Spielberg became a better, more refined, filmmaker as he aged into his 60s. The craft and masterful storytelling between 1998 and 2005 (“Saving Private Ryan,” “Minority Report,” “AI,” “Catch Me If You Can,” “Munich,” and “War of the Worlds”) at times exceeded his, mostly brilliant, but inconsistent work from the ’70s and ’80s. There’s real excitement to the filmmaking in those films, and a lot of creative risk-taking. It’s also the phase with the most pleasurable filmmaking from Spielberg, with masterful use of color and framing. These films have aged very well. However, something changed post-2005 as he switched his style into more talky, slow-burning dramas. Spielberg seemed to be going for old-fashioned Hollywood craftsmanship. I like to think of this as the Victor Fleming/Howard Hawks phase of his career, both his cinematic idols. “The Fabelmans” seems to very much connect to his late-career stylistic change. There’s nothing wrong with that. The filmmaking, to me at least, is now less exciting and more precisely controlled. The Cahiers du Cinema people are very keen with this new Spielberg phase. “Lincoln,” “The Post,” “Bridge of Spies” and “War Horse” all have their fair share of expertly crafted moments. Contribute Hire me
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