Time for his Trademark Ambition

Then, once Jurassic Park cemented him as one of the best action directors of all time, he pulled a new trick from his sleeve: dark and brutal drama. Saving Private Ryan and Schindler's List showed Spielberg at his most raw and gut-wrenching. Then, something changed. His movies from then on were never bad, but rather just plain dull. No nuance. No excitement. No ambition. That's what the modern Spielberg lacks: ambition.

I could not disagree with this assessment more if I possibly tried to.

I love Spielberg's '70s, '80s and '90s output. He certified his legendary status as a filmmaker by the time Saving Private Ryan was released.

That said, my personal favorite period of Spielberg's entire canon is his 21st century oeuvre.

The films become richer, subtler, and anything but dull. In fact they almost all feature an abundance of nuance that the earlier Spielberg works, for all of their grandness, arguably lacked in comparison. Don't get me wrong; Empire of the Sun is as nuanced a film as any I've ever seen, and all Spielberg films work on multiple levels, but it's really with his tackling of A.I. and the subsequent, somewhat more political, more mature, more almost intentionally subversive toward his own art, section of his filmography running through masterpieces like Minority Report and Catch Me If You Can, zipping along with his trilogy on post-9/11 reactions with The Terminal, War of the Worlds and Munich, that keeps me enthralled every time I revisit these films.

And even there, since then, his nuances have become more nuanced, his subtleties more subtle. War Horse is a loving ode to classic Hollywood dressed up in warm cinematography and a potentially sentimental story, but at its core is yet another piercing--and even dour--tale of a boy becoming a young man and understanding his father better for it, and ultimately reconnecting with him through the baptism of fire before him. Lincoln is its own highly ambitious work in its own quirky-yet-epical, intimate-yet-iconic way (as often is the case, Spielberg frames the subject with two bookends which serve to provide us with the portraiture of the "mythical Lincoln" while the "real Lincoln," in the nitty-gritty world of politics, resides in the middle). Bridge of Spies calls into question what it means to be patriotic with another selfless father figure endeavoring to set a good example for his progeny while wrestling with the moral dilemmas of the task before him, plus the shades-of-grey approach the film has with its multitude of frankly unsavory personages.

I don't know, I don't mean to attack the points you raise, OP, but I just happen to disagree. Please take care!

You make very valid points and I do agree that many of his new movies are good, if not great. But I am referring mainly to his originality and spectacle being toned down (I didn't make that clear enough, I now realize).

For example, instead of taking a piece of beloved TV entertainment (Saturday morning serials) and creating a new epic in Raiders of the Lost Ark at the time, he now chooses to work on the BFG. The BFG is another beloved piece of entertainment (a book), yet he made a movie that just didn't shoot for the stars. A good movie? Yes, but not a movie in which he tries to rewrite the rules and wow the audience with a fresh new take.

Again, my opinion is NOT the "right" answer (there is no "right" answer) and I'm not claiming to be totally right. I see where you're coming from and you probably made me see Spielberg's modern work with a bit more optimism. The fact that we can debate like this just shows how much of a master he truly is 90% of the time. Thanks again.

You're welcome, and thank you for continuing to clarify your position. Neither of us are "right," neither of us "wrong." And while I am still enjoying Spielberg's output I do agree that he is at his best when he is most pointedly challenging himself, as you note.

I'm curious to see how he approaches The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara and Ready Player One. The latter has the potential to be a lot like Minority Report, a kind of "gourmet popcorn film" as Spielberg called the 2002 actioner, which actually had a lot on its mind.

You're welcome, and thank you for continuing to clarify your position. Neither of us are "right," neither of us "wrong." And while I am still enjoying Spielberg's output I do agree that he is at his best when he is most pointedly challenging himself, as you note.

I'm curious to see how he approaches The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara and Ready Player One. The latter has the potential to be a lot like Minority Report, a kind of "gourmet popcorn film" as Spielberg called the 2002 actioner, which actually had a lot on its mind


I agree with you Dale in everythink.
I think too that Ready Player One can be the this décade Minority Report,that is,one of my all time/favorite movies.
Will be a darling and changelling movie,i think.

Thank you, richardosilva, that means a lot! :)

I agree, Ready Player One could be a highly fascinating film from Spielberg to be sure!