Contact

I first saw Contact many many years ago and remember, even as a youngster, really getting immersed in a story that was more about the characters than the sci-fi elements, which was not common for me at the time due to something of a short attention span. And then time flew by and I never saw it pop-up on TV, available for sale on blu-ray or on any streaming service until it came to Prime just recently. I saved it in my growing watchlist but it was going to drop-off so it was time to pull up my sleeves and finally revisit this. 

The story here follows Jodie Foster's astronomer joining a cash-strapped team in Puerto Rico where they believe they have made a great discovery but their backer finally pulls out, ending all operations. The small team are reassigned to New Mexico and here they find something that might finally prove they have made contact with something outside this world.

Upon rewatching, I was surprised how great the storytelling was as the film has a great sense of pacing, clear direction and a great cast of actors. We get to learn about Foster's background growing up with just her father and it's all perfectly handled so I checked to see who directed this and it was, of course, Robert Zemeckis at the helm. And the film never faulters throughout as he adapts Carl Sagan's novel, who died a year prior to this releasing in 1997. 

Contact is a film more concerned with themes and ideas than the sci-fi elements but it brings everything together so well, particularly with regards to Foster and Matthew McConaughey's characters relationships that delve into some interesting matters we rarely see films like this explore. And it's here where I really found myself enjoying this while the government interference aspect did feel a little like we've been here before but the supporting cast kept me engaged.

I really can't fault Contact (the late 1990s CGI towards the end notwithstanding); it a very solid sci-fi drama and still stands up very well today nearly 30 years later. It is admittedly dwarfed by Zemeckis' other films from around the time but remains a great addition in his filmography. This is a very easy one to recommend, even if you're not into sci-fi films.