A group of people from different walks of life simultaneously experience sightings of unidentified flying objects. A lineman for the county, a little boy and his single mother, a group of country bumpkins on a deserted stretch of road. Soon, many of them are drawn together after having shared visions of a plateau like mountain, and having a five note melody become an incessant presence in their heads.
We've all seen this right? I'm sure there is no need for further synopsizing this American classic by steven Spielberg. Easily the greatest film ever made on the subject of extraterrestrial contact, CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND has never been surpassed, and remains in my personal top 25 films of all time. A mean feat since my list of favorites numbers over a thousand.
I bow to this crowning achievement in science fiction themed cinema. Peerless, and perfect. Uber fans like myself are encouraged to track down an early screenplay draft by TAXI DRIVER scribe Paul Schrader! Another neat-o fact is Steve McQueen was originally asked to play lead character Roy Neary, a role that of course eventually went to Richard Dreyfuss. McQueen voiced his love for the part, but supposedly told Spielberg "I can't cry on camera. I don't have the range for this".
I saw this 18 times at the El ray theater in Chico, CA growing up as a movie obsessed little kid. Enjoy this extended theatrical trailer that blew me away prior to it's original release, when I was a mere 10 years old. Vintage, still as fresh as the day it came out and totally bad ass.
~Sean Smithson
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