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E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (Steven Spielberg, 1982)

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (Steven Spielberg, 1982)

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EMPIRE — ✪✪✪✪✪

A group of alien botanists searching for plant life on Earth are disturbed by government officials, leaving one of their number behind. Discovered by a young boy, the two form a strong, symbiotic relationship. But danger is closing in...

Once titled 'A Boy's Life', which should tell you all you need to know about the real star of the show — Henry Thomas’ Spielberg stand-in, Elliott — this knee-high view of a stagnant childhood and suburban world transformed by the glowing touch of the titular alien retains a sense of magic in almost every scene, even when we’re not dealing in flying bikes or glowing fingers.

Cynics have often accused Steven Spielberg of being an arch manipulator, a peddler of mere sentiment, but the emotions here are complex if deceptively soufflé-light, the film dealing with divorce, dislocation and disenfranchisement. And, as a host of imitators have proved over the years, they’re almost impossible to replicate. Schindler’s List may have done a better job of exposing his raw, beating heart, Mola Ram-style, but E.T. remains Spielberg’s most personal film, and his most affecting too.

It remains a classic — undamaged by cosmetic changes, and with power enough to overcome the impact of a hundred crappy telephone commercials.

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