Steven Spielberg, the maestro of the cinematic medium, is one of the true icons of the American film industry. The kind of modern blockbuster has immortalised himself in the long history of Hollywood with an unrivalled ability to deliver movies of the highest quality with the additional bonus of drawing vast audiences from across the world.
There’s a deep emotional pull to Spielberg’s films found in the likes of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial as is an awe-inspiring visual prowess, say in Jurassic Park, and it’s easy to see why he’s been one of the highest-grossing directors for most of his career. One cannot discuss American cinema without uttering the name Steven Spielberg.
With a genuinely masterful approach to filmmaking, it’s interesting to learn of Spielberg’s process before he starts making a movie. He’s previously explained that he consults a Norman Rockwell painting before heading to set, but there’s a deep love for the films of John Ford that resides in the movie icon, too.
“I turn on a John Ford film — one or two — before every movie, simply because he inspires me,” Spielberg once told AFI. “I’m very sensitive to the way he uses his camera to paint his pictures and the way he frames things. And the way he stages and blocks his people, often keeping the camera static while people give you the illusion there’s a lot more kinetic movement occurring when there’s not.”
The director continued: “In that sense, he is like a classic painter. He celebrates the frame, not just what happens inside of it. I have to look at The Searchers. I have to — almost every time.” Spielberg admitted that there are a handful of other John Ford movies, but the one that sticks out for him is The Searchers, starring John Wayne.
1956’s The Searchers is a genuine masterpiece of the western film genre that almost transcends its very category as an exploration of the morality of the American frontier. With stunning visuals as a result of John Ford using the iconic legendary Monument Valley as the backdrop to the action and an intense performance by John Wayne as Ethan Edwards, The Searchers remains a western of the highest order.
Wayne’s character, a middle-aged Civil War veteran, sets out on a quest to find his abducted niece, accompanied by his adopted nephew.
Leave a Reply