Happy Birthday, Steven Spielberg

[filkertom]

On this date in 1946.

What are your favorite Spielberg films? Mine, without question, are Jaws and Close Encounters, with Schindler's List, A.I., Jurassic Park, Hook and Raiders of the Lost Ark right behind.

Comments

[gaelbrady.livejournal.com]

When I was determined to go to film school to become a director, Spielberg was my idol. He still is!! :)

My favorite movie is, and shall always be Close Encounters of the Third Kind. LOVE IT! I own most of his collection, including Duel, on DVD.

[markbernstein.livejournal.com]

Jaws and Raiders are classics of genre. Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan are incredible serious dramas. I still harbor love for E.T. The first three-quarters of A.I are brilliant.

In second tier, Minority Report, Catch Me If You Can, The Color Purple, and Empire of the Sun are all well above average.

[markbernstein.livejournal.com]

And one of these days, I really need to watch Munich.

[gaelbrady.livejournal.com]

Yes...yes you do. That was a brilliant movie. I let a friend of mine borrow my copy...I need to get it back. ;)

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

There are very few films of his that I've seen that I don't love. I have to watch Catch Me If You Can (and I've got it right frickin' here, so I really should), and I'm hoping to catch up on the historicals someday. On the other hand, I never need to let another frame of 1941 caress my poor beleaguered eyeballs again.

[ericcoleman]

It's a very nice little movie.

[sdelmonte]

With a great bit of animation for the opening credits and one of John Williams' strongest late works, as well as Tom Hanks, who's never bad.

[maiac.livejournal.com]

Raiders of the Lost Ark is definitely my favorite.

I am amused that Stephen Spielberg and film critic Leonard Maltin have the same birthday.

[sdelmonte]

Jaws, followed by Raiders. I can watch either of those films over and over.

I haven't seen all his movies - I still need to see many of his more serious films - but nothing I've seen from him wasn't good, if not great.

[singlemaltsilk.livejournal.com]

I'll go with Always, Catch Me If You Can and Sugarland Express. Not saying they're his best work, just personal faves.

[wildcard9.livejournal.com]

The man has made a LOT of very good movies. It is hard to choose just one. I am going to choose Raiders of the Lost Ark because it captured me with both hands and would not let me go the first time I saw it. It still excites me today (although not as much since I know what is coming next now as the movie progresses. That is the tragic downside of watching a good movie over and over again, it looses some of it's magic due to knowing it too well). Raiders has a permanent place in my "top 10 movies I have seen" list. And now that I have said that, I realize that I do not have a DVD of this movie. I need to correct this error.

[drzarron.livejournal.com]

My Top 10 (In order of my *Squee* fan boy preference, not quality)
Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jaws, Duel, Saving Private Ryan, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Minority Report, Schindler's List, E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, Catch Me If You Can

The Second Group (Movies I enjoy, but could have been better, in no particular order)
The Sugarland Express, Jurassic Park, Munich, Empire of the Sun, The Color Purple, Amistad, The Terminal.

The Bottom Group (Oh Steven, these SHOULD have been much better)
War of the Worlds, Artificial Intelligence: AI, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Hook, Always, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, 1941

[rook543.livejournal.com]

Yeah yeah yeah! Indy, Jaws, etc.... we all know what the good ones are....

But THE LOST WORLD. This was a half-assed remake of King Kong! It was bad to the point of making me consider a petition to force Speilberg to burn his DGA card! It was bad to the point that it could for a moment bring world peace...because all who would see it, would stop fighting for a moment to gawk and say "Speilberg made THAT piece of crap?"

From a no-name hack who has to his directing credits a brillopad commercial and a fan-film this movie would be a travesty... For a director the caliber of SPEILBERG to have this is unforgivable....almost

He then made Saving Private Ryan, Minority Report, & Catch Me If You Can...and all was forgiven!!!

[snobahr.livejournal.com]

Well, then. My son shares his birthday with Spielberg! My favourite stuff with Spielberg in the credits includes Animaniacs, Freakazoid and Catch Me If You Can.

[unclelumpy.livejournal.com]

My favorite Spielberg film?

Well I don't own any on DVD, but if I had to pick one it'd be "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?"

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

Why, you... [SMAK poke grab twist twist twist BONK smak]

[laurel-potter.livejournal.com]

I saw a couple of you mention 1941. I won't say it's my favorite, and I know it's a bad movie, but I love it -- I have some good memories from it.

"HOLLYWOOD!!!!"

[darrenzieger.livejournal.com]

I have a soft spot for Close Encounters. I can't think of another film that so clearly and emphatically conveyed - even to the mundanes - that "sense of wonder" we fen go on about. It has some flaws, but there far more moments of sheer poetry.

I must admit that I haven't seen many of his later, Important Films (Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, Munich really should be in my Netflix queue).