20. ‘The Color Purple’ (1985)

Yes, "The Color Purple" is a little too sappy and sentimental for its own good. But the film manages to offer a captivating story of an African American woman’s struggle in the early 20th Century, one that’s both daring and also banks heavily on Spielberg’s crowd-pleasing sensibilities. It’s also the film that helped turn Whoopi Goldberg into a star.