My experience of the film was very positive. I thought the director, Steven Spielberg, did an excellent job of utilizing special effects throughout the film and making it an interesting science fiction film, while also making ET a heart warming story of a bond between Elliot, the main character and ET.
The element that overwhelmingly stood out to me while watching ET was the use of special effects, especially on such a low budget. According to Box Office Mojo, ET only used $10.5 million dollars for their entire budget, while an average movie’s budget cost around $100-$150 million to make today. The use of special effects to create ET and other special effects throughout the whole film was groundbreaking at the time, especially at such a low cost.
Another element of ET that stood out to me was the use of sound throughout the film. In the beginning of the film before the boys first meet ET and when ET is landing on Earth there is very ominous/scary music playing to create an element of fear and unknown. However once he boys befriend ET and start having more fun with him the music begins to lighten up and has a more joyful tune. Sound is actually what ET is most famous for, ET won several accolades including an Oscar for Best Sound and Best Sound Effect Editing “This musical element is the film’s most famous theme and ties to E.T.’s telekinetic ability to make Elliott and his friends fly on their bikes. The theme creates a mood of wonder and amazement during the iconic scene when Elliot and E.T. fly past the moon,” (Davis).
Critical conversations I read about the film raved about ET’s use of sound to set the mood and how the film achieved lofty goals on such a low budget. Critics also said that ET was a one of a kind film at the time and brought joy to their hearts. Roger Ebert even wrote, “This is not simply a good movie. It is one of those movies that brush away our cautions and win our hearts,” whcih is extremely high praise.
I would say that the critical conversations I’ve read about ET fit what my experience of the film was as well. I was very impressed with the use of sound to add to the tone of the fil as well as the use of special effects to make the film seem more real even though it’s about an alien.
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