CONTACT

US, 1997, 160 minutes.
Jodie Foster, Matthew Mc Connaughy, Tom Skerritt, James Woods, David Morse, John Hurt.
Directed by Robert Zemeckis.

Carl Sagan was a renowned populariser of science both in his writings and on television. His novel, Contact, was brought to the screen after his death. The director is Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future series and Forrest Gump). The film personalises the story of the search for intelligent life in the universe by focussing on a young scientist who has been searching the heavens since she was a child. When she hears sound patterns and transfers them to visual images, it is clear that contact is being made. Then, enter politics! Followed by the military, money interests, protesters and saboteurs and personal reputation and glory. It makes for good drama, especially as the movie shows a human being going into space to consolidate the contact.

Jodie Foster is the scientist and gives an intelligent performance that people can identify with. Most of the other performers create stereotypes (James Woods as the gung-ho political adviser) or fail to convince (Matthew Mc Conaughy as a philosopher and presidential religious adviser). Footage of President Clinton is frequently included giving the film a more contemporary feel. However, the movie does come together satisfyingly at the end, when one does not know where the plot is going - or how the contact will be made and what will be the consequences for us humans. As the screenplay and Sagan say: if there is no life out there in such vastness of space, what a waste!

An interesting feature of the screenplay is the regular discussion of religious issues, especially the relationship between religion and science and the existence of God. This is not the usual staple of a Hollywood blockbuster and such challenging of the broad popular audience can be welcomed.

Some will be sceptical; others will scoff at what they describe as `pseudo-mysticism'; but Contact offers serious thought while being entertaining.

1.Audience interest in extraterrestrials, UFOs, the possibility of intelligent life in space? The appeal of the film?

2.The work of Carl Sagan? His book, television series? Popularising issues of extraterrestrial intelligent life? Opening up the universe? The adaptation of the book for the screen? His role as co-producer? Dedication to him after his death?

3.The impact and success of the film in the US in the '90s? Meeting needs of audiences, their imaginations? The contrast with aliens and films of the period (Independence Day, Mars Attacks, Men in Black)?

4.The visual style: the blend of the realistic, the futuristic, the special effects? The use of imagination - for the space flight and for the star, Vega? The musical score? The range of songs used?

5.The title and expectations: Sagan's comment mentioned three times that if there were no intelligent life in space, it would be a waste of space? The final impact of the film about possibilities beyond Earth?

6.The structure of the film: young Ellie, her skills, relationship with her father? The older Ellie and the flashbacks? Her quest, government, Haddon supporting her, David and his usurping her success? The success of hearing the message, deciphering, building the machine, the test and the disaster, the new flight and her space odyssey? The realistic aftermath of the hearings and her continued work?

7.Jodie Foster as the focus of the film, her portrayal of Ellie, her screen presence, the credibility of her as a scientist and as a woman with a mission? Ellie at a young age, her radio skills, the telescope, the falling stars, the planets? Her relationship with her father and his support? His collapse and death? Her blaming herself about the tablets? Her mother dying when she was born? Her memories? The reprise of these earlier scenes with the experience of her father in the future and on Vega? Vega looking like her drawing of Pensacola? A strong character to make her whole experience credible?

8.Her setting up the watching post? Her arrival, the setting, the members of the team and their working with her, friendship? Meeting Kent, his helpfulness, blindness, capacity for listening? The chance encounter with Palmer, the discussions with him, his background as studying for the priesthood, celibacy? His religious ideas? Social ideas? The social with her, the sexual relationship? His giving her the compass, her treasuring it? Her not following up the relationship? Her working with David, his arrival, her being on the outer? His decision to close down her unit?

9.The question of the value of her work or not? The amount of space and stars to be covered? The percentages of possibilities for picking up intelligent life? Government and financial decisions? Her being closed down? Her presentation to Haddon's company? Their scepticism, her reaction, his watching on the screen? His decision to give her the money? Going to Arizona, the setting up of the large number of dishes, the passing of the years? Her listening to the sounds? The discovery of the pattern, the excitement, driving to the team, the technology used to try to focus the message? The audio signals? TV signals and sharpening them? The surprise to find Hitler opening the Berlin Games? The reason for this image coming back - 30 years to Vega and 30 years back? The shared joy of the discovery?

10.David and his involvement, taking over the project? His dominant and ambitious personality? His speaking instead of Ellie at the press conference? His involvement in the deciphering of the codes? The building of the machine? The candidates for selection to go into space? His giving feedback to the committee about faith in God? Giving them what they expected? The choice of him to go into space? His grandstanding during the test, in the machine, the security threat, his death? The impact of the funeral?

11.The intervention of the government? Michael Kitz and James Woods' frenetic style? The touch of paranoia, wanting to militarise the project? Rachel Constantine and her control, relating with Ellie? Handling the media, the press conference? The insertion of the clips from President Clinton into the film offering credibility? The range of real-life television news hosts and their participation in the film? Again, credibility?

12.Ellie and her hopes, the humiliation at the press conference? Her meeting Palmer again, taking up where they left off? His being on the committee? Her going to the dance, Rachel's advice for her dress and her hair? Palmer and the discussions? Their arguing about God, science, religious issues? Her presence at the selection committee, Palmer and his asking the questions, her inability to say that she believed in God, her presentation of herself as a scientist looking for proof? Congratulating David, going to the base? Her seeing the fanatic and raising the security issue? The accident and the aftermath?

13.Palmer and his background, his arrival at her unit, their discussions, his books, social concern? Their liaison? His discussion about training for priesthood and the questions of celibacy? His disappointment and amazement at Ellie's breaking off the relationship, the gift of the compass? His being seen on TV and his interviews about advice to the President? Faith, science, evidence, mystical experience? Meeting Ellie again? The bonds between them? The dance? His being on the committee, his asking her the questions, her disappointment and giving him back the compass? His presence at the second launch? Supporting her? His supporting her at the hearings, believing her? The relationship and its future?

14.The film showing the range of people responding to the news about messages from space? The carnival atmosphere in Arizona, the eccentrics, the fringe groups, songs and dances, the Elvis crowd? Yet the menace of the destructive apocalyptic groups? The fanatic and his looking at Ellie? His presence at the demonstration and his confronting her? His madness, being in the machine, getting through security, planting the bomb, self-destructive? The motivations and the religious references for his stance? The contrast with Rob Lowe as representing the Christian Coalition, the same religious perspectives on space exploration, presented more objectively in presidential discussions?

15.The character of Haddon, his isolation? John Hurt's eccentric characterisation? His wealth, giving the money to Ellie? Summoning her, giving her the key to the deciphering of the documents? The lateral thinking? His going to Mir? The visualising of his life in the space station? His having put up the money for the alternate machine? Giving Ellie her chance? His death? Kitz and the hearings in declaring that Haddon was a creator of a hoax?

16.The documents coming through from the star, Vega? The attempts at deciphering, the range of committees? Haddon and his solution? The building of the machine, the discussions, the news presentations on TV? The budget? The decision to go ahead? The building of the machines and the explanations given?

17.The build-up to the test, the range of people at Cape Canaveral, the crowds, the technical crew, David and his going into the machine, Ellie and her presence, the security risk, the failure of the test? The irony of the alternate machine in the Japanese harbours? The harbour and the snowscapes and the isolation? The preparation for the voyage into space?

18.The dramatic build-up to the journey? Ellie in the seat, the authorities, Palmer? The recording of the voyage? Going, the visual odyssey and Ellie's response to the beauty of space, that she had never dreamt of such beauty? The turmoil? Arriving in Vega? Meeting her father, their discussion, people in space, sending messages back to Earth? Small groups and small contacts? Her mystical experience?

19.The ironic reality of what happened? Her being away only for a few seconds? Her experience of 18 hours? Her trying to come to terms with this?

20.Michael Kitz and his resignation as presidential adviser? His chairing the hearings? The committee and the hearings? The interrogation of Ellie, her declaration of what she experiences, Kitz's scepticism? Palmer's support of her?

21.The change in Ellie's attitudes, opening up to vaster possibilities?

22.Working with the children, the tour of the dishes, the discussions about life out in space? A down-to-earth ending for the film?

23.The background of science and scientific method, empirical verification compared with philosophy and religion, speculation and argument about the existence of God? Mystical experience transcending the scientific and the theological discussion?