Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) Review

“You can come and play now”

THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

The truth is an interesting answer to find, but the further we go to find it, the more drastic we'll change without realizing it. I deeply understood when watching Close Encounters of the Third Kind.


PLOT


The 1977 film follows various extraterrestrial occurrences that become larger scaled by each encounter. Scientist Claude Lacombe and cartographer David Laughlin examine an aircraft found in the Sonoran desert after being reported missing in 1945 due to vanishing over the Bermuda Triangle. Near Indianapolis, two airplanes avoid colliding with a UFO. Most of the occurrences would then occur in Indiana, where a three year old boy named Barry Guiler finds his toys operating on his own and his refrigerator get ransacked. He then follows an outside trail until his mother Jillian stops him. When widespread power outages start occurring, lefties utility lineman Roy Neary is sent to investigate and ends up seeing a UFO himself flying over his truck. He tries following it on the road, only to see fly into the sky. Ever since that night, Roy would start becoming so fascinated with the ufo that he would make a giant sculpture of a mountainous shape, taking it so serious that he’d be ostracized by his family. He would also be fired by his company for not contacting them of what he witnessed. As for Jillian, she’d sketch the same shape but short after, a UFO would abduct her son. In Northern India, Lacombe & Laughlin investigate with the United Nations to confirm that the aliens communicate with a distinctive five tone musical phrase in a pentatonic scale. Other scientists receive a series of number in response to broadcasting the tone to outer space, but Laughlin would recognize that the numbers make up coordinates to Devils Tower in Morocoft, Wyoming. The US Navy would evacuate the area near the mountain, planting false reports of a toxic gas, but Roy and Jillian travel there personally as they recognize the mountain they’ve been visualizing all along. Lacombe but does interview Roy, but he doesn’t find himself capable of explaining his compulsion to reach the mountain beyond seeking answers. Although he and Jillian get escorted away alongside other people who’ve had similar visions, the two escape and succeed in reaching the mountain. There, they see the mothership arrive and specialists are able to communicate with it, via lights & sounds on a large electrical billboard. When it’s hatch opens, not only animals but also humans have been released who haven’t aged since taken. The array of people go from WWII pilots, to Cotopaxi to even Barry who reunites with his mom. When Roy makes himself present, Lacombe selects him to be a visitor to the mothership as part of other volunteers, as do the aliens who solely pick him and no one else. As the film ends with Neary departing with them, Lacombe uses the same Curwen hand signs that match the tonal phrase, leaving a smile on the aliens’ faces as they leave.


THOUGHTS

Fresh off of Jaws, Steven Spielberg was the next big thing in the 70s and with the preceding film setting up the trend of blockbuster success, the world wondered how exactly could he top himself. His answer was directing and writing what felt like the be all end all in sci fi films involving aliens. This wouldn't be the first of Hollywood's kind, nor would it be Spielberg's last, but this hit the standard in showing the definition of epic goes in all shapes and sizes. This has to be the man's fascinating entry in his filmography because the whole thing from start to finish is a race against time unlike anything before it. With John Williams' soothing score and grandiose cinematography by Vilmos Zsigmond, you just feel like you're part of the chase because you can't believe what unfolds. Some interpret aliens as threats because we're too afraid to know what they want, but then this is an example they can be peaceful figures if we make the time to know. Even their designs give this vibe that they are indeed such as they're not trying to provoke anyone, because they just want to learn about us as much as we want to learn about them. That is truly what the movie is all about, the connections we make when exploring the unknown and letting curiosity become our greatest strength. If beings do not give this approach a chance, then evolution does not go on. There will always be people that will doubt what can be discovered, but only your opinion matters when it comes to wanting to learn new things. The fact there are people willing to take the risks is really inspiring. We become aware of this through the characters that are willing to discover the answers they never though to be possible. Lacombe & Laughlin are an interesting dynamic duo because of Francois Truffaut and Bob Balaban play it off so well in the most grounded pair as they accept the unknown is real and must know the extent if they before an opportunity is missed. The only thing they gain alongside everyone else is knowledge because that alone is the true great tool then the physical elements that would lie before us. The fact they made contact and it all went swell proves their tactics were worth it in the long run, as this paves the way for them to learn more than before. The other pair that many have related to the most are Roy and Jillian. These two did not ever meet each other before the aliens ever made their way to Indiana and yet shared the goal to get the answers of what they are until they do. The difference is how they approach their own journeys. Melinda Dillon really made an ideal parent out of Jillian because her only goal is to get her back and doesn't overthink how to do it, not clouding her judgment at all with any connection she had, which also becomes worth it since she reunites with her boy. Richard Dreyfuss gives an amazing 180 as the former because his connection with the aliens make him neglect the family man aura to become straight up obsessive with what he encountered. All he wants to do is learn too, but takes it too far when ignoring his family to the point they leave him before he leaves them. It does become hard to root for a guy like that, but you oddly still respect the commitment because there are things we wish to take farther than we should. The fact he got to leave with the aliens proves the gift of determination and if we can be such without neglecting loved ones, we can be content too. If leaving the planet was what he really wanted, let's hope he's still happy. This movie will always be great, whichever version you choose, but even I can't help admitting to have issues with the story whenever I chose to re watch. It is realistic for people curse each other out on the road, but Roy ain't in the wrong. The guy is an electrical lineman and shouldn't be called a jackass for figuring things out in the middle of the road. I like that the aliens are mysterious throughout, but why exactly did they use the toll roads? They have ships, so they could've flown over it. And why exactly did Roy get fired? The power did return to the town and we don't know the reasoning because we didn't hear the call on the other end. If this is because he almost hit Barry, it would've not been bad to know if that was the reason. Speaking, how come Barry didn't get a sunburn like his mother? The spacecrafts passed by them on the same night and the kids pursued them, so it's not like he was avoiding exposure. I know parents can dismiss things without a second thought when they're stressed out, but Ronnie is out of her mind thinking it's okay to feed her daughter potatoes when the latter spotted a dead fly. I know she's worried about Roy, but you can't be that dismissive when feeding your kids. Also, I know Roy isn't thinking straight when he torments himself over the sculpture he makes. But if he wanted to get inside the house faster when bringing in the plants, the back door is an easier option than throwing stuff through the window. I understand that there is a timezone difference between Indiana and Arizona, 3 hours exactly. But if that's the case, why does it look like dark in Arizona when Jillian watches the news, whereas it is sunny in Indiana when Roy watches the same thing? They almost avoided a continuity error had they been accurate with the timezones. I am glad that they are together to see the aliens in the end, but their reunion makes no sense: Jillian is getting pushed onto the train, which only makes it hard for me to believe she spotted Roy in the crowd. I enjoy it when stories intertwine, but why do Laughlin and Lacombe interview Roy when they could've assigned anybody to do it if they thought the guy was trespassing? It is smart for the military to spray sleeping gas around the mountain, but why only one helicopter? If they're so sure they can sneak in, they should've sent more. That's more shocking than one lady in that red group not wearing sunglasses like the others. Other than that, you're still getting a sci fi masterpiece out of this. In conclusion, Close Encounters of the Third Kind is a fantastic film for opening your mind in the best ways possible. If you have a fascination over aliens, see this now.