Some dreams are meant to come true

Rating: Null/10 (8 April 2002)

Restored to a better digital quality, ET - the Extra Terrestrial, celebrated it's 20 year anniversary, with a second release. I must admit that I enjoyed the movie a whole lot more this time, considering it was able to viewed in the cinema and that it was much better to watch. ET is a brilliant film and if you can not enjoy it, than you have not got a movie-loving bone in your body.
A group of alien botanists visit earth and one of them is lost and left behind stranded on this planet. A 10-year-old boy, Elliot, finds the alien. Soon the two begin to communicate, and start a different kind of friendship in which E.T learns about life on earth and Elliot learns about some new values for the true meaning of friendship. E.T. wants to go home, but if Elliot helps him, he'll lose a friend...
The Story of this film is probably the main reason why I like it so much. ET is a friendly character, though the audience are not shown this that until we get to meet him much later in the film. However once we do, the story really does take you on an emotional rollercoaster ride. In fact it is a sad teary movie. I love the way the audience is made to encourage ET and hope that whatever he wants to do, he gets the chance to do it. While in the long run he is able to make friends with some loving human beings. That is another side of the script I enjoyed, how the humans of the show interact with ET. It was well done and I can only commend the people behind the scenes, which include the script writer Melissa Mathison and the director, Steven Spielberg, who got it just right.
The acting in this movie is famous, considering the stars that were in this film way back in 1982. Probably the most renowned actor would have to be Drew Barrymore, who played Gertie. Boy, she was young in this movie, but she proved how talented she was going to be, and has gone on to do some wonderful work. Movies such as The Wedding Singer, Charlie's Angels, Poison Ivy and the film based on the Steven King novel, Firestarter. I like what Barrymore does onscreen, however I was sadden to see that her off-screen life has taken a turn for the worse, considering her house burnt down and her marriage to fellow actor Tom Green also failed in the last 12 months or so.
Yet there were other cast members that had a much heavier effect in this film. The main star would have to be Henry Thomas, who played Elliot. His role I feel would have made audiences very emotional, as Elliot is a caring character, who is also brave and would do anything for his Alien counterpart. I rate his performance in this film alongside current young star Haley Joel Osment, as the two have the similar style to each other. Then you have the role of older brother Michael, played by Robert MacNaughton, he was great as the smart-alec older brother, however as the circumstances start to become more serious, he becomes a responsible person in the tricky situation.
For a 1982 film, ET had some extra-ordinary special effects, and to think that if it was done today, the movie would be all the better. I love all the scenes involving ET in some magical sense, with the bike flying scenes my favourite. There are also some very funny and touching scenes. Other scenes I loved were when Gertie takes ET and teaches him too talk and dresses him up in girlie clothes. Throw in a bit of good acting from some young people and you have a very healthy film I say.
So all in all ET is a great film, with a top cast, good special effects and a story that can only be loved by audiences around the world. I agree with Roger Ebert that ET is the reason why we watch movies, to reflect and too make us feel good about ourselves. I believe this film would have had the same cinema hype that movies like Star Wars, Ghostbusters and the Gremlins would have had. If you are feeling a little down and need to be lifted up, then see ET, the movie that will pull your heart strings and make you feel glad for the viewing experience.
Rating: 10/10 or 5 Stars