Talk:Close Encounters of the Third Kind

Plot

Roy begins seeing the image -- ?? What image - this part of the sentence makes no sense 78.105.140.62 (talk) 00:19, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

Wording

The Helvetica font mistake may be the best bit of movie gaff spotting ever. Well done whoever first noted it. Yankoz.

What is the meaning of close encounters of the first, second and third kind?

In UFO lore, a close encounter of the first kind means sighting a UFO. A close encounter of the second kind means a sighting that leaves physical evidence. A close encounter of the third kind means meeting an alien or aliens. More recently, some people seem to refer to alien abductions as close encounters of the fourth kind... Rlandmann 11:38, 24 Oct 2003 (UTC)

Probably wouldn't be a bad idea to include this in the actual article. --Modemac 11:43, 24 Oct 2003 (UTC)

QUESTION ON PLOT OF CLOSE ENCOUNTERS: is it true that the story is about a man, Richard Dreyfuss, who was left on Earth by his alien colleagues only to be picked back up in the final scene of the film? The last alien who comes out of the ship to basically wave goodbye, is that Dreyfuss? As in, did he revert back to alien form in the sequence just before when all the light falls down on him?

• Interesting interpretation, but I believe Roy (Richard Dreyfuss) was never abducted by the aliens, until that final scene (in which his "abduction" is voluntary). It seems to me that the aliens in the story are moving into a "new phase" of their encounters with humans: in the past they abducted humans (presumably for scientific study), but now that phase of their experimentation is complete. For the next phase of study, the aliens "invite" (at the beginning of the film) many humans (aka contactees) to join them voluntarily and Roy is the only one who makes it all the way to the rendevouz. Of course, that's just at the level of pure "plot," and there is a deeper subtext to Roy's quest. :-) Drhundertwasser 07:20, 1 January 2006 (UTC)

IT IS NOT TRUE that Art Bell made a cameo appearance in this film. At the time it was made, he was a small-time DJ I believe in California. In the 90's after he became popular, Bell made appearances in other UFO films.Cord 17:01, Aug 29, 2004 (UTC)

• Perhaps the contributor who mentioned Art Bell was confusing him with Dr. J. Allen Hynek, the noted UFO Researcher who created the category that is the film's title. The bearded Dr. Hynek appears in the final sequence, admiring the mothership. Drhundertwasser 07:20, 1 January 2006 (UTC)

R2-D2?

Is it true that near the end of the movie, when the gigantic UFO flies overhead, you can see R2-D2's silhouette hanging upside-down from the UFO? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 68.108.208.177 (talk) 19:42, 20 February 2007 (UTC).

Yes. In a documentary about the making of the film I heard one of the special effects crew say that they put it in there for fun, but hadn't realized how huge the little toy would look in the film. R2 isn't so huge that the average viewer notices it, but if you look, especially as the ship is leaving at the end, you can definitely see him. Drhundertwasser 19:01, 27 February 2007 (UTC)

Solresol

Does the 5-note motif have some meaning in Solresol? 19:35, 12 March 2007 (UTC)

• I believe it's derived from the common melody played by the carillons of church bells or clock towers, the most familiar example being the chimes of Big Ben, which you can hear on the BBC website. Thus, in the story, the five note theme is broadcast by the Extraterrestrials to summon the contactees to the "meeting" at Devil's Tower. Or, you might say, given the religious or spiritual undertones of the story, it's also like a "call to prayer." In the final act, the theme becomes the starting point for a larger "conversation" between the aliens and humans, as the scientist standing by the keyboard says, "It's the first day of school, fellas." Drhundertwasser 17:49, 22 March 2007 (UTC)

Sequel novels?

I believe there are 2-3 novels, by some German author, which are unofficial sequels to this movie. I read two of them in Danish translation in the late 1980s. I'll return with more info tomorrow, and try to get hold of the author's name and the titles. --Peter Knutsen 15:34, 19 April 2007 (UTC)

Possible reference in PopCap game Zuma?

Just now I was bored and playing the game Zuma. I was just about to quit when I stumbled upon something: if you hover the mouse over each of the buttons on the main menu in descending order, it will play the 5-note motif from Close Encounters. Would anyone know if this is just coincidental or a homage to the movie? --Self-Cannibal

UPDATE: Apparently it's no coincidence. If you do it 3 times a UFO will pop up. Click on the UFO to see the game credits. Perhaps this is worthy of mention? --Self-Cannibal —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.166.160.197 (talk) 21:24, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

Children in Mobile

From the article: "The small aliens in the final scenes were played by local girls ranging from 8-12 years old. That decision was specifically requested by Spielberg himself due to the fact that girls move more gracefully than boys."

I don't believe this last part is correct. A male friend of mine in college (late 1980's) played one of the aliens when he was a little boy. A reference for the 'Spielberg preferred girls' note would be appreciated. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.31.106.35 (talk) 18:00, 26 February 2008 (UTC)

South Park

In Imaginationland, a government scientist uses the five-note sequence to try and open the portal to Imaginationland. And in Over Logging, a government scientist uses the five-note sequence to try and get the central Internet router/switch working. Is this significant? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.66.6.122 (talk) 23:00, 6 September 2008 (UTC)

I incorporated it into the article. —Wildroot (talk) 23:26, 14 September 2008 (UTC)

GA Review

This review is transcluded from Talk:Close Encounters of the Third Kind/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.

Hello, I will be reviewing this article, to see if it meets the good article criteria. Check back soon! CarpetCrawler (talk) 21:49, 28 September 2008 (UTC)

GA passed

GA review (see here for criteria)

1. It is reasonably well written.

   a (prose): b (MoS):

2. It is factually accurate and verifiable.

   a (references): b (citations to reliable sources): c (OR):

3. It is broad in its coverage.

   a (major aspects): b (focused):

4. It follows the neutral point of view policy.

   Fair representation without bias:

5. It is stable.

   No edit wars etc.:

6. It is illustrated by images, where possible and appropriate.

   a (images are tagged and non-free images have fair use rationales): b (appropriate use with suitable captions):

7. Overall:

   Pass/Fail:

Great job, nicely referenced, interesting facts! This article easily passes, great job to everyone involved! CarpetCrawler (talk) 00:45, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

Ezekiel wasn't taken up in a chariot of fire

Biblical record does not list Ezekiel as being taken up in a "chariot of fire." Rather, that story is about Elijah. Anderbubble (talk) 03:05, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

My mistake. Both names begin with E. Wildroot (talk) 16:14, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

Isn't it incorrect to refer to the theme as Christian when all the similarities appear to actually be to the Jewish faith, which predate Christianity by sometime. Although these same stories are adopted by Christians as well, it seems inappropriate to appropriate them from their original source. Furthermore, Spielberg is a Jew, so I doubt he intended to deliver exclusively Christian themes. 64.56.3.187 (talk) 15:03, 2 November 2008 (UTC)

Great point, but I would be accused of original research because the authors in the cited material refer to these events as Christian themes. Wildroot (talk) 22:13, 2 February 2009 (UTC)

Last I looked, Elijah is in the Tanakh and the Bible. :) Alientraveller (talk) 22:36, 2 February 2009 (UTC)

2013 Remake section?

It'd be nice to have some sort of citations for the 2013 remake section because presently it reads like somebody's theory, with nothing to back it up. Can the original editor of this section please add citations to prove this? Otherwise it ought to be removed. Evixir (talk) 23:16, 2 November 2008 (UTC)

I was thinking the same thing. I don't know where that came from, but another editor has deleted it. Wildroot (talk) 06:53, 4 November 2008 (UTC)

End of Movie

I've always wondered, at the end of the movie, are the folks dressed up in the red suits those that were 'invited' to Devil's Tower, and was it ever explained that if they leave earth permanently? The end just seems to jumbled. It seems as if the military was all prepared for these people. I guess I never understood it.--Criticalthinker (talk) 11:59, 3 November 2008 (UTC)

Those are the government's preferred replacements for the abductees. You first see them at the warehouse where all the equipment is stored before it's shipped to Devils Tower, getting onto a chartered Grayhound bus. None of the invitees would be at that location. Later when the aliens come out of their ship they skip pass all of them, and head straight towards Roy, the only invitee to reach the landing site. Roy is therefore the only person to go onto the alien ship, the rest of the red suits are rejected and left behind.

I can't give any citations, since I can't link to the movie itself.

Gorillatheape (talk) 03:16, 1 February 2009 (UTC)

Re: "the rest of the red suits are rejected and left behind." We have no basis to say that Neary was the only one taken aboard the ship. He was selected, yes, but there's nothing in the film which shows either way that the military-government operatives were taken or rejected by the aliens. The article should (and does) steer clear of subjective interpretations about the ending. 68Kustom (talk) 17:40, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Communication Through Music, Lights, and Hand Gestures

I would love to see some discussion and interpretation of the communication that occurs with the aliens. Music, lights, and hand gestures are used and seem quite integral to the story. Yet communication receives only a cursory mention in the article. For example, near the end of the movie they are communicating far beyond the simple 5-tone motif with the use of a keyboard. The tones from the aliens are being interpreted, and the keyboard player is being instructed on how to respond. What is the language? What dialog was exchanged?

The universal nature of music is such a strong theme in the movie.Spoodles (talk) 18:28, 3 November 2008 (UTC)

False(?) information about Cary Guffey

According to Wikipedia and IMDB Cary Guffey is born in May 10th 1972, and as the filming began in May 1976, he was probably four years old, not three.WildBadger (talk) 08:28, 25 March 2009 (UTC)

Question about rating on TCM

This movie came on TCM about a month ago rated TV-MA. Anyone know why? I don't recall that much language or any nudity, but I don't think I've seen all of it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.56.131.138 (talk) 17:40, 25 March 2009 (UTC)