Close Encounters Of The Third Kind

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Runtime: I saw the version that's 137 minutes long

You should know the rest of the details

This is "unpopular opinion" time again in this review; see why below: 

NOTE: As there are several versions of the film out there, I feel like I should specify which cut got a 4K scan and is currently on the big screen at many United States locations... it's the 137 minute Director's Cut which first came out 20 years ago.

Believe me, I do not wish to once in awhile be “that guy” who has drastically different opinions on a movie than most people do. Fury Road will haunt me forever.. it took so long to be made and on paper I should have loved it but it did not work for me, and I saw it twice. Well, this is another case. Despite seeing many of Spielberg's old films and finding many of his works overall to be at least “pretty good”, this was actually a first time watch for me. Part of it was that as a kid, my parents told me that they saw this on a date in '77 (this was before they were even married) and neither one liked it. I never asked WHY that was the case. As they were the ones who introduced me to many of Spielberg's early classics so I did think it was curious. I just never got around to giving it a shot.

Plus, as an adult I heard some things about the character played by Richard Dreyfuss; I still went into this with an open mind as I don't always agree with the film opinions of my parents and because Hollywood punted on this entire Labor Day weekend and nothing new is in wide release, I was able to see this on a Premium Large Format screen, Dolby Cinema in particular. I can say that at least the film looked great that way; sure, there's plenty of film grain but around these parts, I hope that most will see it as a good thing.

I'll get to the positives first. With all the great talent involved in production, of course the film would look great when it came to cinematography, the practical special effects, etc. On the big screen, some moments of the final act were grand so I was glad to see it that way. Beforehand I wasn't sure if an acting duo of Francois Truffaut and Bob Balaban would be bitchin', but bitchin' they were and I wish I could have seen more of them. The score from John Williams was cool, although not great like all the classic songs he's done in movies I actually like. There are some creepy moments.

The negatives... as is always the case when it comes to me not liking something everyone loves, it's the story and characters. Much of the movie being about random people being “imprinted” with what turns out to be the Devils Tower in Wyoming... who cares, really. At least that's how I felt after watching it. I had other issues with the plot I won't get into (I have a number of questions about the ending, for example) as I'd rather focus on the characters. Melinda Dillon and her 3 year old son, all that was fine and the toddler was directed well. All the time spend with Dreyfuss and his family, bleh. I heard beforehand that he would turn into a real A-hole; personally, this goofus I did not like from the first scene, even BEFORE he sees the UFO! He lives like a slob and has crap all over the place, he's not a great parent to his incredibly irritating sons-at least the toddler daughter was more tolerable-and he's a dope who not only can't read the map, but his work truck has notes to remind him to pick up simple grocery items. I don't like this guy to begin with, then as the movie progresses...

Am I supposed to feel bad he's being driven psychotic by what was put into his mind... mad, sad... am I supposed to laugh at him... with him? I have no idea, but enjoyable it was not. That one scene where he throws items from his yard-and steals from his neighbors too-into his house, that was almost a “walk out of the auditorium and I give up on the film” moment, and note that I've never walked out of a theatrical screening because the movie was so bad. That scene was s*** and while I was not something I thought was good beforehand, I officially threw up my hands and no matter what I saw after that point, this was not going to be rated highly by me.

This is a rare case where I actually don't understand why this is so beloved. Almost always, if I have a dissenting opinion, I at least can comprehend why most people have a certain opinion about a movie, and why they love or loathe it. Here, I really don't get it. Let's not even get into the character arc of Richard Dreyfuss and Roy, the schlub he plays. I definitely did not like Roy and what he did at the conclusion of this picture; poor Teri Garr and her character Ronnie. If I wasn't supposed to feel awful for her plight once the end credits started rolling, the movie failed as I certainly did feel bad; what a great loving husband Roy was... ugh. I never hated Ronnie or how she acted.


I will presume the memories are hazy for my parents when it comes to why they rejected this too; I will presume they had many of the same complaints that I did.