Introduction
The early beginnings of 1982’s E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial can be found in various projects that Steven Spielberg was unable to immediately realize. Just after the release of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Spielberg announced plans for a low-budget movie entitled Growing Up (McVay, 2022). It was supposed to employ a semi-biographical approach based on an imaginary friend that was a space alien. The project was shelved due to issues with another film by the director, namely 1979’s 1941. Similarly, the development of another project named Night Skies was crucial to the future of E.T. The film was supposed to be a darker version of Close Encounters of the Third Kind with aliens that terrorized a family and Columbia Pictures also urged for a sequel to the 1977 film. However, both projects would not be created.
E.T. would come into existence after the project of Night Skies would be scrapped and a new screenplay would be written, initially titled E.T. and Me. The development of the film would begin with the design of E.T. Carl Rambaldi would replace Rick Baker in the effects and animatronics department, as the latter had a falling out with Spielberg. The puppet was built within three months and took inspiration from famous figures such as Ernest Hemingway, Carl Sandburg, and Albert Einstein. The casting process was also faced with complications, as all auditions for the main role did not impress Spielberg. Even the initial audition by the later chosen lead, Thomas Henry, did not convince the director until the actor performed an improvised scene based on a real-life experience.
The filming of E.T. would be initiated with principal photography in early September 1981. The total shooting time lasted 61 days and the project would be recorded under a false name in order to reduce press speculation. Spielberg elected to shoot the film in a sequential pattern as he found it to be most effective in evoking realism from the child actors. In fact, Spielberg would go as far as to make the puppet visible to the actors without puppeteers and in costume. The filming locations varied from on-location shoots at the Culver City High School and the Northridge and Tujunga neighborhoods to studio shoots in the Laird International Studios.
Box Office Success and Critic Response
By the end of its cinematic run, E.T. would garner a total box office of 792.9 million USD. It was initially previewed in Texas, where the marks from viewers were high. The premier of the film would then occur at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival in May 1982 with a U.S. release in June. With the opening at the U.S. box office, the film would quickly reach number one and gross 11 million USD with a top spot at the box office for six consecutive weeks. E.T. would fluctuate between first and second until October of the same year when it would reach first place for its final time in December.
The film would become the highest-grossing second-weekend release of all time, beating 1981’s Superman II. The record for the highest-growing weekend of all time would be reached by E.T. on its fourth weekend with it passing the prior leader, Rocky III. By 1983, E.T. would beat Star Wars as the highest-grossing film ever as its theatrical run came to a close with a total of 359 USD in Canada and the U.S. and 619 USD internationally. The film would continue to generate revenue through merchandise, re-releases, and media sales.
Awards, Nominations, and Reception
E.T. would garner a large number of nominations and awards. The film would win a total of nine awards at the Oscars, including nominations for Best Visual Effects, Best Original Score, Best Sound, and Best Sound Editing, as well as two Golden Globe Awards and five Saturn Awards. Though the Best Picture award of 1983 was won by Gandhi, E.T. had been nominated and the director of Gandhi, Richard Attenborough had stated that he was “certain that not only would E.T. win but that it should win. It was inventive, powerful, wonderful.” At the 40th Globe Awards, the film would receive wins for the categories of Best Picture in the drama subsection and Best Original Score. Other awards included the Best Picture, Best Director, and the “New Generation Award” awarded to Melissa Mathison by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. The five Saturns won by the Spielberg movie were for Best Writing, Best Special Effects, Best Music, Best Poster Art, and Best Science Fiction Film.
E.T. is a great example of a film that was able to receive universal acclaim from viewers, critics, and industry insiders. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times would state that the film was not “not simply a good movie. It is one of those movies that brush away our cautions and win our hearts” (Ebert, 2002). Ebert would also place it in his Great Movies list, an essay that informed on his selection of important film viewing. It would also appear on Maltin’s 100 Must-See Films of the 20th Century list. The only prominent negative review of the film could be found in a statement by political commentator George Will, primarily focused on the claim of subversive elements of science and childhood. It was primarily positively received by fans, with merchandising and fan-related content becoming very widespread and accessible. Within the modern day, it has been elevated to both a classic of 80s cinema, and science fiction, and has a cult classic reputation.
Personal Opinion
While I do not consider E.T. to be my personal childhood movie, I often observe its significance in modern filmmaking, fan culture, and its importance to those that do have a close connection to the film. While E.T. can be noted to excel greatly in sound design, music, and effects, I find its narrative form to be especially intriguing. Films with a simple narrative approach but with strong emotional components, enjoyed by both adult and child viewers, are not uncommon but E.T. utilizes these factors extremely well. As such, the plot of the film can be noted to be an important guide for many films that followed. This is an accomplishment of both Spielberg as a concept creator and director and Mathison as the lead screenwriter. I personally enjoyed the film and found it to be easily deserving of the praise provided by both critics and viewers.
Sound, Effects, and Cinematography
E.T. features a musical score by John Williams as is very theme-based, with Williams specifically saying that it aimed to evoke sympathy for a strange creature. The collaboration between the sound and visual components was ingrained in the film production, with Spielberg adding a sequence to a theme he particularly liked. The music approach can be defined as modernist, featuring the use of polytonality and the Lydian mode. The combination was able to provide a mood that was dreamlike, mystical, and heroic. Instruments that were used in the themes included the piano, the harp, the celesta, percussion, and keyboards. The editor, Carol Littleton, was able to create rhythmic sequences with intricate and effective pacing (Turner, 2018). The editing would also greatly elevate the effect of sound and music.
Though the lead photography director of the film was Serge Haigner, Allen Daviau, who assisted him, would be praised by Spielberg for his contributions. Spielberg notes that the cinematographical approach to light and shadow was significant for creating the realistic fantasy of E.T. Many of Spielberg’s directions were hard to realize within the film, but the result was often achieved through special camera work and special effects. For instance, Spielberg would request to make E.T. appear both glistening and indistinct, and to not show his face but also to show it ‘just enough’. In response, Daviau would shoot the bedroom scene to present E.T. as a silhouette that still possesses distinguishable eyes. The versatility of the puppet would often allow for such complex shots as it had been created with a number of heads and hands for differing facial expressions and movements. Other work by the production crew would also contribute to the film’s quality. A glass-stained window in the closet where E.T. hides allowed the audience to tell whether it was day or night in any given scene.
Conclusion
E.T. is a significant achievement in the entertainment film industry. Striking for its time, practical effects and puppet design were deservedly appreciated by both viewers and critics. The film has both stunning effect and emotional expressiveness, which is realized through the work of puppets and make-up artists. Thus, the camera work and make-up work are all controlled by Spielberg’s authorial vision to create a film with a special melodramatic charge.
References
Ebert, R. (2002). E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial movie review. Roger Ebert. Web.
McVay, B. (2022). The Making of E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL. Cinema Scholars. Web.
Turner, G. E. (2018). Steven Spielberg and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. American Cinematographer. Web.