Contact (Snap Case)
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Movie Reviews of Contact (Snap Case)
Movie Review: Contact (1997)
Summary: 5 Stars
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Cast: Jodie Foster, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Skerritt, James Woods, Angela Bassett, John Hurt, David Morse, William Fichtner, Geoffrey Blake, Sami Chester, Timothy McNeil.
Running Time: 153 minutes
Rated PG for some intense action, mild language and a scene of sensuality.
All of the greatest work by the greatest scientists has been done while they were very young, when they were stupid enough to believe that two-plus-two-equals-five, and pursued it instead of listening to all of those who were much older and wiser who said Don't Waste Your Time. Einstein, it has been said, asked all of his important questions before the age of twenty-five, then spent the rest of his life working on them. "Contact", directed by Robert Zemeckis ("Forrest Gump", "Back to the Future"), is the story of a young scientist, Ellie Arroway (Jodie Foster), who like Einstein and all the greats before her, has been asking questions and seeking answers since she was very young. And now, as a member of the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) team, she is able to pursue her obsession with the mysteries of the galaxies and the infinite universe that surrounds us. Her job is to sweep the skies, using the most sophisticated equipment available, for a signal from deepest space. It may be her job, but for Ellie it's a labor of love, for she is convinced that there is something, or someone, out there somewhere, because otherwise, she reasons, what a terrible waste of space it would be. Ellie may be a dreamer, but she knows in her heart that it is the dreamers who over the years have been responsible for making us evolve, making us learn and grow because they are the ones who take insane, foolish ideas and pursue them. And to her, two-plus-two will always be five.
Ellie loves her job and believes in what she is doing, but it's been a struggle over the years, as she and others have had to constantly fight for the funding necessary to keep the project alive, begging for dollars from short-sighted, unimaginative people with vision that goes only as far as the bottom line of their budget book. It's been a tough row to hoe, and she's had to swallow a lot of pride over the years, but then one day it all pays off, when in one magic moment she hears what she's been waiting for all her life: A signal from a distant end of the galaxy-- someone attempting to communicate, to make contact, with the people of the Earth. Ellie and her team soon realize that, whomever it is, they are using the universal language of prime numbers in their attempts at making contact; and when Ellie deciphers the code, she discovers something monumental in the bargain. But it's a message of global importance, something much bigger than she and her team alone, and she soon find herself fighting to remain a part of the drama that is only beginning to unfold-- the first interaction between human beings and an alien life form. And it's only the beginning of the adventure and the wondrous places this film is about to take you.
Jodie Foster gives a performance here that demonstrates what a gifted, talented actor she is. Her Ellie is convincing and believable, and someone to whom you can genuinely relate, no matter who you are or where you're from, because there is something universal in Ellie's passion and longing to discover the truth and to see beyond the veil of our limited mortal capacities. There's a strength to Ellie, born of a combination of intelligence and innocence, as well as tenacity and faith, and Foster manifests all of these complexities of her character beautifully, with a performance that should've landed her an Oscar nomination. In this role, she is simply as good as it gets. The supporting cast includes David Morse (Ted Arroway), Matthew McConaughey (Palmer), Geoffrey Blake (Fisher), William Fichtner (Kent), Tom Skerritt (David), James Woods (Kitz) and Angela Bassett (Rachel). Zemeckis did a brilliant job of bringing this film to fruition, especially in the way he allowed Foster the time to really develop her character, by giving her that extra moment at just the right time that ultimately meant so much in the final analysis. Too often it's those few minutes that wind up on the cutting room floor that make the difference between a good film and an exceptional one; and between Zemeckis and Foster, they took it to the edge by taking some chances to realize that combined vision, which in the end made this a great film. Thoroughly engrossing and entertaining, `Contact' will transport you to places you can only imagine, and it's all done with style and in a way that makes this a truly memorable cinematic journey. It's what the magic of the movies is all about.
Movie Review: Foster, Zemeckis Realize Sagan's Vision
Summary: 5 Stars
All of the greatest work by the greatest scientists has been done while they were very young, when they were stupid enough to believe that two-plus-two-equals-five, and pursued it instead of listening to all of those who were much older and wiser who said Don't Waste Your Time. Einstein, it has been said, asked all of his important questions before the age of twenty-five, then spent the rest of his life working on them. "Contact," directed by Robert Zemeckis, is the story of a young scientist, Ellie Arroway (Jodie Foster), who like Einstein and all the greats before her, has been asking questions and seeking answers since she was very young. And now, as a member of the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) team, she is able to pursue her obsession with the mysteries of the galaxies and the infinite universe that surrounds us. Her job is to sweep the skies, using the most sophisticated equipment available, for a signal from deepest space. It may be her job, but for Ellie it's a labor of love, for she is convinced that there is something, or someone, out there somewhere, because otherwise, she reasons, what a terrible waste of space it would be. Ellie may be a dreamer, but she knows in her heart that it is the dreamers who over the years have been responsible for making us evolve, making us learn and grow because they are the ones who take insane, foolish ideas and pursue them. And to her, two-plus-two will always be five.Ellie loves her job and believes in what she is doing, but it's been a struggle over the years, as she and others have had to constantly fight for the funding necessary to keep the project alive, begging for dollars from short-sighted, unimaginative people with vision that goes only as far as the bottom line of their budget book. It's been a tough row to hoe, and she's had to swallow a lot of pride over the years, but then one day it all pays off, when in one magic moment she hears what she's been waiting for all her life: A signal from a distant end of the galaxy-- someone attempting to communicate, to make contact, with the people of the Earth.
Ellie and her team soon realize that, whomever it is, they are using the universal language of prime numbers in their attempts at making contact; and when Ellie deciphers the code, she discovers something monumental in the bargain. But it's a message of global importance, something much bigger than she and her team alone, and she soon find herself fighting to remain a part of the drama that is only beginning to unfold-- the first interaction between human beings and an alien life form. And it's only the beginning of the adventure and the wondrous places this film is about to take you.
Jodie Foster gives a performance here that demonstrates what a gifted, talented actor she is. Her Ellie is convincing and believable, and someone to whom you can genuinely relate, no matter who you are or where you're from, because there is something universal in Ellie's passion and longing to discover the truth and to see beyond the veil of our limited mortal capacities. There's a strength to Ellie, born of a combination of intelligence and innocence, as well as tenacity and faith, and Foster manifests all of these complexities of her character beautifully, with a performance that should've landed her an Oscar nomination. In this role, she is simply as good as it gets.
As the young Ellie, Jenna Malone gives a terrific performance, also, which certainly captures the same spirit that we find in the adult Ellie. And there's a maturity she brings to the character that far exceeds her years. She was a perfect choice for the part, and if this is any indication of what she is capable of, Malone has a successful career ahead of her.
The supporting cast includes David Morse (Ted Arroway), Matthew McConaughey (Palmer), Geoffrey Blake (Fisher), William Fichtner (Kent), Tom Skerritt (David), James Woods (Kitz) and Angela Bassett (Rachel). Zemeckis did a brilliant job of bringing this film to fruition, especially in the way he allowed Foster the time to really develop her character, by giving her that extra moment at just the right time that ultimately meant so much in the final analysis. Too often it's those few minutes that wind up on the cutting room floor that make the difference between a good film and an exceptional one; and between Zemeckis and Foster, they took it to the edge by taking some chances to realize that combined vision, which in the end made this a great film. Thoroughly engrossing and entertaining, "Contact" will transport you to places you can only imagine, and it's all done with style and in a way that makes this a truly memorable cinematic journey. It's what the magic of the movies is all about.
Movie Review: "Wanna take a ride?"
Summary: 5 Stars
In 1985, Pulitzer-prize winning author and astronomer Carl Sagan (1934-1996) wrote a brilliant "what-if" scenario in his novel entitled "Contact". In the novel, Carl Sagan created a scenario in which his protagonist, a radio astronomer named Dr. Eleanor Ann 'Ellie' Arroway, discovers an extraterrestrial radio transmission that is clearly from an intelligent alien source. The discovery causes intense debate between the proponents of science, religion and government that eventually leads to some very compelling questions on the nature of faith itself. In 1997, the novel was transformed into a film of the same name under the direction of the well-known director Robert Zemeckis, who had previously directed "Forrest Gump" (1994, for which Zemeckis won the Oscar for Best Director), "Death Becomes Her" (1992), "Back to the Future" (1985) and "Romancing the Stone" (1984).Carl Sagan, with assistance from writers Ann Druyan, James V. Hart and Michael Goldenberg, slightly modified the original story by giving Dr. Arroway (played by Jodie Foster) a more personal adversary in another astronomer, Dr. David Drumlin (played by Tom Skerritt). At the beginning of the film, a brief exploration of Dr. Arroway's childhood (played by Jena Malone) is provided that helps to establish her purely scientific perception of reality that resulted in part from the passing away of her father, Ted Arroway (David Morse), who had also encouraged her love of science, astronomy and radio communications. As an astronomer, Dr. Arroway dedicated her work to the SETI project (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence), which Dr. Drumlin considers frivolous and potentially damaging to Dr. Arroway's credibility. With her governmental funding cut, Dr. Arroway eventually gets private funding after she approaches one of the world's richest and most influential men, S. R. Hadden (John Hurt). With funding secured, Dr. Arroway's search continues at the Very Large Array (VLA) near Socorro, New Mexico. With her unorthodox method of personally listening to outer space static, Dr. Arroway suddenly and unexpectedly hears a bizarre set of sounds. She immediately gets her team, which includes Kent Clark (William Fichtner), busy working on analyzing the signal, which likely comes from an extraterrestrial source. Once verified, she announces her discovery to the world via the news media, to the disdain of governmental officials including Dr. Drumlin, National Security Advisor Michael Kitz (James Woods) and then President Bill Clinton (himself via archive footage). It also gains explosive response from very religious individuals who don't necessarily share Dr. Arroway's enthusiasm, except for Father Palmer Joss (Matthew McConaughey), whom Dr. Arroway met in Puerto Rico in a more than casual sense. The content of the message itself raises some very large questions.
What really brought Carl Sagan's vision to life in "Contact" was placing it within a contemporary timeframe. This included the use of many real events, people and places that included CNN, the VLA, the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico and many cameos from current politicians the television personalities (Jay Leno, Larry King, Geraldine A. Ferraro, Geraldo Rivera to name only a few). Also, Robert Zemeckis placed actors within archival footage in much the same way as he did with the film "Forrest Gump" in 1994. All of this, as well as superb acting from the principal actors (Jodie Foster, Tom Skerrit, Matthew McConaughey, John Hurt, William Fichtner and James Woods), great cinematography, wonderful sets and great special effects make this a brilliant film. Other memorable characters include Rachel Constantine (Angela Bassett), Richard Rank (Rob Lowe), the NASA Mission Director (Tucker Smallwood) and Joseph (Jake Busey). Some of the most memorable scenes in the film include Dr. Arroway hearing the message at the VLA, the public response, the political discussions, Dr. Arroway meeting S.R. Hadden, the machine, Dr. Arroway's relationship with Palmer, the pinnacle event and its aftermath.
Overall, I rate "Contact" with a resounding 5 out of 5 stars. In my opinion, it portrays many very probable debates and reactions if astronomers ever actually do discover intelligent extraterrestrial communication signals. I applaud Carl Sagan for his vision, as well as Robert Zemeckis and the many actors and other people involved with the making of this very engaging and compelling film.
Movie Review: A brilliant and profound motion picture event
Summary: 5 Stars
I really wasn't sure that Carl Sagan's novel would translate very well to the big screen; after all, Sagan and his book were grounded in science, some of the most hardware-intensive scenes were left rather vague in the novel, and Sagan's atheism threatened to somehow taint the story's interplay of science and religion. This movie, though, despite the fact that it necessarily differs from Sagan's novel at times, works amazingly well, even resurrecting a powerful ending under conditions that could be criticized by some in the two words "nothing happens." Indeed, something amazing does happen, and even if it had not, one theme that I read into this story is that the journey is often more important than the destination. This motion picture is (pardon the pun) stellar in so many ways, reflecting a rare level of commitment on the part of everyone involved. This really starts with the cast. The role of Dr. Ellie Arroway was a crucial one that, in the hands of the wrong actress, could have doomed the whole project. Any concerns along these lines, though, were dispensed with immediately upon the signing of Jodie Foster, the greatest female actress of this generation. Matthew McConaughey gives a better than average performance as Palmer Joss (the religious guy), Tom Skerritt is as unlikable as always in his role as the President's Science Advisor and frequent Arroway nemesis, and the rest of the cast excels as well. The injection of then-President Clinton and a number of CNN journalists into a number of scenes also brings a most welcome feel of reality to the profound events taking place here. The special effects are just wonderful. The opening scene is as beautiful and memorable as any scene you will find anywhere, the animation of the giant machine is extremely realistic, and the visual aspects of space travel are also a sight to behold. Not only do these great scenes delight the eyes, they remain true to the nuts and bolts of science that Sagan wanted in the movie. This movie may be long by some standards, coming in at almost two and a half hours, but there's not one wasted scene.
The story is, in a sense, not all that complicated. Ellie Arroway (Foster) finally gets a chance to realize her dream of searching for signals from outer space, only to find herself and her project stripped of funding by an unimaginative (or possibly secretive) government. She and her colleagues refuse to let the dream die, and on one remarkable day they pick up a signal. Once the signal is verified and word gets out, the public begins to wig out in a number of ways (quite overblown, in my opinion) and the government, specifically the military, swoops in to get their hands on the project. Ironically, yet very plausibly, part of the signal ends up showing a clip of Hitler opening the Munich Olympic Games (which was the first television signal broadcast over a sizable area). Arroway manages to persevere in her work, and eventually a message is discerned among the data, yielding blueprints for some type of great machine. After plenty of government haggling, the machine is built, and one person is chosen to travel in what the scientists now come to believe is some type of interstellar craft. The movie does not end here, though, not by a long shot.
I find a few aspects about this movie and Sagan's novel interesting on a personal level. Sagan was a long-time exponent of the search for extraterrestrial life, yet at a certain point in his career, he noticeably changed and became one of the most unobjective bulwarks of the movement to discredit any and all UFO sightings and encounters; some have speculated that he became a participant in the official government policy of disinformation and dismissal. I believe he would know better than most how the government would frown upon news as profound as the discovery of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe, and this movie certainly does show some of the dangers inherent in the military takeover of extraterrestrial projects. I am also somewhat surprised at just how effective the juxtaposition of science and religion is presented here, given Sagan's lifelong atheism. The religious aspect of the film works more in a spiritual than a Biblical sense, yet work it does. There is obviously a lot of Sagan himself in Dr. Arroway, and this story, in both novel and motion picture form, stands as a true testament to one of the most influential scientists of modern times.
Movie Review: A tragically overlooked and underrated classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Occasionally in sci-fi movie magazines, you'll see articles like "Top 10 Women In Science Fiction," and it's always the predictable fan-fave list of hot babes kicking the butts of vampires, zombies, robots, etc. You never see Jodie Foster in "Contact" on such lists, and that's a shame. Why? Because that would involve an actual WOMAN (an intelligent, mature woman of integrity and subtance, as opposed to a kung-fu sex object on steroids) in an actual SCIENCE FICTION movie (an intelligent, thought-provoking premise, as opposed to yet another action movie in space).
Robert Zemeckis made "Contact" as a follow-up to his record-breaking, critically acclaimed "Forrest Gump," and the two make an oddly matched pair. Both are epic stories centered around a single point-of-view character, one the simple man who takes us on a tour of our past, the other a complex woman who leads us into the future. Foster's performance is easily the equal of Tom Hanks' Oscar-winning turn, but sadly this gem of a film didn't get quite the attention it should. (Possibly because, like "The Abyss," another classic, it was swallowed up in the midst of too many summer blockbusters.)
"Contact" follows in the footsteps (and the high quality) of both "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," treating its subject of alien intelligence with serious thought: the most plausible aliens ever put on film are the ones we can't quite see. This leaves us free to use our imaginations -- which far exceed Hollywood's abilities in any event -- but also keeps the focus on the story's most truly important aspect, ourselves and our reactions to the prospect that we are not alone in the universe.
Although the story may sound dry on paper -- there are no ray guns, bug-eyed monsters or flesh-eating mutants in this movie -- the pace is never dull, and there's plenty to keep audiences engrossed, including a large amount of sideshow silliness from the world media, some devious government politicking, a chillingly plausible subplot about religious extremists (with Jake Busey, a dead ringer for his dad Gary), and an exasperatingly funny convention of every UFO-loving nutjob in the western hemisphere.
The cast is uniformly impressive, with charismatic actors like Angela Bassett, David Morse, Tom Skerritt, and the always enjoyable James Woods. Stealing the show (and giving us the pleasure of having 2 "Alien" veterans in the cast) is John Hurt as a manipulative Howard-Hughes-ish recluse whose scenes are few but played with "Silence of the Lambs" intensity and power. Personally, I'm not a big Matthew McConaughey fan, but he serves well as the pseudo-love-interest who quietly challenges the beliefs of Foster's character and makes her (and us) reexamine her deepest motives.
Jodie Foster, however, carries the film's emotional center with aplomb, making herself both admirably resourceful and empathetically flawed in equal amounts. Her emotionally wounded character is driven to delve into the heart of the universe through strictly scientific methods, yet resists any suggestion of religious faith, realizing only at the end that both are flipsides of the same coin. Foster allows this conflict within herself to drive the story as much as the global events occurring around her. (Note, incidentally, the recurring characteristic trait of curling into a protective fetal position while perched on the very edge of something -- a chair, a bed, a porch, a canyon -- and gazing upward and outward even while retreating inward. Nice touch, Ms. Foster!)
The plot is well-developed, with a particularly wicked double-twist ending, and there is some insightful social and philosophical commentary in this movie. But, for sheer thrills, it also boasts the most exciting climactic sequence I saw that entire year, as Foster's character makes the last walk to embark on the journey to end all journeys. And frankly, for the summer of '97, that's saying something!
(P.S.: Can't let this review go by without a nod to author of the book, Carl Sagan. Rest In Peace, Carl, and thanks for the great story!)