Steven Spielberg

Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spielberg is the recipient of various accolades, including three Academy Awards, a Kennedy Center honor, a Cecil B. DeMille Award, and an AFI Life Achievement Award. Seven of his films been inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

Spielberg was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and grew up in Phoenix, Arizona. He moved to California and studied film in college. After directing several episodes for television including '' Night Gallery'' and '' Columbo'', he directed the television film ''Duel'' (1971) which gained acclaim from critics and audiences. He made his directorial film debut with '' The Sugarland Express'' (1974), and became a household name with the 1975 summer blockbuster '' Jaws''. He then directed box office successes '' Close Encounters of the Third Kind'' (1977), ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982), and the '' Indiana Jones'' series. Spielberg explored drama in '' The Color Purple'' (1985) and '' Empire of the Sun'' (1987).

After a brief hiatus, Spielberg directed the science fiction thriller '' Jurassic Park'' (1993)'','' the highest-grossing film ever at the time, and the Holocaust drama '' Schindler's List'' (both 1993), described as one of the greatest films ever made. He won the Academy Award for Best Director for the latter and for the 1998 World War II epic '' Saving Private Ryan''. Spielberg continued in the 2000s with science fiction films '' A.I. Artificial Intelligence'' (2001), '' Minority Report'' (2002), and '' War of the Worlds'' (2005). He also directed the adventure films '' The Adventures of Tintin'' (2011) and '' Ready Player One'' (2018); the historical dramas '' Amistad'' (1997), ''Munich'' (2005), '' War Horse'' (2011), '' Lincoln'' (2012), '' Bridge of Spies'' (2015), and '' The Post'' (2017); the musical '' West Side Story'' (2021); and the semi-autobiographical drama '' The Fabelmans'' (2022).

Spielberg co-founded Amblin Entertainment and DreamWorks, and has served as a producer for many television series and films. He is also known for his long collaboration with the composer John Williams, with whom he has worked for all but five of his feature films. Several of Spielberg's works are among the highest-grossing films of all time. In 2013, ''Time'' listed him as one of the 100 most influential people.

Early life and background

Steven Allan Spielberg was born on December 18, 1946, in Cincinnati, Ohio. His mother, Leah ('' née'' Posner, later Adler; 1920–2017), was a restaurateur and concert pianist, and his father, Arnold Spielberg (1917–2020), was an electrical engineer involved in the development of computers. His immediate family were situationally Reform Jewish/ Orthodox Jewish. Spielberg's paternal grandparents were Jews from Ukraine, who settled in Cincinnati in the 1900s; his grandmother was from Sudylkiv, and his grandfather was from Kamianets-Podilskyi. Spielberg has three younger sisters: Anne, Sue, and Nancy. In 1952, his family moved to Haddon Township, New Jersey after his father was hired by RCA. Spielberg attended Hebrew school from 1953 to 1957, in classes taught by Rabbi Albert L. Lewis.

In early 1957, the family moved to Phoenix, Arizona. Spielberg had a bar mitzvah ceremony when he was thirteen. His family was involved in the synagogue and had many Jewish friends. Of the Holocaust, he said that his parents "talked about it all the time, and so it was always on my mind." His father had lost between sixteen and twenty relatives in the Holocaust. Spielberg found it difficult accepting his heritage; he said: "It isn't something I enjoy admitting ..but when I was seven, eight, nine years old, God forgive me, I was embarrassed because we were Orthodox Jews. I was embarrassed by the outward perception of my parents' Jewish practices. I was never really ashamed to be Jewish, but I was uneasy at times." Spielberg also suffered from anti-Semitism: "In high school, I got smacked and kicked around. Two bloody noses. It was horrible." He grew away from Judaism during adolescence, after his family had moved to various neighborhoods and found themselves to be the only Jews.

At age 12, he made his first home movie: a train wreck involving his toy Lionel trains. In 1958, he became a Boy Scout and fulfilled a requirement for the photography merit badge by making a nine-minute, 8 mm film titled ''The Last Gunfight''. He eventually attained the rank of Eagle Scout. Spielberg used his father's movie camera to make amateur features, and began taking the camera along on every Scout trip. At age 13, Spielberg made a 40-minute war film, titled ''Escape to Nowhere'', with a cast of school classmates. The film won first prize in a statewide competition. Throughout his early teens, and after entering high school, Spielberg made about fifteen to twenty 8 mm "adventure" films.

In Phoenix, Spielberg watched films at the local theatre every Saturday. Some of the films he cited as early influences include '' Godzilla, King of the Monsters'' (1956), Akira Kurosawa films, '' Captains Courageous'' (1937), '' Pinocchio'' (1940), and David Lean's '' Lawrence of Arabia'' (1962), which he cited as "the film that set me on my journey". He attended Arcadia High School in 1961 for three years. He wrote and directed his first independent film in 1963, a 140-minute science fiction adventure called '' Firelight'', which would later inspire '' Close Encounters of The Third Kind''. The film was mainly funded by his father, which had a budget of under $600, and was shown in a local theatre for one evening. In the summer of 1964, he worked as an unpaid assistant at Universal Studios' editorial department. His family later moved to Saratoga, California where he attended Saratoga High School, graduating in 1965. A year later, his parents divorced. Spielberg moved to Los Angeles to stay with his father, while his three sisters and mother remained in Saratoga. He was not interested in academics; he aspired to be only a filmmaker. He applied to the University of Southern California's film school but was turned down because of his mediocre grades. He then applied and enrolled at California State University, Long Beach, where he became a brother of Theta Chi Fraternity.

Spielberg took a tour bus to Universal and on a break, hid in the bathroom, a chance conversation with an executive led to him getting a three day pass, allowing him to come back the next day – and on the fourth day he walked up to the studio gates without a pass, and the security guard waved him in: “I basically spent the next two months at Universal Studios. And that was how I became an unofficial apprentice that summer.”

In 1968, Universal gave Spielberg the opportunity to write and direct a short film for theatrical release, the 26-minute, 35 mm '' Amblin'''. Studio vice-president Sidney Sheinberg was impressed by the award-winning film, and offered Spielberg a seven-year directing contract. A year later, he dropped out of college to begin directing television productions for Universal. It made him the youngest director to be signed to a long-term plan with a major Hollywood studio. Spielberg returned to Long Beach in 2002 to complete his Bachelor of Arts in Film and Electronic Media.

Career

1969–1974: Entering film and television

Spielberg's first professional job came when he was hired to direct one of the segments for the 1969 pilot episode of '' Night Gallery'', written by Rod Serling and starring Joan Crawford. Crawford was "speechless, and then horrified" at the thought of a young and inexperienced newcomer directing her. Spielberg attempted to impress his colleagues with fancy camerawork, but executives ordered him to shoot it quickly. His contributions were not well received, thus Spielberg took a short break from the studio. However, Crawford said:

In the early 1970s, Spielberg unsuccessfully tried to raise finance for his own low-budget films. He turned to writing screenplays with other writers, and then directing television episodes. These included the series: '' Marcus Welby, M.D.'', ''The Name of the Game'' ("L.A. 2017"), '' Columbo, Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law'' and '' The Psychiatrist.'' Although unsatisfied with this work, Spielberg used the opportunity to experiment with his techniques and learn about filmmaking. He earned good reviews and impressed producers; he was earning a steady income and relocated to Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles.'

Based on the strength of his work, Universal signed Spielberg to do four television films. The first was ''Duel'' (1971), adapted from Richard Matheson's short story of the same name. It is about a psychotic tanker truck driver who chases a terrified salesman ( Dennis Weaver) down a highway. Impressed with the film, executives decided to promote the film on television. Reviews were mainly positive, and Universal asked Spielberg to shoot more scenes so that ''Duel'' could be released to international markets.' Several films followed soon after: '' Something Evil'' (1972), and '' Savage'' (1973). Both features gained mixed reviews.'

In 1974, Spielberg made his debut in a theatrical film, '' The Sugarland Express'', about a married couple on the run, desperate to regain custody of their baby from foster parents. Based on a true story,' the film would mark the first of many collaborations with the composer John Williams; Spielberg was impressed with his previous soundtracks. The film opened to four hundred theatres in the U.S. to positive reviews,' and ''The Hollywood Reporter'' wrote that "a major new director is on the horizon." Although the film was honored for Best Screenplay at the 1974 Cannes Film Festival, it was not a commercial success.' Spielberg blamed Universal's inconsistent marketing for its poor box office results.'

1975–1983: Film breakthrough

Producers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown took a chance with Spielberg, and gave him the opportunity to direct '' Jaws'' (1975), a horror-thriller based on the Peter Benchley novel of the same name. In the film, a great white shark attacks beachgoers at a summer resort town, prompting police chief Martin Brody ( Roy Scheider) to hunt it down with the help of a marine biologist (Richard Dreyfuss). Filming proved to be challenging; Spielberg almost drowned and escaped from being crushed by boats. The filming schedule overran by a hundred days, and Universal threatened to cancel production. Against expectations, the film was a critical success; ''Jaws'' won three Academy Awards, in Best Film Editing, Best Original Dramatic Score, and Best Sound, and grossed more than $470 million worldwide. It also set the domestic box office record, leading to what the press described as "Jawsmania", and making Spielberg a household name. After watching the unconventional, off-center camera techniques of ''Jaws'', Alfred Hitchcock praised "young Spielberg" for thinking outside the visual dynamics of the theater, saying "He's the first one of us who doesn't see the proscenium arch".

After the success of ''Jaws'', Spielberg turned down an offer to make '' Jaws 2.'' He and Richard Dreyfuss re-convened to work on a film about UFOs: '' Close Encounters of the Third Kind'' (1977). During filming, Spielberg used 65 mm film for the best picture quality, and a new live-action recording system so that the recordings could be duplicated later. One of the rare films both written and directed by himself, ''Close Encounters'' was very popular with film-goers,' and Spielberg received his first Best Director nomination from the Academy Awards. It also earned six more nominations, winning Best Cinematography, and Best Sound Effects Editing. A ''Special Edition'' version of the film, featuring both shortened and newly added scenes, was released theatrically in 1980.'

His next film was 1979's big-budget action-comedy '' 1941'', about Californians preparing for a Japanese invasion after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Spielberg was self-conscious about doing comedy as he had no prior experience in the genre. However, he was keen on tackling a lighthearted theme. Universal and Columbia agreed to co-finance the film. Upon release, it grossed over $92.4 million worldwide, but most critics including the studio heads disliked the film. Writing for the ''Los Angeles Times'', Charles Champlin described 1941 as "the most conspicuous waste since the last major oil spill, which it somewhat resembles".' Another critic wrote "''1941'' isn't simply a silly slur against any particular race, sex, or generation—it makes war against all humanity."'

Next, Spielberg collaborated with '' Star Wars'' creator George Lucas on an action adventure, '' Raiders of the Lost Ark'' (1981), the first film in the '' Indiana Jones'' franchise. The title character was played by Harrison Ford (whom Lucas had previously cast in his '' Star Wars'' trilogy as Han Solo). Ford was Spielberg's first choice for the role. Filmed in North Africa, the shoot was difficult but Spielberg said that the experience helped him with his business acumen. The film was a success at the box office,' and won five Academy Awards; Spielberg received his second nomination for Best Director, and Best Picture. ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' was considered by Spielberg and Lucas as a homage to the serials of the 1930s and 1940s.' Spielberg also began to co-produce films, including 1982's '' Poltergeist'', and directed the segment "Kick The Can" in '' The Twilight Zone.'' In a previous segment, Vic Morrow and two child actors were killed in a stunt helicopter crash. Spielberg was not directing or present during the incident, and was cleared of any wrongdoing by the National Transportation Safety Board.

In 1982, Spielberg returned to science fiction with ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial''. It tells the story of a young boy ( Henry Thomas) and the alien he befriends, who was accidentally left behind by his companions and is attempting to return home. Spielberg shot the film mostly in sequence to keep the children spontaneous towards the climax. ''E.T.'' premiered at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival to an ecstatic reaction; producer Kathleen Kennedy recalled, "You couldn't hear the end of the movie because people were on their feet stomping and yelling ..It was one of the most amazing experiences." A special screening was organized for President Reagan and his wife Nancy, who were emotional by the end of the film. ''E.T.'' grossed $700 million worldwide, and spawned a range of merchandise which would eventually earn up to $1 billion. The film was nominated for nine Academy Awards, winning Best Sound Effects, Best Special Effects, and Best Music.

His next directorial feature was the ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' prequel, '' Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom'' (1984). Working once again with George Lucas and Harrison Ford, the film was shot in the United States, Sri Lanka and China. This film and '' Gremlins'' led to the creation of the PG-13 rating because some of the material was not suitable for children under 13. ''Temple of Doom'' was rated PG-13 by the MPAA; some scenes depicted children working in the mines. Spielberg later said that he was unhappy with the ''Temple of Doom'' because it did not have his "personal touches and love". Nonetheless, the film was a blockbuster hit, and won an Academy Award for Best Special Effects. It was on this project that Spielberg also met his future wife, actress Kate Capshaw, who played Willie Scott in the film.

1984–1990: From producing to directing

In 1984, Spielberg, Frank Marshall, and Kathleen Kennedy founded production company Amblin Entertainment. Between 1984 and 1990, Spielberg served as either producer or executive producer on nineteen feature films; these include: '' The Goonies,'' '' The Money Pit'', '' Joe Versus the Volcano,'' '' *batteries not included, Back to the Future, Cape Fear, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. In some films, such as '' Harry and the Hendersons'' and '' Young Sherlock Holmes'', the title "Steven Spielberg Presents" would be shown in the opening credits. Much of Spielberg's producing work was aimed at children and teens, including cartoons such as '' Tiny Toon Adventures'', '' Animaniacs'', '' Pinky and the Brain'', '' Freakazoid!,'' and '' Family Dog.'' Spielberg also produced the Don Bluth animations, '' An American Tail'' and '' The Land Before Time.''

Beginning in 1985, NBC offered Spielberg a two-year contract on a television series, '' Amazing Stories;'' the show was marketed as a blend of '' The Twilight Zone'' and '' Alfred Hitchcock Presents''. NBC gave Spielberg creative control and a budget of $1 million for each episode. After two seasons and disappointing ratings, the show was not renewed. Although Spielberg's involvement as a producer would vary widely from project to project, director Robert Zemeckis said that Spielberg would always "respect the filmmaker's vision". Over the next decade, Spielberg's record as a producer brought mixed critical and commercial performance. In 1992, Spielberg began to scale back producing, saying "Producing has been the least fulfilling aspect of what I've done in the last decade." In 1994, he found success producing the successful medical drama '' ER''.

In the early 1980s, Spielberg befriended WarnerMedia CEO Steve Ross, which eventually resulted in him making films for Warner Bros. This started with '' The Color Purple'' (1985), an adaptation of Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name, about a generation of empowered African-American women during depression-era America. It was Spielberg's first film on a serious subject matter, and he expressed reservations about tackling the project: "It's the risk of being judged-and accused of not having the sensibility to do character studies." Starring Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey, the film was a box office hit and critics started to take note of Spielberg's foray into the dramatic genre. Roger Ebert rated it as the best film of the year. The film also received eleven Academy Award nominations, and Spielberg won Best Director from the Directors Guild of America.

As China underwent economic reform and opened up to the American film industry, Spielberg shot the first American film in Shanghai since the 1930s. '' Empire of the Sun'' (1987), an adaptation of J. G. Ballard's autobiographical novel of the same name, starred John Malkovich and a young Christian Bale. The film tells the story of Jamie Graham (Bale), a young boy who goes from living in a wealthy British family in Shanghai, to becoming a prisoner of war in a Japanese internment camp during World War II. Critical consensus was mixed at the time of release; criticism ranged from the "overwrought" plot, to Spielberg's downplaying of "disease and starvation". However, critic Andrew Sarris called it the best film of the year and later included it among the best of the decade. The film was nominated for six Academy Awards, but a commercial disappointment at the box office. The ''New York Times'' thought it was overlooked by audiences; Spielberg recalled that ''Empire of the Sun'' was one of his most enjoyable films to make.

After directing the last two serious films, Spielberg intended to direct the comedy '' Rain Man'', but instead directed the third ''Indiana Jones'' film to meet his contractual obligations: '' Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'' (1989). Producer George Lucas, and Harrison Ford returned for the film. Spielberg cast Sean Connery in a supporting role as Henry Jones, Sr. As a result of the mixed reaction to 1984's ''Temple of Doom'', Spielberg toned down the darkness and violence in the third installment. ''Last Crusade'' gained mostly respectful reviews and was a box office success, earning $474 million; it was his biggest hit since 1982's ''E.T.'' Biographer Joseph McBride wrote that it was a comeback for Spielberg, and Spielberg acknowledged the amount he has learned from making the ''Indiana Jones'' series.'

Also in 1989, he reunited with Richard Dreyfuss in the romantic drama '' Always'', about a daredevil pilot who extinguishes forest fires. It is a modern remake of one of Spielberg's childhood favorite films, 1943's '' A Guy Named Joe''. The story was personal to him, and he said "As a child I was very frustrated, and maybe I saw my own parents n ''A Guy Named Joe'. I was also short of girlfriends. And it stuck with me."' Spielberg had discussed the film with Dreyfuss back in 1975, with up to twelve drafts being written before filming commenced. ''Always'' was commercially unsuccessful and received mixed reviews. Janet Maslin of the ''New York Times'' wrote, "''Always'' is filled with big, sentimental moments, it lacks the intimacy to make any of this very moving."

1991–1998: Critical and commercial success

After a brief setback in which Spielberg felt "artistically stalled", he returned in 1991 with '' Hook'', about a middle-aged Peter Pan, played by Robin Williams, who returns to Neverland. During filming, Williams, co-stars Dustin Hoffman and Julia Roberts clashed on set due to their personalities; Spielberg told the ''60 Minutes'' program that he would never work with Roberts again. Nominated for five Academy Awards, the studio enjoyed the film but most critics did not, calling it "bloated". Writing for ''The Washington Post'', Hal Hinson described the film as "too industrially organized", and thought it was mundane. At the box office, it earned over $300 million worldwide from a $70 million budget. In 1993, Spielberg served as an executive producer for the NBC science fiction series '' seaQuest DSV;'' the show was not a hit.

In 1993, Spielberg returned to the adventure genre with '' Jurassic Park'', based on the 1990 novel of the same name by Michael Crichton, and a screenplay by the latter and David Koepp. ''Jurassic Park'' is set on a fictional island near Costa Rica, where a team of genetic scientists have created a wildlife park of de-extinct dinosaurs. In a departure from his usual order of planning, Spielberg and the designers storyboarded certain sequences from the novel early on. The film also used computer-generated imagery provided by Industrial Light & Magic; ''Jurassic Park'' was completed on time and became the highest-grossing film at the time, and won three Academy Awards. The film's dominance during its theatrical run, as well as Spielberg's $250 million salary, made him self-conscious of his own success.

Also in 1993, Spielberg directed '' Schindler's List'', about Oskar Schindler, a businessman who helped save 1,100 Jews from the The Holocaust, Holocaust. Based on ''Schindler's Ark'' by Australian novelist Thomas Keneally, Spielberg waited ten years to make the film as he did not feel "mature" enough. He wanted to embrace his heritage, and after the birth of his son, Max, he said that "it greatly affected me ..A spirit began to ignite in me, and I became a Jewish dad". Filming commenced on March 1, 1993, in Poland, while Spielberg was still editing ''Jurassic Park'' in the evenings. To make filming "bearable", Spielberg brought his wife and children with him. While ''Schindler's List'' was praised by most critics, some reviewers, including filmmaker Claude Lanzmann criticized the film for its weak representation of the Holocaust. Imre Kertész, a Hungarian author and Nazi concentration camps, concentration camp survivor, also disliked the film, saying "I regard as kitsch any representation of the Holocaust that is incapable of understanding or unwilling to understand the organic connection between our own deformed mode of life and the very possibility of the Holocaust." Against expectations, the film was a commercial success, and Spielberg used his percentage of profits to start the USC Shoah Foundation, Shoah Foundation, a non-profit organization that archives Testimony, testimonies of Holocaust survivors. ''Schindler's List'' won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and Spielberg's first as Best Director. It also won seven British Academy Film Awards, BAFTAs, and three Golden Globe Awards, Golden Globes. According to the American Film Institute, ''Schindler's List'' is one of the AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies, 100 best American films ever made.In 1994, Spielberg took a break from directing to spend more time with his family, and setup his new film studio, DreamWorks, with Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen. Spielberg cited more creative control and distribution improvements as the main reasons for founding his own studio; he and his partners compared themselves to the founders of United Artists back in 1919. DreamWorks' investors included Microsoft founders Paul Allen and Bill Gates. After founding DreamWorks, Spielberg continued to operate Amblin Entertainment and direct films for other studios. Besides film, Spielberg helped design a ''Jurassic Park''-themed attraction at Universal Orlando in Florida. The workload of filmmaking and operating a studio raised questions about his commitments, but Spielberg maintained that "this is all fitting nicely into my life and I'm still home by six and I'm still home on the weekends."

After his hiatus, he returned to directing with a sequel to ''Jurassic Park:'' ''The Lost World: Jurassic Park'' (1997). A loose adaptation of Michael Crichton's novel, ''The Lost World (Crichton novel), The Lost World,'' the plot follows mathematician Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) and his researchers who study dinosaurs at a Jurassic Park island, and are confronted by another team with a different agenda. This time, Spielberg wanted the onscreen creatures to be more realistic than in the first film; he used 3D storyboards, computer imagery and robotic puppets. Budgeted at $73 million, ''The Lost World: Jurassic Park'' opened in May 1997 and was one of the highest grossing 1997 in film, films of the year. The ''The Village Voice, Village Voice'' critic opined that ''The Lost World'' was "better crafted but less fun" that the first film, while ''The Guardian'' wrote "It looks like a director on autopilot ..The special effects brook no argument."

His 1997 feature, '' Amistad'', his first released under DreamWorks, was based on the true story of the events in 1839 aboard the slave ship ''La Amistad''. Producer Debbie Allen, who had read the book ''Amistad I'' in 1978, thought Spielberg would be perfect to direct. Spielberg was hesitant taking on the project, afraid that it would be compared to ''Schindler's List'', but he said, "I've never planned my career ..In the end I do what I think I gotta do." Starring Morgan Freeman, Anthony Hopkins, Djimon Hounsou and Matthew McConaughey,Spielberg used Allen's ten years worth of research to reenact the difficult historical scenes. The film struggled to find an audience, and underperformed at the box office; Spielberg admitted that "[''Amistad''] became too much of a history lesson."

Spielberg's 1998 release was World War II epic '' Saving Private Ryan'', about a group of U.S. soldiers led by Captain Miller (Tom Hanks) sent to bring home a paratrooper whose three older brothers were killed in the same twenty-four hours of the Normandy landings, Normandy landing. Filming took place in England, and United States Marine Corps, U.S. Marine Dale Dye was hired to train the actors and keep them in character during the combat scenes. Halfway through filming, Spielberg reminded the cast that they were making a tribute to thank "your grandparents and my dad, who fought in [the war]". Upon release, critics praised the direction and its realistic portrayal of war. The film grossed a successful $481 million worldwide, and Spielberg won a second Academy Award for Best Director. In August 1999, Spielberg and Hanks were awarded the Army Distinguished Public Service Medal, Distinguished Public Service Medal from United States Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Defense William Cohen, William S. Cohen.

1999–2007: Established director

In 2001, Spielberg and Tom Hanks produced Band of Brothers (TV miniseries), ''Band of Brothers'', a miniseries based on Stephen Ambrose's book Band of Brothers (book), of the same name. The ten-part HBO series follows E Company, 506th Infantry Regiment (United States), Easy Company of the 101st Airborne Division's 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment. The series won a Golden Globe for Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries or Television Film, Best Miniseries. Also in that year, Spielberg returned to film with '' A.I. Artificial Intelligence'', a loose adaptation of the 1969 short story "Supertoys Last All Summer Long" by Brian Aldiss. Filmmaker Stanley Kubrick had first asked Spielberg to direct the feature in 1979. Spielberg tried to make it in the style that Kubrick would have done, though with mixed results according to some reviewers. The plot revolves around an android (robot), android called David (Haley Joel Osment) who wants to be a real child. Critics thought Spielberg directed with "sentimentality", and Roger Ebert wrote, "Here is one of the most ambitious films of recent years ..but it miscalculates in asking u