TV Review: TCM’s ‘AFI’s Master Class: The Art of Collaboration’

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CHICAGO – Director Steven Spielberg and composer John Williams have one of the most creatively impressive collaborative histories in all of film. Having worked together since “The Sugarland Express,” the two forever changed the way film scores are produced and judged with countless classics. Tonight, November 15th, 2011, the two discuss their influences and work together at the American Film Institute in “AFI’s Master Class: The Art of Collaboration” and the conversation is a fascinating one, although the short running time leads to a program that feels a bit shallow at times.

Television Rating: 4.0/5.0

If you don’t know the name John Williams, you know his music. The living legend has 45 Oscar nominations, second only to Walt Disney, and has won five Oscars. Any conversation of the best film composers of all time that doesn’t include him is incomplete. “Star Wars,” “Superman,” and “Harry Potter” alone would cement the man’s place in history, but it is his work with Mr. Spielberg that has been truly revolutionary. Can you imagine “Raiders of the Lost Ark” without that instantly-recognizable theme? What about “Jaws” if Williams hadn’t revolutionized the film score by simplifying it down to pure horror? “E.T.”? “Schindler’s List”? “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”?

AFI’s Master Class: The Art of Collaboration
Photo credit: TCM

Clearly, the pair make a great fit for a show about film collaboration. With little fanfare, John Williams and Steven Spielberg sit in front of a class at the AFI. The program is divided into three clear chapters — influences, collaboration, and Q & A. All three could have been a full hour long and the show’s biggest problem is that there’s simply too much history to cram into 44 minutes. It’s a great special, especially for fans of either artist, but it barely skims the surface of their work. Every time they get into an idea like a near-brilliant dissection of how the hero theme works in a film like “Raiders” (“Johnny’s music tells the audience when to get excited.”) they have to move on. I imagine the actual presentation/lecture was much longer and this is the edited version. Hopefully, an unedited one will appear on DVD someday.

AFI’s Master Class: The Art of Collaboration Photo credit: TCM

If you’re curious, the influences section of “The Art of Collaboration” briefly dissects the use of score in “Vertigo,” “Spartacus,” “On the Waterfont,” and “Amadeus.” Hearing Spielberg tell an anecdote about meeting the great Bernard Herrmann on the set of “Taxi Driver” on, coincidentally, the day that Herrmann died, is fascinating enough for most viewers if they are real film buffs.

Then the pair get into their work together. The piece is a bit of a love affair with Williams claiming that Spielberg has never really asked him to change anything. I have to believe there is actually MORE collaboration than the special makes it out to be. If they’re to be believed, the pair is actually not that collaborative, working more as inspirations to one another than hand-in-hand collaborators. The pair discuss “Jaws,” “E.T.- The Extra-Terrestrial,” “Raiders,” and “Schindler’s List” and then they take questions. They circle back around to “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “Catch Me If You Can,” and “Saving Private Ryan” through questions but still leave a TON untouched, including “Jurassic Park,” “A.I.,” and “Munich.”

Perhaps the most interesting question I had after watching “AFI’s Master Class,” other than why TCM would think people wouldn’t watch a 2-hour version, was this — Would Steven Spielberg have the same impact without John Williams? Would we love “Jaws,” “E.T.,” or “Raiders of the Lost Ark” as much without their timeless themes? Would “Schindler’s List” or “Saving Private Ryan” be as moving without theirs? Watch the special and decide for yourself.

By BRIAN TALLERICO Content Director HollywoodChicago.com brian@hollywoodchicago.com