Spielberg

There are few working directors that invoke as many iconic cinematic moments and images as Steven Speilberg. Since his breakout with Jaws, he's been a model of consistency, effortlessly switching between genres and themes. But what does he think of his own work, and what does it reflect about himself? Today's documentary sets out to give us answers.

The Setup

Using Spielberg's filmography as a throughline, the film captures the directors career from his early breakouts to his more serious work from his perspective. 

As someone who's seen almost all of Spielberg's work, both as a director and a producer, I was interested to what new insights this film had to offer. And I wasn't disappointed because this movie is perfect film nerd porn. Here's why.

Appeal #1: A Personal Breakdown of His Thematic Focus from Film to Film

I've always maintained that directors personal foibles and beliefs work their way into their films. While plenty of directors push back on this, Spielberg doesn't. He openly admits that the tumultuous family lives he portrayed was directly related to coping with his parents divorce and how it allowed him to empathize with a character like Elliott from E.T.

He portrays each film as a time capsule of his state of mind and the issues he was grappling with at the time and it's easy to see the connective tissue from his mind to the screen. And it also explains how/why it took him so long to make a film like Schindler's List.

Appeal #2: Fun Behind the Scenes Details

As much as we may have heard about the "Movie Brats" or the "New Hollywood" crowd (the colloquial name for a group of directors who rose to prominence in the seventies), it's a lot more fun to hear it from the horses' mouths. In Spielberg's case he details how a drunken dinner let to Star Wars opening crawl or how major edits and changes that defined iconic films came into being. And it's awesome to hear Spielberg say he made a film like 1941 because he wanted to "blow shit up."

Combine that with stories from on set from actors and producers and you've got a wealth on little trivia to nibble on.

Appeal #3: A Refresher on Spielberg's Film History

I think this film does a great job at laying out Spielberg's filmography and successes, while also pointing out his growth and the critiques of his work. It might be crazy to imagine now, but until Schindler's List Spielberg was considered a crowd-pleasing filmmaker...and not much else. It was unfair but his work was viewed as shallow. So to take on such a terrifying subject so well, and to insist on not profitting from the film, really demonstrates his skill and integrity.

As agreeable as Spielberg's films are in hindsight, he's courted controversy on a regular basis.

Verdict: A Fun Journey Through Spielberg's Work

A nice blend of film trivia, history, and personal insight, Spielberg does its subject justice. 8/10