E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) is an movie event, a classic family film, in the best sense, but also magical like a space fairy tale! The 40th Anniversary was celebrated at IMAX theaters on August 12-14. E.T. was a phenomenon at the time that swept away all other movies. Every kind of merch was not enough even the infamous Atari game that was made too fast to meet the deadline and ended up as landfill. A sequel appeared in book form with E.T., The Book of the Green Planet (1985) by William Kotzwinkle. It is based on a story by Steven Spielberg. Later, the E.T. Adventure opened at Univeral Studios Florida in 1990 and remains open to this day. This took riders to the Green Planet with your name said by E.T. The movie is of course directed by Steven Spielberg and it is one of his beloved family films. E.T.’s script was written by Melissa Matheson, but she had passed away in 2015. Her adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The BFG came out in 2016.
This version is the original without changes made with the 20th Anniversary edition in 2002. The IMAX format emphasizes the film quality which is especially poor with the studio logo, the beginning of the film, and a scene of the spaceship. The titles and credits show up in purple along with some haunting music by John Williams. The conductor is a Spielberg favorite with music in Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Jurassic Park (1993), and of course The BFG. The eerieness of the score seems to be a hint of the earlier and darker version of the Night Skies concept. Then, we get the familiar flute that gives it the proper fairy tale quality as we look across the star-filled sky. This shifts to the pine forests and then we see the starship, like a Christmas ornament with lamp-like lights revealing the landing site. We pan across pine needles, dark form the night, and see the starship’s ramp.
There’s a beeping of some device, footsteps, and muttering like a Jawa. Two long fingers pull down a pine branch as a lumpy, alien figure walks into the ship. Then, we see the botanical collection of strange plants, glowing mushrooms, and a snoring tree being like an Ent. An owl hoots which startles the collecting teams of aliens, their heartlights hum and glow red, they are like as Princess Leia says a “jittery little thing.” Fingers reach out to remove a fern sapling as a bunny watches. The prosthetic hands were from mime, Caprice Roth. The alien was intended to be named Zreck. His design is by Carlo Rambaldi who also worked on the aliens in Close Encoutners of the Third Kind. The extraterrestrial hobbles along in the misty forest, we see him in the distance, and don’t see him clearly at this point. The alien is described as “plant-based” with no gender, but we will go with the lead character’s description of him as a boy. We hear his raspy breathing as he comes to an overlook a suburban city. The voice of the alien botanist is supplied by Pat Welsh, among others, who also voiced Boushh in Return of the Jedi (1983).
Suddenly, trucks pull up, scaring the lil’ feller. Then, we see a closeup of the waist of a man with dangling keys, he is just known as Keys (Peter Coyote). There is what looks like the leader of the expedition at the starship hatch sending out his humming heartlight almost as a recall signal. This activates the alien’s heartlight getting the attention of the agents with flashlights. The alien screeches and goes on a run, we see a pov shot of the ferns lit by the heartlight. The lights on the landing gears turn off and the recall turns into a whine. The dark shapes of the government men race after the runaway alien. He is running, it almost like panting, but the landing ramp goes up! The agents can also stare upwards as the craft takes off. The stranded alien watches it ascend to space with his heartlight fading away. We see the candy-corn shaped alien head as he looks out to the suburban lights. The agents then search the area in the dark.
We see one of the houses at night, at the dinner table, four friends are playing Dungeons & Dragons, 34 years before Stranger Things (2016) when another groups of young friends play the game set about a year after this movie’s opening. We get game player, Michael played by Robert MacNaughton who was a film career with I Am the Cheese (1983) and later the crime drama, Laugh Killer Laugh (2015). MacNaughton is interesting playing the older brother, but then gives trust and loyalty to his brother with E.T. His friend with the headband is Tyler (C. Thomas Howell) who played, among many parts, Frank Kohanek in Kindred: The Embraced. Michael’s younger brother, Elliot (Henry Thomas) wants to play the game. Thomas starred in Legends of the Fall (1994), Gangs of New York (2002), and also this year’s thriller, Crawlspace. He is the heart of the film, Elliot’s emotions and feelings are perfect, and his friendship.
The youngest player is Greg (K.C. Martel) usually with his characteristic red hat and headphones. Martel played Eddie in the sitcom, Growing Pains. Elliot pleads with Michael who leaves it up the gamemaster, Steve (Sean Frye) who has “absolute power.” Freye had a cameo in the comedy, Real Genius (1985). Steve agrees if Elliott goes to get the pizza from the delivery man. Elliott hears a clattering sound thinking it is his dog, Harvey. Michael’s mother, Mary (Dee Wallace) puts away dishes. Wallace went on to play Donna Trenton in Cujo (1983), Peter Jackson’s horror film, The Frighteners (1996), and played herself in the horror movie, 13 Fanboy (2021. Elliiot takes the pizza to the backyard and sees the toolshed with the powerful light under a crescent moon. He tosses a baseball into the shed and it rolls back at him! Elliot starts running back as Mary asks how you win at D&D. He warns his mother and then shouts at the chaos of the others mocking him. The friends all playfully head to the tool shed.
E.T. in Gertie’s closet, Universal Studios Florida, 2011, author’s photo.
Michael checks out the tool shed and sees tracks which he says are made by a coyote. They head back, Tyler finds that Elliot stepped on the pizza, and then we see the alien fingers grasping the outside of the shed. Harvey, the dog, is wakened by noises outside, on the top bunk bed, Elliot also is listening. He heads to the backyard and then walks into the cornfield with his flashlight. We see the Elliot approaching, then his flashlight reveals the terrified E.T.!, he has wide eyes, a ridged head, and a small mouth that shrieks in fear! Elliot also screams, but follows the shy alien that slipped away into the hill above his house. The next morning, Elliot heads out on his bike, he tosses some Reese’s Pieces around heading into the forest. Then, he sees a man checking out something on the ground, it is Keys. Elliot rides back as we see the alien fingers. At the dinner table, Michael brings up a goblin costume for Elliot to wear on Halloween.
Also, there is Gertie (Drew Barrymore), the actress has a number of roles from Charlie McGee in the original Firestarter (1984), Dylan in Charlie’s Angels (2000), and currently hosts her chat show. Michael mocks Elliot for what he saw and brings up a goblin. This makes Elliot mad and then he sulks saying his father would believe him. He crossed the line and mentions his father ran away with a woman to Mexico. This single parent situation is made clear with this scene, tense. Elliot takes his dish to the sink and the steam rises as he stares upwards. He later sleeps outside on a lounge chair with a blnaket and sees the squat alien in the tool shed light. Elliot tries to call for his mother and Michael, but can only gasp in a whisper. The alien fingers drop some Reese’s Pieces onto the blanket. He drops some candy at the top of the stairs leading his new friend to his room. Elliot rubs his face and his new friend follows his gesture. It is a gentle scene of First Contact.
E.T. at E.T.’s Toy Closet & Photo Shop, Universal Studios Florida, 2011, photo by the author.
Elliot’s eyes droop and he yawns before he falls asleep, this is a empathetic connection with his friend whom he later calls E.T. Keys and the other agents are scanning the forest floor, he finds some Reese’s Pieces, and eats one. The next morning, Elliot warms a thermometer with a lamp to stay at home with his fake illness. Elliot tries to introduce himself to E.T. who watches like a wise man. He goes to get some food, has to hold back Harvey from barking at E.T., later he becomes shocked at an umbrella opening. Elliot is also surprised and drops the milk. Stuffies fall as E.T. shudders in fear. Michael returns, Elliot tells him about the goblin, and makes him swear that he has absolute power. He turns and is stunned to see E.T. Gertie bursts in and shrieks at E.T. with his telescoping head! E.T. returns the greeting and they are taken to the closet. E.T. has shown powers to revive a dead sunflower plant and levitation which has Elliot fly across the moon seen in the Amblin logo. Elliot has to help E.T. and somehow protect him, even as Keys and the government closes in on E.T. in a magical adventure with touches of humor and sadness!
Five Reese’s Pieces out of Five!
#ETTheExtraTerrestrial, #StevenSpielberg, #HenryThomas, #RobertMacNaughton, #DrewBarrymore, #DeeWallace, #CThomasHowell, #SeanFrye, #KCMartel
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