Every Todd Haynes Movie, Ranked!
From 'Carol' to 'Velvet Goldmine,' Moviefone counts down every film of director Todd Haynes' critically-acclaimed career.
Director Todd Haynes attends Netflix's 'May December' Los Angeles premiere at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on November 16, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Natasha Campos/Getty Images for Netflix.
Filmmaker Todd Haynes is one of the most acclaimed directors of his generation.
In addition to making critically acclaimed movies like 'Velvet Goldmine,' 'Carol' and 'Dark Waters,' Haynes has also made several movies with Oscar-winning actress Julianne Moore including 'Safe,' 'Far from Heaven,' 'I'm Not There,' and 'Wonderstruck.'
Their new movie together, 'May December,' which also stars Natalie Portman, will be released in theaters on November 17th before premiering on Netflix December 1st.
In honor of his latest film, Moviefone is ranking every feature film that Todd Haynes has ever directed, including his documentaries and 'May December.'
Let's begin!
10. 'Poison' (1991)
Three intercut stories about outsiders, sex and violence. In "Hero," Richie, at age 7, kills his father and flies away. After the event, a documentary in cheesy lurid colors asks what Richie was like and what led up to the shooting. In the black and white "Horror," a scientist isolates the elixir of human sexuality, drinks it, and becomes a festering, contagious murderer; a female colleague who loves him tries to help, to her peril. In "Homo," a prisoner in Fontenal prison is drawn to an inmate whom he knew some years before, at Baton juvenile institute, and whose humiliations he witnessed. This story is told in dim light, except for the bright flashbacks.
9. 'Wonderstruck' (2017)
The story of a young boy (Oakes Fegley) in the Midwest is told simultaneously with a tale about a young girl (Millicent Simmonds) in New York from fifty years ago as they both seek the same mysterious connection.
Wonderstruck
8. 'Dark Waters' (2019)
A tenacious attorney (Mark Ruffalo) uncovers a dark secret that connects a growing number of unexplained deaths to one of the world's largest corporations. In the process, he risks everything — his future, his family, and his own life — to expose the truth.
7. 'The Velvet Underground' (2021)
Experience the iconic rock band's legacy in the first major documentary to tell their story. Directed with the era’s avant-garde spirit by Todd Haynes, this kaleidoscopic oral history combines exclusive interviews with dazzling archival footage.
6. 'Carol' (2015)
In 1950s New York, a department-store clerk (Rooney Mara) who dreams of a better life falls for an older, married woman (Cate Blanchett).
5. 'May December' (2023)
(L to R) Natalie Portman as Elizabeth, Julianne Moore as Gracie, Todd Haynes (Director) on the set of 'May December.' Photo: François Duhamel / Courtesy of Netflix.
Twenty years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation, a married couple (Julianne Moore and Charles Melton) buckles under pressure when an actress (Natalie Portman) arrives to do research for a film about their past.
4. 'Safe' (1995)
Carol (Julianne Moore), a typical upper middle-class housewife, begins to complain of vague symptoms of illness. She "doesn't feel right," has unexplained headaches, congestion, a dry cough, nosebleeds, vomiting, and trouble breathing. Her family doctor treats her concerns dismissively and suggests a psychiatrist. Eventually, an allergist tells her that she has Environmental Illness.
3. 'Velvet Goldmine' (1998)
Almost a decade has elapsed since Bowiesque glam-rock superstar Brian Slade (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) escaped the spotlight of the London scene. Now, investigative journalist Arthur Stuart (Christian Bale) is on assignment to uncover the truth behind the enigmatic Slade. Stuart, himself forged by the music of the 1970s, explores the larger-than-life stars who were once his idols and what has become of them since the turn of the new decade.
2. 'Far from Heaven' (2002)
In 1950s Connecticut, a housewife (Julianne Moore) faces a marital crisis and mounting racial tensions in the outside world.
1. 'I'm Not There' (2007)
Six actors (Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Marcus Carl Franklin, Richard Gere, and Heath Ledger) portray six personas of music legend Bob Dylan in scenes depicting various stages of his life, chronicling his rise from unknown folksinger to international icon and revealing how Dylan constantly reinvented himself.
