25. JON FAVREAU
THE EVIDENCE: Elf (2003), Iron Man (2008)
WHY HIM: How could we not include the man who gave us Zooey Deschanel and Will Ferrell singing ''Baby, It's Cold Outside''? With Elf, Favreau gave us one of the precious few Christmas movies in recent memory due to become a classic. Why does it work? Probably because of Ferrell's fruitcake earnestness as well as a visual style reminiscent of Rankin/Bass classics. Topping himself, Favreau marshaled a newfound tech savvy to help launch Robert Downey Jr. back onto the A-list with the comic-book yarn Iron Man. — Christian Blauvelt
Add your comment
The rules: Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment. If you see inappropriate language, e-mail us. An asterisk * indicates a required field.