Steven Spielberg On Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock & Martin Scorsese
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- Опубліковано 21 вер 2010
- Steven Spielberg talks about Directors with distinct styles. He refers the work of Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock, Martin Scorsese and Michael Curtiz.
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I personally believe Spielberg does have a style. It may not be as distinct as Scorsese, Tarantino or even Kubrick, but with every Spielberg film, there's a "human" quality, a sentimentality that is hard to define but is unique to his films. My Favourite director ever!
Unfortunately, sentimental mostly defines his style.
Fergal Hughes Exactly. Tree sap personified.
you have said it!
His sentimentality is one of the things I love most about his films. Coming from a somewhat sentimental guy.
Spielberg absolutely has a style, dripping with sappy sentimentality. He WISHES he had no style. Scorsese has less of a style. Ever watch “Silence”?
Spielberg absolutely has a style as a filmmaker. We’re now over a decade in to a glut of superhero movies, most of which have tried to emulate Spielberg, and nearly all of which have done so very poorly. The reason why is because Spielberg understands that spectacle is not enough. You have to have a reason to care about it.
This is why people still care about Jaws and Raiders of the Lost Ark, but Avengers: Endgame has already been forgotten. Spielberg invests very deeply in his characters and makes them relatable. He makes his scenarios relatable by tapping into basic human emotion and experience, always connecting the real with the spectacle. He is truly a master craftsman.
Well his older movies have a nostalgic quality now that may happen with some of the movies out more recently in 20 or 30 years too especially films directed at children they like to watch them again with their kids. I think the script writing has gotten lame in favour of just CGI lately though people care less about the story now but I think many people are also less intelligent now just want entertainment not to think or feel as much.
Steven Spielberg is like the American version of Hayao Miyazaki, which is the reason why he is my favorite director. Because Steven and Hayao make good films that are great at the box office and create visual wonder in them.
Hitchcock had his own style yes but he was also a master storyteller.
I'm not quite sure I agree. Hitchcock would begin with a story, but often the story would become lost within the themes and characters he was presenting. Just think "North By Northwest", where, I think, he was joking about that himself.
Spielberg openly acknowledges the spielbergian style now
Because he does.
Nowadays he's making shitty movies all the time, before they were pretty watchable for the most part
@@classicpinball9873 did you say Spielberg movies were pretty watchable for the most part? LOL!!
I will agree to the part that he hasn't made a good movie since maybe Bridge of Spies. And in my opinion his last great great film was Lincoln. 2015, 2012, so that is 5-8 years ago. But in general he has a stellar filmography that puts him up there with the all time greats.
FINALLY, GEEZ
His style is he loves to torture Nazi’s in film.
Kubrick I think has the most recognisable style of any filmmaker. There are certain things you always have in a Kubrick film, like long closeups of a person's face, long uninterrupted shots, classical music, a famous/memorable piece of music during the opening credits..
Zooms
Symmetrical shots
They have a coldness to them.
@@lewstone5430 in some of them that’s true, but it’s intentional. Two scientists in 2001 are meant to be cold because that echoes idea that people can be even colder than AI at times, which is demonstrated when being forced to lie by humans causes HAL to malfunction. In Full Metal Jacket main theme is dehumanization so obviously it’s going to be kinda cold. Could go further on but those are two good examples.
I think for Spielberg to deny he has a style is ludicrous. ONLY Spielberg can make a Spielberg movie, as only Welles can make a Welles movie, etc. et al. Some directors were more adept at genre hopping than others.
As example, Hitchcock, with only a few exceptions, stuck with the suspense/thriller as his metier, whereas a director like William Wyler could go from a classy romantic comedy like Roman Holiday, to a disturbing familial drama like The Little Foxes, to a superb Bible-fiction epic like Ben-Hur, a sprawling western like The Big Country, probably the best wartime melodrama of all time - The Best Years of Our Lives, and then turn 180 degrees to pull off a featherweight and plush farce like To Steal A Million, and do it all with utter easy. But still, it was always 'the Wyler touch' that prevailed in these movies; Wyler's focus on the intimacy of a human crisis or elation to tell his stories.
Personally, I don't think a director can ever shed his 'persona' or the 'impression' his work cumulatively leaves on the hearts and minds of the viewer. Come to think of it: I can't think of a single reason why any director would ever want to try!
Nick Zegarac Hes talking about his own opinion
I was going to write this exact thought. If Spielberg didn't think he has a style then why did he impose his style of filmmaking on, for example, The Color Purple's script?? The original material was much harsher than he was willing to take it.
Well, Hitchcock encompassed a remarkable range of styles and tones under the broad "thriller" umbrella. The man who made Vertigo and North by Northwest and Psycho within two years and change was highly versatile.
He definitely had a style early in his career. "Sugarland," "Jaws," "Close Encounters," "E.T." and the Spielberg produced "Poltergeist" all had his trademark slice of life "family home" look. I'm referring to the toys scattered throughout bedrooms and the house, the pop culture references, an attempt to capture a real American family and the relationship between their parents and children. Even "Temple of Doom" has this theme--even though it doesn't deal with a real family, but one created by Willie, Indy and Short Round.
^This.
I also think that the reason that Spielberg doesn't recognise that he has that kind of a style is that he is so used to it. Unlike in cases like Tarantino or Kubrick where the style is so clearly foreign to reality, Spielberg's style is much closer, and as it is he doesn't see the difference because to him, that was (most likely) pretty close to his own childhood imagery.
Victor Fleming directed some scenes of Gone with the Wind ,,then took a golf cart and simultaneously...in the SAME YEAR directed The Wizard of Oz
Seven year old comment but I hate to break it to you but Victor Fleming didn't "direct" that much of either movies. They were more studios and they had multiple directors.
@@TheListenerCanon total and complete bulshit
@@TheListenerCanon both movies had disastrous productions and yes plenty of directors who came before them. But he fixed them and made them how they are currently known hence why he gets credit.
No one captures human wonder better than Spielberg.
Spielberg is unique in that he adopted two styles. First, it was the traditional, adventurous, John Williams-ready capers (Jurassic Park, ET, Jaws). But after Schindler's List, his craft became decidedly darker and more mature (Munich, Saving Private Ryan.)
Spielberg is a great director, but I don't think he's aware of his own style. He definitely has one.
Spielberg is a craftsman, not an artist.
@@busterbiloxi3833 I think Spielberg took craftsmanship to a high art level.
@@busterbiloxi3833 He's an artist, not in the way you want tho...
@@Lulustucru2393 Yeah, he is an artist and a great one.
He's just being humble
Kubrick is a "chameleon" yet has his own style.
Spielberg does have a style. Long scenes in his films tend to have a lot of buildup, some 15 minutes to convey a single idea, but spending all 15 minutes on the different characters and the different details that make it happen. They tend to be curious and full of wonder. Some things are ethereal. Even films that aren't whimsical like The Terminal still convey that sense of wonder. Bad guys are bad guys, and there's no questioning that. Good guys aren't just good, they're heroes.
You can recognize a Spielberg film in under ten minutes. He has a way to move the camera, a personal point of view, even the way actors move and talk.
Nobody moves that camera like you Spielberg so don't say you don't have a style.
Really? Precisly scorsese is well know for his camera moves
Then u guys never saw Andrei Tarkovsky's camera movement
Seriously speilberg is not a Cinematographer
@@BhagyanagarREevery great/big directors do their own camera movement lol u didn't know that? I found some Quora's answer for u hope u can understand better www.quora.com/Do-cinematographers-ever-choose-camera-movements-like-close-up-tracking-etc-or-is-that-always-the-director
I don't think he is entirely right, I do see a Spielberg style particularly in his early years. Even movies like Color Purple and Empire of the Sun had recognisable Spielberg traits and themes. The first film where he completely let go of his style was Schindler's List.
And it was all for the better.
Steven, I agree there is nothing wrong in the way you make films. It allows you to to work more often and in more Genres.
"Schindler's List" will be watched in a century from now. "Raiders of the Lost Ark", "A.I." and "Munich" are also masterpieces. Spielberg has plenty of great films - because he's a great filmmaker. That's just my opinion.
When I was a kid Spielberg was an idol to me and I grew up watching movies that he directed and/or produced and I admire him very much and when I started my film course I could admire him much more, because I could see what it is a film production, he's still an idol to me but in a different way. I love blockbuster as I love cult movie, anyway it's Cinema,
Gone with the Wind was directed by Victor Fleming
Akira Kurosawa was another amazing director who influenced. He made some amazing movies in his time. I'm still trying to find more of his work but what I've seen him make in the 50s-60s is outstanding. I didn't think I'd be one for samurai flicks lol not that that's the only thing he works on. Anyone who loves movies, and doesn't mind black and white or subtitles, start off with "Seven Samurai", "Yojimbo", or "Ikiru" on netflix. Look forward to some amazing acting by Toshiro Mifune as well :)
Spielberg definitely has a visual style that was evident since Duel, then he refined it in Jaws and Close Encounters. He displays a masterful use of lens angle and camera movement. His movies are satisfying to watch because he fills the frame with information and movement. He creates movies, not talking slide shows.
Steven Spielberg is a masterful story teller. Every scene is so meticulously shot and edited that you can't help but to be captivated by the moment to moment of each scene. Yes Steven, you have a style that's of your own.
That is how I see William Wyler, tons of great movies but no identifiable William Wyler style.
thats the reason the academy overlooked scorsese, welles and hitchcock, every time thier film came out people were like hey another film that was just like the last one, they didn't pay attention to the craft of filmaking and the subtle touches each director put into his film.
The most versatile director ever is Howard Hawks, then Kubrick (although you can tell a film of his within 10 seconds.
It's fun that different different directors approach work in different ways. Spielberg is an incredible storyteller.
Love this one. Fantastic interview AFI *thumbs up*
Francis Ford Coppola is another of that ilk. You watch "Godfather", "Apocalypse Now", "Bram Stoker's Dracula", or any of his other films- they are so stylistically different from each other. He approaches each film very differently based on the necessity of telling the story.
I agree with him, I don't think he has a style even though his movies are great.
An example of a young director with a style which you can identify quickly is Quentin Tarantino.
AzizTastic nobody has a style more like Wes Anderson.
Yeah I agree, the only thing I can point to for Steven is the constant moving camera. Otherwise there are films you can watch and not realize its actually him doing it imo.
Not to make it seem like hes bad for that, hes still an all time great.
ua-cam.com/video/8q4X2vDRfRk/v-deo.html He does have a style...
Steven Spielberg does have a style. But unlike other filmmakers that ram their styles in the audiences' faces, Spielberg's style is very subtle. He tries to stay hidden. Even his oners are very subtley done
Is "craft" a bad thing at all. I didn't fin the black and white "pretentious" at all (Spielberg took notes I think from Scorsese and "Raging Bull"). Despite how dark, depressing and bleak the film may be I thought Spielberg made it surprisingly optimistic - Oskar Schindler (despite his professional reasons) was a hero who saved thousands of Jews who spawned thousands of families because of what he did. Spielberg's story and craftsmanship make the film a masterpiece.
Even though I think Spielberg can do no wrong, he is dead wrong here. Spielberg has a style, and he can only make Spielberg films, but, that's why I love them so much.
Spielberg is pretty humble about his craft. He always admired other people craft. That's what kept him going forward. But other filmmakers aknowledge his style such as Cameron, Jeff Nichols and so much more. There's a lot of symbolism, very choregraphed camera moves and strong blocking. It's funny to see people denying his style when it's so apparent ( the use of light for example : nobody would dare light a movie like ET )
Exactly why collaboration is so crucial
True. Always fun to try different things, and serve the picture well. Essence. 📽
I never thought about that. Steven Spielberg really doesn't have a style all his own. He is right about that.
absolutely true
Spielberg is still great. What other director's can put out two films just two months apart that are completely different styles and yet are both so good? I'm talking about the Adventures of Tintin and War Horse just last year, both of which I thoroughly enjoyed.
Unique Sights from creative moving spaces....
I think that's pretty honest insight into his own oeuvre. I never thought of Steven as an "auteur." But there are some telltale "Spielbergisms" common throughout his films. And very few filmmakers today know how to compose a shot as well as Steven. A brilliant guy, really.
@dcolby5 that's only a part of it, it could also be other details like use of particular kinds of music, recurrent themes, etc.
I have only known Steven Spielberg to be stylized. Every movie you ever see of his has his own signature and his own stamp.
@weikko79 his versatily was that he has able to adapt his unique style to every genre he made, he was able to stretch himself as a director to create different worlds. An actor is versatile if he can adapt to different roles, but ultimately we know its the same actor. In every genre, Kubrick has a film that cracks at least the top ten, the films he makes are extremely effective in their respective fields.
Victor Fleming directed Gone With the Wind.
Welles was an absolute genius.
What is it about artists like Tarantino, Spielberg and Larry David that I can hear them talk for 2 hours and not get bored.
The thing is, people tend to remember the director more than their movies when the director has a unique style, whereas people tend to remember the movies more than the director when there isn't a distinctive style...
His style changed over the course of his career. A lot of creativity.
Thos guy made Jurassic Park and Schindler's List pretty much at the same time.
GOAT.
Well, Hitchcock had Dial M For Murder & Rear Window out in the same year, while Bergman had Wild Strawberries & The Seventh Seal both out in the same year as well. Both are superior filmmakers to Spielberg, & all of these films are vastly superior to Jurassic Park (which is good but has a flawed script & not very interesting characters), & Schindler's List.
@1Moregano1 I was kind of thinking the same thing. Although he has developed at least a little more stylistic versatility in the last decade and a half or so, there's a very distinctive "Spielberg style"... although in many ways in became the default "Hollywood blockbuster style," especially in the '80s.
@LukeLovesRose I think his point is like the difference between what we would identify as a "movie star" and a "character actor". Some actors, like Jack Nicholson, have a presence that transcends their role without losing subtlety or greatness, whereas other actors, such as Gary Oldman, can project that same greatness while getting into the character to the point of being unrecognizable.
Absolutely.
If Spielberg has any style it’s that childlike, dreamlike optimism so many of his films have - but I agree with his sentiments. He’s a true DIRECTOR in the classical sense, and probably the greatest film director of all time for that reason. I get where he’s coming from, Hitchcock, Kubrick and Welles all had this thing that you could instantly recognise as “their picture”. Spielberg doesn’t (necessarily) have that - the difference between ET and Schindler’s List is a great example of this - who could predict that was the same director?? He’s so knowledgeable of film genre that he is able to borrow (not saying that with condescension) so many styles to serve the story his trying to tell. I think he’s extremely underrated and blown off as just a “kids movie” guy!
actually victor flemming did gone with the wind not michael curtiz :)
Steven, you have a style. You are a great filmmaker like Victor Flemming, but you do have a style.
Your style is: BIG! Really BIG. Even your small film, ET, was BIG.
In a Steven Spielberg film, the audience is never left wanting more. Sometimes they want less, MUCH LESS, but they are never left wanting more.
Also, the theme of all your films is: Love conquers all.
Spielberg sells himself short here. There's never been a director before him who has both that "style" and that versatility that he's talking about. No other director could get away with adapting to as many subjects as he has without his identity being mistaken. "Saving Private Ryan", "Catch Me If You Can", "War of the Worlds" and the "Indiana Jones" movies are all quintessentially Spielberg.
@mastertheben I disagree about the statement of there hasn;t been a more versitile director before him. Billy Wilder was equally as versitile. From Some like it hot(a Comedy)to the likes of Witness for the Prosecution and Sunset Blvd.(heavy Drama)b to inbetween(Stalag 17)
COME ON STEVE YOU DEFINITLEY HAVE A STYLE!!!!
It's that very quality that he describes that makes him stand among the giants he describes. Another name I'd throw in there is Ridley Scott...a visual storyteller not bound by genre, setting or form
I wonder if Spielberg’s sense of not having a style is (part of) what drew him to Kaminski, because Kaminski has a more recognizable style. I’m not sure if I’m putting it correctly, but there’s an idea there.
Also William Wyler aaaaaand perhaps George Stevens.
He is being very modest.
@kingcaesar5 - True, but you could tell a Kubrick film "within ten seconds" because of (how Spielberg puts it) the "impeccible craftsmanship" that only Kubrick could execute. If were speaking in regards to subjective versatility - I think Kubrick takes the cake. The man never repeated himself.
Its inevitable that Spielberg develops his own style, however, I agree with him in that, with other directors, their signature is so dominant through their pictures, not to say that its style over substance, but more of a signature that comes through.... over time, we have come to appreciate and recognise Spielberg's 'style', however, with Spielberg he does not have imprints or a signature that jumps out throughout the film, rather, there are moments in his pictures of his signature that we see..
Munich is my favorite Spielberg film.
He definitely has certain themes he likes to work with. I don't know if that's the same as a style, though.
Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg are up there in my Top 20 upper echelon of great filmmakers up there with the best of the best
Maybe he's just brilliant in every genre .
He's very modest
the term 'Spielbergian' exists for a reason. Nuff said
He has a style. It's called magic.
I think he's too hard on himself. Some themes that are in most Spielberg movies are: 1. A kid-like sense of awe & wander. 2. Combining the ordinary with the extraordinary: a typical suburb (ordinary) that has Richard Dreyfuss throwing anything & everything through the kitchen window (extraordinary).
I think Spielberg has one of the most (if not the most) distinctive style in the history of moviemakers. Funny he should think the opposite.
His style is both box office and critical success.
He's spot on. He has no style and he's probably still the greatest director of all time
Spielberg has a style!
i think spielberg does have his own style im just not sure how to describe it. theres a lot of family themes in most of his films and an adventure and sort of curiosity. every great director has their own style even if their hard to describe, u see their films and u know who made it. scorsese, spielberg, etc
Dont know what you mean by style.. But hatsoff to ur humility.. You are a great director urself.. But one thing about Your movies.. They have an Universal appeal.. You know what audiences expect from a movie be it an American or some guy in Southeast Asia.. You understand human emotions in general very well.. Thr are very few directors who want to say the story from the audience point of view not from directors eye you r one of them... That's the reason why u are the boss of box office.. - Scorsese fan
@kingcaesar5 Jack Hill and Howard Hawks are definitely the kings of versatility.
@yohei72 Yeah, I think Spielberg was kind of the generator of that 80's/90's 'blockbuster' look. If you look at movies from then from guys like Zemeckis or Cameron, they've kinda got the same thing going that Spielberg had, except not as good.
@meNtor890 I'll concede, "unique" was not the choicest of words in the comment I made 8 months ago, as indeed there are other directors who have shifted styles over time, but never did one adjust so drastically and successfully as Spielberg. No other director could have directed Jurassic Park in one year, and immediately follow up with Schindler's List, creating the Best Picture and the #1 blockbuster of 1993, consecutively.
That takes talent, of the unique variety, I'm sure you'll agree.
Some of you have said that Spielberg does, in fact, have a style. Okay, then, what is his style? Break it down for me.
Scorsese is certainly not "the same" in his every picture. Even though the majority of his films are stylistically recognizable, and deal with subjects, such as mafia and violence, he also made films that the viewer, perhaps, would not "recognize" as "Scorsesian"; e.g. "The age of innocence", "Silence", "The Last Passion", "The Aviator", "New York, New York", among others. And even his "tough" violent films aren't all the same. Compare "Raging Bull" to "Goodfellas".
Speaking of Spielberg, he certainly has a unique style (later copied by a multitude of directors) in the "Jaws", the "Indiana Jones" and the "Jurassic Park" series. No one had done anything like that before Spielberg, and cinema was never the same after these films came out. Spielberg is a genius.
What about Ishiro Honda, Val Guest, Terence Fisher, Mario Bava to name a few..even Jack Arnold
He have distinctive a style. People are trying to copy it like Roland Emmerich etc. Thats how we know he diretcted Poltergeist and not Tobe Hooper. Because he do have a distinctive style
@JenTak19 I can't tell if that was an insult to him, or a compliment.
@kingcaesar5 What makes Kubrick such a versatile film director in your opinion? Not only can you immediately tell his films are his (which if true of Hawks as well, to a degree), but his range isn't that great (unlike Hawks'). You could say that basically all of his films (give or take a few) are about obsession with control (and the ways it can go wrong).
Speilberg does have a 'style'. THEY MAKE TONS OF MONEY. And that's probably the best 'style' of all :)
I recognise Spielberg’s mastery of directing, but I honestly- perhaps with the exception of Schindler’s List- am almost never moved by his work.
I always thought the same as well. You can tell a Scorsese & Kubrick movie a minute into the film. Spielberg is pretty different with no style. I'd say he's "versatile." Either way, I still prefer Scorsese over any director EVER
Putting Scorsese in the same sentence as Kubrick is like putting Radiohead in the same sentence as Beethoven, Mozart or Tchaikovsky.
Fuzzy, don't be cruel to Kubrick like that. It's not his fault that he's not as good as Scorsese.
you guys are funny
Me too. Scorsese is my all time favorite
***** Kubrick didn't make the same movie theme for over a decade.
I think you are the positivest director on hollywood Steven, that´s your style :)
you always have comforting endings, and that is amazingly helpful and brilliant to me :)
Correct
Spielberg as a “warmth” to his style you wouldn’t get with the other directors he quoted.
@weikko79 ou have to do some clever manuevering. The Shining is a psychological horror film, and it ranks in the top ten, its not a slasher or gross out film like what natural convention deems as a horror film. By every genre i mean the ones he attempted. De Niro never did a pure western but that doesn't mean we couldn't have churned out an outstanding performance in one.
It's bold of Spielberg to say he doesn't have a style, but it's a bit disingenuous. He definitely has a style: a sort of modern matinee style using manipulation and sentimentality. Whether or not you approve of it, he's a master at it, and it's drawn many imitators.
Okay...except for the part where Spielberg definitely has a cinematic style; you know you're watching a Spielberg movie.
Styleless?It works for you!
He’s an amazing filmmaker with an unmistakable style 😂. Although after Saving Private Ryan that style has been radically changed (possibly subconsciously to fulfill what he’s talking about in this interview?). Or maybe he became conscious of his style and purposely went against it. Minority Report and War of the Worlds feel like Spielberg, but everything after is a far cry from the filmmaker we knew and loved in the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s because of choice in story and in the way he presents them.
I'm surprised that he's envious of directors who have a distinctive style. If I was a director, I would want my films to all be different (and great of course) but different enough that anybody who saw my films (minus the credits) would not guess they were all made by the same person.
A style is where you can make different films, different stories but that a similarity of tone or similarity of shot or choice of camera angle or length of shot or position of cut can be discerned.
@@TT-mx5ll No shit Sherlock. Nothing you’ve said contradicts anything I’ve said. You obviously don’t know how to read and comprehend.
I guess by that logic, Spielberg is admitting that he’s not a great director because he said he doesn’t have a style as distinctive as other great directors.
When you have something actually intelligent to say, I’ll respond. Otherwise, basic logic is lost upon you.
@@TT-mx5ll LOL
What a fucking drama queen! Are you a MAGA sore loser? “sort out your fucking attitude”.
You obviously didn’t bother to watch the video closely and just like being argumentative.
And I never said Spielberg had no style dumbass. Just wondered why he wished he had a more distinctive style.
You obviously need to learn comprehension.
Like how you go from me saying I wished all my films had a different style to wanting to be working in soaps with no distinctive style.
Sort out your facts first.
Bye bye snowflake.
@@TT-mx5ll Haven't bothered reading your comment but have you learned to calm down and sort out your attitude yet?
@@TT-mx5ll Sorry, who are you again?
@FreedInsanity Those are not styles, they're genres.