Speilberg gets a pass on the framing device from me, because I think he was being sincere. His movies are obviously designed to elicit emotion from the audience, and sometimes he can be cheap about that. However, he seemed to want to genuinely thank the American vets who served in the war. That framing device – and even the pseudo-moralistic junk about “Is it worth giving up five men to save one?”- had it’s roots in Spielberg wanting to express his appreciation for, and affirm the value of, every one of those soldiers that lived and died there.
Too bad it doesn’t work for the movie.
I had blocked out that opening scene. I was specifically referring to the Beach Invasion, I had forgotten about the family at the grave site, which was just horrible, and I compare it in some ways to the opening sequence of “Spirited Away” that Miyazaki had to invent in order to get us to the magical land where that fillm takes place.
Yes I did see SPR in theaters, and while I think that the Beach scene could have been better, it was still fine compared to some of the more boring and more pedestrian parts of the film.
For me it just doesn’t work. In the beginning it’s not so bad, since we go from a brief moment into the storming of Omaha Beach, but at the end we go from an incredibly effective action and death scene (though Hanks’s last line was a bit much) to this horrible headache-medicine actor’s absolution. Fucking weak, and a great director should know better, which is why I’m so bitter.
And now we get Harvey? Please kill me.
nobody mentioned A.I…however Schindler’s list is definitely his masterpiece…i like A.I…JAWS and catch me if you can wld be on my list
in catch me if you can he shows a great sense of Misc-e-scene. he is very good in staging scenes (like hitchcock) but misses out on thematic concerns and characters arc (unlike hitchcock)…therefore i guess Scorsese beats him by miles as a director.
A.I. and Catch Me If You Can are both really great films (though A.I. is due a rewatch) with A.I. being a wonderful, captivating epic and one of the few films where hyper-sentimentality actually benefits the film whilst Catch Me is both extremely fun and features a great story – they’re probably my favourites though I still haven’t seen SL and SPR
Spielberg is one of those filmmakers that make films for the big screen, or at least he just to. Ironically fist time I took notice of The Spielberg Brand was when he was producing Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain and Freekazoid. Later I learned tha he also did movies. The fist Spielberg movie to blow me away was Jurasic Park, then Schindlers List and then A.I.
I think his most accomplished film is JAWS, but my favorite is CLOSE ENCOUNTERS…, closely followed by MUNICH. In the case of MUNICH, that infamous sex scene spoils what would otherwise be a flawless movie.
Just a word for “Duel”, his made for TV story of a trucker gone completely psycho. Very good and showed promise that he only partially delivered on.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind is my favourite too, for that sense of wonder it instilled in me the first time I saw it (‘78). Also love: Jaws, Minority Report and A.I.. Oh, and E.T., of course (although I haven’t seen it in 20 years). His “serious” films somehow lack sincerity (imo).
in order:
1.Jurassic Park
2.Schindler’s List
3.Saving Private Ryan
4.Munich
5.Empire of the Sun
Runner Up: The Color Purple
CATCH ME IF YOU CAN – It was a departure for him directing a light entertainment that was enjoyable at the same time. Usually he is so heavy handed and over the top. But this film was very well done. Also, I’ll always have a fondness for JAWS also.
>>The only Spielberg film that I would rewatch now is A. I.<<
I’ll second that.
Personally Spielberg hit the right notes for me with Duel and Jaws ….. after that his sentimentality for the patriarchal family unit (as in WOTW, Schindler’s, SPR etc) became a little overbearing.
^ How could you now want to rewatch Jurassic Park? I have always thought that to be his most rewatchable of all his films. It doesnt get old.
For me Spielberg is one of those directors who ‘could do better’. I was looking through his filmography the other week and his hit to miss ratio for me is pretty poor. (I’m not talking about box office, but what I perceive ‘quality’ to be). These are the only films of his that I like:
Jaws
CE3K
Schindler’s List
Munich
Saving Private Ryan
Raiders of The Lost Ark
Catch Me If You Can
Some of Jurassic Park
Oh, I absolutely hated E.T.
Rumplesink have you seen Empire of the Sun or The Color Purple?
Sekzee – I haven’t seen The Color Purple – didn’t really fancy it. I have seen Empire of The Sun and wasn’t too keen on it.
I can see where Empire can be a hit or miss, but you should check out Color Purple . Its an excellent film, which makes me sad that Spielberg has given up on crafting compelling narratives nowadays. War of the Worlds should never have been made.
Schindler’s List. Why? Because it’s a masterpiece.
Jaws is my favorite. I’m surprised by the affection for A.I. That film required a singular vision and instead we got watered down Kubrick …or watered down Spielberg (depending on where you sit). Id love to see what either would have done without the influence of the other.
Jaws is his first masterpiece. It was tough deciding between the two. But being that they are two entirely different films, I’m just going to say Jaws and Schindler’s are his best films. I can have my cake and eat it too, can’t I?
i like modest and simple films. not overblown, obnoxiously expensive films. “duel” is my favorite of his. one of his most effective and well-crafted films. “last crusade” gets an honorable mention.
he’s got a lot of junk in his ever-growing body of work though.
Duel was perhaps the greatest debut film ever. It was Spielberg’s debut, right?
I also like 1941.
anyone else here have a fondness for that movie?
So Spielberg’s Duel debut is greater than Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane?
For me it is Close Encounters of the Third Kind then Munich
btw: this might be a dumb question, but how are you guys bolding?
Jaws and Catch Me if You Can.
I absolutely love Close Encounters of the Third Kind, really like Jaws and E.T. and enjoy Catch Me If You Can and Munich. I want to see A.I. and Empire of the Sun.
Amman: You just put a * right before and after the word, like this * Munich * [that’s for demonstration, but make sure there’s no space between the word and the * ]. Hope this helps. :)
House of Leaves
Oh, the framing device is completely stupid conceptually, horribly cast and acted, and a terrible hamstringer of the narrative as a whole, but ’Berg likes to do that kind of thing.
There was a really good film in SPR that was only half made.