CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
Starring:
Richard Dreyfuss, François Truffaut, Teri Garr, Melinda Dillon, Bob Balaban
and Cary Guffey
Writer/Director:
Steven Spielberg
Running Time:
137 mins
"I saw something I cannot explain"
Roy Neary's (Dreyfuss) life is dramatically changed as he witnesses something that he just can't explain. While sat waiting at a railroad crossing his pickup suddenly loses all power. Plunged into darkness, he tries to find his flashlight but even that doesn't work. Suddenly the crossing signal starts going mad, and an amazingly bright light from the sky illuminates Roy's pickup, which then starts to shake franticly, then nothing. Suddenly the radio comes back on, and an extremely startled Roy witnesses the light moving into the distance. From that night on, Roy Neary becomes an obsessed man and needs to discover more, even if it costs him his wife, his family, his job and his sanity.
When it comes to naming some of the defining movies in the science fiction genre one movie that would make most people's list would be Steven Spielberg's 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' but does it still hold up against the modern CG filled epics.
1977 was a classic year for science fiction. George Lucas released the first of his epic adventures from a galaxy far, far away and his best friend Steven Spielberg brought us a movie that was more grounded in fact than fantasy but it was 'Star Wars' that made the biggest impact at the box office but it still became a firm favourite with science fiction fans.
What made 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' standout from all other science fiction films of the period and the many that followed was its human story. While the film dealt with aliens visiting Earth, they were the back-story to the human story of family, obsession and even the spiralling into madness. This is a movie about two families. The first was Neary family, an average, suburban American family that is driven apart by father Roy's obsession with his encounter. Then we have single parent Gillian Guiler and her son Barry, who are terrorised by visitors who finally end up taking Barry from her. These are human stories that reflect the UFO phenomena of the time but it was Spielberg's decision to take the more human angle than say, a military or political standpoint that made the film connect with so many people around the world.
It is the performances that draw you into the movie. Fresh from his performance in Spielberg's 'Jaws', Richard Dreyfuss stars again and creates a character that is the everyman people can connect with. Roy Neary's encounter changed him forever and drove him to obsession at the expense of his family. This is a powerhouse performance from Dreyfuss and one of the defining roles of his career. François Truffaut brings a certain amount of class to the film as Claude Lacombe, the government face of the UFO investigation but instead of the typical official with his own agenda, Truffaut is a passionate and understanding character who just wants to discover the truth and make contact. Melinda Dillon has one of the most difficult roles in the movie as Gillian Guiler. She is a single mother whose son becomes a target for the visitors. Here she has to show real fear and emotion as Barry (Cary Guffey) is taken from her. Add to this a great performance by Teri Garr as Roy's wife Ronnie and Bob Balaban as Lacombe's translator David Laughlin and you have a cast that really draws you into the film.
Before the advent of computer generated effects films like 'Star Wars', '2001: A Space Odyssey', 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture' and 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' set the standard for what model special effects could achieve at the time. The visuals is 'Close Encounters' have, like 'Star Wars' stood the test of time with first time viewers still watching in awe as the mothership comes into land at the Devil's Tower landing site. This shows that even with all the huge advances in CGI, models can still look as good today as they ever did. The music also plays a pivotal role in the film and again it is one of composer John Williams' best. Everyone knows those pivotal five notes used to communicate with the space ships but it is music that not only drives the story but also the emotions of the film.
'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' is a pivotal movie in the science fiction genre. It is a genuine human story that draws you in from the off and created a new type of Sci-Fi, seeing the visitation from the average person's point of view. Without this film, 'E.T. The Extra Terrestrial' would never have been made and even shows like the 'X-Files' owe a lot to it. This is science fiction at its very best.
PICTURE & SOUND
Presented in Widescreen 1.85:1 Anamorphic with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the three versions of the movie (The Theatrical Cut, the Special Edition and the new Director's Cut) have been digitally remastered and look superb.
BONUS FEATURES
Disc 1: Theatrical Cut
Making of Close Encounters
of the Third Kind Part 1 (39.18 mins)
Director Steven Spielberg, director of photography Vilmos Zsigmond, production
designer Joe Alves, composer John Williams, special effects supervisor
Douglas Trumby and stars Richard Dreyfuss, Teri Garr, Melinda Dillon,
Bob Balaban and Cary Guffey talk about making 'Close Encounters of the
Third Kind'. The group talk about how the film came about, the amount
of research that went into the screenplay and the impact of UFO mythology
at the time of the production. We also see how the sets were built, huge
amount of pre-production involved, casting and writing that famous five
note tune.
Original Theatrical Preview
(3.48 mins)
Watch the original trailer from 1977, which is more like a featurette
than a preview.
Disc 2: Special Edition
Making of Close Encounters
of the Third Kind Part 2 (47.33 mins)
Director Steven Spielberg, director of photography Vilmos Zsigmond, production
designer Joe Alves, composer John Williams, editor Michael Kahn special
effects supervisor Douglas Trumby and stars Richard Dreyfuss, Teri Garr,
Melinda Dillon, Bob Balaban and Cary Guffey take you through the production
of the movie. Here we hear about the significance of keep character contributions,
the production problems, the special effects and creating the mothership.
Special Edition Trailer
(1.54 mins)
Watch the preview for the special edition of 'Close Encounters of the
Third Kind'
Disc 3: Director's Cut
Making of Close Encounters
of the Third Kind Part 3 (15.31 mins)
Director Steven Spielberg, director of photography Vilmos Zsigmond, production
designer Joe Alves, composer John Williams, editor Michael Kahn special
effects supervisor Douglas Trumby and stars Richard Dreyfuss, Teri Garr,
Melinda Dillon, Bob Balaban and Cary Guffey talk about the final cut of
the movie, the special edition and the reaction to the film when it was
released.
Steven Spielberg: 30 Years
of Close Encounters (21.23 mins)
One of the best directors of all time talks passionately about the film
that made so much to him at the time. He reveals how the movie came about,
writing the screenplay and how it reflected his life at the time and how
it would be so different if he made it now. Spielberg discusses how he
was forced to release the film before it was really complete, the special
edition and now the final director's cut.
Watch the Skies (5.41 mins)
This is the original 1977 featurette that takes you behind the scenes
of the movie
30th Anniversary Ultimate
Edition Trailer (1.32 mins)
Watch the trailer to the new box set
OVERALL
The DVD treatment of 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' is extremely good. With the obvious lack of a commentary track because Steven Spielberg still refuses to do them, it is made up by the inclusion of a behind the scenes book containing never seen before images from the production of the movie, a poster explaining the difference between the three versions and special edition packaging. The behind the scenes documentary is also very good, even if a short version was included on the original DVD release but the new interview with Spielberg makes up for this. With three versions of the movie, this is the Ultimate version of the DVD release.
DVD
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