Close Encounters of the Third Kind Review

        This is the first Steven Spielberg film that I’ve seen since I was little. It may come as a surprise that as a kid, I’ve had a phase that I was so fascinated with UFOs. So much so that my dad’s friend lend me his VHS copies of this film and Robert Zemeckis’ Contact. It’s been a good while since I’ve seen Close Encounters and I feel that it’s a full circle thing where I talk about the film that sort of in a way got me into movies. 

1. Firelight

        Before I go into detail with the film, the title derives from the Ufologist J. Allen Hynek’s classification of when someone encounters a UFO. With the third kind being when the person makes contact with the craft. With that detail out of the way, let’s talk about the film. Well, actually one could interpret this film as remake, since Spielberg had directed an alien movie when he was younger. Only snippets exist since his print was deemed lost. Anyways, the whole film is divided into three stories that are interconnected. With all of them closing in on one ending. 

        At the start, we follow French scientist Lacombe as he investigates the reappearance of the missing planes from the infamous Flight 19 disappearance. Meanwhile, in Indiana we see Roy who investigates a power outage and sees UFOs. Along with single mother Jillian with her son Barry, who has weird things happen around him. So much so that he leaves the house and has his mom chase him back.

        The great thing about the whole setup is that there’s never a tonal shift or where one subplot overshadows the former or latter. All of it are weaved beautifully since they are all interconnected. The great thing about it is that it teases the encounters gradually. With the reappearance of the planes, objects turning on by themselves and then Roy having a close encounter himself. 

        One would think that it’s sort of his story in the film. His experience kicks off his UFO obsession to the point where it drives his family apart. It may have worked like that, but the other stories are so integral since they help show just how gradual the issue is. The overall questions are why are the aliens here and what do they want?

        It’s those kinds of stories where there isn’t a bad guy or the obligatory evil government agent that wants to use the whole situation for his own means. Fortunately, there isn’t one since the whole film treats the whole thing straight from that angle. Albeit, where the Air Force try to tell the citizens that what they saw were just airplanes, yet they are adamant at what they saw. 

        If there’s a sort of element that is to be extracted from this film is that I think this is Spielberg’s most personal film. As most of his movies, there’s a motif of the broken family appearing where there isn’t a normal family. With Roy’s encounter affecting his own family to the point where they leave, believing that he’d gone insane. There’s also another aspect where it involves UFOs. 

2. UFOs

        Having watched his later films, I also think another Spielberg motif is showcasing the wonders/dangers of whatever the main thing in the movie is. With the way we see UFOs, they are a far cry from the standard flying saucers that has become a pop culture icon within the realm of science fiction. We see that there’s a variety of how they look like and just how colorful they are. The scene involving Roy’s first encounter just perfectly captures it. 

        As he’s being tasked with investigating a blackout, I love how the UFO first appears as a car. Then, without showing another angle, we see that the lights hover and soon give Roy an experience unlike any other. Then the succeeding scenes show just how determined Roy is to follow them. Inevitably involving the police as they chase the spacecraft. I love the detail where they don’t just show up, clouds form as they explore the area.

        It would be one thing where we just see the craft and wait for the aliens in the end. The best scene in the whole film is also the scariest. We actually see an abduction happen; this is where we get a tonal shift from the dramatic to horror/thriller. The set up is great since we see a supposed storm form near Jillian’s house. From there, the aliens try to abduct Barry and his mother attempting to shield him. How it’s set up with the electronics coming to life, with the screws coming undone is where I’m surprised Spielberg hadn’t done more horror films beyond Jaws. 

        With how the UFOs are presented and with the regular characters like Roy and Jillian having a near obsession with them, I feel that the film is sort of like a modern-day biblical tale. Sort of when Moses encounters the burning bush, both Roy and Jill encounter something where it’s beyond them. Right down to the penultimate scene where the mothership descends and contacts the humans via musical notes. It descends from a storm cloud like that vision that Elijah has. 

        Not that the film is a faith film by any means, but I interpret the film as a sort of heir apparent to Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. That film showcases the evolution of humans through the advancement of space travel. This one highlights the next step of when humans contact another life. Right down to how the contact with musical notes and with hand signs. 

        With the last part, I feel that it was sort of subconscious and Spielberg not realizing that he was using his own past as inspiration. This analysis isn’t mine, but I want it to highlight it since it was brought up to the director back in the 2000s. Both his mom and dad were a piano player and an engineer, they ultimately divorced as Steven grew older. The moment can be interpreted as when the humans and aliens communicate, Spielberg was attempting to have his parents be reunited. It’s sort of cathartic in the end when the main character boards with the aliens. 

3. Overall

        Close Encounters of the Third Kind is one of the best Spielberg films that I’ve seen. My exposure laid the groundwork for my appreciation into movies.