Good luck with the impossible task of picking one or ranking these. Pick your fave! Tell us why! Feel free to list ideas for other threads here
Munich became my favorite when I first saw it some 5-6 years ago, I'd like to revisit. His post 9/11 genre work is fascinatingly political, War of the Worlds takes Tom Cruise, a symbol of American exceptionalism, and turns him into a reactionary and selfish coward. He's settled into more overtly political work like Lincoln, Bridge of Spies and The Post, all of which I like, but they don't feel as biting as the political bent to stuff like Minority Report and War of the Worlds. He has a fair share of misses as well, Ready Player One didn't subvert it's garbage source material the way I hoped he would, and while Saving Private Ryan is a masterclass in direction, I'd like to take a more thorough look at its politics, as I haven't seen it since I was like 17. At the time I wasn't thinking as much about depictions of the American military in film, and I've read analysis that finds it misguided, something I think he recognized and re-directed in his 2000s output. Obviously Jaws is incredible. Just one of the best constructed films of all-time and it alone would cement his legacy as one of the masters. Raiders of the Lost Ark and Jurassic Park are artifacts of when big budget blockbusters valued craft as much as "content". I haven't seen A.I. Artificial Intelligence or Empire of the Sun, they feel like the most interesting of his work that I haven't seen. I've also been curious about Duel.
Be sure to read all of the controversies about Munich when going back and watching. Some of the historical stuff is whacky.
Minority Report jk maybe not It's pretty incredible how close encounters and jurassic park are more about people than aliens and dinosaurs
Has there ever been another director to influence our own ideas of the world? From sharks to dinosaurs to aliens to concentration camps to war to Biblical legend, our images in our head are so often his images.
Jurassic Park, Schindler’s List, Saving Private Ryan, Close Encounters of the Third Kind... absolute legendary films. The Lost World will always have a huge place in my heart, too. Favorite movie as a kid.
No way I can pick 1, 3, 5, or 10.... Way too many. How the hell do you rank them. If I say Steven Spielberg, I immediately think Schindlers List. I think Jaws. I think Jurassic Park. Then I get tired remembering those 3.... all incredible.
Faves (in no particular order): Minority Report Jaws Catch Me If You Can Jurassic Park Glaring Omission: I still need to see Schindler’s List. Hot Takes: Close Encounters is okay. The Last Crusade > Raiders
A.I. needs more love. I'm not saying it's his best, but it is his most underrated and a hidden masterpiece.
The Terminal and Ready Player One are his worst films, but I haven't seen all of his work. The Lost World is probably the most underrated, while Minority Report would be the most overrated. Best is so hard. Jaws is the default answer, but if we take legacy into account it is partially responsible for the rise of the blockbuster. I haven't seen E.T. in over twenty years. Jurassic Park might be the pick, mostly because it is the one most tied to my generation's early childhood.
Ready player one gets a lot of shit which is fine but it is way better than the book and is a fun movie. Its still bottom tier spielberg but I find it very watchable. Also Hook is the best live action peter pan.