Glad you brought up the scene from War of the Worlds. Probably the last film that had that Spielberg magic for me. The scene from The Lost World is also wonderful, but it's hard to beat the T-Rex breaking out of her paddock in the original Jurassic Park.
For me it's definitely the T-Rex!! 🦖 although Jaws still creeps me out to this day, so even though it's not as "actiony" it's high on my list for best scenes of Spielberg
Had to give this one some careful consideration, especially after having watch you break it down into categories. Okay. I think I got this. For suspense, I will choose the opening of E.T., where our plucky alien hero gets left behind and escapes the man with keys. All the elements are there for good suspense, the hero, shadowy forces, separated family, light, and shadow. For spectacle, I will choose the Indy battles a tank to save his father. It is simply awesome, Indy on horse back in the desert, WWI tank, Henry and Marcus fighting for their lives inside the tank. And lastly, for suspense and spectacle, I will chose the scene in War Horse, when Joey is trapped in the wire between lines, and the ensuing drama that followed, I feel was spectacularly suspenseful.
the truck chase in Raiders is probably my favorite. The way it goes from Indy having the upper hand to the nazis and back and forth. Getting shot, going over the front of the truck, the bending logo as he struggles to hold on, oing under and getting dragged along... just brilliant.
Something else I really loved about the double Rex attack in TLW is how they never show outright aggression UNTIL they get their baby back. It shows they have more intelligence than many of the humans in the film gave them credit for which in turn solidifies them as a constant and legitimate threat which isn't ONLY physical. Great video!
I can't get over the fact that one of the biggest film critics in Norway gave JP a 1/6 in 1993 because he felt putting kids in the action scenes was "cynical, cheap manipulation" of the audience, and the fact that he still stood by this review over 20 years later
@@NoUploadJustComment The score is represented by a six sided die. It started out as a gimmick in one newspaper in the 50s and then became the norm in Norway. Reviews will normally end with the reviewer writing the score as "die throw x". If you google "die throw review" there's an english wikipedia page about it with more info.
Fun Fact: For Jaws, the prop arm used in the scene where Chrissie's remains are discovered looked too fake, so instead they buried a female crew member in the sand with only her arm exposed.
that Lost world action scene is so good I rant about how good it is basically every time we see a new jurrasic world series of movies. It is one simple scene that absolutely blows away everything that has been done in the Jurassic world series of movies
A friend and I set out to watch every Spielberg film this year. I'm watching them in release order and it's fascinating to see his style develop over the years and the trends he goes through for a few films. It's been interesting to notice how he started with action/suspense films (Jaws, Raiders, Close Encounters) to more dramatic stories (E.T., the Color Purple, Empire of the Sun). While I watch the movies, I'm trying to track how many "Spielberg faces" there are, and look for any oners, but now I get to look out for these kinds of actions scenes! My favorite that I've seen in my Spielberg challenge is the tank scene from the end of Last Crusade, so I'm eager to see what future scenes top it. Thanks for the video, Mr. Elk!
Went through all his films after seeing Fabelmans. He's considered the best for a reason. And despite all the amazing action films, adventure films, sci fi films, and other genre films he still managed to make probably the best drama of all time with Schindler's List.
To whoever is brave enough to read this: If i had to add my own perspective, to the Hitchcock explanation, it would be that (good) suspense comes from (good) CONFLICT, wether it be the central conflict of the film or just scene conflict. Conflict is the struggle between two "FORCES" that exclude each other (they can't both win). This "Forces" have a direction (OBJECTIVE) and an impulse (MOTIVATION), so in basic plot/concrete terms, the forces are the OBJECTIVES of the protagonist and antagonist; and the conflict: the confrontation between both objectives. If there's no presence of the objectives, there's no real suspense/conflict. You can see an example of this in the scene of the old lady and Beverly in It Chapter Two. You have information that the character doesn't (just like Hitchcock says): the old lady is Pennywise. Now, while there are multiple creepy elements and we see Pennywise doing weird stuff behind Beverly, neither him nor her feel like they have an actual objective in the scene. There's no ADVANCE in the scene, and that's the key word. If we had to expand on Hitchcock's definition of suspense, with all the theorical knowledge we have today, i would say that, apart from INFORMATION (that the character doesn't have), we need some kind of ADVANCE. Hitchcock talks about two people talking at a table, while there's a bomb about to explode. We know this (information) but the characters don't. But you also have to consider that this bomb is ticking (ADVANCING). It wouldn't mean anything if the bomb wasn't ticking, or if there wasn't nobody trying to explode it. That's what happens in It Chapter Two. There's Pennywise in the background, with great advantage, but he doesn't do nothing. Several times he has to kill or scare and weaken Beverly, but he doesn't. Beverly doesn't even realise or scare herself till the end of the scene. This bomb is not ticking. Hitchcock wants an active viewer (suspense), not a passive one, and i think there are two ways to accomplish this: -or you give a little information, but NOT THAT MUCH, so you the viewer can ask himself what's going on or what's going to happen, and fill that with his own mind. -or you have one of this forces/characters ADVANCING. The scene from It Chapter Two has no advancing characters, but also has too much information. We see a lot of Pennywise in the background, but not doing anything. That's a passive character, and also a passive viewer. I think that you would have a more active viewer if you had just the right amount of information (you see something suspicious just once or twice), or if one of the two characters were actually trying to accomplish an objective. What if Beverly was still trying to find her totem and Pennywise was trying to scare and kill hare BEFORE she finds it? Now you have two forces, going in their exclusive directions, and they cannot both win. What if Beverly was increasingly more suspicious and SHE found out that the old lady was Pennywise (and not because she literally saw the word Pennywise spelled in a photo)? What if Pennywise would try to scare Beverly (the CHARACTER) and not the viewer? I feel that the 90's version of the scene, being much shorter, accomplishes more than this one. If you want to take it to the bomb analogy, what if in the scene, the bomb wasn't the only thing advancing, but the characters talking at the table as well? What if the protagonist wanted to accomplish something with that conversation (like get some important information), and you knew he has to leave as soon as he accomplish that? Now you not only would want him to get out of there, just because, to save his life without him even knowing; now you would want him to accomplish his objective, so he can save his life. You now have to get INTO the conversation; wish that he said the right words; try to predict and exploit his known skills, so he can achieve what he came for. That's an active viewer. You get into the situation; you become the character and you want to do the same things as him. Now, you can also consider some other elements that influenciate the conflict (and by consequence, the suspense): -The MOTIVATION gives impulse to the objective. Why is the character doing what he's doing? He's trying to accomplish something just because he was bored? Or is he trying to fight for a noble cause and his philosophy? Or because he wants to repair something of his past? This can give a lot of strenght to the characters and all the scene/conflict/story. -The pre-stablished CONSEQUENCES of his victory or his defeat. What will the character WIN/get if he accomplishes his goal? What will the character LOSE if he doesn't get his goal? This gives importance to his actions. Ideally, he can win EVERYTHING or lose EVERYTHING (mostly in the final act). If there are no consequences for his actions, then the conflict gets weakened. -The RISKS. What are the chances of the character winning or losing? If he has a lot of chances of winning, and he does, then his victory is weak. Now, if the character has too few chances of winning, and he does, then his victory is stronger. The best way of achieving suspense here, probably is to turn the chances upside down constantly. And that takes me to the last point. All of this implies that you need conflict DEVELOPMENT. That means that you have the two forces interacting constantly. The protagonist takes action, the antagonist responds; the protagonist responds again; the antagonist responds again, and so on. This is how you make an emotional roller coaster. At one moment, one is about to win; but at the next minute, he's about to lose. But then he rises up again, and so on. And if you have all the other elements well constructed, then each action becomes significative and important; and the conflict/suspense becomes strong. Going back to the video, see how much of all this elements this Spielberg scenes have. I think that all of this is present. OBJECTIVES (direction of the action); MOTIVATION, RISKS and CONSEQUENCES (importance of the action); ACTION/DEVELOPMENT/ADVANCE (dramatic content/sense of proximity or movement to the objective). P.S.: There's also a very memorable Spielberg scene in the film Munich.
I know he has done better movies (in the academic sense) but Jurassic Park was THE cinematic experience of my childhood. Nothing has ever topped the awe of watching the T-Rex attack for the first time at eleven years old.
Jurrasic Park T.Rex escape will forever be the most awe inspiring and suspenseful movie scene for me. I saw the film in the theaters as a kid with my mom and dad. The audience and us were all enjoying the film laughing at the jokes or just in amazement at the realistic looking dinosaurs. But when the T Rex breaks out of its pen the place went completely silent. It was like something primal in our brains switched on and we all just sat there wide eyed in complete terror and shock. It was no longer a action / family movie. It had morphed into a hitchcockian horror film that was becoming a roller coaster ride. It's still one of the most epic childhood experiences I've ever had.
As corny sissified as I may seem, “The Lost Word” scene of the dinosaur seen through the bedroom window was 1 of 2 reasons why I had nightmares for years, 2nd being the raptors chase especially through the tall grass. I was 10 when I saw it in theaters, an amplified experience. The first movie didn’t bother me one bit having watched it at home.
For me it's 'P-51, Cadillac of the Sky' in Empire of the Sun. The way it opens with the pathos of the Kamikaze ceremony, then explosively into the air raid - which dances between the individual human stories and the overall attack - mixing terror, confusion, then the serene moment of the 'father figure' pilot waving to Jim as the air raid goes on around him, euphoria 'P-51! Cadillac of the Sky', and finally back to pathos 'I can't remember what my parents look like'. The whole thing is engineered like a Swiss watch. OK it doesn't have the suspense of those iconic scenes but it's such a wonderful blend of spectacular action and individual human drama that only a master like Spielberg could have pulled it off
Gosh it’s hard to pick because I haven’t seen enough Spielberg! I’d focus in on the translator’s story from the end of Saving Private Ryan. There is a lot of spectacle as they defend the bridge but with Upham you get this clear narrative as he slowly breaks down, a man without the resolve needed to fight in the middle of one, and Spielberg gives you a character to hate more than the (largely) faceless Germans. In all it’s a big interwoven scene as the Americans slowly are pushed back and killed before Captain Miller fires his last shots at the encroaching Tiger.
Hey, I'm engaging with the comments for the algorithm, lol, but also hopefully some good feedback. The original title and thumbnail are the reason I clicked on this video. I don't think I would have with this title and thumbnail. The other one was silly and made me do a double take and spielbergian had me intrigued. Keep up the good content :)
Thanks for the comment. Glad you liked the video. Yeah, I have no idea about thumbnails these days. I have no clue why some perform well and others don't. It's all a guessing game. So thanks for your patience as I experiment.
@EntertainTheElk you make great videos, and I hope the feedback is helpful in some way. I'm sure that's very frustrating, especially when I assume this is your job, and I know views have been sadly trending down. My opinion is that it's not due to the content. I want to watch the Paddington movies now because of you. I hope the best for you and your channel :)
i often wonder what “Jaws 2” have been like if Spielberg directed. it probably would’ve come out little later.. i could also imagine Hooper being killed during the opening scene as one of the divers, that couldve added some character drama that the first one had…
Spielberg is a jack-of-all-trades and a master of none albeit he's a masterful cinematic genius. In other words, he has such a vast array of films from West Side Story, The Terminal, E.T., Jaws, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, Ready Player One, Indiana Jones, Duel, etc.
Yeah I completely disagree on this video Steven Spielberg has not lost his touch with action the scene in the Lost World Jurassic Park is great but it's just one of many in his filmography
@@EntertainTheElk basically the ones you said along with the final battle sequence in Saving Private Ryan that you didn't mention and the opening car chase in Ready Player one was also quite amazing and all the aspects you said in the video and War Horse had some really intense battle scenes also that were great in the way you described
“Taking all of the pieces and putting them together” - you just described the role of a film editor. Kind of a major oversight not to mention them once in your video, since they likely had a major hand in crafting these scenes that Spielberg so expertly directed.
@@EntertainTheElk I'm not saying you're trying to diminish the editor's job. Just that in discussing the post production side of directing, it's really weird not to mention the editor *at all.* It'd be like talking about the Coen brothers cinematography without mentioning Roger Deakins.
@@EntertainTheElk yeah, my bad lol. I was thinking Jurassic park 3.. and googled 'the lost world' to confirm my suspicions. Which now I look was a wiki for a 1960 movie...
How is any Spielberg scene ever terrifying lmao, Jaws is probably the one most often referenced and we're literally in the POV of a shark. We're the ones killing in this nonsensical filmic language? It takes you out of it completely. The terrifying thing about the shark should be its uncertainty from the POV of the girl, when will the monster (because this is essentially a monster movie) attack?
Great video but can you please stop with constantly changing your titles and thumbnails? Especially since you always make them worse. The original title of this video was pretty great, this one is awful and clickbait-y. And the exact same thing happened with your last video and the one before it and before that. This has been happening for months and it's really starting to bother me. Your actual work is great. Don't degrade it by these clickbait-y titles and thumbnails. Don't let the YT algorithm rule your style! Just be yourself. Your channel will be all the better for it.
Hey I appreciate you reaching out. I wish to god I never had to change a thumbnail or I didn't have to sweat about it so much. I wish my work could speak for itself like it did 3-4 years ago. But now videos live and die by thumbnails and titles. When they switched away from the subscriber model, they put everything behind CTR. So if people don't click on a video, RU-vid tanks it. It's feast or famine. So when a video underperforms and returns bad analytics, I have to fight to keep my video dipping into obscurity and dying instantly. Sorry if it's annoying to you, but it annoys me more, I promise you.
