The Steven Spielberg Discussion thread: The Movies That Spielberg Watches before he directs

One of the most innovative and interesting directors of our time has a plethora of films that we all enjoy. Among his masterpieces are:
"Schindler's List"
"Saving Private Ryan"
"Indiana Jones Trilogy"
"Minority Report"
Need I say more?

Come discuss the artist and his works. We'll begin with Indiana Jones

 

Indy! The guy is a legend, and these movies that make me get all sentimental. They don't make movies like these anymore. The Mummy tried, but failed horribly.

It's also where Harrison Ford was at his best. It's these types of roles that he's best at. He's tried to change is image as he's gotten older, but I don't think it worked.

Raiders and The Last Crusade are probably equal in quality and enjoyment. LC is funnier and more adventurous, whilst Raiders has that original feel to it. Temple of Doom was a big let down, not only in story, but in directing.

 

I agree with every sentence of that post

 

All three Indy films are on my top ten list for certain. I agree that ToD wasn't quite up to par with the other two, but I still love it. I find its bizarreness factor quite appealing for some reason. It was also the first Indy film I saw.

And somehow I don't think I'm the only one here who's greatly anticipating the 21st.

 

I can't wait until the fourth Indy installment. Does anyone have any ideas on what the plot will be?

 

i have no ideas now, but we shallwait and see.
Also, lets shift gears hear for a secong and talk rather exclusively about Spielberg's work on the trilogy.

My opinion: spielberg was at the top of his form with these movies. They have maintained action, romance, drama and even humor flawlessly. One of the greatest works Steven has ever put together.

 

Indy was definently one of the best trilogies out there. He's one of those modern heros that everyone should know about. I wasn't too fond of the Temple of Doom, but the First and Third movies were outstanding.

 

Indy is great. I agree that TOD wasn't as good as the others (though Shorty was pretty funny at times). I am eagerly awaiting IJ4, and hope it's a good as the others.

 

It's better be.

 

All three Indy films are equally great in my view. I just can't wait until I buy the Trilogy box set on Tuesday!! I am also anticipating Indiana Jones 4.

Even though the current discussion is the Indiana Jones films, this is a Spielberg thread, so I just want to ask about one of his other films. What do you guys think of Empire of the Sun? I haven't seen it, but it sounds pretty interesting.

 

I met Harrison Ford the other day. I was DYING! He was nice.

OH....and I like everyone of the Indiana Jones movies.

 

I hope that after all these years, the fun of Indy hasn't been forgotten by the producers, nor the writers.

 

If they can come up with a moment as great as Indy shooting the Arab swordsman in "Raiders" I'll be happy with the INDY IV.

 

Upping this

 

You know, before tonight, I probably hadn't seen Temple of Doom in over a decade, and I'd forgotten what a wonderful film it is. It is quite different from the other two Indy films, but it's got its own charm about it. Plus all the creepy stuff is so captivating. Monkey brains, anyone?

 

If they can come up with a moment as great as Indy shooting the Arab swordsman in "Raiders" I'll be happy with the INDY IV

If you didn't know, this wasn't written. It was written for the two to have a big fight and our hero would naturally be victorious. However, poor Harrison had a bad case of diaherria and told Spielberg that he couldn't do the scene, and suggested that Indy should just shoot the Swordsman. Without telling the crew, they tried Harrisons version, and when the crew erupted with laughter, they decided to keep that take.

 

You put in all those wonderful Speilberg movies, and you leave out Jurassic Park?!

But yeah, the Indy trilogy was awesome, and schindler's list is one of the 10 greatest films ever made, if only for the cinematography

 

Yeah, obviously Speilberg was thinking of Clark Gable, Humphrey Bogart, men who portrayed very tough men on film, whose characters had really wild adventures. Actually, Speilberg was better at having silly things happen to Indy then Lucas had funny things happen to Han in RotJ. In the Indy movies, you laugh, in Rotj, you winced (most of the time). Even though Indy movies were serious (not meant to be comedies), the reason of his adventures (looking for the Ark of the Convenant, looking for sacred stones, etc) are so out there (compared to say James Bond fighting terrorists or rouge generals) you can have fun with the movies.

oh, Not that ToD was my favorite, but I did like it a lot. It's kind of like a jungle movie, but without savages.

 

Temple of Doom was the first Indy/Spielberg/Lucas/Harrison Ford movie I ever saw and it's still my favorite. I saw it when I was nine and thought it was so amazing. I love how the last half hour is just non-stop action. Indy saves the day in it. In Raiders, God destroys the Nazis, but in ToD Indy gets to beat the bad guys. I'm irritated that Spielberg feels the need to apologize for it's darkness and disown it. Even though it's where he met his wife!

 

Raiders of the Lost Ark and the Last Crusade were the best, in my opinion.

 

So what does everybody think about the extras on the 4th disc of the DVD set?

I found it to be slightly underwhelming in terms of the total running time -- though all the documentaries are wonderful, of course.

As far as the movies go, for some reason I really really enjoy Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, largely because of Sean Connery, and also because I think it's got the greatest score of the trilogy. (Love the scherzo during the motorcycle chase! )

I'm not so sure it's a great idea to make a fourth Indy film. I mean, it could turn out great, but it could also be a misfire that would tarnish the legacy of Indiana Jones.

We'll see what happens.

 

The more I read from the people involved in production (Darabont, Spielberg, Ford...not "this guy's sister's cousin's friend who they say is working as a tour guide on the Paramount lot", thank God), the less likely it appears that they're gonna mess this one up. They will be sure that they don't. I'm really looking forward to it.

I really like Last Crusade, though they all have their good points. Raiders started it, and is a classic. TOD has its own sort of charm. Yeah, it gets pretty dark, but when you think about it, so did Raiders. But Last Crusade, first of all, has Sean Connery as Henry Jones, Sr., and he did a marvelous job--as did everybody. The score, as said above, is great. It also has this huge, grand, epic scale. I know that Raiders did, but there's something about it--particularly the tank sequence and the canyon. They are what I think of when I think of the enormity of LC. I don't know. It's fun, grand, and awesome!

 

Raiders you cant really complain about at all. I mean, by today's standards some may have a few complaints in it but at the time it was made it was a total revolution of the adventure picture. Not many movies can create a genre unto itself; Lucas did that three times in a row (Amer Graffitti, SW, and Indy)!

Temple of Doom is my favourite. I really dont understand how it gets so much flack; i can see if you are expecting another light "Raiders part 2" it can be a little jarring, but jeez, blame Lucas for being original and not remaking the first film !

Ever since i was a kid it was my favourite, though this could have been due to the fact that it was the only one i owned. I hadnt seen the film is almost a decade and about a year ago i watched again, as if for the first time ever as i had forgotten much of it, and man was it great. I was amazed at its darkness; its just so chilling and sinister in tone and mood without being graphic, it really gets to you. The film remains as my favourite. Maybe its because thats just the type of guy i am; the type who prefers Alien 3 to Aliens because its all dark and moody, the guy who prefers ESB to SW because its serious and downbeat, the type of guy who prefers Day of the Dead to Dawn of the Dead because its violent and sinister. Its just a great standalone adventure picture, and its intense as hell. Thats what surprised me. Raiders was paced rather moderatly but Doom was always intense. Whenever there wasnt explosions and chases there were people being tortured and black magic ceremonies going on. You're always on edge, theres always that feeling of dread and uneasiness. The film really gets under your skin, and i was surprised to find myself in such a state of suspence and uneasiness (being a huge horror buff). But having said that, i find it to be the most uplifting of them all! The last scene with the children running home to their crying parents and the bombastic Indy theme blaring is just so joyful; it really makes the scenes that matter stand out because the heros suffer and the audience is not always grinning.

And even still, i find it to be the most exciting and action packed. The film turns into a great horror show for 40 minutes but the last 30 are just wall-to-wall adreneline pumping action. Not even Last Crusade could top: Willie is sacrificed> Shortround escapes> ceremony fistfight> children escape> the guards are stormed> Indy fights the guard on the conveyorbelt> shortround fights the Mahharajah> scaffold battle> minecar chase> water chase> bridge standoff> final cliffside battle. Its just relentless and Indy really becomes a hero in this film. Raiders and Temple of Doom always had action all the way through with large breathers between each sequence. Doom has an edge of your seat intensity that carries on for 30 minutes at a time. The film isnt all explosions and tanks like the other two, but Indy and child slaves being tortured and brainwashed and people being sacrificed and burned alive are much more nailbiting. The film could have failed with a poorer director but Speilburg is master of pace, mood and suspence, and he hits all the right notes.

But many are dissapointed in it. Why? Most cite the film's darkness. To me thats the best part of the film. People didnt want anything too drastically different from Raiders. They wanted an upbeat adventure flick that just retreaded Raiders. Last Crusade does this, and it is a fine film, certainly second only to Doom IMO, but Doom was original. It was different and creative, the makers werent going to make just another sequel, they were going to take it to the next level. Really, to this day, can anyone cite a movie quite like Doom? I cant. Theres just something about it; its much different from Raiders and Last Crusade to stand out as the black sheep, but the first and last portions still feel like a Jone's movie, and it retained the old 30's serial feel. There really isnt a black-magic/cult film like this since the Hammer horror days, and this outdoes anything similar.

Temple of Doom just rocks from start

 

While Temple of Doom is my least favorite Indy film (though I still love it), I'm glad to see others choose it as their top pick. I think it's unfairly criticized. It was also my first Indy film, and I still remember watching it. Brings back many fond memories of days long gone.

Last Crusade has always stood out as my favorite, though. I'm in agreement with the earlier posters who praised its soundtrack. All the Indy films have great music, but LC has a lot of variety and almost every piece is memorable.

And I loved that brief moment in the LC teaser with Spielberg talking to the Hitler actor and saying he wants to kill him. I'd always wondered how he felt about that scene.