When you make a list of the finest film-makers responsible for giving the most entertaining films, you can be sure that Steven Spielberg is among the top. I may not be wrong in saying that he was responsible for changing the face of blockbuster entertainment in modern cinema. If there are certain filmmakers known for making certain kind of cinema, Steven Spielberg is known to attempt most of the genres and finding successes in nearly all of them. Except for maybe slapstick comedy. 1941, anyone? Schindler’s List Director Steven Spielberg Recalls Being Bullied as a Jewish Kid in School.

Steven Spielberg can make a Jurassic Park. He can also make a Schindler's List the same year. When he can make an inspiring drama like The Post, he can also make a visual spectacle filled with tonnes of pop culture nods in Ready Player One. Even though some of his recent movies lack the masterpiece quality of his earlier films like The Colour Purple, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Empire of the Sun et al, any film or series that has the brand of Spielberg associated with it, is bound to bring in enough attraction.

On his 73rd birthday, let's look back and reminisce about seven of the finest blockbusters the Academy Award-winning director has offered us over the last five decades! A disclaimer: This is not an article about the best films that Spielberg has directed, just for entertaining cinema that makes for great popcorn value.

Jaws

Even though he had made two feature-length films before Jaws, it was this shark attack film that put Steven Spielberg in the spotlight of global cinema. When it came out in 1975, this movie, based on a 1974 novel by Peter Benchley, became a smash-hit and was hailed as the movie that changed how people see summer blockbusters.

A Scene From Jaws

From the foreboding background score, to the minimal but effective jump scares and the scarce use of the beast itself to create enough suspense, Jaws continues to terrify people even after so many years. And to think, Spielberg used some of these tactics only because his mechanical sharks were faulty!

Raiders of the Lost Ark

The first Indiana Jones movie was such an entertaining film filled memorable moments, action beats and highly quotable quips. Not to mention, Harrison Ford at the height of his leading man charm. From the excellent thrilling opening sequence to its terrifying climax (with some effective practical makeup effects), Raiders of the Lost Ark, simply put, is an exhilarating ride.

Harrison Ford in Raiders of the Lost Ark

Sure, The Big Bang Theory actually ruined the film to some extent by basically negating Indiana Jones' purpose in the film (all the events, including the Nazi villains' decimation, could have happened even if Jones hadn't interfered). Still, Raiders of the Lost Ark is as entertaining as they come.

ET The Extra-Terrestrial

"ET Phone Home..." That memorable quote has been etched in every movie buff's mind ever since ET The Extra-Terrestrial had hit the screens in 1984. A heart-warming tale of friendship between a young boy and an accidentally abandoned alien, ET is filled with so much likeability, that it is difficult to watch the film without having moist eyes.

A Scene From ET the Extra-Terrestrial

Interestingly ET The Extra-Terrestrial has a huge Indian controversy surrounding the film. Our very own legendary the late Satyajit Ray had accused the makers of ET The Extra-Terrestrial of stealing the concept of his abandoned Hollywood debut, The Alien, to set up the premise of their film, an accusation that Spielberg had strongly denied. World UFO Day: When These Movies of Aamir Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Akshay Kumar Explored Aliens and Space Saucers!

Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade

The second Indiana Jones film, The Temple of Doom, which served as a prequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark, was deemed as too dark, and also racist towards the portrayal of Indians. And if you have watched the film, you would know that both the accusations stand true. So to make amends, Spielberg returned to the formula what made the first film such a movie buff's darling by making Indiana Jones take on more Nazis, and in one memorable scene, even have a face-to-face encounter with the Fuhrer himself.

Harrison Ford and Sean Connery in Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade

What's more, Harrison Ford is joined by the great Sir Sean Connery, who plays Indiana Jones' father, and every scene featuring these two are pure delight. Too bad, the Indiana Jones film that followed The Last Crusade some 20 years later, Kingdom of Crystal Skull, was a crushing disappointment. Even if it also had its moments of fun.

Jurassic Park

The movie that made dinosaurs the coolest creatures not to be messed with in cinema. What makes this 1993 film far superior to any of its sequels is that Steven Spielberg merged controversial use of science and blockbuster entertainment seamlessly into one great piece of cinema. The conversations around the idea of cloning have more depth in them than what you hear on the surface level. Plus, there are some very effective, terse, nail-biting Man vs Prehistoric Nature sequences.

A Scene From Jurassic Park

In this era of CGI, it is wonderful to see how some of the practical effects and puppetry still stand the test of time. Watch Jurassic Park's first scene involving a fully grown Brachiosaurus, with John Williams' terrific score playing in the background, and tell me if that isn't cinema at its most magical essence?

Saving Private Ryan

It is still hard to determine if Steven Spielberg's fictionalized take on American soldiers' valour in World War II is the best in the war genre. But there is hardly any doubt that its visual imagery is the most impactful and its scenes are hard to forget. The D-Day landings on Normandy Beach scene in the first act is an impressive feat in film-making, right from its camerawork, to its editing to the brilliant use of sound and special effects to create a very harrowing depiction of the bloodshed involved.

A Scene From Saving Private Ryan

Saving Private Ryan also has some very excellent performances from the cast, led by the always dependable Tom Hanks. Also watch out for early appearances of future stars like Vin Diesel, Bryan Cranston and Nathan Fillion.

Minority Report

The one time that Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg collaborated resulted in one of the most defining sci-fi films of our generation. Minority Report is set in the distant future, where the police catch the criminals before the crime is committed. Tom Cruise plays one such Pre-Crime officer, the best in his team, before he finds himself on the run after a prediction comes that he may kill someone he has never met.

Tom Cruise in Minority Report

Minority Report is not just a great piece of action cinema, merged with sci-fi elements, powered by Cruise' star-charm. It also invites debates about whether we are desperate enough to head for a future, that in trying to keep the world crime-free, we would punish innocents. After all, a person before committing a crime is not a criminal, right?

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 18, 2019 12:15 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).