The Director's Series: Steven Spielberg, No. 3


Throughout 2025 I'm turning my focus to Directors. They help craft the vision on screen that makes a movie work. This year I'm looking at five favorite films from 18 directors I admire and 10 films directed by different women that I have enjoyed. Join me Fridays and Saturdays throughout 2025 as we take this journey.

Saving Private Ryan (1998)
Starring: Tom Hanks, Tom Sizemore, and Matt Damon
Director: Steven Spielberg
About: Spielberg's contributions to capturing World War II in film and in mini-series form are some of his greatest gifts to our culture. This film, from 1998, follows a group of soldiers through D-Day and into a special mission. It's an exceptional film. It's unlike anything I've seen. And it's endured for more than a quarter of a century. It should have won Best Picture, but it certainly has a place in the heart of many of us who saw the film. Hanks is brilliant here, but it's the work of Spielberg to create this film that makes it work so well. This is one of his great films and one of THE great films.

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