Like ET + Close Encounters + Alien all in one

Rating: 6/10 (11 June 2011)

It's worth seeing on the big screen, but I have to admit I expected a bit more from JJ and Stevie Boy. Nice period touches that give you the look and feel of 1979. Couple that with the teenage cast and you have something that will attract older and younger audiences (that is, making more money for JJ and Stevie). The plot would have been just as effective in any other time period; I just saw the temporal placement as a worn-out way to maximize the age range of the audience.
I just had one little "nit-pick" that only a ham radio operator would notice. In the movie was shown an old (circa 1960) Heathkit Seneca that was being used to intercept the shortwave transmissions from the "gub-mint" guys. The problem is that the Seneca was a transmitter only, not a receiver. A similar mistake was made in the movie "Frequency" where the main character was using a Heath SB-301 to talk across time to his father. Guess what? The SB-301 is a receiver, not a transmitter. I know; I have one in my basement.
At least ham radio got a favorable moment in the movie when the older man stepped forward at the town meeting.
The movie overall is well worth seeing, but don't expect to be blown away by the plot. My favorite character was the kid with the braces (I can't remember his name) who loved to blow up stuff. He added a touch of comedy to an otherwise extremely serious story.