Denis Villeneuve: Worst to Best 

Dune is actually set over 20,000 years in the future

Denis Villeneuve is the Lisan al Gaib and he has brought us to paradise.

Blade runner 2049 is one of the most underrated movies ever made.

Not sure if you have kids but I feel like Arrival is one of those movies where the emotional impact is dramatically amplified by having children. Even more if you have a close call with their health or safety

Denis’ worst are every other director’s dream of being able to pull off. His best are untouchable.

His "worst" films are better than 90% of cinema. He is right up there with Nolan, Scorsese, and Tarantino.

Both Dune and Bladerunner are sooo good. What really gives Bladerunner more meaning is how it gets better with every shot/watch, and how subtle it is. For the non-movie Normie exploring the existencial aspects and themes brought up is just gold.

The almighty RU-vid algorithm is doing something weird recently. I'm seeing videos from "small" talented creators that I find quite interesting. Can't complain, I suscribed and I hope there's more to come.

Arrival is my favorite movie of all time

Glad you ranked Incendies in the Top 3. It's a masterpiece in making the viewer discover a complicated story gradually and then there is that moment that left you, I, and many others speechless. Villeneuve is a genius of the cinematic arts.

“Kinda came out of nowhere” is hilarious from my perspective. I remember watching him win la course Europe-Asie on TV in 1991.

Timothy Chalamet's performance in the "The King" was absolutely exceptional. I never had any doubt about his ability as an actor while watching both Dune movies.

I remember going to see Prisoners at my small town theatre, I can't remember why I decided to see it, it's not really my sort of thing either, and I hadn't heard of Villeneuve. That movie enveloped me in the theatre. After that anytime his name came up as directing a new film I'd tell my friends 'It'll probably be great, you should watch Prisoners.' And they'd say, 'But a Blade Runner sequel? Good luck.' And I'd say 'I know, but if anyone can, he's the guy.' And thankfully he WAS the guy. ... Great list and presentation, I'll have to watch some of his films I've missed.

I rewatched 2049 with a bunch of haters and broke down most of the scenes, cinematography and plotting for them as the movie run, they couldn't believe how good it was. This movie is the perfect example of how sad is the world we live in, where a master piece doesn't even brake even and Dysney's remakes and spinoffs are a gold mine. I'm glad that big studios believe in Villeneuve artistry, otherwise we wouldn't have any of his scifi films

Blade Runner 2049 is my favorite movie of all time because of the music Hans Zimmer did, the cinematic image, Ryan Gosling and the whole cast doing such a good job. It's like i'm watching lots of amazing paintings, watching art. And the original Blade Runner is also amazing, it doesnt have the modern technology, which is why it has that vintage vibe to it as well. I really adore these films. My other fav movies has to be Into the Spider-Verse, Casablanca all being masterpieces in each their ways.

Villeneuve is one of those rare directors that take the art of filmmaking so seriously that he doesn’t have a single bad film under his belt. He’s gonna be one of the GOATs, no doubt about it

arrival is a masterpiece. i actually cried in the cinema - the slow build up throughout the first 3/4 of the movie till you realize how much of a sacrifice she willingly made, the fact, that this is not a science fiction movie but rather a drama that ends with a tragedy which was unavoidable yet soften by so many events that in totality represent life well lived… the rest of the movie is just letting things play out for the benefit of the viewer, just as the main heroine did for her life… so heartbreaking and thought provoking amy adams was robbed of oscar for this

The thing is , that 'ending' you keep referencing in arrival is hinted at and suggested the entire movie. Its not some cheap plot twist, its a rewarding reveal that has been teased all along. It perfectly ties in the the themes of the movie and language as well.

Villineuve, PTA, Aster, Yorgos and Eggers are like the avengers of rescuing modern cinema.

Watches Dune: Part two a couple of days ago. Its easily one of the best movies ive ever watched in a Cinema and in my top 20 of all time. Its such a great movie that nobody should spoil for anyone. The cinematography, music and acting really just adds to it. Just like you i also thought the first one was so but now that i think about it, it makes sense. Its just like lotr with the first one introducing us to the world and setting it up and then adding more as the other movies comes out. Its easily gonna be one of the most popular film franchises of all time if they keep it up with a good ending too it aswell.

This is one of the most impressive and passionate videos I've watched on RU-vid. Please keep up the fantastic work

Sicario is my current favorite, I just can’t get over Deakins’ cinematography in that one. The Dune franchise sits in a different place for sure, being heavy on good VFX, but I find myself tuning out to even the best CGI action sequences these days.

I have watched Incendies once, it is one of my favorite movies of all time, but I am not sure i want to watch it again. That scream, that singular moment of despair when they find out. I guess that was the scene you mentioned, and my god was it powerful

Man, I thought Arrival was mind blowing.

Incendies has to be the hardest watch of Villeneuve's movies. Gut wrenching movie.

my first villeneuve was prisoners and as i was watching your video i was trying to remember why i picked it then and idk. but anyway, i was obsessed with it, like you said it's a thriller and not my genre at all and yet. i love how confident he is as a director. it always feels like i'm in the hands of a professional, like he is guiding me to places and i may become uncomfortable but it's always in service of the story. i agree with all your choices i think? i saw dune last week and it really blew my mind in ways that pt 1 really didn't but holy shit pt 2 is such a trip. i'm so glad people keep giving him money to make movies, because he is so utterly fucking good at that. like, he takes it serious without being petty? idk. i love him so much.

Blade runner 2049 and arrival were arguably the best sci fi movies we’ve gotten in the 21st century at least until his dune project

I think that when a movie like Arrival, got me to tears several times and had me in a vulnerable state, i applause it forever! I'm a 45-year-old big male that collects knives and watches all the fights in the UFC and other Combat Sports. I can get lost in movies but seldom cry. I disagree to your view about Amy Adam's performance in it. Likewise, I had similar feelings when I saw Interstellar those two times. Arrival got me at a deep human level. They both hit me in the core and made me self reflect and just carefully take a look at my connections in family. But of all of Villeneuve movies that I have seen , my list would be similar to yours. Have not seen Dune 2 but will this week, there is a screening of Dune 1 and 2 here in Iceland. Blade Runner 2047 and Dune has this massive something that has an impact in the World! I would not be surprised that the look of both of them will have an impact on how humans approach the future, like 2001 Space Oddity and the Original Blade Runner did. I love those movies, and Prisoners is so good. Great video, thanks.

Very cozy. Very kino. Gonna binge all your other videos now! If you haven't already, I'd love to see your Nolan ranking and what you think of him, based on some thoughts in this video. Keep it up!

Very well done, very informative. You've opened up some new viewing/appreciation horizons for me. Thanks.

I just came across this after deciding to watch all his movies in the last couple months (looks like the algorithm is doing its job). I agree with your top 5, all 5 of those are some of the best movies I've seen. Until December last year I had never seen Dune, BR 2049 or Incendies, and now I have I can say Denis is hands down one of the best filmmakers of this era. Great vid btw

Sicario is my personal favourite, it just has that specific feel that you can’t get from any other movie. Some of the best filmmaking I’ve ever seen. And it’s grown on me so much through rewatches and reflections

Top 3: 1. Incendies 2. Sicario 3. Prisoners I'm not big on sci-fi. But Dune 2 was amazing.

His next movie he’s directing is an adaptation of the short story “Rendezvous with Rama” by Arthur C. Clarke

Denis made me love movies again, it felt like everyone was making fast paste action franchises that had no deeper meaning than to satisfie the broad masses. The way Denis Villeneuve let the scene breath and make it propell the story forward with out hasting it is just fenomenal

Really enjoyed this video, very well made, subbed!

This is really well-written and very informative. I haven't seen either Dune film yet, but these clips are so striking and brilliant that I'm definitely looking forward to it. Just FYI, a professional (text) editor would excise "Don't get me wrong." Otherwise, this video is solid in all areas. Thanks.

Arrival is my personal favorite.

For the movies of his I've seen: Bladerunner 2049, sicario, dune 2, prisoners, dune, arrival, enemy. I need to watch his foreign language stuff for sure. Sicario was my first film by Denis to see and it blew me away and after Bladerunner 2049, he cemented himself as my favorite director making movies right now.

Blade Runner and Akira made me addicted to cyberpunk and it didn't leave me for years, I was obsessed with the genre since I was a teen.Then it kind of faded a bit and I went to see 2049 in cinemas......I was stunned, my mind was completely blown and it instantly revived my addiction to cyberpunk.

Incendies is great because it it the meeting of two great storytellers, Denis Villeneuve and Wajdi Mouawad. The films is actually based on a play of the same name by Wadji Mouawad. It was part of a 3 part theater play of 8 hours where Mouawad retook greek trajedy ideas and themes for each of the three play. I will let you guys guess which one Incendie is based on ;)

Arrival is No. 1 by a comfortable margin. It’s the thinking person’s hard sci-fi. It’s “sin” is that it lacks all the usual sci-fi tropes like action, slap-stick humor, pseudoscience, humanity’s struggle against an alien invasion, etc. The legendary Stephen Wolfram and other top scientists developed the linguistics, computer modeling, physics and astrobiology for Arrival. Which is why also why Denis’s reported next project, Arthur C. Clarke’s Rendezvous with Rama may turn out to be Denis’s magnum opus.

Im from Québec, and we actually read the theater piece before seeing the movie in class, and that bus scene still shocked me. This movie is so raw and thats probably its biggest accomplishment.

One of my favorite directors today. A great successor to Spielberg and Lucas. 1. Blade Runner 2049 2. Dune 2 3. Incendies 4. Arrival 5. Dune 6. Prisoners 7. Enemy 8. Sicario 9. Polytechnique

Hey, I just found your channel. It's one of those channels that you find and feel like you've been missing out this whole time. I personally don't enjoy the Dune movies very much, but I have to admit that seeing Dune 2 in IMAX was pretty cool. I hope you keep doing this series

Thank you so much for this video. I am in the bus of Denis being my current favorite Director. I will explore this list myself.

I love your videos, please keep making them

1. Arrival 2. Incendies 3. Dune part 2 4. Blade runner 2049 5. Dune part 1 6. Prisoners 7. Sicario 8. Enemy 9. Polytechnique

1. Dune: Part 2 A+ 2. Blade Runner 2049 A+ 3. Dune: Part 1 A+ 4. Prisoners A+ 5. Arrival A 6. Sicario B+ 7. Enemy B- I haven't seen his early four films but I really do love this director. He is my favorite director working today and one of my all time favorite directors period

One of the literary elements I love so much about Niander Wallace in Bladerunner 2049 is that he's a very uncanny figure given his transhumanism. He walks as a paradox; on the one hand, he is a ruthless industrialist, ever-insistent on progress at all costs, yet on the other hand he still understands and exploits a romanticist notion of humanity, yearning for it through the desire he produces, and depending on the image of it as the basis of his attempt to transcend it. As such, he ends up as a liminal representation of humanity, being both beyond it in ambition, yet all too a part of it in content.

I havem't seen dune part two yet, but I would say that my favorite movie from Denis Villeneuve is arrival. When I first started watching it I didn't expect it to be so good. Now it's my favorite scifi movie ever.

keep up the good work mate

Do a worst to best with Darren Aronofsky.

Fantastic video!! Thank you👍🏼

9. Enemy 8. Polytechnique 7. Dune l 6. Arrival 5. Sicario 4. Incendies 3. Dune ll 2. Blade Runner 2049 1. Prisoners All of his movies are incredible if you ask me

Arrival, Sicario, Prisoners, Incendie, Dune 2, Dune, BR2049, Enemy. BR2049 is great, atmospheric, but slightly "pointless" compared to the others. Top 7 are all among my favourite films, not a dis. But Arrival is a perfect perfect film, beautiful. I think critically what he'll be remembered for, and probably the Dune trilogy as an arc.

I'm really enjoying this series from you! Would love to see Scorsese next ;) He has a pretty lengthy filmography both in run time and quantity but would love to see a deep dive from you

You made the right choice. Dune 2 transcends the genre, Bladerunner 2049 transcends cinema.

Arrival is decent but the short story it’s based on is phenomenal. The twist ending plays out about 10 times harder on the page than it does on film, and I don’t think that’s Denis’ fault.

It may be an unpopular opinion but for me both Arrival and Sicario are in the top five.

Have not seen Enemy, his two early films and have not seen Dune 2. I like all his movies… My List: Arrival Prisoners Sicario Incendies Blade Runner 2049 Polytechnic Dune

Did you use the music from the game Dyson Sphere Program?

Amazing he was able to do something worthwhile with his life despite having graduated from the worse university in Quebec. I love his work and am dissapointed that some of his productions were not as successful as they deserved.

Great video & ranking!! Your top 4 are same as mine, just different order...Fune 2 is still sk fresh it cld still move around imo. Great seeing Incendies so high 👍

Sicario... A work of art...

Great video of a great director. Subbed ofc

Prisoners is the Movie that made me take notice of Villeneuve. I was so pleasantly surprised by this film and his newer ones though far flashier, have not moved me as much as this.

My first villeneuve was sicario and i loved the direction of it. I watched BR2049 right after and i was blown away. I dont say this often and its kinda cheesy but its one of the movies that sticks with you, i thought about it daily after my viewing. And i watch upwards of 10 movies after BR2049 that month i still thought about it. The pure existentialism and the themes of what it means to human, the delivery and how the theme is brought upon the viewer is something i have never seen before. (maybe cyberpunk 2077 did it close aswell but i beg to differ) Not even talking thematically, visually and pacing wise its already one of the best. Its a magical movie. One that cemented Villeneuve to be my fav directors oat next to Kubrick.

So, I have to check out Incendies. I've seen the others. Is it in French?

Awesome video man! I would love to see Sicario higher, but I can’t argue with your picks. If you’re taking requests, a Marty or Coen brothers best to worst would be sweet

Love your take on these. My top Dune1 cuz my favourite lord of the rings in 1rst one lol Dune 2 Incendes Blade runner Sicario Prisoners Arrival The rest are equal in the sense that if asked which one is wanna watch , I'd say You pick. Great content . 🎉

Have enjoyed all of his films, but the urgency of Sicario elevates it to the top for me. The action sequences are superior but also the embedded critique of Blunt’s naive FBI agent is brilliant.

Can someone describe how much of the script and story of BR2049 Denis wrote himself? I find it hard to understand what he has written and/or how much he has been involved with the writing in some of his top movies. He is the director of most movies that are in my top 10 but then when I compare to Bergman or Nolan, who writes everything themselves(?!), surely their job is even more impressive?! Can a cinephile please explain your views on directors who write everything versus not and how they are considered differently in the industry. Much appreciated 🙏🏼

Nice. Interesting order but I’m glad you didn’t just put dune 2 at number one. Good vid

Coming from a Fincher fan whose favorite IS Zodiac, The Social Network is a based pick as a favorite. It's a GREAT movie.

Can I just add that Enemy is the "yellowest" movie I have ever seen? I mean, that is one in your face pissfilter. I get making use of certain color grading to evoke an atmosphere is great, works well in a lot of other movies, but it is just too much in Enemy, and to some extent in Sicario as well.

When you ranked Arrival at 7 I knew nothing you had to say was worth listening to.

Loved your video and your explanations of why you thought they where they belonged, and going into the cinematography and writing of the films as well. Though I don’t agree with your ranking, I appreciated it, nonetheless. I do think it’s a damn shame you were only given time to watch Incendies once before the making of this video, I feel like if you gave it as much time to blossom as you did Blade Runner 2049, it would’ve been the clear winner for multiple reasons. 11. August 32nd on Earth 10. Maelstrom 9. Prisoners 8. Polytechnique 7. Sicario 6. Dune 5. Blade Runner 2049 4. Arrival 3. Enemy 2. Dune Part II 1. Incendies There are so many directors I want to see you do, but I also understand that you also want views and, I understand that foreign film directors won’t always get you those views on a format like RU-vid, but still, having said that, Andrei Tarkovsky would be on the top of my list.

Banger vid!

Somebody please tell me the name of the short story by Frank Herbert that has a similar theme to "Arrival".. !

My personal ranking 1. Arrival (got there after 3-4 rewatch) 2. Dune Part 2 3. Sicario 4. Blade Runner 2049 5. Dune 6. Incendies 7. Prisoners 8. Enemy 9. Maestrom 10.Polytechnique Haven't seen his first one.

Excellent list and analysis. Thank you (immediately Subscribed). I need to see Blade Runner 2049 again, because (and you're not the only one) I've heard this same thing-- how truly great it is-- from a couple other cineastes I respect. It's too high for me, but I really appreciate your take and will watch again. I'd also probably put Enemy and Arrival a bit higher... Guess my abbreviated current/FLUID list might go something like this: 1- Dune Part II, 2- Sicario, 3- Dune Part I, 4- Enemy, 5- Arrival, 6- Blade Runner 2049

just yesterday i took a look of this guys filmography : = mind blown

Top Sci-Fi Directors: Ridley Scott, Christopher Nolan, George Lucas, Stanley Kubrick, Steven Spielberg, Denis Villeneuve. I have him sixth, but definitely with a bullet and chance to end up number one, depending on future output.

im glad the world is getting to know Incendies now

ennemy opened my mind like no other movie did before

YES!! Blade Runner 2049 is definitely his best, so great!

The guy doesn’t miss

I fully agree with you about BR2049, it's a masterpiece and it's the best Villeneuve, and it's not really a very widely held opinion unfortunately. It's a real miracle such a movie exists in a world of standradized blockbusters. I have to say I love Dune but for reasons I can't really explain I was way more euthousiastic when I left the theatre after seeing BR2049. One of the best cinematographic experience I had. The great thing about Dune is that it is both great and successful. So there is no doubt that we will get more masterpieces from Villeneuve after it. After BR2049 and its relative commercial failure I was more than worried.

Enemy doesn't get enough respect. I thought it was spectacularly surreal and pretty self-explanatory.

I want to see Villeneuve try on Book of the New Sun. That would be hard mode.

I can understand people liking the original Bladerunner more than it's sequel, but for me it was always 2049. I read Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Philip K. Dick's novel from which the original Bladerunner film was adapted (read it 2-3 times). I was never really a big fan of all the changes from the book in Ridley Scott's film, however in some places I thought it acceptable since they fit the screen better. I don't want to spoil anything but one of the biggest changes from the book is the ending. The film and the book go in completely different directions. The book has a much more pessimistic afterthought while the film tends to have some sort of silver lining in connection with the androids. But this was all fine, i genuinely like the film's ending angle more than the novel's. For me it was the many many smaller aspects of the book that were not shown in any way in the original film. Lots of interesting psychological and phylosophical events were used to describe and characterize the "cyberpunk" world of bladerunner in the book. The presentation of said aspects in the novel happened in the form of actions rather than Tolkien-like, 40 page long descriptions and meditations, so it could've been perfect for the screen. Keep in mind the whole novel is 170 page max. Although I still get why some of these didn't make the screen, I felt like the original bladerunner was a simplified version of the novel material, as if they made it for a wider audience who wouldn't be able to digest the original material. And that's where 2049 does the incredible for me. Many of these ascpets I talked about were featured in some way in the sequel. While it didn't go the pessimistic route of course (since it was a sequel of the film and not the book) it created the exact atmosphere you feel while reading the novel, using descriptions from the book and showing it on screen. And the more you watch it the more you discover. I've seen 2049 at least 7-8 times so far and I still discover new things. It's that good. It's that subtle. I just feel like Denis and the writers of Bladerunner 2049 were more in sync with the novel. In a recent interview (can't remember which) Denis noted a couple things about the novel and how much he loves it, and it shows. Great video!

I will say I really like the changes to Chani's character in Dune part 2.

BR 2049 displaced Apocalypse Now as my favourite film. Pure joy.

Arrival is his best film to date.

''This is just the beginning'' is so far, can't even think of it - as breaking the 4th wall. Not directed to us directly, being directed literally to Paul with the meaning that it's just the beginning of the road. The road to the Fremen's heart, to becoming fremen, and most importanly the beginning of Paul's 'destiny', Paul's road and his future, that just starts with the first part. How can you think it breaks the 4th wall, I can't believe it.

One of the best directors making films today and somehow I lucked out with him being a sci-fi buff.

Great video - seems like I need to stop putting off watching his Dune movies

Denis V is our best working director and it’s not even close. He has NEVER MISSED

Fantastic list. Agree on almost all the comments except haven't seen Dune 2 yet so holding back on that until I do see it. I can, though, say that DV wants to do beyond the first Dune book and yeah, talk about heroes journey deconstructed... Only other comment - maybe Arrival hits harder if you are a parent. Frankly, I think that twist blows my mind more than any other in cinema. Remember that she doesn't see the future, she chooses that path - because to have and love and lose is better than to have never had it.