Francis Ford Coppola

They had three children: Sofia Coppola, Roman Coppola and Gian-Carlo Coppola. Sofia Coppola is an Academy Award-winning writer and nominated director. Her films include The Virgin Suicides and Lost in Translation. In 2004, she became the first American woman to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director, for Lost in Translation. Read Less

Coppola credited his inspiration for making the film to a suggestion from middle school students who had read the novel. The Outsiders is notable for being the breakout film for a number of young actors who would go on to become major stars. These included major roles for Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, and C. Thomas Howell. Also in the cast were Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, Diane Lane, and Tom Cruise. Matt Dillon and several others also starred in Coppola's related film, Rumble Fish, which was also based on a S. E. Hinton novel and filmed at the same time as The Outsiders on-location in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Carmine Coppola wrote and edited the musical score, including the title song "Stay Gold", which was based upon a famous Robert Frost poem and performed for the movie by Stevie Wonder. The film was a moderate box-office success, drawing a revenue of $25 million against a budget of $10 million. Read Less

Much like The Outsiders and Rumble Fish, Peggy Sue Got Married centered around teenage youth. The film earned Coppola positive feedback and provided Kathleen Turner her first and only Oscar nomination. It was the first box-office success for Coppola since Apocalypse Now. The film later ranked number 17 on Entertainment Weekly's list of "50 Best High School Movies."

The following year, Coppola re-teamed with James Caan for Gardens of Stone. The film was overshadowed by the death of Coppola's eldest son Gian-Carlo Coppola during the film's production. The movie was not a critical success and performed poorly at the box office, earning only $5.2 million.

Coppola directed Tucker: The Man and His Dream the following year. A biopic based on the life of Preston Tucker and his attempt to produce and market the Tucker '48, Coppola had originally conceived the project as a musical with Marlon Brando after the release of The Godfather Part II. Ultimately it was Jeff Bridges who played the role of Preston Tucker. The film received positive reviews, earning three nominations at the 62nd Academy Awards. In addition, Martin Landau won a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor, while Dean Tavoularis won the BAFTA Award for Best Production Design. Read Less

Edgar Hoover and the children's novel The Secret Garden. These discussions led to negotiations for Coppola to both produce and direct the Pinocchio project for Warner, as well as Secret Garden and Hoover. Read Less

It was "set in Argentina, with the reunion of two brothers, the story follows the rivalries born out of creative differences passed down through generations of an artistic Italian immigrant family." The film received generally positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic, the film has an average metascore of 63% based on 19 reviews. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 68% of critics gave positive reviews based on 71 reviews with an average score of 5.6/10. Among Rotten Tomatoes' Cream of the Crop, which consists of popular and notable critics from the top newspapers, websites, television, and radio programs, the film holds an overall approval rating of 71% based on 24 reviews. Overall, the Rotten Tomatoes consensus was: "A complex meditation on family dynamics, Tetros arresting visuals and emotional core compensate for its uneven narrative."

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 3 stars, praising the film for being "boldly operatic, involving family drama, secrets, generations at war, melodrama, romance and violence". Ebert also praised Vincent Gallo's performance, but claimed Alden Ehrenreich is "the new Leonardo DiCaprio". Todd McCarthy of Variety gave the film a B+ judging that "Coppola finds creative nirvana, he frequently has trouble delivering the full goods." Richard Corliss of TIME gave the film a mixed review, praising Ehrenreich's performance, but claiming Coppola "has made a movie in which plenty happens but nothing rings true." Read Less