The appearances of Sir Richard Attenbourgh, while pivotal to the plot is too restricted to let this great talent really shine. The best scene for him is when the power is off and he explains to Ellie about his very first attraction, a flea circus. Steven Spielberg is perhaps one of the greatest directors that ever lived. With far more hits than misses and most of those hits in the top ranking movies of all time Spielberg shows how far true talent can take a man. He is a perfectionist.
Every scene is crafted as if it was an individual masterpiece of art.
The details, no matter how small, are considered and a sense of reality is achieved. The action moves at a well timed pace. There are scenes used to punctuate the action, to give the audience some rest but the action moves through the film carrying you along. It's like a roller coaster ride, a slow spot just before you drop at 4Gs. Spielberg set out to entertain and he succeeded.