Auteur Study: Steven Spielberg

Catalog description

The world’s most influential living film director and the most impactful creator of popular culture in the last quarter of the Twentieth Century is a Jewish-American. Steven Spielberg’s uncanny grasp of visual storytelling and his auteurist signature can be found on every film he has directed, as well as many he has produced. This course will analyze the content and formal construction of Spielberg’s films by following their thematic through-lines – family ties (strained and healthy), the implacable threat, humanity at war, man vs. the natural world, the child’s perspective, Jewish identity and others – in films as disparate as Jaws and The Color Purple. Each class meeting will include a complete screening of a feature film directed by Steven Spielberg, as well as clips of related films by Spielberg. Readings will include critical essays, histories, and interviews which elaborate on in-class screenings and cover additional topics and films. Written assignments will be three analytical essays which will encourage critical thinking, close analysis of film texts, and independent research beyond the materials presented in class