The Cinema of Steven Spielberg

Course Description

Storyteller, auteur, anti-auteur, businessman, idea machine, the most powerful director in Hollywood, genius, grown-up child, philanthropist, family man, racist, and sexist: over 30 years in the public eye, filmmaker Steven Spielberg has been labeled each of these things. Some labels are genuine while others are speculative. Either way, our class will look at the life and work of Spielberg through designations such as these. To discern the “truth” about one of Hollywood’s most well-known filmmakers and his cinematic legacy, we will watch at least nine feature-length films as well as read academic analyses, interviews, and critical biographies. Moreover, so that students understand that Spielberg’s films—as all films—are products of the time period and industry in which they are created, we will place them in their historical and cultural contexts. ​

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