Contact Review
by Homer Yen (yenho AT cof DOT org)July 14th, 1997
CONTACT: Some Signs of Intelligent Life
By Homer Yen
(c) 1997
Jodie Foster plays Ellie Arroway, a prominent scientist and radio astronomer for the SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence) program. Like many scientists, she is an analytical person whose beliefs are entrenched in empirical evidence and testing. For her, science shows us what is and what is not. For example, she doesn't believe in God, because he can not be proven to exist. Dr. Arroway is particularly isolated from the world around her. She is consumed with one interest, which is the possibility of finding intelligent life on another planet. Her academic mentors and colleagues belittle her. Grant money to continue her research is increasingly hard to come by.
Yet she persists in her obsession, listening and monitoring and hoping until one day the payoff comes. Working first at Puerto Rico's Arecibo observatory, budget cuts force her to relocate to the Very Large Array (VLA) of radio telescopes in the remote desert of New Mexico. It is there, along with an ad-hoc team of devoted colleagues, that she detects a signal from the Vega system, some 26 light years away, that was clearly transmitted by an alien intelligence. With the backing of the enigmatic industrialist, S.R. Hadden (John Hurt), she will begin a quest that culminates in the construction of a mysterious machine based on alien blueprints, and embark on a one-woman journey that will have the most profound scientific and spiritual implications for all humankind and especially for her.
Adapted from Carl Sagan's 1985 novel, this piece of science-pseudo fiction concerns itself with the discovery of extraterrestrial intelligence, but its focus subsequently becomes a debate between sanctity and science and Ellie's pursuit of her own brand of truth and her trip down the path of enlightenment.
Her quest is hampered by two major obstacles, though. She is faced with a lack of scientific thinking from politicians, who are wary of national security issues. Confronted by a paranoid National Security Advisor (James Woods), Arroway's glory-hogging scientific rival (Tom Skerritt), and a cynical Presidential Advisor (Angela Bassett), Dr. Arroway fights hard to maintain her presence on this ˜ the most important project of her career. The story also sets Dr. Arroway in philosophical opposition to famous spiritual leader and advisor (and pseudo-romantic interest), Palmer Joss (Matthew McConaughey). He tries to be her spiritual guide and warns her of the implications of making possible contact with a new race when she does not embody the precepts of God and His scriptures. If there's life out there, way out there, does it come thanks to Science or Him? It's an interesting question, but if philosophers, scientists and theologians have been debating this question over the past 1000 years and are still unclear, a movie that attempts to look at the same question will suffer from ambiguity.
Despite a generally poignant look at Foster's journey into space and herself, I can't say that I liked this movie, but I didn't dislike it either. Contact, results in a sobering look at a debate as partisan as abortion or the death penalty. The space ride is just to appease the summer audience who demand to see special effects. The entire movie seems like it could have been 20 minutes shorter if not for all of the flashbacks and the multitude of shots where Dr. Arroway is pondering and staring and pondering and then staring some more. But, I did admire the genuine acting ability of Foster, who shows amazing depth and intelligence. Contact taps into her capacity to show both strength and vulnerability, pensive maturity and doe-eyed girlishness. Time and again, the camera captures Foster face striking subtle emotions as she ponders all of the ramifications of her discovery and her subsequent actions. There is probably no one better for this kind of high-minded, emotional drama than Foster. I also admired the director's attempt (Robert Zemeckis) to blend purposeful storytelling with the movie's lofty goals (but his attempt to digitally meld Clinton into scenes a la Forrest Gump seemed patchwork). Are science and religion equally purposeful methods of seeking reason and truth in a chaotic world? This is a tough question to answer, but is bravely explored in this tale. And, her path towards her particular enlightenment came to a satisfying conclusion.
Contact really puts the 'science' in science-fiction. It is a big, ambitious movie that spans the heavens and debates God and hard science in the same breath. Certainly, this movie will not appeal to everyone but to those who enjoy their movies with a pinch of philosophy, you'll find lots to think about. It didn't necessarily appeal to me , but it did make me go , "Hmmmm…"
Grade: B-
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