Steven Spielberg

The Iconic Filmmaker and His Work

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by Ian Nathan

Type: Studies
Subject: Director > Steven Spielberg
Keywords: Steven Spielberg, director, filmography
Publishing date: 2024 (October 01, 2024)
Publisher: White Lion Publishing
Collection: Iconic Filmmakers Series
Language: English

Relative size

Physical desc.

Hardcover • 176 pages
8 ¾ x 10 inches (22 x 25.5 cm)

ISBN

978-0-7112-9523-0

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Book Presentation:
This comprehensive and in-depth study delves into the life and works of the most famous director who has ever lived, Steven Spielberg.

Spielberg is the medium’s defining artist—the embodiment of the Hollywood ideal: the commercial potential of film married to its creative possibilities. He’s widely popular, but he’s also a stylist, and far darker than he is given credit for. Often, it is this very darkness that speaks to us. But, it’s also his incredible knack for telling stories with lightness that speaks to millions, by mixing the extraordinary with the ordinary. His leading characters, even Indiana Jones, are marked by their vulnerability, their mistakes, their yearning. It's the human touch.

There are so many parts to Spielberg's story: the suburban background that supplied the films with a biographical streak; the collaborations (with George Lucas and the Movie Brats in general, with composer John Williams, producer Kathleen Kennedy, editor Michael Khan, stars Richard Dreyfus, Harrison Ford, and Tom Hanks, and mogul and mentor Sid Sheinberg). The myths that bloomed from the making of these films.The nightmare shoot and stubborn shark behind Jaws. The strange ambitions of Close Encounters. Dive bombing with 1941. Inventing Indiana Jones. Re-inventing the blockbuster with Jurassic Park. Venturing into history’s darkest shadows with Schindler’s List. Transforming a genre with Saving Private Ryan. The muscular, unpredictable, confrontational Spielberg of Minority Report, Munich, and Lincoln.

And then there is his family. How his films, even late in his career—lionized, untouchable—went in search of approval from his parents. Just as he has craved the approval of his peers. That fateful Oscar took so long in coming...

Defining, appreciating, contextualizing, and understanding the films of Spielberg is a tall order. Their simplicity is deceptive. You have to cut through the glow, the adoration, the simple joy that comes with their embrace, and get to the thrust of the filmmaking. Sourcing the inspirations, locating the critical nuance, the nurtured performance, and the recurrent theme—so many of his films have become timeless—this book celebrates all this and more.

About the Author:
Ian Nathan, who lives and works in London, is one of the UK’s best-known film writers. He is the author of nine previous books, including Alien Vault, the best-selling history of Ridley Scott’s masterpiece, Terminator Vault, Tarantino, Tim Burton, The Coen Brothers and Anything You Can Imagine: Peter Jackson and the Making of Middle-earth. He is the former editor and executive editor of Empire, the world’s biggest movie magazine, where he remains a contributing editor. He also regularly contributes to The Times, The Independent, The Mail on Sunday, Cahiers Du Cinema and the Discovering Film documentary series on Sky Arts.

Press Reviews:
"...written in an enthusiastic style by a guy who knows his stuff. Like Nathan’s film reviews, his books are perceptive and informative: even if you think you already know everything there is to know about Spielberg, you’ll learn a few new things from this book...a lively, entertaining, insightful tour through the director’s films."
―David Pitt, Booklist

"Steven Spielberg really has done it all and Nathan has knocked it out of the park yet again by writing arguably the definitive effort encapsulating that career. A film fan cannot pass this book up."
―Ryan Young, The Reel Vision

"...a reminder of the man’s versatility and overall quality to the craft of filmmaking...certainly a great book for fans of the director’s work and will look great on any bookshelf." ―The Fandom Post

"...an upbeat, photo-packed tribute to the famous filmmaker. Analysis of the auteur’s favorite collaborators and common themes offers illuminating context, and reveals a bounty of nitty-gritty details about Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Hook, A.I. Artificial Intelligence, Lincoln and more...will absolutely intrigue and enchant fans of "the man with the universal touch."
―Book Page

See the complete filmography of Steven Spielberg on the website: IMDB ...

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