A Critical Companion to Steven Spielberg

This book offers a comprehensive, detailed study of the works of Steven Spielberg, whose numerous and heterogeneous films include extremely successful productions such as Jaws (1975), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), E.T. the Extraterrestrial (1982), the Indiana Jones saga (1981-2008), Jurassic Park (1993), Schindler’s List (1993), and Saving Private Ryan (1999), as well as less-known films such as 1941 (1979), Always (1989), War Horse (2011), and The Adventures of Tintin (2011). Spielberg’s early productions stand as landmarks in contemporary cinema and his involvement with film has been spanning all cinematic genres. Today Spielberg enjoys an immense and enduring popularity around the globe and his productions have attracted (and continue to attract) both public and critical attention. This volume investigates several distinct areas of Spielberg’s works and addresses the different approaches and the range of topics invited by the multidimensionality of his oeuvre. The eighteen chapters use different methodologies, offering a variegated and compelling picture of Spielberg’s films, from his earliest works, such as Duel (1971) and The Sugarland Express (1974), to his most recent productions, such as The BFG (2016), The Post (2017), and Ready Player One (2018).