Spielberg (2017)

A documentary on the life and career of one of the most influential film directors of all time, Steven Spielberg.

Director:

Susan Lacy

Stars:

Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Richard Dreyfuss

Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Steven Spielberg	...	Himself
Martin Scorsese	...	Himself - Director
Richard Dreyfuss	...	Himself - Actor
Bill Butler	...	Himself - Cinematographer, Jaws
John Williams	...	Himself - Composer
David Edelstein	...	Himself - Film Critic
Michael Phillips	...	Himself - Producer
Nancy Spielberg	...	Herself - Sister
Anne Spielberg	...	Herself - Sister
Janet Maslin	...	Herself - Film Critic
Sue Spielberg	...	Herself - Sister
Leah Adler	...	Herself - Parent
Arnold Spielberg	...	Himself - Parent
J.J. Abrams	...	Himself - Director
Sid Sheinberg	...	Himself - Former President, MCA Inc. / Universal

Storyline

A documentary on the life and career of one of the most influential film directors of all time, Steven Spielberg.

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Taglines:

Direct from the heart.

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 October 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

Spielberg

Company Credits

Production Co:

HBO Documentary Films, Pentimento Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

147 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

16:9 HD

Did You Know?

Trivia

Around 30 hours of interviews with Steven Spielberg were shot.

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Goofs

A clip of "Wayne's World 2" (1993) that parodies "Jurassic Park" is incorrectly labeled as "Wayne's World" (1992). The first "Wayne's World" film could not have included a parody of "Jurassic Park," since "Jurassic Park" had not yet been filmed when "Wayne's World" was released in 1992.

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Quotes

Herself - Film Critic: He speaks cinema as if it's his native language.

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Connections

References The Land Before Time (1988)

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Soundtracks

Original Score Excerpts from the Motion Picture 'Schindler's List'
Music Composed and Conducted by John Williams
Courtesy of Universal Studios

User Reviews

Spielberg on Spielberg

Spielberg (2017)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

This documentary clocks in at just under two and a half hours and has Steven Spielberg talking about his time in Hollywood as well as some personal stories about his family and how this shaped the movies that he would make. Not only do we get interviews with Spielberg himself but we also hear from his parents, his sisters as well as co-workers and friends including Martin Scorsese, George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, Richard Dreyfuss, John Williams, Janet Maslin, Sid Sheinberg and various others.

For the most part I thought this was a very good documentary that was put together very well. The film does a very good job at going over Spielberg's career as well as the personal stories that helped shape them. This includes stories about his parents divorce, the fifteen-years he and his father struggled to have a relationship as well as him becoming a father. All of these stories are told in such a good way that it helps when we then get to the movies because it brings some good insight.

The film discussion is certainly the highlight of the series as the director gets to reflect on his career, the films he's proud of and a few moments where he wasn't as happy. Of course, a lot of the lesser films are pretty much overlooked 1941 gets a quick twenty-second comment whereas HOOK, THE LOST WORLD and ALWAYS aren't even mentioned. We do get some terrific stories about JAWS, DUEL and what it was like for a twenty-year-old to try and direct someone like Joan Crawford.

Fans of the director are certainly going to enjoy this documentary and especially since he shares some good stories about their production as well as things that were going on behind-the-scenes.