Best Steven Spielberg movie of the 00s?

[CaptainCanada]

Spielberg is one of the greatest living directors, but the 2000s in general didn't attract the same level of fan/critical acclaim as previous ones did. My thoughts on his films:

AI: Artificial Intelligence (2001) - didn't see this one when it came out. Very divisive among audiences.

Catch Me If You Can (2002) - made my Top 10 list for the decade. One of my favourite dramedies, with great lead performances from DiCaprio and Hanks, and a great supporting cast.

Minority Report (2002) - a good sci-fi/noir hybrid, and one of the last films I can recall really enjoying Tom Cruise in before his offscreen antics overpowered his screen persona.

The Terminal (2004) - this one I think is really underrated. Not groundbreaking in any way, but it's a charming little comedy, more or less what it set out to be.

Munich (2005) - great drama, almost made my top 10 of the decade. This is his most "serious" work of the decade, and a very compelling one (the one scene I don't like is the really overwrought sex/violence juxtaposition at the end).

War of the Worlds (2005) - blockbuster Spielberg reappears. It's a really good movie for most of the way through (the aliens' attacks of really harrowingly depicted), undercut by a really strange ending.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) - didn't see it.

Your thoughts on these films/your favourite?

 

[JacksonArcher]

I love Minority Report, but Catch Me If You Can is just an enormously enjoyable and immensely satisfying film. The Terminal is also a really enduring little film.

 

[Obiwanshinobi]

Minority Report, Catch Me if you can and Munich for me, AI was ok too just really really slow, but whimsical

 

[Shurik]

Catch Me If You Can.
Munich is a close second.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

It's a toss up between A.I. Artificial Intelligence (which I see as part Kubrick anyways) and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. I'll probably go with the latter. I don't care what anyone thinks, I still think it was a great Indy adventure.

However, I agree the 00s were not a great decade for Spielberg. I hate Minority Report and War of the Worlds, while Munich and Catch Me If You Can were merely enjoyable. I haven't seen The Terminal yet.

Any bets on whether he'll finally make that Lincoln biopic with Liam Neeson this decade?

 

[Caliburn24]

Most of Spielberg's last decade is alright, but nothing amazing. Enjoyed almost every single one of his films, but nothing was as powerful or fun as his early works and his later masterpieces like Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan.

Would be great if he whipped out the old magic for the pirate movie he's doing, but I have my doubts.

 

[Roger Wilco]

Catch Me If You Can and Munich are the only ones I've seen and I liked both (to the extent you can "like" a film like Munich at least).

 

[Yoda]

Didn't see Munich. Maybe I'll check it out. The rest in order of best to worst:

Catch Me If You Can (2002) - Great movie from top to bottom.

The Terminal (2004) - Tom Hanks as Borat? What's not to like?

Minority Report (2002) - It was ok. Saw it in the theaters, didn't ever feel like watching it again, but I didn't feel ripped off.

AI: Artificial Intelligence (2001) - Boring. Didn't like it. The end sucked.

War of the Worlds (2005) - Sucked. I don't remember many details, but I think it suffered from annoying kids syndrome. Then there was that velociraptor carbon copy scene... And Tom Cruise just sucking in general. Saw it in the theater and felt ripped off.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) Pure unadulterated Lucas franchise rape. Shia the greaser badass swinging with monkeys on vines, nuclear fridges, CGI prairie dogs. Nothing to like about this movie, and it shits on a previously great franchise. Oh, and watching old man Ford run around trying to be an action star was a bad joke too.

 

[Mr Light]

Nostalgia wise Indy takes the cake. Quality wise, Minority Report > War of the Worlds > Indy > AI > Munich > Catch Me > Terminal.

 

[MyCylon]

"Minority Report" is my pick: Not perfect. But I adore some of the ideas, the design work and the cinematography in this one. I think it's spot-on in those categories. This, I think, could have been a "Blade Runner" of the 00s but is held back by some really IMHO silly moments such as chasing the rolling eyeball or some unnecessary over-the-top action sequences.

I also enjoyed "A.I." but felt it needed to lose the current ending and end with the boy forever asking the Blue Fairy to turn him into a boy. There's also a few scenes during the film that I could do without.

"War of the Worlds" had (why I do not know) a really, REALLY stupid alien plan at its core (literally). But it was an enjoyable if light-weight ride, I think. I thought some scenes were pretty stunning, mind you.

"Catch Me if You Can" just isn't my type of movie. But I did enjoy some of it.

I haven't seen "Munich" or "The Terminal", and I'm not really interested in changing that anytime soon. "Munich" has a really tough subject matter I'm not really up to at the moment (and haven't been for a while now). Whereas I'm just not interested in "The Terminal's" story.

 

[Captaindemotion]

AI - loved it until the ending, which I hated. But I think the ending was Kubrick's, not Spielberg's.

Catch Me - A great caper movie, from its 60s-esque Pink Panther type credits and jazzy soundtrack. But also - as with many Spielberg movies - an interesting father & son story. Great performances and dynamics from all involved.

The Terminal - haven't seen it.

Minority Report. This just about nabbed my vote over WOTW. Genuinely compelling sci-fi, fantasic visuals (serving the story and creating a believable world) wrapped around an old-fashioned detective story (one scene is almost identical to one in La Confidential). Cruise at his most dashing, with a great support cast.

Munich - also considered voting for this. A powerful and thoughtful story, with a braver view of this tragic story than one might have expected. And a subtle cry for peace.

War of the Worlds - almost voted for it but I went for MR in the end. But WOTW is a superb blockbuster nonetheless. Yet the scenes that are most memorable had all the action offscreen. The plane crash, where we hear but don't see it (and think it's the aliens until the debris is revealed) and, even more so, Cruise telling his daughter not to look, then going into the basement to kill Tim Robbins. The door closes, we hear fighting noises and cries of pain. Pure, brilliant, terrifying cinema.

Indiana Jones & TKOTCS. Oh dear. I just did not like this movie. I liked the first few scenes, I thought Ford was great as an older Indy. But it soon became a snoozefest and committed the cardinal sin of not feeling like an Indiana Jones movie.

Get off to a better start in this decade Steven, please.

 

[Bad Bishop]

I picked Minority Report. One of the critics from At The Movies (I don't remember which guy, A.O. Scott or Michael Phillips) named it one of the ten best of the past decade.

Catch Me If You Can was also a terrific film. As a bonus, it had a bunch of babes in small roles, including Jennifer Garner, Amy Adams, Elizabeth Banks and Amy Acker.

 

[LutherSloan]

I think a lot of people fail to realize that Spielberg went with the original book's ending to 'War of the Worlds'. It wasn't his idea.

 

[MyCylon]

^
The ending is brilliant IMHO. It's the changes made to the setup that I have a problem with, personally. It just didn't seem to make sense to me that they'd go to all the trouble of hiding those machines underground the way they did in the film. The book seemed to make a lot more sense in that regard.

 

[od0_ital]

Catch Me If You Can gets my vote. Its just fun to watch, every time.

Minority Report is a close second.

 

[Kegg]

Okay, all of you people who haven't seen the Terminal (and worse still, don't want to?) need to know this:

Zoe Saldana is in the movie, and she is the object of the romantic feelings of a Trekkie. There is a moment in this film which if you do not retrospectively geek out at I don't want to know you:

Spoiler: The Terminal

Where she does the Vulcan Hand Salute and then reveals the wedding ring. Perfect or what?

That said I voted for Munich. One of the better films out there about the messy thing that is fighting terrorism, and with an excellent cast who acquit themselves pretty well.

 

[Emher]

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say The Terminal. It's the one of these I've seen the most times, and I always enjoy it and it never fails to make me smile.

 

[Starbreaker]

Minority Report. Can't wait to get it on Blu-ray.

 

[Broccoli]

Out of those movies, I like Indy 4 the best. However, Catch Me If You Can, Munich, and, to a lesser extent, The Terminal are probably better crafted films.

Honestly though, all of those films are pretty good and/or enjoyable.

Minority Report. Can't wait to get it on Blu-ray.

That would look awesome on blu-ray.

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

Spielberg made some excellent films in the 2000s, although it's the first decade since he made his directorial debut in which none of his films really rose to the level of iconic films that affected the cultural zeitgeist. In the previous three decades he made at least two or three films per decade that reached that level (Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind in the 1970s, Raiders of the Lost Ark and E.T. in the 1980s, and Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, and Saving Private Ryan in the 1990s).

The IMDB ratings for his theatrical feature films come to the following averages by decade:

7.7 for the 1980s (seven films)
7.4 for the 1990s (six films)
7.2 for the 2000s (seven films)
7.1 for the 1970s (four films)

If Duel (which was made for television) is included in the 1970s average then it goes up to 7.2.

Spielberg's films of the 2000s ranked by IMDB rating:

Munich (7.8)
Minority Report (7.7)
Catch Me If You Can (7.7)
The Terminal (7.1)
Artificial Intelligence: A.I. (6.9)
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (6.6)
War of the Worlds (6.6)

My rankings kick off with his trio of science fiction films from the 2000s, two of which are very underrated:

Artificial Intelligence: A.I. (8.5/10) - A beautifully crafted film that explores some dark areas and then builds up to a powerfully emotional ending. Unlike many, it's an ending I feel works extremely well.

Minority Report (8.5/10) - Great visuals, exciting action set pieces, and stellar performances from Tom Cruise and Samantha Morton. The ending is open to an alternative downbeat interpretation, too, even though it may not be the interpretation Spielberg intended.

War of the Worlds (8/10) - A master class in building tension, with fine performances from Tom Cruise and Dakota Fanning. My only complaint is that I would have preferred a more bittersweet ending.

Catch Me If You Can (8/10) - A jazzy and elegant film, with fine performances all around. It very effectively achieves the unusual feat of mixing 1960s caper film sensibilities with genuinely heartfelt drama.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (7/10) - The least of the Indy films, but a fun film nonetheless. Ford still has the Indy mojo, and has a tinkle in his eye for the first time in a long time on screen, and Shia LeBeouf fortunately proves to be good in his role as Mutt. On the other hand, Cate Blanchett is horribly hammy as the villain and the previously great Karen Allen is a bit rusty in her performance as Marion.

Munich (6.5/10) - It has good performances and some effective set pieces, but it presents a trite and overly truncated view of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, and the slo-mo sex scene is probably the most embarrasingly bad thing Spielberg has ever put on screen.

The Terminal (6.5/10) - Nothing terribly wrong with it if you're in the mood for a mellow film, but it's a bit of a snoozefest and the relationship between Tom Hanks and Catherine Zeta-Jones stretches plausibility to the breaking point.