Science and Religion both use Faith

Rating: 10/10 (10 May 2014)

Mostly out of respect for Carl Sagan I rate this 10 - It is in fact a diamond in the rough as others have said.
As far as Production Value, the state of CGI Graphics when this film was made was poor - It could have been done better. That was the one thing that bothered me, some of the CGI was great, but at the time CGI was no good for planes, ships or a huge rotating Gyroscope. It was good however for storms and galaxies and planets.
But despite this minor flaw, the sets were very well done, including Jody's "spaceship" and the structures surrounding it. But what drives this film is not how it looks, there are strong and weak aspects to that. What really drives this story is Character, and the fact that we ourselves can relate to the dichotomies presented here.
Basically all through this film, Dr. Arroway refuses to see the merits of Faith, she only relies on what can be proved with Facts in Hand. But Faith in God cannot be accessed that way.
This rigid thinking initially allows her to make her big discovery, but when it comes to the row she created and taking part in her own discovery, it prevents her from being originally picked as the person to represent man as a whole. We have Nick Lowe on one side representing the Conservative POV, and Matthew McConaughey on the other, who should be representing the Conservative/Religious POV but in fact Ms. Foster's character cannot see that he is actually her most valuable ally.
This is how both Science and Religion should tread, they are in fact not at odds with each other, they complement each other. I think this was Carl Sagan's final statement with this book and film. Both require Faith to make work and if allowed to, Science and Religion can be used together to answer questions that neither alone can answer.
I personally believe that if a machine like the one in the film were built, we would experience it differently from Within and Without.
James Woods as the NSA chief almost reprises his great role as "Citizen Cohn" and Tom Skerritt reveals a Political Ass-Kisser and chump who is not above taking Arroway's discovery and using it for political gain, even while standing in her way earlier in the film. John Hurt in another chameleon role is SR Hadden, a mysterious recluse and main Arroway ally.
And as much as Matt McConaughey bothers me, his character is pivotal to the film, as well as Gary Busey prodigy Jake as the psychotic religious fanatic which he so well represents. I believe all stereotypes are accounted for using appropriate actors.
This film is worth sitting through, even though it moves slowly. Not many movies or TV shows lately have such a positive message to expound as this, but the source material and author says it all.