1977 science fiction movie
Rating: 16/20
Plot: An ordinary Hoosier has himself a genuine religious experience and, in a series of event that might parallel the Old Testament's Elijah, is called to a monolith where he ascends into heaven.
Actually, I don't know if this closely parallels the story of Elijah because I'm a heathen. All I know is that Elijah ran around, probably like a demented person who spread honey on his chest and beard and ate locusts like all the other Biblical prophets, spreading the word about the coming of Christ and then was whisked into the aether. Any Biblical experts can correct me on any of that I've gotten wrong.
Elijah or no Elijah, this is clearly about the religious awakening of Dreyfuss's Roy Neary and really a kind of collective spiritual experience. And it leaves you with several questions:
1) Would God (or whatever spiritual being(s) are out there watching us) prefer a funky 1970's light show and a series of belched notes from a synthesizer to the blathering prayers he has to listen to all the time?
2) What would the government's response to definitive proof of God be? Would they try capitalizing on the second coming? Would they figure out a way to tax the trinity? Would there be a cover-up to avoid potential ideological clashes?
3) What would God think of this much product placement during a spiritual experience? I'm guessing the high fructose corn syrup would cause him to overturn Coca Cola displays in grocery stores like Jesus coming at money changers' tables. Or maybe I'm completely wrong and he'd understand how different we are in the 21st Century, speaking to us from burning soft drink billboards instead of burning bushes.
4) The abducted people being returned, including that kid Cary Guffey who Kubrick really wanted for The Shining--have they been rejected? Why were they rejected? And why do they want Roy? Have they really thought this one through? The dude plays with his food and takes showers with his clothes on.
5) Why didn't the aliens take children exclusively? I think I would have liked that better as a way of illustrating the appeal of the bright colors and flashing lights and miracles of religion to wide-eyed children. An all-child abduction plan would have helped explain why Dreyfuss's character is kind of an immature doofus at the beginning of this, too. I mean, isn't he arguing with his children because he wants to watch a cartoon the first time we meet him?
6) Devils Tower. I think there's a little style in the choice to make a landform with a demonic moniker where "God" is going to reveal himself. God probably is big enough not to thumb his nose at Satan or really care about showing him up, but you never know.
7) Am I wrong about Elijah? Is it Moses? Maybe Devils Tower is the mountain Moses climbed up (Sinai, right?), talked to God, got some commandments, and climbed back down again. Only there's no commandments, and the government is building any golden calves. Or are they? Maybe that explains all the Coca Cola references? Anyway, God didn't sweep Moses away in a spaceship, so forget that this paragraph is even here.
8) What's the message about spirituality if it is indeed a message about spirituality? Roy ditches his entire family and job as he obsesses over his visions. He apparently quits his job and stop worrying about cartoons, too. Is that what people are called to do? There's a story in the Gospels about a tax collector named Levi who leaves everything behind to follow Jesus. There's another verse in there about how you can't be a disciple of Christ unless you're willing to renounce everything. Seems like a theme that runs through the Bible is that you're supposed to leave all worldly things behind. Well, Roy definitely does that!
9) Am I the only one who thought the weird-looking alien, even though it was really kind of expressionless, seemed amused or even confused by our shenanigans? Those hand signals that are mimicked, for example: Is the alien humoring us there? Would God?
10) What happens when the messages to or from God are unclear? There's a great moment in this where the big spaceship or the people start farting out the wrong tune, a time when the people just aren't able to "get" it. As a kid, I always wondered about why people think we can only communicate with God with words. I guess the Pentecostals use other methods, but most Christians are all about talking to God. And God, unless you accept the Bible as "the word" and consider that a sort of verbal communication, doesn't really talk back. That's why I think I like the music and gesticulating--it's more visceral, passionate. I really liked the "What are we saying to each other?" part where all the noises collide like the soundtrack to one of Philip Glass's wet dreams.
It's quite obvious that I once again don't really know what I'm talking about. I hadn't seen this Spielberg sci-fi flick since I was a little kid, and I only remembered being scared during part of it--the abduction scene, I guess--and the end which I recalled being much, much too long. I watched most of the movie thinking it was about a guy having a mid-life crisis and having a difficult time dealing with the burden of having a family, but I think there was some projection going on there. This is obviously a more universal experience, albeit not one that everybody's willing to embrace. I do like how Roy's family, after they leave, aren't really heard from again, and unless I'm forgetting some dialogue, I don't think Roy even mentions them. I like Dreyfuss in this as much as I like him in Jaws, something you can take any way you want to take it. He's really good at getting angry. I'm not sure about some of the scenes with his character though. I can't be the only person who thought the mashed potatoes scene was funny, can I? I've had similar family freak-outs to that (mostly while playing board games), by the way, so I can definitely identify. I've also lain in a bathtub with all my clothes on while whimpering, "I don't know what's happening to me."
The special effects sure look dopey about forty years after the movie came out which is too bad because it kind of takes away from the experience. I didn't like the design of the spaceships even when I saw this as a kid. The mothership is fine, as grand as it should be--like a menacing behemoth made a little friendlier by lighting up like a Simon game. The little things that flash about though? They are a little goofy. There are a pair of spectacular scenes though. The first is Roy in his truck when he witnesses the visitors for the first time after the movie's given us all these hints of UFO's, something that probably wouldn't fly (pun probably intended) these days. The second is the scene where the kid who's not from The Shining gets himself abducted. You can always depend on Spielberg to give us these great set pieces where the spectacle is made up of all these little details. And that sort of represents why I think Close Encounters is effective despite all the product placement which cheapens the experience. He has a way of making this whole experience--both our experiences as viewers and the experiences of the characters--global or universal and personal at the same time. Again, if you look at the spiritual angle, that makes sense. We have churches where congregations gather and religion that appeals to masses of people all over the place, but the idea of spirituality is really intensely personal.
A quick digression: I wonder if E.T. would have ended up being a better movie if Bob Balaban was in it.
Favorite line in this movie: "Even my dog has a gas mask."
Ok, this is already late as it is, so I have to stop and hit the button. I'd love to read your thoughts if you've seen this recently (like, if you watched it for the Oprah Movie Club) or have seen it several times or just remember it really well.
And remember: The Last Temptation of Christ is next up for the Oprah Movie Club. Watch it!
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