Average film, standard spielberg story

Rating: 5/10 (25 June 2002)

Now, many will tell you of the intricasies of the plot, or the holes, or whatever else. And yes, both are there. But, what bothered me about this film, and why I think it will be forgotten (it is NOT #128, as it is ranked here), is that it is so derivative of other Speilberg works (there i spelled his name two ways).
Spoiler-ish:
What I mean by derivative, is that so many of his films are exactly the same on a structural level, which makes each one less satisfying.
Here's how it goes:
1. Establish far out premise and lots of things we need to accept as fact. 2. Set up main character who we are supposed to like 3. Set up a scenario for this character to be chased 4. Spend LOTS of time having this character get chased, and get away, chased and get away. 5. Have character find answer with very little work (or by accident) 6. Have a happy ending 7. Give the audience "something to think about" that is less and less deep the more you dwell on it.
Films that fit this mold:
ET, Jurassic Park, AI, Minority Report. To a lesser extent, Jaws, Raiders, and Close Encounters still follow this Silly Premise-lots of chasing-ending in which main character is not that active. But at least Raiders, Jaws, and CE were original and entertaining. This film is not too original, and only sometimes entertaining.
It's not as if he writes all these scripts, but he seems to choose all of them, and directs them the same way.
Think about it, and you'll see that basically, this film has very little new in it, either from a Sci Fi standpoint or a Speilberg/Filmmaking standpoint. The style is repetitive (Matrix, Gladiator, Vanilla Sky even!), the technology is stolen (Strange Days, Matrix), the jokes are lame and out of place, the acting is all over the place, and the future is very unrealistic.
So, don't buy the hype.
When i got home, Rules of Engagement was on TV. And honestly, seeing both so close together, R of E is a better film, and it isn't a great film! Had never seen either, but liked the second better. What does that say about MR?