Sunday, Film4, 1:05pm
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) is the cinematic equivalent of staring up at the stars and wondering if someone’s staring back. Steven Spielberg’s genre-defining masterpiece takes the UFO phenomenon—an obsession of mid-20th-century pop culture—and spins it into a tale of awe, curiosity, and the universal desire to connect. It’s a film that trades the usual alien invasion tropes for something more profound: the possibility that the universe might not be hostile, but hopeful. In a world of laser beams and bug-eyed monsters, this was nothing short of revolutionary.
Richard Dreyfuss stars as Roy Neary, a small-town everyman whose life is upended after a chance encounter with a UFO. His journey from skeptical suburbanite to obsessive believer is the beating heart of the film, mirroring humanity’s own longing for answers to the great cosmic question: Are we alone? Dreyfuss anchors the film with a mix of wonder and mania, while Melinda Dillon’s grief-stricken mother adds a layer of poignancy. François Truffaut’s turn as a French UFO expert feels like a knowing wink to the global fascination with extraterrestrials, grounding the spectacle in something almost academic. Meanwhile, Spielberg’s direction transforms mashed potatoes and blinking lights into symbols of hope and connection.
And then there’s the music. John Williams’ score for Close Encounters might be one of his most ingenious works. The iconic five-note motif—so simple yet so loaded with meaning—becomes the universal language bridging humanity and the stars. It’s as if Williams condensed the spirit of the film into a single musical phrase: haunting, hopeful, and undeniably human. The climax at Devil’s Tower, a symphonic dance between the spaceship and the orchestra, is as much a feast for the ears as it is for the eyes. It’s no exaggeration to say that Close Encounters isn’t just a sci-fi film—it’s a hymn to curiosity, a symphony of discovery, and a reminder that sometimes the greatest special effect is a sense of wonder.
- Noel Chambers