Alan Jay Pakula (/pəˈkuːlə/; April 7, 1928 – November 19, 1998) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Associated with the New Hollywood movement, his best-known works include his critically acclaimed "paranoia trilogy": the neo-noir mystery Klute (1971), the conspiracy thriller The Parallax View (1974), and the Watergate scandal drama All the President's Men (1976). His other notable films included Comes a Horseman (1978), Starting Over (1979), Sophie's Choice (1982), Presumed Innocent (1990), and The Pelican Brief (1993). Pakula received Academy Award nominations for Best Director for All the President's Men and Best Adapted Screenplay for Sophie's Choice. He was also nominated for Best Picture for producing To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). Additionally, he was a BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award, and Directors Guild of America Award nominee. Pakula's films often dealt with psychological and political themes. His obituary in The New York Times stated Pakula made "different kinds of movies, all of them intended to entertain, but the thread connecting many of them was a style that emphasized and explored the psychology and motivations of his characters." He was the subject of the 2023 documentary Alan Pakula: Going for Truth. Description above from the Wikipedia article Alan J. Pakula, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- April 7, 1928
- November 19, 1998 (aged 70)
- New York City, New York, USA
- Producer, director and writer
- 23 on MovieCove
What are Alan J. Pakula's films like?
Across their 23 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Morality.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 23
Light 3 · Serious 5 · Dark 15
Grounded 20 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 1
A split, not a type: Gentle 2 · Charged 10 · Intense 11
Steady 8 · Shifting 15 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 19 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 0
Slow burn 15 · Even-paced 7 · Relentless 1
Casual 4 · Engaged 13 · Full focus 6
Easy watch 0 · Affecting 12 · Heavy 11
A split, not a type: Resolved 12 · Open-ended 8 · Ambiguous 3
Moods and endings
- Happy3
- Bittersweet14
- Tragic2
- Ambiguous4
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Alan J. Pakula's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 11 of their 23 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Pluto TV (6).
- Sophie's Choice (1982) · director, writer, producer · free
- The Parallax View (1974) · director, producer · free
- Fear Strikes Out (1957) · producer · free
- The Pelican Brief (1993) · director, writer, producer · free
- The Sterile Cuckoo (1969) · director, producer · free
- Comes a Horseman (1978) · director · free
Subscription and free streaming for Alan J. Pakula's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
23 credits, 23 with a MovieCove page; 10 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
The Devil's Own(1997)
Midcredits score: 45th percentile of all films
The Pelican Brief(1993)
Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films
Consenting Adults(1992)
Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films
Presumed Innocent(1990)
Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films
See You in the Morning(1989)
Midcredits score: 37th percentile of all films
Orphans(1987)
Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films
Dream Lover(1986)
Midcredits score: 13th percentile of all films
Sophie's Choice(1982)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films
Rollover(1981)
Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films
Starting Over(1979)
Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films
Comes a Horseman(1978)
Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films
All the President's Men(1976)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
The Parallax View(1974)
Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films
Klute(1971)
Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films
The Sterile Cuckoo(1969)
Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films
The Stalking Moon(1968)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films
Up the Down Staircase(1967)
Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films
Inside Daisy Clover(1965)
Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films
Baby the Rain Must Fall(1965)
Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films
To Kill a Mockingbird(1962)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
Fear Strikes Out(1957)
Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films
Career shape
A full career of 23 titles from 1957 to 1997.
Biggest box office
Presumed Innocent (1990)
Highest rated
To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
Most popular right now
All the President's Men (1976)
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Alan J. Pakula's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 67th percentile, the median of all 23; across their 23 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 64th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up9
- 50th to 74th7
- 25th to 49th4
- Below 25th3
Shape of the crowd
13 of their 23 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved3
- Crowd Pleaser13
- Broadly Agreed3
- Mixed4
Reviewers score the atmosphere 73/100 and the pacing 43/100 in their films, across 23 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Alan J. Pakula's work okay for kids?
Across up to 12 MovieCove titles with content scores, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.
Who does Alan J. Pakula work with?
People who share at least 2 of Alan J. Pakula's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Michael Small shares the most, 9.
Directors
- Robert MulliganShared titles: The Stalking Moon (1968), Up the Down Staircase (1967), Baby the Rain Must Fall (1965), Inside Daisy Clover (1965), Love with the Proper Stranger (1963), To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), Fear Strikes Out (1957)See all 7 shared titles with Robert Mulligan
Writers
- Alvin SargentShared titles: Love and Pain and the Whole Damn Thing (1973), The Sterile Cuckoo (1969), The Stalking Moon (1968)See all 3 shared titles with Alvin Sargent
- Horton FooteShared titles: Baby the Rain Must Fall (1965), To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)See all 2 shared titles with Horton Foote
Actors
- Hume CronynShared titles: The Pelican Brief (1993), Rollover (1981), The Parallax View (1974)See all 3 shared titles with Hume Cronyn
- Jane FondaShared titles: Rollover (1981), Comes a Horseman (1978), Klute (1971)See all 3 shared titles with Jane Fonda
- Ruth WhiteShared titles: Up the Down Staircase (1967), Baby the Rain Must Fall (1965), To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)See all 3 shared titles with Ruth White
- George HearnShared titles: The Devil's Own (1997), See You in the Morning (1989)See all 2 shared titles with George Hearn
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Michael SmallShared titles: Consenting Adults (1992), See You in the Morning (1989), Orphans (1987), Dream Lover (1986), Rollover (1981), Comes a Horseman (1978), The Parallax View (1974), Love and Pain and the Whole Damn Thing (1973), Klute (1971)See all 9 shared titles with Michael Small
- Gordon WillisShared titles: The Devil's Own (1997), Presumed Innocent (1990), Comes a Horseman (1978), All the President's Men (1976), The Parallax View (1974), Klute (1971)See all 6 shared titles with Gordon Willis
- Aaron StellShared titles: The Stalking Moon (1968), Baby the Rain Must Fall (1965), Inside Daisy Clover (1965), Love with the Proper Stranger (1963), To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), Fear Strikes Out (1957)See all 6 shared titles with Aaron Stell
- Evan A. LottmanShared titles: Presumed Innocent (1990), See You in the Morning (1989), Orphans (1987), Sophie's Choice (1982), Rollover (1981)See all 5 shared titles with Evan A. Lottman
Producers
- Susan SoltShared titles: Presumed Innocent (1990), See You in the Morning (1989), Orphans (1987), Dream Lover (1986)See all 4 shared titles with Susan Solt
- Donald LaventhallShared titles: The Devil's Own (1997), The Pelican Brief (1993)See all 2 shared titles with Donald Laventhall
- Pieter Jan BruggeShared titles: The Pelican Brief (1993), Consenting Adults (1992)See all 2 shared titles with Pieter Jan Brugge
- Jon BoorstinShared titles: Dream Lover (1986), All the President's Men (1976)See all 2 shared titles with Jon Boorstin