Close Encounters of the Third Kind | Hitchens Virtual Theatre

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND is Steven Spielberg's extraordinary film about a man named Roy Neary (Richard Dreyfuss) who becomes obsessed with meeting extraterrestrials after encountering a UFO on an abandoned road one night. Against the wishes of his wife (Teri Garr) and children, Neary, along with another witness to the sighting (Melinda Dillon), travels to a mysterious mountain where the government has built a landing strip hoping to attract the aliens. Director Fran?ois Truffaut costars as Claude Lacombe, one of the organizers of the project. Spielberg hoped to follow up the huge success of JAWS with a low-budget film that would be an easy shoot, but, thanks in part to the complicated special effects, CLOSE ENCOUNTERS quickly snowballed into being an expensive endeavor but a commercial and artistic success. No one who has seen the film has ever looked at a plate of mashed potatotes the same way again.

Synopsis: Tension-building sci-fi drama about a brush with extraterrestrials. Despite a somewhat dated feel, Spielberg's film is still thrilling for sci-fi buffs. Infamous for its score.

Production Year:

1977

Released:

Tue, 08/27/2002

Run Time Minutes:

132

Rating:

Genres:

Science-Fiction

Trailer:

Format Aspect Ratio:

2.35-Super Wide Screen

Resolution:

480x720 LowRez

Resolution:

720x1280 HiRez

Audio Language:

English

Audio Format:

Dolby Digital

Audio Channels:

5.1

Actors:

Richard Dreyfuss - Roy Neary

Actors:

Fran?ois Truffaut - Claude Lacombe

Actors:

Teri Garr - Ronnie Neary

Actors:

Melinda Dillon - Jillian Guiler

Actors:

Bob Baliban - David Laughlin

Actors:

J. Patrick McNamara - Project Leader

Actors:

Warren J. Kemmerling - Wild Bill

Actors:

Roberts Blossom - Farmer

Actors:

Philip Dodds - Jean Claude

Actors:

Cary Guffey - Barry Guiler

Actors:

Shawn Bishop - Brad Neary

Actors:

Adrienne Campbell - Sylvia Neary

Actors:

Justin Dreyfus - Toby Neary

Actors:

Lance Henriksen - Robert

Actors:

Merrill Connally - Team Leader

Actors:

George DiCenzo - Major Benchley

Actors:

Amy Douglass - Implantee

Actors:

Alexander Lockwood - Implantee

Actors:

Gene Dynarski - Ike

Actors:

Mary Gafrey - Mrs. Harris

Actors:

Norman Bartold - Ohio Tollbooth Attendant

Actors:

Josef Sommer - Larry Butler

Actors:

Rev. Michael J. Dyer - Himself

Actors:

Roger Ernest - Highway Patrolman

Actors:

Carl Weathers - MP

Actors:

F. J. O'Neil - ARP Project Member

Actors:

Phil Dodds - ARP Musician

Actors:

Randy Hermann - Frank Taylor (Returnee #1 Flt. 19)

Actors:

Hal Barwood - Harry Wallclage (Returnee #2 Flt. 19)

Actors:

Matthew Robbins - Matthew McMichaels (Returnee #3 Flt. 19)

Actors:

David Anderson - Air Traffic Controller

Actors:

Richard L. Hawkins - Air Traffic Controller

Actors:

Craig Shreeve - Air Traffic Controller

Actors:

Bill Thurman - Air Traffic Controller

Actors:

Roy E. Richards - Air East Pilot

Actors:

Gene Rader - Hawker

Actors:

Eumenio Blanco - Federale

Actors:

Daniel Nunez - Federale

Actors:

Chuy Franco - Federale

Actors:

Luis Contreras - Federale

Actors:

James Keane - Radiotelescope Team

Actors:

Dennis McMullen - Radiotelescope Team

Actors:

Cy Young - Radiotelescope Team

Actors:

Tom Howard - Radiotelescope Team

Actors:

Richard Stuart - Truck Dispatcher

Actors:

Bob Westmoreland - Load Dispatcher

Actors:

Matt Emery - Support Leader

Actors:

Galen Thompson - Special Forces Trooper

Actors:

John Dennis Johnston - Special Forces Trooper

Actors:

John Ewing - Dirty Tricks #1

Actors:

Keith Atkinson - Dirty Tricks #2

Actors:

Robert Broyles - Dirty Tricks #3

Actors:

Kirk Raymond - Dirty Tricks #4

Actors:

Basil Hoffman - Longly

Actors:

J. Allen Hynek - Himself - Smoking Pipe at Landing Site

Actors:

Monty Jordan - Special Forces Commander/Helicopter Pilo

Actors:

Howard K. Smith - Himself - TV News Anchor