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Composer · 1932

John Williams

6: briefs
13:00: average
78 min: in total

On film.briefs6

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

Steven Spielberg · 1982

Steven Spielberg's 1982 film, written by Melissa Mathison from a rejected Columbia Pictures script, follows a boy named Elliott who hides and befriends a stranded alien while government agents close in. Shot in sequence over four months on a $10.5 million budget, with a Carlo Rambaldi animatronic creature voiced by a chain-smoking retiree, it overtook Star Wars to become the highest-grossing film ever made and held that record for eleven years, until Spielberg's own Jurassic Park surpassed it.

Jaws

Steven Spielberg · 1975

Steven Spielberg's 1975 thriller sends police chief Martin Brody, a marine biologist and a professional shark hunter after a great white attacking swimmers off a New England resort town. Adapted from Peter Benchley's novel and shot on location at Martha's Vineyard, it went over budget and schedule when its mechanical sharks repeatedly failed, forcing Spielberg toward a suggestive, Hitchcock-influenced style built around John Williams's two-note theme. It became the highest-grossing film in history at the time and established the modern summer blockbuster model.

Jurassic Park

Steven Spielberg · 1993

Steven Spielberg's 1993 adaptation of Michael Crichton's novel follows a Costa Rican dinosaur park that collapses once its systems, and its owner's judgement, both fail during a single act of sabotage. Combining Stan Winston's animatronics with Industrial Light & Magic's early computer-generated dinosaurs on a budget reported as either $56 or $63 million, it grossed over $914 million on its original release, briefly the highest-grossing film ever made, and won three Academy Awards for its sound and visual effects.

Raiders of the Lost Ark

Steven Spielberg · 1981

Steven Spielberg's 1981 adventure sends archaeologist Indiana Jones after the Ark of the Covenant, racing Nazi treasure hunters across three continents. Financed by Lucasfilm rather than a studio, built from a George Lucas story and a Lawrence Kasdan script, it swept the technical Academy Awards and became the year's biggest earner despite tracking that predicted it would be overshadowed.

Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope

George Lucas · 1977

George Lucas's 1977 space opera sends farm boy Luke Skywalker into a rebellion against the Galactic Empire after he acquires stolen plans for a planet-destroying superweapon, teaming with smuggler Han Solo, Princess Leia and Jedi master Obi-Wan Kenobi. Made for $11 million after multiple studios turned the project down, it became a surprise blockbuster, grossing $775 million across its releases, winning six Academy Awards, and establishing the modern template for franchise filmmaking.

Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back

Irvin Kershner · 1980

Irvin Kershner's 1980 sequel sends the Rebel Alliance into retreat as the Galactic Empire hunts them down, splitting Luke Skywalker's training under Jedi master Yoda from Han Solo and Princess Leia's flight from Darth Vader's forces. Written by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan from George Lucas's story outline, it went well over its original $8 million budget to a reported $30.5 million, became the year's highest-grossing film, and is now widely regarded as the strongest entry in the Star Wars series.