Steven Spielberg has directed many successful movies throughout his career. One year stands out in particular. Not only did he direct two classics, but they could hardly be more different. George Lucas played an important role.
Steven Spielberg has been successfully directing films since 1971. His most famous works include classics such as Jaws, E.T., Saving Private Ryan, or the Indiana Jones films, which we have rated in a ranking on MeinMMO.
1993 was a very special year for Spielberg. Two films were released within just a few months. Looking back at what they have become and how we view them today shows that the director is truly one of the greats. Because two films could hardly be more different.
First Popcorn Movie, Then Drama
Which films were released in 1993? It was a good summer for blockbuster cinema, as Jurassic Park was released in July 1993, a box office hit that grossed an impressive 978 million dollars on a budget of 63 million dollars (via boxofficemojo.com).
In principle, this was no surprise. After the successes of Jaws and E.T., it was known that Spielberg could make successful crowd-pleasers.
What was more exciting was to see how the director dealt with a serious topic like the Holocaust. Spielberg focused on this in Schindler’s List, a three-hour black-and-white drama that tells the story of Oskar Schindler. The businessman saved around 1,200 Jews from death at the hands of the Nazis during World War II.
Schindler’s List premiered just a few months after Jurassic Park in December 1993. The film received predominantly very positive reviews and currently holds a rating of 98% on Rotten Tomatoes. Spielberg won his first Oscar for it.
What does this say about Spielberg? It is remarkable that the director managed to make two elaborate films in such a short time. Moreover, they differ greatly in mood and tone.
It is not a given that a director with a knack for popcorn movies can also master serious drama. Spielberg demonstrated in 1993 that he could do both. By the way, he was supported by Jurassic Park‘s good friend George Lucas. When Spielberg set off to shoot Schindler’s List, Lucas took over for him during the post-production of Jurassic Park (via collider.com)
This was the only way for the dino adventure to be completed, allowing Spielberg to start working on his next film.
The effort and hard work on both films paid off. Both Jurassic Park and Schindler’s List are now considered classics in film history. Spielberg himself was likely very fond of his work and even used it for another purpose: Steven Spielberg submitted two blockbusters and finally got his university degree.
