I have a list on IMDB of the Top Active Directors and right now Steven Spielberg is at the top. It’s not by a wide margin, but Spielberg has incredible longevity. He’s been around the top for six decades and is currently doing some of his best work. (I have that list too.) I could go in a lot of different directions writing about The Fabelmans, and while most pieces want to unpack Sammy’s relationship with his parents, I’m more fascinated by the cinematic decisions.
Easily the scene I’ve rewatched the most is the coda with David Lynch playing John Ford. Ford is such an outsized character, and was previously played by Ward Bond in a John Ford film called The Wings of Eagles. I’m curious about Spielberg casting David Lynch, having one legendary director play another. Also interesting is learning that the big inspiration that kicked off Spielberg’s entire career was 1952’s The Greatest Show on Earth. I’ve seen every film that won the Oscar for Best Picture and Greatest Show is at the bottom. Green Book and Crash got nothing on Greatest Show. We all have our personal inspirational favorites, mine is Streets of Fire. Spielberg today doesn’t defend the whole movie. He gets that it’s seen as corny and melodramatic, but it also showed him the power of spectacle to create emotional storytelling. I have to consider that without The Greatest Show on Earth we wouldn’t have the greatest showman in movies.
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