Most underrated and most overrated movie by Steven Spielberg and why?
Here's my pick-
Most overrated - Schindler's List (1993)
This was an easy choice for me because imo Schindler's List is a flawed and ridiculously oversimplified version of the Holocaust.The biggest problem is Oskar Schindler's grand emotional transformation. In fact, there is no transformation. Midpoint in the film, the Schindler persona has disappeared, and we have a new character clothed in the same flesh -- a self-sacrificing philanthropist. How did we get from one to the other? And then we have Amon Goeth. He's an evil, sadistic, Jew-hating Bastard - but do we get to know why he wakes up every morning, takes a swig of booze and snipes Jew prisoners for fun? No. Spielberg thinks the answer is obvious -- he's a Nazi, and Nazis don't have reasons for the things they do. The attempt to add depth to Göeth's character by dwelling on his twisted love affair with a Jewish girl is easily seen for what it is -- a cheap exposure of Nazi hypocrisy. I also take issue with Liam Neeson's terrible german accent and the way Spielberg uses the suffering of Jews as a thematic tool, to build suspense. One of the truly unforgivable aspects of the film is the ending. When Schindler took off his gold ring and blubbered "I could have saved one more", I experienced a feeling of mild revulsion. It was cheesy, completely out of character and completely unnecessary. Ending a Holocaust movie with a triumphant rescue scene is as pathetic as it gets. Schindler's List is a dumbed down version of the Holocaust and the moral and intellectual depth of the film is as though it's aimed at children.
Honorable Mention - Saving Private Ryan (one of the most over patriotic, flag-waving and morally simplistic war films I've ever seen)
Most underrated - A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)
A.I. is a bleak and visionary masterpiece and imo it's Spielberg's best film to date. The ending is ridiculously depressing, particularly once you realise that the cloned Monica is thoroughly unlike the real one. The clone Monica is fake designed to unconditionally love David, just as David was created to unconditionally love Monica. But both David and the audience bought it, which is why everyone complained about this being a "happy" ending. Is this our understanding of love? Programmed obsession? What's ironic is that's precisely what Spielberg intends to show you in this scene. Both David and the audience are willing to delude themselves for that happy ending. Spielberg says this is what it means to be human. David's ability to believe in the Blue Fairy is a parallel to man's tendency to believe in a god he cannot see. Not to mention the ending becomes even more depressing once you realise the last shot is of a boy choosing to die next to his mother's corpse because he's refusing to believe that she fades away. The central question of Collodi's Pinocchio fable has always been "What does it means to be human?" A.I. finds dark and sobering answers. To be real is to be mortal. To be human is to be governed by irrational love, blind faith, self-delusion and eventual death.
A.I. is just as philosophical as 2001 and just as poignant as E.T. and it deserves to recognised as one of the greatest sic-fi films of all time.
Honorable Mention - War of the Worlds, Munich.