https://screenrant.com/steven-spielberg-west-side-story-fabelmans-bfg-box-office-bombs/
Several of Spielberg's recent movies have underperformed at the box office, which alludes to broader issues of generational & technological shifts.
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I disagree with the writer of the article. He's groping at poor excuses for the Spielberg bombs. He assumes people should see a movie because it's "critically acclaimed" when that has less meaning today since the industry is now made up of sycophants who want to keep their movie premiere privileges.
The Fabelmans = Self-indulgent. Unoriginal. Boring. I couldn't even finish the trailer.
West Side Story = Poorly done. Writing clunky. Actors horrible. Nothing beats the original.
BFG = Looks boring and dreary.
The Post = Looks good & interesting. Hanks & Steep usually make quality movies w/solid performances.
Real Player One = Original. Action.
None of Spielberg's bombs have been bad movies IMO. The BFG was a great family movie but I just don't think there was much audience for it. West Side Story was fine. The Fabelmans is a top Spielberg film. Meanwhile, The Post was pretty good but nothing crazy, and Reader Player One is amongst the weaker films he's ever made. I do agree that poor timing and marketing probably have a lot to do with it.
shareWest Side Story will always be compared to the exceptionally great original. The only improvement was correction of the unintentional mixing of Mexican and Puerto Rican cultures. I thought it was dumb to have a racist white gang hanging out in a Puerto Rican-owned store. It also weakens the concept that Maria and Tony's romance is a forbidden first when an interracial marriage already happened between Rita Morena and her white husband. Clunky writing.
I'm in the middle of watching "The Post". I feel the same.
Fabelman and Reader Player One feel formulaic to me. I'll attempt to watch those movies if I see them on TV. Maybe I'll change my mind.
Spielberg's earlier movies were more original and powerful.
Ready Player One was one of my favorites in 2018 from heck I liked it ranked Behind Mission:Impossible Fallout and Infinity War in mytop
shareI just watched more of the trailer. I didn't know "Ready Player One" was about a dystopian society, one of my favorite themes. I'll try to watch the movie to see if I like it.
shareHis recent films lack that special something that makes a "Speilberg film".
In the 80s, he became famous for 2 kinds of movie. The suburban fantasy that put supernatural or SF elements into contemporary suburbia, and the 1930s nostalgia of the Raiders series.
Modern audiences are too distant from the 1930s for Indiana Jones stories to resonate anymore. The 80s America Speilberg depicted in ET and The Goonies doesn't exist today. Others (Stranger Things, It remake) are mining that period for nostalgia now in the same way Speilberg mined the 1930s pulp serials for Raiders.
Speilberg's last movie hurrah was years ago, with Saving Private Ryan and Schindler's list. Things didn't really pan out on his new serious direction though. His subsequent serious dramas lack any distinctive Speilberg stamp. They're forgettable and could have been done by anyone. The later Indiana Jones movies have so much against them (aging star, trendy changes) that they have none of the appeal of the earlier films.
That being said, I hope his efforts to promote awareness of the evils of Hamas are successful.
The last two Indiana Jones movies had nothing to do with 1930's anymore. Oh, I haven't seen Dial of Destiny, but I hear the story takes place in the 60's or 70's.
Both SPR and Schindler's List, while good, were worse than Munich, which I consider Spielberg's last great work. Schindler's List was morally easy piece of work, we all knew who the bad guys were. Munich on the other hand was much more complex and didn't give easy answers to difficult questions.
"His recent films lack that special something that makes a "Speilberg film". "
100% agree!
His Hamas film will only be a documentary as a record of history. Most people won't watch a documentary. If it's one-sided, then its only a propaganda piece. The proper context is that Oct 7 didn't happen in a vacuum and there were plenty of complacency and support for Hamas from Netanyahu and his extremist government.
You can't deny his technical skills but his movies are kinda boring.
You have to wonder at what point does a guy like that find it difficult to secure funding.
He started going political, stuffing woke into his movies. People don’t want to watch, let alone pay for, that shit.
shareExactly. It makes perfect sense. I had said this in another thread. I believe Steven Spielberg's time has passed. It's really that simple. One started thinking this way specifically after seeing "The Fabelman's". It seemed so dated. Out of touch. Boring. Corny. Recent history also proved Indiana Jones has run its course. You had lot of guys that came of age in the 1970s and did some great stuff. Martin Scorcese, as great as he is (can't comment on KOTFM because I haven't seen it) - I thought "THe Irishman" was dated. I believe George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola are pretty well retired. Brian De Palma, too. Yeah, these guys were all great but they are all pushing 80 years old (or past it in some cases). Time is up - time to gracefully sail off into the sunset.
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