“Close Encounters of the Third Kind” will return to theaters for showings on July 7 & 10, as part of a broader, ongoing celebration of Columbia Pictures for the studio’s 100th anniversary. (It’s a Fathom Event; google the complete schedule.)
Watching “Close Encounters” for the first time as an 11 year-old was a watershed moment in my movie-going experience. If you’ve only ever seen it at home, you haven’t really seen it. This is a film that definitely deserves to be experienced in a theater. Say what you will about Richard Dreyfuss’ sideburns, for me this will always be one of Steven Spielberg’s best films, with a transcendent score by John Williams. I would go so far as to say, “Close Encounters” is the most musical non-“musical” blockbuster ever made. I write much more about it here:
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Do yourself a favor, and check your local listings.
Alas, the “friendly extraterrestrial” movie seems to have been out of fashion now for quite some time. We seem to be mired in some neo-‘50s zeitgeist, as far as paranoia and invasion are concerned. But that certainly wasn’t the case back in 1982, when Steven Spielberg’s “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial” almost singlehandedly turned everything on its head.
No more invaders from Mars. Spielberg would get to that a couple of decades later, when he remade H.G. Wells’ “The War of the Worlds.” No, during the Reagan Era, with the Cold War winding down and terrorism not yet so much in the news, cinematic E.T.’s were benevolent at best, or at worst, just trying to do their thing. They were there to be misunderstood and even imperiled by man until a warm, fuzzy, often poignant finale.
Spielberg had already explored the concept of the benevolent visitor from space, of course, with 1977’s “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.” But there was an ambiguity for much of the film as to what exactly the aliens’ intentions were. In fact, there is at least one sequence that would have given a child nightmares. Whatever tension is generated dissolves in the euphoric finale, centered on the communicative power of music. Like so many films back then and so few now, “Close Encounters” doesn’t so much exhaust the viewer as leave him or her with feelings of uplift and hope.
John Williams wrote the music for both “Close Encounters” and “E.T.,” and the two scores couldn’t be more different. For “CE3K,” the avant-garde syntax of the early, eerier sequences dissolves into unabashed romanticism for the transcendent finale. “E.T” takes a much more intimate approach. The moving story of a friendship between a boy and a stranded botanist for another world is rendered in music that is by turns tender, buoyant, and touching. The score earned Williams a much-deserved fourth Academy Award. “E.T.” may very well be Williams’ masterpiece, and Spielberg’s too.
The “friendly” alien of “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (1951), Klaatu, may come in peace, but it is a message delivered with tough love. If mankind refuses to abide, his giant robot, Gort, will destroy the planet. At a time when Martians invariably meant trouble, this was actually progressive. Bernard Herrmann’s score is one of his best, and certainly one of his most interesting. Always an eccentric orchestrator, Herrmann’s concept of extra-terrestrial music incorporates violin, cello, electric bass, two theremins, two Hammond organs, a large studio electric organ, three vibraphones, two glockenspiels, two pianos, two harps, three trumpets, three trombones and four tubas. Overdubbing and tape-reversal techniques were also employed.
Finally, Ron Howard’s “Cocoon” (1985) is one of the more worthwhile of the seemingly endless procession of extraterrestrial films to be released in the wake of “E.T.” At least this one took a different approach by bringing alien forces into contact with a Florida retirement community, with the unexpected result of rejuvenating its inhabitants. A modern take on the fabled Fountain of Youth, the film is a showcase for veteran actors Hume Cronyn, Jessica Tandy, Jack Gilford, and Don Ameche (who won an Academy Award). James Horner’s score is much sought after by collectors.
Klaatu barada nikto! I hope you’ll join me for the touchdown of benevolent extraterrestrial films on “Picture Perfect,” music for the movies, now in syndication on KWAX, the radio station of the University of Oregon!
Clip and save the start times for all three of my recorded shows:
PICTURE PERFECT, the movie music show – Friday at 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT
SWEETNESS AND LIGHT, the light music program – ALL NEW! – Saturday at 11:00 AM EDT/8:00 AM PDT
THE LOST CHORD, unusual and neglected rep – Saturday at 7:00 PM EDT/4:00 PM PDT
Stream them, wherever you are, at the link!
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