(Entire Godfather trilogy as one. Even if the 3rd is of a lesser quality, it is all part of a magnificent set of films. We wouldn't leave out a tale from Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales now would we?)
Magnum Opus n.
1. A great work, especially a literary or artistic masterpiece.
2. The greatest single work of an artist, writer, or composer.
This list is a collection of Magna Opera from some of the most famous Film directors of all time.
Whether I have seen the film or not, I will list it, if I believe that film to be highly regarded as the Magnum Opus.
Listed alphabetically by last name.
The choices are the films I believe to be their masterpiece(s), based on my own opinions (if I have seen the film) and/or their overall respect by audiences and critics.
I have chosen to use Director items instead of Film items because some directors have two or more films that can be considered their masterpiece.
If one director has 3 films and another only has 1, it doesn't mean that I believe the director with 3 is a better director. It just means they has more films that can be considered a masterpiece over the other, whereas some have a film that can be easily considered their Magnum Opus because the film in question is generally more famous and/or clearly regarded as their best work.
These are obviously great movies; but how can you consider them magnum opuses when you list two or more films for one director? Then they are just an opus.
I don't necessarily think that the two or more films are all equal to each other. I believe that just one in each is their true Magnum Opus, I just included a variety for some directors because there are many films that people would consider their definitive piece of work.
La Strada is a great film but whenever most people mention Fellini, they usually talk about 8 1/2. These aren't the films I think are the best personally, rather those often regarded as the best by critics and fans alike.
Fellini's best is La Strada,
and Lynch's best is Mulholland Dr.