‘Poker Face’ Creator Reveals His 4 Favorite Movies

Rian Johnson is one of the most successful directors working today, so it’s interesting to see what his favorite films are.

The director began his career with the 2005 neo-noir Brick, starring a young Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Made on a small budget, the movie ended up grossing $4 million and is considered one of the best mystery films of the decade.

In 2012, he reunited with Gordon-Levitt for the megahit sci-fi thriller Looper, while also directing several of the best episodes of AMC’s legendary drama Breaking Bad. He then helmed Star Wars sequel film The Last Jedi, which grossed $1.3 billion, before returning to the mystery genre in 2019 when he began the Knives Out trilogy.

Along the way, he created the Columbo-esque mystery procedural Poker Face for NBC’s streaming service Peacock, which stars Natasha Lyonne as a woman on the run who has the strange ability of instantly knowing whether someone is lying to her or not.

On the red carpet for the season two premiere of Poker Face, he shared his four favorite movies with the team over at the movie-related social media app Letterboxd. Scroll down for the video and to read a short synopsis of each.

8 1/2 (1963)

Official Synopsis: “Guido Anselmi, a film director, finds himself creatively barren at the peak of his career. Urged by his doctors to rest, Anselmi heads for a luxurious resort, but a sorry group gathers—his producer, staff, actors, wife, mistress, and relatives—each one begging him to get on with the show. In retreat from their dependency, he fantasizes about past women and dreams of his childhood.”

Miller’s Crossing (1990)

Official Synopsis: “Set in 1929, a political boss and his advisor have a parting of the ways when they both fall for the same woman.”

First Cow (2019)

Official Synopsis: “In the 1820s, a taciturn loner and skilled cook travels west to Oregon Territory, where he meets a Chinese immigrant also seeking his fortune. Soon the two team up on a dangerous scheme to steal milk from the wealthy landowner’s prized Jersey cow – the first, and only, in the territory.”

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Official Synopsis: “Humanity finds a mysterious object buried beneath the lunar surface and sets off to find its origins with the help of HAL 9000, the world’s most advanced super computer.”