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Film Review: E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL (1982): Steven Spielberg's Truly Moving Masterpiece Returns for its 40th Anniversary https://film-book.com/film-review-e-t-the-extra-terrestrial-1982-steven-spielbergs-truly-moving-masterpiece-returns-for-its-40th-anniversary/?feed_id=94205&_unique_id=63082bb3726c4

Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983)

Twilight Zone: The Movie was an interesting experiment, but not an entirely successful one. This film is like a mechanical duplicate of your best friend. All the pieces, or an equivalent of them, might be there, the memories might be plugged in and the look might be right, but something's missing.

Based on the popular television series, this anthology film is composed of 4 stories, with one “wraparound” tale to introduce and close the picture. Each segment features different characters and is helmed by different directors.

First up is Time Out, the only segment not based on an episode of the show and also easily the weakest. In it, an angry, bigoted man named William Connor (Vic Morrow) goes on a racist tirade and is suddenly transported back through time to Nazi-occupied France, to Vietnam, and then Ku Klux Klan rally where he gets to experience first-hand true hatred and injustice.

This segment's problem is that it’s too obvious. The ending is also not particularly Twilight Zone-y, which sometimes featured twists, but not ones like this story. Perhaps the troubled production was to blame and it’s a tragedy that director John Landis had to hastily rework the story to following deaths on-set but even with the planned conclusion, this wouldn’t have been a memorable story.

Next up is Steven Spielberg and Kick the Can. Sunnyvale Retirement Home welcomes a new resident, a mysterious man (Scatman Crothers) named Mr. Bloom. He encourages the residents to take an optimistic look at life and remember their childhoods. What happens next will never be forgotten.

This second segment is an improvement over the first, but feels out of place in a Twilight Zone Movie. "Movie" implies high drama, big special effects, shocking developments. This is a low-key story, a feel-good tale that’s neat and inline with some of the more whimsical episodes of the show, but easily forgotten. I liked it, but mostly because it’s different from the rest. There’s not much to say.

Now, the segments start getting juicier. Joe Dante spearheads It’s a Good Life, in which a mild-mannered schoolteacher (Kathleen Quinlan as Helen Foley) accidentally runs over a young boy’s bicycle (Jeremy Licht plays Anthony). When she brings him back home, she notices that his family act very strangely, catering instantly to Anthony’s every demand. What is going on with this child?

This segment excels at what you associate with The Twilight Zone; it’s scary but too captivating not to watch and so bizarre you can't guess what is coming next. The ending takes you for a loop, it’s unsettling, and well written. There is a tendency to over-rely on the special effects. The creatures we see are cool and distinct. There’s an inspired TV Cartoon version of Hell but implying what it shows would've been doubly effective.

George Miller brings us the final story, Nightmare at 20,000 Feet. In it, a nervous airline passenger (John Lithgow as John Valentine) looks outside his window to discover a hideous gremlin tearing at the engine.

This color remake of the original episode greatly improves upon the gremlin's design. It now looks frightening and mischievious instead of like a big silly teddy bear. Unfortunately, the story takes a misstep by making its protagonist too much of a quack. There’s no escalation in John Valentine. When we first see him, he’s locked up in the washroom trying to soak the rivers of sweat streaming down his face. When he goes ballistic, it’s no surprise. It’s the second-best segment after It’s a Good Life, but it’s frustrating to see a story that improves some aspects of the original while missing others. It’s just not as suspenseful or scary as what we saw in 1963.

The wraparound story feels like something borrowed from Tales from the Crypt than Twilight Zone. It’s amusing but nothing special and much stronger at the beginning than at the end.

Twilight Zone: The Movie shows why big names and big special effects don’t automatically make a better film. It’s entertaining throughout but doesn't improve on the show except when it comes to the special effects. If you’ve never seen the show, this is a good introduction. If you’re already a fan, you’ll be disappointed. All in all, it’s ok. I’d recommend it but mildly. It’s not one I’ll be revisiting anytime soon and unlike the show, doesn’t have a timeless quality about it. (On DVD, August 17, 2016)

Good notes build on the writing, not tear it down

To state the obvious, the same producers, screenwriter, and director of E.T. The Extra-Terrestial, come together to make a parallel film (ironically based off a book, published the same year as the film’s release, 1982). In both films we see a child connecting with the fantastic, and the fantasy transcending the fictional realm to the real world -be it the U.S.A. government treating a sick alien, or the Queen of England taking council from a giant. The roles are reversed in that we see E.T. as a foreigner trying to get home, where as young Sophie is the foreigner who doesn’t want to go back home. Spielberg’s use of motion capture in @thebfgmovie is far superior to that of The Adventures of Tintin (2011). #StevenSpielberg #Spielberg #TheBFG #BFG #MarkRylance #Queen #Film #Filmmmaking #FilmSet #SetLife #Production #Studio #Hollywood #FilmSchool #MotionCapture #CastingCall #CastingDirector #Casting #Disney #ET #RoaldDahl #Child #ChildrensBook #ETTheExtraTerrestrial #FilmSchool #FilmStudiues #UnderOneHour #Tintin #MelissaMathison #InstaGood

La llave mágica (1995)

¿Qué pasaría si Andy descubriera que sus amados Woody y Buzz Lightyear tuvieran la posibilidad de cobrar vida, interactuar y, además, ver cómo el plástico de su composición se convirtiera en carne y hueso?

Algo así sucede en “La llave mágica” (”An Indian In The Cupboard”, su título original, significa “Un indio en el armario”), fue dirigida por Frank Oz (además de director, la voz original de Yoda, lógicamente, en la saga “Star Wars”) y escrita por Melissa Mathison (”E.T, el extraterrestre”), basada en el libro homónimo de  Lynne Reid Banks.

Omri (Hal Scardino) recibe, para su noveno cumpleaños, un antiguo y pequeño armario y una figura indígena. Al hallar una llave dorada en el cajón de su madre, decide utilizarla en el armario y se lleva una sorpresa: el indio adquiere vida, se hace llamar “Pequeño Oso” (Gary "Litefoot" Davis) y considera al niño una especie de entidad divina. Razón por la cual decide mantenerlo en secreto, aunque compartido con su mejor amigo Patrick (Rishi Bhat). Y no sólo “Pequeño Oso” recibirá ese don, sino todo juguete que sea colocado en el armario a la espera de un giro de esa extraña llave. Como, por ejemplo, el vaquero Boone (David Keith) o el doctor Tommy Atkins (Steve Coogan).

How does this movie hold up? The Indian in the Cupboard (1995) directed by Frank Oz. #indianinthecupboard #frankoz #lynnreidbanks #melissamathison #childrensmovie #halscardino

Day-7 #inktober #inktober2017 E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) #StevenSpielberg #kathleenkennedy #melissamathison #ettheextraterrestrial #ET #1982 #amblin #phonehome (at Chikballapur)

I adored E.T. growing up so I was super stoked when my mom got a E.T. figurine and the book. #bookaddict #etphonehome #etextraterrestrial #melissamathison #bookobsessed #bookstagram #bibliophile #book #readabook #booknerd #booklove

Released this day 1983. #TwilightZoneTheMovie #StevenSpielberg #JohnLandis #JoeDante #GeorgeMiller #RodSerling #JohnLandis #RichardMatheson #MelissaMathison #JohnLithgow #KathleenQuinlan #VicMorrow #Fantasy #SCIFI #HORROR #horrormovies

The Indian in the Cupboard // #1995 // Director #FrankOz🎥 // Writer #LynneReidBanks✏ #MelissaMathison✏ // #vhs

7. The BFG: Top 10 #upcoming #movies in #2016

7. The BFG: Top 10 #upcoming #movies in #2016

A #girl named #Sophie #encounters the #Big #Friendly #Giant who, despite his #intimidating #appearance,#turns out to be a #kindhearted soul who is #considered an #outcast by the other #giants because #unlike his #peers #refuses to eat #boys and #girls.

#Director: #StevenSpielberg

#Writers: #MelissaMathison, #RoaldDahl

#Stars: #MarkRylance, #RebeccaHall, #BillHeader

Status: Post-production Up…

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La scénariste d’E.T. est décédée

Melissa Mathison s’est éteinte à l’âge de 65 ans d’un cancer neuroendocrinien. Ex-femme d’Harrison Ford et mère de 2 enfants, la scénariste était connue pour les films La quatrième dimen­sion (1983), L'indien du placard (1995) et enfin E.T (1995).

El corcel negro (1979)

Hay amistades de todos los colores, tamaños y especies. En el caso de Alec (Kelly Reno) adquiere la forma de un brioso caballo negro que el niño ve en el barco en el que viaja con su padre. Ambos se convierten en los únicos sobrevivientes de un naufragio y terminan en una isla llena de peligros en la cual alimentan su confianza. Así, se convierten en inseparables, incluso cuando unos marineros estadounidenses los rescatan e inician una no menos difícil coexistencia en el mundo urbano. Un incidente con un coche les depara una opción en el mundo de las carreras.

Clásico de aventuras basado en el libro “El semental negro” de Walter Farley, “El corcel negro” (”The Black Stallion”) fue dirigido por Carroll Ballard (”Volando a casa”, “Duma”) y escrito por Melissa Mathison (”ET, el extraterrestre”, “La llave mágica”). Además de Reno, otros intérpretes ofrecieron su talento: Teri Garr y Hoyt Axton como los padres de Alec, Mickey Rooney como Henry Dailey y Clarence Muse como Snoe.

E.T. the Extra Terrestrial // #1982 // Director #StevenSpielberg🎥 // Writer #MelissaMathison✏ // #vhs