Unbelievable Sci-Fi Film

Rating: 10/10 (22 October 1999)

This movie was incredible. Carl Sagan truly went out with a bang with this one. I didn't know what exactly to expect from Jodie Foster's performance since I saw "Nell" just before I saw this - and the whole "chicka-pa" thing tried to invade my mind. Nevertheless her performance was incredible and tantalizingly real. The emotion between her and the other characters is palpable even when she doesn't speak. She really should work with Zemeckis more often. A previous commenter mentioned the whole running towards the mirror scene- I thought this was a bit out of place, but it was Kubrickish and I'm a big Kubrick fan. With a plot such as this one, it's very hard to have an ending that isn't cheesy (Jody lives forever with the aliens) or disappointing (she dies or something) but this story brings about an incredible and thoughtful closure that requires a second viewing to fully understand. Oh yeah and before I forget the CGI is just amazing. A bit reminiscent of stargate, but incredible none the less. You have to watch the whole sequence again to see all the minute details and stuff. This was one of my favorite movies of all time. The only thing that would make this movie better would be if it had Angela Bassett in it...oh wait it DOES!!!! The James Woods and Tom Skerrit characters get a bit irritating, but they are necessary to further the plot. All in all an excellent film. GO SEE IT SEE IT YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO.