It's a Masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (2 March 2006)

There are those times when all the forces at work come together and you have a masterpiece. This, of course, is a kids' movie. Obviously, it is so much more. It is a story of love and heart and character. To begin with, as a middle school teacher, I can attest to the wonderful casting and writing. It doesn't insult us. It shows us how a person who knows the heart of humanity (and that extends to the alien nation) can transcend cliché and put forth a beautiful story--but not a lightweight one by any means. The adults make up the periphery. The childlike quality of the lovable alien could only be appreciated and cared for by those who have not become as jaded as they. As soon as those adult figures show up, everyone is in trouble. Yet, for the most part, they have good intentions. The government agents are another issue. They bring force and death.
Who hasn't seen this. There are series of episodes that have become part of our cultural landscape. Words have been brought into our language. We speak along with Elliot and ET. Halloween, phoning home, frogs all over the lab, hiding in the closet among the stuffed animals, the bike ride where the bikes suddenly leave the ground, the touching of the finger and the heart. It's just magical. Sometimes when one sees a movie, one begins to say, "If only they had done this or that." I can't think of anything in this film. Why write this review. Just to include my two cents' worth.