It would have been if Steven Spielberg had just kept directing important films like “The Post” and “Lincoln.” He’s 71, and it’s okay if he were done with whimsies like “ET” or “Close Encounters” or even “Jurassic Park.” He has nothing to prove to anyone.

And yet, here is “Ready Player One,” which feels like it’s directed by a 40 year old Spielberg. While making “The Post” and thinking about a remake of “West Side Story,” Spielberg at 71 is still able to find wonder and amazement, shows an affinity for a much younger audience and gets all the inside jokes of a decade– the Eighties– when his films ruled the cinematic world.

“Ready Player One” really made me think about Spielberg in new ways tonight. Like, how is it possible he found the energy and vigor for an adaptation of a futuristic novel that pokes fun at itself while exploring the world of Virtual Reality, avatars and video games? I guess it’s the same way he made “Schindler’s List” and “Jurassic Park” in the same year (1993).  He’s, you know, a genius.

So “Ready Player One” mixes actors with animation and is— sorry James Cameron– kind of the sequel to “Avatar.” At least, it’s what follows “Avatar.” Many of the characters in the story have avatars– alter egos in the virtual world– and boy, you’ll want one too when you see theirs. The thing is, Spielberg has made the two groups seamless to the point where they interact and even they seem surprised about it.

The year is 2045 from Ernest Cline’s novel, and the world is in chaos. The only refuge is participating in a VR world called Oasis, but Nolan Sorrento (Ben Mendelsohn) is the big meanie who wants to take Oasis over. In his quest for power, he’ll battle some heroic and zealous young people played by Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Lena Waithe, Win Morisaki, and Philip Zhao. They want to restore the Oasis created by Mark Rylance’s James Halliday, a genius who’s died trying to protect his invention. Before he dies, Halliday wills a priceless “Easter egg” to anyone who can solve the puzzle of Oasis that he’s left behind.

And that’s Cline’s meta wink within a wink, since Easter eggs– cultural references that are visual and spoken mostly about movies from the 80s– are hidden throughout the movie. There is a long riff on “The Shining” and plenty more nods to everything from “Chuckie,” other signature horror films and science fiction. Even if you miss 50% of them you’ll get a kick out of the ones you catch. There are plenty of references, for example, to “Back to the Future” –which Spielberg produced in the 80s — including an omnipresent Delorean and a Rubik’s Cube object called “the Zemeckis cube.”

And just to make you feel at ease there are two times when the massive number of insider jokes is referenced– once by Sorrento, who tells the kids “he gets it and he can be funny, too, and during “The Shining” section when one character upbraids another for having never seen the original film.

(I am sure Entertainment Weekly must have a whole guide to the insider stuff on their website.)

The cherry on the top: a wonderful soundtrack, a la “Guardians of the Galaxy,” with plenty of recognizable hits from the 70s, 80s, 90s. I hope there’s a CD with all of them on it.

What a romp “Ready Player One” is– I can’t wait to see it again. I expect the weekend box office will be full of people who feel the same way!

Now the story gets really interesting…

“Black Panther” is now the fifth biggest movie of all time on the domestic box office list. This week it passed “The Avengers” and “The Last Jedi,” with a total of $631 million.

But what happens next is even better. “Black Panther” should move into the number 4 spot next week, when it overcomes “Jurassic World.” There’s only a $20 million difference, and the kids from Wakanda have been making around $19 million a week even after six weeks of release.

To hit number 3, “BP” has to get to $660 million. That’s when it knocks out “Titanic.” Can it happen? Sure, why not? “Infinity War,” the new “Avengers” movie, may actually drive theater traffic back to “Panther.” That would be a month away.

If “Panther” hits number 3, that’s where it will stop. “Avatar” is pretty settled in at number 2 with $760 million. And “The Force Awakens” stands at number 1 with $932 million.

How times have changed: Steven Spielberg used to rule the top 10. Now his biggest movie, “E.T.,” is number 17. “Jurassic Park” is number 27. Of course, his grandchild, “Jurassic World,” is number 4.

Original partner John Hodges is abruptly leaving mini-studio A24 after starting it in 2012 with David Fenkel and Daniel Katz. The departure was the talk of the town yesterday because in 2017 A24 won the Oscar with “Moonlight.” This past year, they gave us prestige films like “Lady Bird,” “The Disaster Artist,” and “The Florida Project.”

A24 wants to be the new Miramax, except without the sexual harassment stuff. But the old Miramax was owned by Disney, which poured $750 million a year into the coffers so Harvey and Bob Weinstein could put their good taste (in films) to good use. A24 has financing, but it doesn’t have those deep pockets. And it showed this past Oscar season.

“Lady Bird” made $49 million and became their highest grossing film. But A24’s total for 15 films released in 2017 was $102.3 million. So most of that was from “Lady Bird.” Their second highest grossing film was James Franco’s “The Disaster Artist,” which was nipped in the bud at $21 million just as award season took off. The only other A24 entry to make more than $6 million was a horror film, “It Comes at Night.”

After that it was all downhill. “The Florida Project,” which should have done better, eked out $5.9 million. Like all the A24 films, it picked up nominations but no wins for Oscars or Golden Globes. Most people have never heard of “The Florida Project,” which is a shame since it was so very good. A24’s fifth biggest movie was “The Killing of a Sacred Deer.” There was buzz from Telluride, the film vanished in Toronto and was never heard about again. The total: $2.3 million. And adios.

Of the 10 remaining films, one– “Good Time”– also picked up early festival buzz for Robert Pattinson, then sank like a stone. Remember when all the prognosticators said it was Pattinson’s year? Uh huh.

Will A24 be sold? That’s the big question now. Everyone’s rooting for a clutch of films coming shortly: Adam Rifkin’s “Last Movie Star” with Burt Reynolds, plus “Under the Silver Lake,” “Lean on Pete,” “Hereditary,” “How to Talk to Girls at Parties.” One of them must break out big time. Two of them– and well, uncork the Champagne!