Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Genuinely uplifting piece of hokum, 20 Dec 2000
Overall an excellent, intelligent film with good performances. The other reviews have concentrated on the opening sequence which is nice but a bit obvious visually - but the sound tracking back through time and eventually switching off is a great touch). But the virtuoso performance technically has to be the scene with the young girl running for the medicine cabinet - an apparently innocuous scene but watch it again and try to figure out how they could have done it - the whole scene appears to have been shot through a mirror which is fixed to the bathroom wall, yet starts downstairs and travels upstairs and into the bathroom in one continuous shot. It's a shot Hitchcock would have been proud of and it's always good to see a commercial director showing that he still has some artistic sensibilities and can do more than paint by the numbers. Sometimes the ethical elements of the plot are laid on with a trowel, and John Hurt is far too hammy and out of place from the general atmosphere of the film to be anything other than an annoyance but Jodie Foster gives a strong central performance and the movie hangs together nicely by the end. The arguments about spirituality against science are somewhat contrived but that does little to detract from a genuinely uplifting and inspiring story. Great to see a piece of science fiction that actually treats its viewers as intelligent human beings who can perhaps understand a plot that goes beyond boy rescuing Californian beach volleyball princess from evil emperor while retrieving mysterious plastic crystal and saving the world. Watch it, and restore your faith in earthlings.
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30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Rare treat - intellingent sci-fi!, 13 Jan 2002
To anyone who thinks that science fiction is about action-packed escapism, with ray guns and scary monsters, as all those who have jumped on the Star Wars bandwagon in the last 25 years would have us believe, watch this film. Science fiction can be plausible, intelligent and - shock, horror - have things to say just like any other form of drama. I have a personal fondness for this film for that reason, and therefore am prepared to forgive its occasional lapse into schmaltz. It's refreshing to see something that gives us a credible glimpse into what our first contact with an alien intelligence might actually be like, and how we might react to it.
Also this disc represents top value for a DVD:... here's what you get for your money:*No less than THREE full-length audio commentaries - one from Jodie Foster, one from the director and producer, and one from the Special Effects men. And these are genuine commentaries too, not cobbled together from interviews - they are with you as you watch the film, commenting on everything you see as you see it. Together they are a wonderful eye-opener into how a film like this is made.
* Isolated music score - this option means that the film is silent for a lot of the time but provides a fascinating alternative way to view many scenes.
* Special effects featurette; sort of a technical showreel showing how many shots were composited -even the ones that don't look like FX shots.
* Production notes, the usual scene access & trailers None of this is the cheap promo stuff that is thrown carelessly onto many discs; somebody cared enough about this film to make a real effort. all of this means you have to watch this film at least four times before you're exhausted all the disc has to offer. If you haven't seen the film, watch out for spoilers in the other reviews on this page.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Movie made for DVD, 6 Mar 2000
This film has to be the most intelligent Science Fiction film of recent history. Assembled with increasing tension and excitement, the characters are ably played by Jodie Foster as a lonely, fragile but highly intelligent astronomer, who is pitched against a starched James Woods who plays a dangerous US National Security Adviser, who borders on the malevolent. Despite the deep content, and the now obligatory love content between Foster and Michael McConaughey (who plays a constantly-smiling, spiritual adviser to the President), the film moves cleverly at a good, steady pace and keeps the viewer interested in all facets of the storyline as they unfold. Especially clever is the underlying theme of the 'science versus faith' argument, and how it is intimately laced through the story - watch out for several points in the film where Foster's character has her very own science theories quoted back at her by McConaughey. A superb movie with a vindicating twist in the tail. Very well played, tremendously well filmed and a good, emotional adaptation of Carl Sagan's equally moving novel. From a DVD perspective this film is right up there alongside 'The Matrix' as a benchmark DVD transfer. The opening effects, some of the solo scenes of the ultimately-photogenic Foster against various backdrops, and the awe-inspiring 'journey to Vega' illustrate exactly what this media is for. The digital effects alone are worth getting the DVD for - if you want to demonstrate why DVD exists, this film is for you.
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