)
Ocean's 11 (A-)
Solaris (A-)
Erin Brockovich (A-)
The Limey (A-)
Contagion (B+)
Magic Mike (B+)
and lets look at Linklater:
Boyhood (A+)
Before Sunset (A+)
Dazed and Confused (A+)
Before Midnight (A)
Before Sunrise (A)
Slacker (B+)
School of Rock (B+)
A Scanner Darkly (B+)
Waking Life (B+)
Bernie (B+)
Goddamit. I think Linklater wins. No, wait - Soderbergh. Arrrrrrgggghhh
As others have said Soderbergh is more consistent, but when Linklater really hits the mark, he hits it out of the park.
Couldn't stand a missing link.
To tease me with the trailers and reviews of Boyhood and then destroy it before I get a chance to see it is unimaginable! The timing of the poll forces me to vote for Linklater. Also, I'm also much more likely to revisit the Before trilogy than the Oceans trilogy.
Well, it isn't as hard as your P.T. Anderson/Wes Anderson death match, at least. Soderbergh has arguably made more great movies than Linklater, but my favorite Linklater films, the Before trilogy and Dazed and Confused, are closer to my heart, and I couldn't bear to lose them. Sorry, Out of Sight and endless repeats of Ocean's Eleven on TV. You were a blast while you lasted.
Hands down, Linklater.
Soderbergh would simply dissolve into millions of molecules.
The director's entire filmography will be wiped out? No more Ocean's Twelve? Oh the humanity!
I'll go with Linklater mostly because of the 'Before' trilogy. He's a wildly inventive filmmaker, without ever being showy. With 'Boyhood' he seems intent on changing the language and dynamic of cinema as we know it. No contest as far as I'm concerned.
I think I understand why Adam picked Soderbergh. There's a difference between best and favorite. Of course the Before Trilogy is "better" than Out of Sight, but that doesn't mean you necessarily LIKE it more than Out of Sight. I recently stated The Photo Album is my favorite Death Cab album and people replied that Transatlanticism and Plans are way better. I agree. But I said favorite.
P.S. I went with Linklater.
I voted to expel Soderbergh because of my overwhelming attachment to the Before films. I couldn't imagine cinema without them. Although I think Soderbergh has overall directed more high quality films, there are none that are essential to me.
Hands down Soderbergh. I have never warmed to Linklater's films in the same way I do to Soderbergh. Maybe I am a robot, but Soderbergh seems to have a serious edge in technique. Visually, it's not even close. I've tried hard to watch Linklater with the same enthusiasm as my peers and it always ends up with me wanting to watch other filmmakers who I think does what Linklater does much better. It's not that I don't like them, I'm just not as engaged with Linklater as I am with Soderbergh.
So, I voted Soderbergh before I listened to the episode, it was easy for me, and then I heard Josh's theory about warm vs. cold and preferring -10 to 110 degrees, and I realized that, even with as cold as North Dakota can get, I feel that same way. I also hate math, as he established later in the segment. I'm a little weirded out now. Am I in Larsen's head, or is he in mine? Are either of us in John Malkovich's? Was I predestined to vote Soderbergh, or did Larsen psychically intervene?
I need to take a knee.