Steven Spielberg is one of the most prolific filmmakers of all time, as he has been directing blockbuster movies ever since the 70s and essentially invented the summer blockbuster with Jaws in 1975. The director has close to 40 movies under his belt, and each decade represents a distinct phase in his filmmaking career, and one of the most interesting phases is the 2000s.
While Spielberg has always been known for his sci-fi movies, the 2000s saw his first sci-fi flicks that are actually set in the future. The decade also saw him continue to make gripping and suspenseful historical biopics, and he even ventured into genres had never worked in before. Despite never having made a comedy drama before, the filmmaker still ended up directing two of the best movies in the genre.
Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull (2008) - 6.2
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is hated amongst fans of the franchise, as it forgoes all the intricate sets and practical effects for video game-looking digital effects. The narrative made little to no sense too, and the new characters felt forced and way too animated.
However, there are ways in which Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is underrated, such as Indy's detective work and the way it features everything that originally made Indy iconic. And given how bad of a reception it received from fans, even 6.2 is fairly high for the 2008 movie. But with the fifth movie currently in production and scheduled for release in 2023, it could very well redeem the series and be Indy's swan song, especially as director James Mangold, who directed Logan, is at the helm.
War Of The Worlds (2005) - 6.5
In the 2000s, Spielberg and Tom Cruise struck up their own Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese kind of relationship, as Cruise was cast as the lead character in two of the biggest sci-fi movies of the 2000s, both directed by Spielberg. The lowest-rated of the two is the remake of War of the Worlds, which is one of the most unique and original alien invasion movies. The 2005 film isn't the director's best work, and there are some surprisingly sloppy mistakes from a filmmaker who usually has such acute attention to detail.
However, it's a unique movie in Spielberg's filmography for a couple of reasons. While Jaws is technically a horror movie, War of the Worlds features Spielberg's most terrifying and suspenseful sequences ever. Between running through the city as the tripods invade and the probe exploring the basement, it truly is the closest Spielberg has come to making an outright horror movie.
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) - 7.2
Spielberg is best known for his classic sci-fi movies, and his meticulous camerawork and huge setpieces are what make those films such spectacles. The 2000s saw him double down on the genre, and A.I. Artificial Intelligence was the first of many Spielberg-directed sci-fi flicks of the decade. However, the project wasn't originally spearheaded by Spielberg, as Artificial Intelligence is an unrealized Stanley Kubrick movie.
It's hard to not think about how the movie could have turned out under the genius of Kubrick, who was the creative visionary behind 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Shining. But Spielberg still did a great job of bringing Kubrick's vision to life. When it comes to the narrative, it feels way more like a Kubrick movie than a Spielberg movie, as it's way more ambiguous and open to interpretation than the heartwarming and linear structure that Spielberg is known for. But that's not exactly what fans of the filmmaker want to see, which kept it from being the masterpiece that it could have been.
The Terminal (2004) - 7.4
Along with Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks is another bankable star who worked with Spielberg more than once in the 2000s. The better known of the two is Catch Me If You Can, but in 2004, the modest and charming The Terminal warmed audiences' hearts.
Funnily enough, the movies share more than one similarity, as they both mostly take place in airports. The Terminal is about an Eastern European (Hanks) who essentially lives in an airport when he is denied entry to the United States but is unable to return home. It's reminiscent of Hanks-led comedy-dramas of the 1980s like Big and Splash only without the fantastical elements, as it makes viewers cry and laugh, and despite being a little too schmaltzy for some, it's hard to resist Hanks' charm.
Munich (2005) - 7.5
One of the reasons why Spielberg is considered the greatest American filmmaker working today is because of how prolific he is. He has often worked on two movies at once, with the most obvious example being Jurassic Park and Schindler's List, both of which were released in 1993. But in 2005, not only was War of the Worlds released but the even better Munich was put out in movie theatres too.
Sci-fi movies might be Spielberg's bread and butter, but he's also one of the best filmmakers when it comes to historical dramas too. Munich is one of the best examples of that, as the film is about a team of Israeli government operatives who attempt to assassinate 11 members of a Palestinian terrorist group. The 2005 release is one of the best spy movies based on real events, and it stacks up against Spielberg's other historical biopics like Lincoln and Bridge of Spies.
Minority Report (2002) - 7.7
Being the second collaboration between Cruise and Spielberg, Minority Report is easily the best of the two. The film is beautifully made and one of the greatest screen adaptations of a Philip K. Dick novel. The author's stories have led to several cinema classics, including Blade Runner and Total Recall, and Minority Report deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as those iconic 80s and 90s flicks.
The movie asks some fascinating philosophical and moral questions, as it follows police officers who arrest criminals before they actually commit the crimes. Between the impressive visual effects, the moral dilemmas, and the unbelievable action sequences, Minority Report is a great tech-noir movie.
Catch Me If You Can (2002) - 8.1
When it comes to true classics where everything from the production design to the performances are operating at 11, Catch Me If You Can is the only Spielberg-directed movie of the 2000s that ranks among the filmmaker's very best movies.
The film is an entertaining and globe-trotting wild ride, as it follows a teenage fraudster toy with the FBI as he becomes a pilot, a lawyer, and a doctor in different states as he and cashes in fake checks. It's one of the best cat-and-mouse chase movies ever made, the 60s setting is irresistible, and Frank and Carl have the most entertaining frenemies-like relationship ever.