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Every Steven Spielberg Movie, Ranked From Worst To Best
The three-time Oscar winner is one of the greatest living American filmmakers
Steven Spielberg is undoubtedly one of the most influential living filmmakers—and possibly of all time. His breakthrough film Jaws completely changed the way movies are made (and released), as he singlehandedly created the summer blockbuster. And while he has made his fair share of blockbuster movies, his thoughtful, serious dramas are on par with his more populist works. Here's a look back at his filmography, ranked from worst to best.
32. The Terminal (2004)
Viktor Navorski's home country collapses amid a civil war just before he arrives in New York, leaving his passport invalid. Once he's a citizen of no country, he's forced to live at JFK. If you love airports and duty-free shops, this movie is for you.
31. The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)
If there's one thing Hollywood loves, it's milking a franchise until it's dead. Even Spielberg himself isn't immune to taking on a bad sequel, and The Lost World is proof that the great director can indeed deliver a misfire.
30. Indiana Jones and the Kingom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
By far the weakest link in the Indiana Jones franchise, this one starred a 66-year-old Harrison Ford as the titular character fight ing Soviets who are on the hunt for extraterrestrial crystal skulls.
29. 1941 (1979)
This madcap comedy about the infamous (and mysterious) Battle of Los Angeles following the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor features an ensemble cast of comedy titans including Dan Aykroyd, Ned Beatty, John Candy, and John Belushi.
28. Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983)
Spielberg's instalment in this sci-fi / horror anthology sees the elderly residents of Sunnyvale Retirement Home revisiting their childhood—experiencing the joy of youth, as well as its burdens—when a mysterious resident named Mr. Bloom moves in.
27. Always (1989)
Richard Dreyfuss stars as an aerial firefighter who, after getting killed on the job, returns as a spirit to mentor another young pilot (Brad Johnson). The plot gets complicated when the younger pilot falls for the elder pilot's widow (played by Holly Hunter).
26. The Adventures of Tintin (2011)
25. The BFG (2016)
Oscar-winner Mark Rylance steps into the role of Roald Dahl's big, friendly giant, proving that he can perfectly disappear into any performance (especially if he's playing a computer-generated character).
24. War of the Worlds (2005)
Spielberg brings his usual flash and vision to another extra-terrestrial tale—a passable adaptation of H. G. Wells's sci-fi classic—this time giving Earth's celestial guests deadly motives as they pummel our world.
23. War Horse (2011)
Perhaps one of the most non-traditional war epics, War Horse examines World War I through the eyes of a Thoroughbred horse who joins the ranks of the British army.
22. The Surgarland Express (1974)
Spielberg make his theatrical feature debut with this crime drama that stars Goldie Hawn as a woman that helps her husband escape from jail in order to spring their son out of foster care. It is an impressive first feature, which announced a major cinematic talent.
21. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
Temple of Doom has the notorious distinction of being so bloody and scary that it basically initiated the creation of the American PG-13 rating. It also has the notorious distinction of being, well, pretty racist. It really does not hold up.
20. Empire of the Sun (1987)
Christian Bale's breakthrough performance is the shining light of this war drama, in which an upper-class British boy living in Shanghai sees his life turned upside-down during the Japanese occupation in World War II.
19. Amistad (1997)
This historical drama follows the slave uprising on the ship La Amistad and the subsequent legal battle that ensued once the Mende tribesmen were captured by an American ship.
18. Hook (1991)
The boy who would never grow up did, in fact, grow up—at least that's what Hook presupposes. Robin Williams plays an uptight, workaholic corporate lawyer whose children are kidnapped by a long-lost enemy: Captain James Hook (Dustin Hoffman).
17. Duel (1971)
This TV movie marked Spielberg's directorial debut—one so successful that it received a theatrical release. It follows a traveling salesman who is stalked on a two-lane desert highway by an unseen driver manning a tanker truck.
16. A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)
Spielberg infamously took on this film project from Stanley Kubrick following the acclaimed auteur's death in 1999. The result is a Spielberg-Kubrick fusion: a Pinocchio-inspired morality tale about a child robot.
15. The Post (2017)
Spielberg's timely political drama looks back at Washington Post publisher Kay Graham and editor Ben Bradlee as they prepare to go up against the Nixon White House to publish the infamous Pentagon Papers in 1971.
14. Minority Report (2002)
Set in the distant future, a specialised police force known as the PreCrime unit arrests criminals before they can commit their illegal acts. When the head of the unit is identified as a possible criminal, however, he must outsmart his colleagues as he searches for the truth.
13. Catch Me If You Can (2002)
Leonardo DiCaprio dazzles in this comic caper about the real-life Frank Abagnale—a professional con man who poses as a Pan Am pilot, a doctor, and a prosecutor—and the beleaguered FBI agent who is desperate to apprehend him.
Tyler Coates is the Senior Culture Editor at Esquire.com. He lives in Los Angeles.
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