Joseph Porter Ruben (born May 10, 1950) is an American retired filmmaker.

Joseph Ruben
Born (1950-05-10) May 10, 1950 (age 74)
Occupation(s)Film director, screenwriter, producer
Years active1974–2017

Movie career

edit

Ruben's earlier films, such as The Stepfather, have become cult classics. In the 1990s, he went to direct high-grossing mainstream films such as Sleeping with the Enemy starring Julia Roberts (which grossed over $150,000,000 on box office), the controversial thriller The Good Son starring Macaulay Culkin and Elijah Wood, Money Train starring Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes, and Return to Paradise starring Vince Vaughn and Joaquin Phoenix. He frequently collaborated with film editor George Bowers.

Ruben has won awards at various film festivals for his films The Stepfather, True Believer, starring Robert Downey Jr. and James Woods, and Dreamscape, starring Dennis Quaid. His 2013 feature, Penthouse North, stars Michael Keaton and Michelle Monaghan. He will return to direct the serial killer thriller Jack after not working for six years. Ruben is also attached to direct the film The Politician's Wife written by Nicholas Meyer.

The Ottoman Lieutenant was released around the period of the film The Promise, a film depicting the Armenian genocide.[1] The perceived similarities between the films resulted in accusations that The Ottoman Lieutenant existed to deny the Armenian genocide.[1][2]

Filmography

edit
Year Name Notes
1974 The Sister-in-Law Also screenwriter and producer
1976 The Pom Pom Girls Also screenwriter and producer
1977 Joyride Also screenwriter
1978 Our Winning Season
1980 Breaking Away Television series (episode: ''The Cutters)
Gorp
1984 Dreamscape Also screenwriter
1987 The Stepfather
1989 True Believer
1991 Sleeping with the Enemy
1993 The Good Son Also producer
1995 Money Train
1998 Return to Paradise
2004 The Forgotten
2013 Penthouse North Also producer
2017 The Ottoman Lieutenant

References

edit
  1. ^ a b Buckley, Cara (2017-04-20). "Battle Over Two Films Represents Turkey's Quest to Control a Narrative". The New York Times. Retrieved 2019-05-13. But Turkey has insisted that many people, both Turkish and Armenian, carried out — and bore the brunt of — wartime horrors, and that no concerted extermination effort existed. [...] 'The Ottoman Lieutenant' [...] reinforces that debunked Turkish narrative, detractors say.
  2. ^ Ritman, Alex; Mia Galuppo (2017-04-21). "'The Promise' vs. 'The Ottoman Lieutenant': Two Movies Battle Over the Armenian Genocide". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2019-05-15.
edit