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[SirKicksalot]

I wonder if the Lost World - Amistad and War of the Worlds - Munich pairings were intentional and trying to repeat the 1993 success.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

I wonder if the Lost World - Amistad and War of the Worlds - Munich pairings were intentional and trying to repeat the 1993 success.

With War of the World and Munich, he succeeded. Both of those films are fantastic. Not as great as Schindler's List and Jurassic Park but still A Tier to me

I haven't watched Amistad yet and hated Jurassic Park The Lost World

 

[Livingskeletons]

I have a soft spot for Lost World since I saw it first before the original. It's a flawed movie with some excellent setpieces and a great score by John Wiliiams.

My least favorite Spielberg flick is Hook. He overdid it on the sentimentalism there and it doesn't help I'm not a big Peter Pan guy.

 

[HoodWinked]

learned recently Spielberg was initially tapped to direct American Sniper and wanted a big budget and wanted to focus alot more on an enemy insurgent sniper and build a psychological and physical duel.

 

[Chuck Berry]

learned recently Spielberg was initially tapped to direct American Sniper and wanted a big budget and wanted to focus alot more on an enemy insurgent sniper and build a psychological and physical duel.

Did that even happen to Chris Kyle or would it have just been a Spielbergism

 

[Kilau]

My favorite director and it's not even close. The number of movies of his that I just absolutely love is probably double my next 3 favorite directors combined. He has made pure magic in cinema form and greatly defined my 80s and 90s. Even his worst movie is better than 99% of the stuff that comes out.

Favorites in no particular order are:

Jaws
ET
Close Encounters
Indy 1-3
Hook
Schindler’s List
Jurassic Park
Minority Report
Catch Me If You Can

 

[Putonahappyface]

My favourite films by him that I watch atleast once a year.

Jaws
Schindlers List
Saving Private Ryan
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
E.T the Extra - Terrestrial
Empire of the Son
Catch Me If You Can
Munich

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

My favourite films by him that I watch atleast once a year.

Jaws
Schindlers List
Saving Private Ryan
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
E.T the Extra - Terrestrial
Empire of the Son
Catch Me If You Can
The Goonies
Munich

He directed The Goonies?

 

[Putonahappyface]

He directed The Goonies?

I always thought he directed it. He was an executive and involved in the story.

Steven Spielberg filmography - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Heimdall_Xtreme]

Best movies of Spielberg

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
Hook (1991)
Jurassic Park (1993)
Schindler’s list
Saving Private Ryan (1998)
Minority Report (2002)
Ready player one

Worst movies for me

The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)
Catch Me If You Can (2002)
The Terminal (2004)
War of the Worlds (2005)

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

I always thought he directed it. He was an executive and involved in the story.

Steven Spielberg filmography - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

Looked it up on iMDB and he wrote the script

 

[BadBurger]

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is hands down my favorite film of all time. My older brother introduced me to it when I was five or six. It's this perfect confluence of genres and themes hammered into film form.

Like, if I were trying to explain the concept of a movie theater to an alien species that has no idea what humans are like, I would sit them down in a theater, in the 1980's, with a too-big soda and bag of popcorn, and show them this film.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is hands down my favorite film of all time. My older brother introduced me to it when I was five or six. It's this perfect confluence of genres and themes hammered into film form.

Like, if I were trying to explain the concept of a movie theater to an alien species that has no idea what humans are like, I would sit them down in a theater, in the 1980's, with a too-big soda and bag of popcorn, and show them this film.

Still the best Indy film

Sean Connery is the best part of the film

 

[EviLore]

learned recently Spielberg was initially tapped to direct American Sniper and wanted a big budget and wanted to focus alot more on an enemy insurgent sniper and build a psychological and physical duel.

I don't think he would've let Bradley Cooper depict Chris Kyle as if he were a mentally handicapped person, if nothing else.

 

[Marvel14]

So many classics to highlight and many have already been showcased in the thread. ET and Schindler's list sit atop the pile for me as profound expressions of love and hate respectively.

We would be remiss on this forum not to highlight Ready Player One, one of the rare films that gets playing videogames right in the film medium. It's not earthshattering but a good entertainment.

I'm going to highlight four of his films that will probably be overlooked here: First AI

It's the only film I have ever seen where.you can clearly see the imprints of two master filmakers in the same film. It has that challenging intense observation and mindbending aura of a Kubrick film wrapped around the emotional story of a Spielberg film. Its lovely how well Speilberg paid homage to his friend.

Second one is Munich. Given what's happening in the news it is very resonant and relevant. How revenge creates its own circle of poison and by not caring about "what happens after" leaves everyone on all sides worse off. Probably one of the most important if overlooked films he's ever made because it's message is too challenging for people to accept.

Color Purple is emotionally riveting and that rare film with a black female protagonist from the 80s. Challenge you all to name another one.

And just a quick shout out to Duel. Watched it on tv and still marvel how much tension he creates with such a simple story and concept. Kudos for never fully showing the villain.

Can't finish this post without acknowledging the rear end of Spielberg's ouvre:

1941 - his WTF is this? film.

Hook- painful and boring. Probably the worst criticism you can give a Spielberg film.

Always: boring squared.

Indiana Jones 4: unnecessary and boring- I couldn't get through it.

 

[Mr Blobby]

anyone mention The Fableman's? It's well shot and there's so much warmth in the colours. You get a sense of wonder of how Spielberg must have felt first being exposed to and then shooting flims. Might be cutting him slack because it is the man

 

[LaughingStock]

Spielberg from the 70s up until the early 90s is amazing. I kind of stopped caring about his movies after Schindler’s List .

 

[SpiceRacz]

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Jurassic Park (1993)
Schindler’s List (1993)
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)
Catch Me If You Can (2002)
The Terminal (2004)
War of the Worlds (2005)

Of the ones listed, these are probably my top Spielberg films, with Schindler's List being my favorite. I don't remember how it sat with critics at the time, but I thought A.I. was amazing. The Terminal was surprisingly great too.

Spielberg has been remarkably consistent. Truly one of the greatest living American filmmakers alongside Scorsese, Tarantino, and PTA. I need to watch more of his catalogue.

 

[Gp1]

Spielberg would have derailed American Sniper like it almost happened with Munich. Make no mistake, i still think that Munich is awesome and extremely underrated, but i love how concise and direct Old Man Clint is with his movies.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

Finished that documentary. I highly recommend it, it went into alot of interesting stuff. Especially his thought process when making movies

 

[Ozriel]

I'm still traumatized from that bit in Saving Private Ryan where the german soldier stabbed that guy.

Such an excellent movie!

 

[Neff]

The greatest living director. My ranking, still some I haven't seen though-

1. E.T. The Extra Terrestrial
2. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
3. Jaws
4. Poltergeist
5. Hook
6. Close Encounters of the Third Kind
7. Raiders of the Lost Ark
8. Jurassic Park
9. Schindler's List
10. Saving Private Ryan
11. Duel
12. Ready Player One
13. A.I.
14. War of the Worlds
15. Minority Report
16. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
17. War Horse
18. Catch me if you Can
19. Empire of the Sun
20. The Fabelmans
21. Munich
22. West Side Story
23. The Terminal
24. 1941
25. Amistad
26. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
27. Bridge of Spies
28. Lincoln
29. The Lost World

Also the family scene in Poltergeist has Spielberg's fingertips all over

The entire film reeks of Spielberg from start to finish. Not just in terms of the themes and the setting, but the tension, the humour, the way characters talk over each other, the framing, the lighting- I can buy that Tobe Hooper worked on it in some capacity, but it's 100% Spielberg's show, credit or not.

Of those I watched, I think only The Lost World is a real dud.

Agreed. It's the only film of his I don't like. And you know what? It still has its moments.

 

[EviLore]

Going through his filmography now to fill in the blanks.

Lincoln. It expends a lot of effort not with bombastic set pieces, but to immerse you in the 19th century in a naturalistic way. I appreciate the subtlety and quiet character moments of Lincoln telling poignant little stories during incredibly consequential moments in history.

Bridge of Spies. Such an old man movie, in a good way. A stand-up guy quietly doing his thing in a way few would when push comes to shove. No saving the world, just looking out for a handful of people the world is treating as disposable pawns.

Duel. Wow, this was a made for TV movie in 1971. Absolutely insane. It’s shot better than 99% of modern big budget blockbusters. Simple premise executed uncompromisingly.

 

[sankt-Antonio]

Something happened in 2006 with him. After that he lost his magic imo.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

Is he retired now? I thought I saw that somewhere. Nothing to add other than I dig most everything he's made. Don't forget he produced tiny toons as well. A classic lol.

 

[EviLore]

Is he retired now? I thought I saw that somewhere. Nothing to add other than I dig most everything he's made. Don't forget he produced tiny toons as well. A classic lol.

Nope, he’s still active. Just did West Side Story and The Fabelmans. Both performed poorly though so he might have to think carefully about a win next.

He said earlier this year that he’s not sure what his next directorial project will be. But he’s also still actively working on adapting Stanley Kubrick’s never-realized Napoleon screenplay into a 7 part limited series for HBO.

 

[Neff]

Pretty sure his next movie is a Bullitt remake with Bradley Cooper.

 

[Come On Tars]

I really haven’t had interest in his post kingdom of crystal skull output, but this thread has me interested in watching them. Jurassic Park changed my life as a kid, got me into reading the novels which led to me being a less dumb human being.

 

[Robot Carnival]

Spielberg will always be a Hollywood Master Director in my book. I remember crying after watching Empire Of The Sun and Schindler's List when I was a child and holding my breath while watching Jurassic Park. I remember the impact of the D Day landing in Saving Private Ryan and being at the edge of my seat in Raiders Of The Lost Ark. the smiles I have while watching Catch Me If You Can and The Terminal. Lincoln and War Horse are also wonderful while often being overlooked. I think out of all his movies, I've seen 23 or 24 of them. I'll definitely work on watching the ones I missed in the future.

 

[DKehoe]

 

[Neff]

That whole John Ford scene in The Fabelmans was incredible.

 

[DKehoe]

That whole John Ford scene in The Fabelmans was incredible.

 

[Darkmakaimura]

Poltergeist, for one of the scariest and Indiana Jones for one of the best films ever made

Poltergeist is the scariest movie I've ever seen. It really screwed me up as a kid and I still get scared watching it today as an adult. Definitely one of Steven Spielberg's best movies.

 

[Artoris]

Poltergeist is the scariest movie I've ever seen. It really screwed me up as a kid and I still get scared watching it today as an adult. Definitely one of Steven Spielberg's best movies.

First time I watched it, I was eight, and it started at midnight, and I was alone in the house

 

[kruis]

That whole John Ford scene in The Fabelmans was incredible.

 

[Dev1lXYZ]

So, it’s the year 2000. It was me, my wife at the time and my cousin on vacation at Disney World. We are at Downtown Disney and decide to have a ‘down day’ from the parks. Both Fast and Furious and A.I have opened. They are more F&F, but I talk them into A.I. As the movie runs into the first hour, many people are getting up and leaving. Not being silent about it either, these people are PISSED OFF and saying the movie sucks.

There is a tug at my sleeve. My wife is ready to leave, too. My cousin seconds the motion.

I don’t understand why these people didn’t get it the way that I did, But I remain unrelenting in remaining and seeing the rest of the film.

We finish the movie and it was practically only the three of us left in the entire theater. It had emptied out.

I come out of the movie very talkative about the ending. I’m on a whole other level in bliss. It was one of the smartest payoff endings in movie history.

They both are not impressed and my wife at the time is like ‘you owe us for sitting through that movie.’

So, naturally we go see F&F.

Every second of that film, I hated. I still hate it to this day.

My wife and I divorced a year or so later, and my cousin and I pretty much went our separate ways as well.

I’ve always thought that if I hadn’t fought so damn hard to stay at A.I. that day, things would have been different.

I do watch A.I. from time to time, and still find it good.

I think what turned people away from it is that it tackles abandonment in a way that struck a nerve in a lot of the population, especially children of broken marriages. It’s glorious and horrifying at the same time and the feeling is gut wrenching.

Flash forward 23 years, I remarried and talk to my cousin a few times a year. My current wife and I have three kids and I dare not whisper A.I. to nary a soul. But, out of ALL of Speilberg’s films, this one is the most prolific to having a direct effect on my life. I walked into that movie a different person.

So, let this be a warning to those out there that have never seen it. It’s a heavy film. Far heavier than Schindler and more gut wrenching than Saving Private Ryan. Because on a deeper level it speaks to the feeling of abandonment that children of divorce go through.

Spielberg’s films post A.I. were never the same. I think it changed him as well. The whimsical feeling that had made him a super success never returned.

 

[Neff]

A.I. emotionally decimated me like no film ever has. Shit pulls no punches.

The whimsical feeling that had made him a super success never returned.

Nah I think that was just him moving with the times as they got more cynical and self-aware. The kind of heart-on-sleeve emotional sincerity he expertly put onscreen back in the day isn't really utilised by anyone anymore.

That said, I did feel that Ready Player One was him having a much-needed damn good time making a feel-good, crowd-pleasing blockbuster again.

 

[Gp1]

I come out of the movie very talkative about the ending. I’m on a whole other level in bliss. It was one of the smartest payoff endings in movie history.

They both are not impressed and my wife at the time is like ‘you owe us for sitting through that movie.’

So, naturally we go see F&F.

Every second of that film, I hated. I still hate it to this day.

My wife and I divorced a year or so later, and my cousin and I pretty much went our separate ways as well.

I’ve always thought that if I hadn’t fought so damn hard to stay at A.I. that day, things would have been different.

And that my friend is why me and my wife went from a "choose ""together"" policy to "you pick one i pick one" policy after i made her watch Letter of Iwo Jima with me

 

[Dacvak]

The real unsung hero of this thread is John Williams, imo. It’s hard to imagine a spectacular Spielberg set piece without a matching Williams score accentuating the tone and emotion of the shot.

 

[SiriusBlack]

My favorite director of all time.

Top tier, in order:

1. ET - no one but Spielberg could have made it. Completely magical
2. Raiders - the greatest adventure film of all time
3. Jaws - a perfect horror film

Unpopular opinion though: Hook is a bloated, cringe inducing mess.