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Joseph L. Mankiewicz

American film director, screenwriter, and producer (1909-1993)

9.60body-of-work score · ranked #95 of 2631 directors · 11 films in our library

A director's score is the sum of their films' composite canon scores — methodology.

Born
February 11, 1909 · Wilkes-Barre
Died
February 5, 1993 · Bedford
Nationality
United States
Work
film producer, film director, screenwriter, actor
Reference
Wikipedia · Wikidata
Portrait of Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Photographer unknown; work-for-hire on behalf of 20th Century Fox. · Public domain

Films in our library, ranked

Ranked by composite canon score across 20+ authoritative lists, awards and polls — our ordering, with every placement citing its evidence on the film's page.

  1. 1
    All About EveMust-See #10

    1950 · United States · drama, comedy

    Oscar Best Picture winner 1950 · BAFTA Best Film winner 1951 · Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1951 #1

    5.8715 citations
  2. 2
    A Letter to Three Wives

    1949 · United States · romance, drama, comedy

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1950 #3 · Oscar Best Picture nominee 1949 · NYT Best 1,000 Movies

    1.123 citations
  3. 3
    Julius Caesar

    1953 · United States · drama

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1953

    0.451 citation
  4. 4
    Cleopatra

    1963 · United States / United Kingdom / Switzerland · biography, war, romance

    Oscar Best Picture nominee 1963

    0.451 citation
  5. 5
    The Barefoot Contessa

    1954 · United States / Italy · romance, drama

    Cahiers du Cinéma annual top 10 1955 #8 · Rosenbaum's Essential Cinema

    0.432 citations
  6. 6
    Sleuth

    1972 · United Kingdom / United States · film-noir, mystery, drama

    Kinema Junpo Best Ten (International) 1973 #7

    0.331 citation
  7. 7
    The Quiet American

    1958 · United States · drama

    Cahiers du Cinéma annual top 10 1958 #9

    0.301 citation
  8. 8
    King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis

    1970 · United States · documentary

    National Film Registry (inducted 1999)

    0.231 citation
  9. 9
    Suddenly, Last Summer

    1959 · United States · drama

    NYT Best 1,000 Movies

    0.171 citation
  10. 10
    There Was a Crooked Man...

    1970 · United States · comedy, western, action

    Sarris's annual top 10 1970 #9

    0.151 citation
  11. 11
    Guys and Dolls

    1955 · United States · musical, comedy, crime

    Rosenbaum's Essential Cinema

    0.111 citation

Complete filmography

All 23 directorial credits recorded on Wikidata, in chronological order; films in our library link to their canon-score page.