Photo: Damiano Debiasi / CC BY 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Michael Cimino is one of those rare figures in Hollywood history who lived out the full tragedy of the American dream — peak glory and catastrophic collapse, all within a few years of each other. The Deer Hunter blew me away: that Russian roulette sequence is still one of the most viscerally brutal things ever put on screen, and it earned him the Best Director and Best Picture Oscars in 1979. Then came Heaven's Gate, the production that spiraled so completely out of control it nearly sank United Artists, and landed him a Razzie for Worst Director in 1982. But here's the thing — I can't write him off. The ambition was real, the visual eye was genuine, and decades later critics have quietly started rehabilitating Heaven's Gate as a flawed masterpiece. He passed away in 2016, and I think history is still figuring out what to make of him — which honestly feels right for a director this extreme.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Michael Cimino
- Name (Japanese)
- マイケル・チミノ
- Reading
- まいける・ちみの
- Born
- February 3, 1939 – July 2, 2016
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Aquarius / Rabbit
- Origin
- New York City, New York, United States
- Occupation
- film director / screenwriter / film producer / director
2. Background
- High school
- Westbury High School
- University
- Yale University
Awards & achievements
- Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres
- Directors Guild of America Award
- 1979 Academy Award for Best Director
- 1979 Academy Award for Best Picture
- 1982 Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director
- 1979 Golden Globe Award for Best Director
- 2001 Lucien Barrière Literary Award
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Michael Cimino born?
February 3, 1939 – July 2, 2016.
Where is Michael Cimino from?
Michael Cimino is from New York City, New York, United States.
What does Michael Cimino do?
Michael Cimino works as film director, screenwriter, film producer, director.
Film director — see all → · Screenwriter — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.