Critic Reviews

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) Rank 4 Reviews

Expert Review Summary

Movie critics combined give Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) a score of 3.0911 out of 4

based on (70) reviews

Click on the numbers to the right of the graph to see reviews of that rating

Excellent

(18)

Very Good

(45)

Good

(7)

Fair

(0)

Poor

(0)

Reviews by Score:

eFilmCritic.com (Rob Gonsalves)

...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at eFilmCritic.com (Rob Gonsalves)

TV Guide's Movie Guide (--)

Close Encounters of the Third Kind is a humanistic postmodern masterpiece. ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at TV Guide's Movie Guide (--)

Netflix (James Rocchi)

Definitive cut of director Steven Spielberg's masterpiece isn't just great science fiction: It's great art. ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at Netflix (James Rocchi)

DVDTown.com (John J. Puccio)

...a masterful motion picture all around...where the interactions of its characters are equally important as the wizardry of the special effects. ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at DVDTown.com (John J. Puccio)

New York Times (Vincent Canby)

The best -- the most elaborate -- 1950's science fiction movie ever made, a work that borrows its narrative shape and its concerns from those earlier films, but enhances them with what looks like the latest developments in movie and space technology. ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at New York Times (Vincent Canby)

TV Guide Entertainment Network, Movie Guide

Steven Spielberg proves decisively that a special effects-dependent film need not be cold, mechanistic, or simpleminded. Here he presents first contact with an extraterrestrial culture in spirit of near-religious awe in sharp contrast to the dark ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at TV Guide Entertainment Network, Movie Guide

ReelViews (James Berardinelli)

Close Encounters of the Third Kind is unquestionably a great movie - its eight Oscar nominations and one win (Best Cinematography) are a testimony to that. Its universal appeal gave movie-goers something to be excited about during the ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at ReelViews (James Berardinelli)

Monkeyboy Review

Do aliens exist? Are they out there? Are they hovering above the earth in giant hulking spacecrafts, invisible to earth radar (thanks to highly advanced radar jamming alien technology no doubt), biding their time before they make the final strike? Are ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at Monkeyboy Review

SF, Horror and Fantasy Film Review

When Steven Spielberg made Close Encounters nobody quite knew what to expect. He had hit the all time No.1 Box-Office spot with Jaws (1975) two years previously, but nobody knew if box-office lightning would strike twice for the 27 year-old ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at SF, Horror and Fantasy Film Review

Dragan Antulov

Although very personal, Spielberg's screenplay was partly based on the book "UFO Experience" by Dr. J. Allen Hynek and in many ways inspired by the popular urban mythology of extraterrestrial visitors to Earth that began to grow in the world after WW2. ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at Dragan Antulov

The Movie Mom (Nell Minow)

When Roy Neary (Richard Dreyfuss) and Jillian Guiler (Melinda Dillon) "encounter" a UFO, they travel to its landing site, Devil's Tower, Wyoming. Jillian is seeking her son, who disappeared with the alien ship, but Roy is strangely compelled to go in a ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at The Movie Mom (Nell Minow)

Sci-Fi Movie Page (James O'Ehley)

Quick - how many versions of this movie are there? First, there's the original 1977 version, then the so-called Special Edition and now there's this one. (There's also a version edited for TV showings that features all existing footage.) This ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at Sci-Fi Movie Page (James O'Ehley)

Dark Horizons (Garth Franklin)

On a technical level 'Close Encounters' remains even todaya truly amazing achievement, on a narrative one the Spielberg sci-fi drama is for the most part very solid but suffers from a few problems. The film has a fascinating secondary subplot with a ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at Dark Horizons (Garth Franklin)

Filmtracks (Christian Clemmensen)

This new re-release includes just about everything from the score you will need. It has alternate, un-used cues for multiple parts, and has only three tracks that were available in their entirety before (on commercial releases). The other three ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at Filmtracks (Christian Clemmensen)

Movie Reviews UK

A visual titan which throws up more questions than it answers, Close Encounters of the Third Kind plumps for a warming vision of curious, benevolent aliens. From all around the globe, fragments of unprecedented but seemingly unconnected events swirl ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at Movie Reviews UK

filmcritic.com (James Brundage)

Around a quarter century ago, a nerdy little kid fresh off the success of some shark movie decided he wanted to turn his focus to little green men. And somehow he turned out one of those rare films that imprints itself into the cultural psyche so far ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at filmcritic.com (James Brundage)

Qwipster's Movie Reviews (Vince Leo)

Steven Spielberg (Jaws, Duel) is the sole credit as screenwriter, although other uncredited screenwriters have been said to have helped. Regardless of who gets the credit for the words, this is Spielberg's film all of the way, and even if there weren't on ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at Qwipster's Movie Reviews (Vince Leo)

Goatdog's Movies (Michael W. Phillips, Jr.)

What I could see of the special effects were wonderful, and they hold up over time, unlike many sci-fi movies. The landing scene at the end still fills you with wonder and amazement. Steven ...read the complete Close Encounters of the Third Kind movie review at Goatdog's Movies (Michael W. Phillips, Jr.)

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