What are your thoughts on 'Contact?'

This movie is particularly important to me. When I was in middle school, my mom and I watched it at her suggestion. I was a bookworm and I loved science, and after that first viewing, it became one of my favorite movies.

But at that age, I had only a very basic understanding of its themes and ideas; I thought the Machine was cool, the music was good, and that seeing half of Jodie Foster's boob was one of the best parts. Rewatching it over the years since, however, has helped me really understand the movie, and its intent. Not only that, but I realized after a while how technically impressive it is. In my opinion, it's a really masterful example of a film made by an experienced and confident director.

Look, for example, at the scenes in the first thirty minutes or so of the movie, when Ellie is still in Puerto Rico. When she puts a pushpin into that poster of the stars in her room, she says "One down, couple billion to go." And then the scene cuts to her buying two more packages of those pins. Later on, the camera pans past that poster with hundreds of pushpins in it, suggesting that a lot of time has past.

Robert Zemeckis lets the camera do a lot of the talking for him. There's necessary exposition, and then there's what you can say without words. Zemeckis really knows when to use both. But this is all in regards to the craft of the film. I thought he also did a great job of translating Carl Sagan's realistic yet whimsical vision of first contact with aliens onto the big screen. Is it a bit oversentimental? Maybe. I think that might be the point. That whatever form this first contact takes, it'll affect us profoundly. Things that seem to exist in a separate realm from science, like love or religion, are in fact drawn to center stage because an event like this would mobilize all of our emotion and thought. They're part of us, and they have to be included in the conversation.

Since that first time all those years ago, I've returned to Contact with more and more appreciation for how well it handles these big ideas, but manages to keep the movie focused on Ellie.

Phew. That was pretty long-winded, my apologies. What are your thoughts on this movie?