Close encounters of the third kind (1977 movie) - Essay Example

David Fury Academia-Research.com Alien Visitations as Seen in the Movies One of the most popular genres of American films is Science Fiction,and within that genre lies the classic premise of alien visitation. The fascination and wonder that mankind inherently possesses for the possibility of life on other worlds ensures the continuation of this subject matter as bankable box office material. Due to the virtually limitless possibilities concerning extra-terrestrial beings, writers and directors have a virtually clean slate with which to work.

This unrestrained creative field allows each film to make a unique presentation to the audience and contributes a new chapter to the alien visitation premise. Although countless films have been made, certain films stand out as being notable. One of these films is the 1977 Steven Spielberg classic, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Looking at the release date of this film from a big picture perspective, it arrived during a prime period for the alien premise. That same year George Lucas launched the most popular film franchise of all time with Star Wars, and only two years later, 1979 saw the release of Ridley's Scott's Alien and the first Star Trek movie.

There are several factors that contributed to the proliferation of this genre during this time period. One factor was a dismal American Economy, which was struggling with both a high unemployment rate and rapid inflation. These sobering aspects of the real world gave rise to a desire that moviegoers had for an escape, and the genre that most reliably guarantees this release is the Science Fiction genre, especially alien visitation. The arrival of extraterrestrial beings is the most significant game changer imaginable here on Earth and there is no better way to forget about our Earthly troubles if a film takes a moviegoer off the planet and into outer space.

Another significant factor was the improvement of special effects technologies occurring within the industry. This allowed for spectacular images to be seen on screen, allowing the film to make the visual impact necessitated by the subject matter. It is interesting to compare the 1977 movies against each other. In Star Wars, the setting is never Earth, but rather the universe itself, as plots focus upon distant planets spread out amongst various galaxies. Humans and extraterrestrials intermingle as though the relation was commonplace, and had been for quite some time.

In manners of plot, as the title itself indicates, there is a great deal of armed conflict that occurs. In Close Encounters, the setting is essentially Middle America, both in the Heartland of Indiana and out in spacious Wyoming. Extraterrestrials come to visit us here on Earth, communicating with us in unclear methods of musical beeps and telepathy so that mankind is left to wonder, contemplate, and disagree concerning the potential meaning and the appropriate course of action. No battles or armed conflicts take place in Close Encounters.

Instead, the U.S. military establishes peaceful communications with the UFO's that leads to brief but friendly interactions between the inhabitants of different worlds. Close Encounters links such phenomena as supposed alien abductions, government cover-ups, and disappearances within the Bermuda Triangle with extraterrestrial visitors. This merging of mysterious phenomena is a clever method of lending credence to the possibility of alien visitation since it allows for just one explanation for several events that have thus far been unanswerable for mankind.

The protagonist is a man named Roy Neary(played by Richard Dreyfuss) who works for the electrical company. He is an average man but his occupation is significant for two reasons: one is that it represents a benchmark of human technology, which is soon overshadowed by that of our extraterrestrial visitors. The second is that it ends up putting him in contact with an alien spacecraft. From this encounter, a mental image is transmitted into Neary's mind, and over the ensuing days this latent image quickly enters his conscious mind and becomes an obsession.

Soon, he feels compelled to act out in hasty and seemingly irrational ways in order to replicate the image he sees. Through a course of straightforward, almost too easy circumstances, he ends up realizing that the image in his mind is Devil's Tower in Wyoming. He travels there and ends up witnessing the visitation by the alien mother ship, where subsequently he is chosen by the extraterrestrials to come away with them. In this author's opinion, Close Encounters is notable mostly because of its suggestion of the possibility of docile relations between worlds through study and finding a form of communication.

The special affects, especially in regards to the alien mother ship, were exemplary for its time. For moviegoers, a positive aspect of the film is its plausibility, due to the mundane settings, average protagonist, and linking of several different mysterious phenomena. While it is not a flashy example within the genre, its realism and message make it notable.