What would we do if contacted by an extra-terrestrial intelligence?

Rating: 8/10 (20 November 2016)

From a young age Eleanor Arroway was fascinated by science and questioned whether we are alone in the universe; as an adult she is probing the depths of the universe hoping to find a sign that there is intelligent life out there. It isn't popular work and a lot of people would be happy to see her 'frivolous' project ended. She manages to get independent funding from the somewhat eccentric S. R. Hadden but even then it looks as if the project will get cancelled as permission to use a government owned facility is withdrawn. Then she discovers a signal coming from Vega, 24 light years away, it consists of a series of prime numbers and rather disturbingly footage of the opening of the 1936 Olympics in BerlinÂ… thankfully it turns out that this was the earliest TV signal of enough power to be received. Mixed in with the signal are a series of documents which when decoded give the schematics to a machine that it is speculated may transport a single person to Vega. By now politics is well into play as well as religion as some believe the project is an affront to their faith. As the project nears its conclusion the question of who should be Earth's representative must be answered and many object to Arroway being selected because of her lack of religious belief.
Movies about aliens contacting us usually turn into alien invasions or at the very least as much about the aliens as humanity; this is different as it is almost entirely about what humanities reaction would be. That reaction is believably varied; in such circumstances it is likely that some would be optimistic and others fearful. As the story progresses there is some slightly unnecessary drama but that does at least serve to put Arroway in the 'pilot's seat' for the ultimate ride. Jodie Foster goes a great job as Arroway and the rest of the cast, which includes plenty of familiar faces, is impressive too. The special effects are pretty impressive; this includes both the sci-fi elements and the way archive footage of President Clinton was used to make it look as though he was talking about the issues in the film. Overall I rather enjoyed this and would recommend it to fans of 'hard' sci-fi.