He is more of a collaborator now, but not when he started. He had to be coerced into collaborating. I think THX is brilliant and SW as a combination or Saturday morning serials, mythology, great moviemaking, and for the simple jou it provides.

I have problems with the way the auteur theory has been manipulated by film courses, professors, and the general public. It kinda makes me cringe when I hear it used in this context. I like the idea of it but don't think it applies in every case. The director doesn't have his hand in everything, but definitely has a felt presence on the film if he is worth his salt. I love Truffaut btw if you couldn't tell.

Lucas is a great moviemaker pre-1990. (producing the Indy films and finishing the Trilogy.) Then everything turned south, and the same can be said for Spielberg to be honest. (Last Crusade and Empire of the Sun are the cutoff.) Once again I stress the word moviemaker as opposed to filmmaker when I discuss these two. I admire them and their work has profoundly affected my life, but for all intense and purposes they are great at what they do: making movies.