Product Description

Richard Dreyfuss, Teri Garr, Melinda Dillon, Francois Truffaut

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1127 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-12-03
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Formats: Box set, PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 132 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The first Steven Spielberg film to arrive on a high definition format, there’s something fittingly comprehensive about the Blu-ray release of Close Encounters of the Third Kind that befits such a strong, high-profile disc.

The reason for that is that three different cuts of Close Encounters are presented in this terrific set; there’s the original cinematic version that debuted in 1977, the different cut that surfaced in the 80s, and Spielberg’s final take on the film from the late 90s. It’s arguable that each of the three has its highs and lows, and there’s something fascinating about comparing the trio too.

As for the film itself? Close Encounters is the terrific tale of Richard Dreyfuss’ Roy Neary, who discovers a UFO in the middle of the night. Co-starring Teri Garr, Francois Truffaut and Melinda Dillon, the film then follows the attempt to bring the aliens to Earth, and--coupled with terrific special effects, particularly for the era--Close Encounters is rightly regarded as a deserved classic.

The Blu-ray release is also spectacular, partly for the comprehensive nature of the package, but also down to the gleaming audio and picture quality. It may not be the highest profile Spielberg movie, and there’s certainly a deep back catalogue calling out for the high-definition treatment. But don’t let that blind you: Close Encounters is an absolute treat, and this is the best way outside of a cinema to enjoy it. --Jon Foster

Synopsis
Close Encounters of the Third Kind is Steven Spielberg's extraordinary film about a man named Roy Neary (Richard Dreyfuss) who becomes obsessed with meeting extraterrestrials after encountering a UFO on an abandoned road one night. Against the wishes of his wife (Teri Garr) and children, Neary, along with another witness to the sighting (Melinda Dillon), travels to a mysterious mountain where the government has built a landing strip hoping to attract the aliens. Director François Truffaut co-stars as Claude Lacombe, one of the organizers of the project. Spielberg hoped to follow up the huge success of Jaws with a low-budget film that would be an easy shoot, but, thanks in part to the complicated special effects, Close Encounters quickly snowballed into being an expensive endeavour but a commercial and artistic success. No one who has seen the film has ever looked at a plate of mashed potatoes the same way again.

Customer Reviews

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
Exellent conversion to Blu-ray. A bit grainy in parts but gives this classic film a new lease of life. Close Encounters Of The Third Kind (30th Anniversary Ultimate Edition) [Blu-ray] [1977]

Very, very Close to perfection, but not quite.
Cool case.
Fairly good booklet.
Awe inspiring movie.
Almost flawless transfer.
Some old special features.

Close Encounters is a very thought provoking sci fi movie that is one of my favourite Spielberg jobs. Both writing and directing, he brings a wonderful sense of storytelling to the picture and of course there's the great performances from Richard Dreyfuss et al. and the masterfully memorable music by John Williams. Sure, it's not a hi-octane, pulse-pounding roller coaster ride, but the mystery and suspense achieved throughout the film as well as the captivating cinematography and heartwarming ideas behind it make for a true classic.

The first of Spielberg's to grace high definition, Close Encounters sure doesn't disappoint. For a film that's thirty years old, it's a real credit to the technicians at Sony that a lot of the scenes in this look like they could have been shot yesterday. The picture is beautiful throughout, providing a rich variety of colours and deep black levels that make up an incredibly crisp transfer. The fine level of grain throughout only adds to the overall quality, making it look like a freshly struck master print being projected at the cinema. Rarely has a movie looked so "film-like" when I've viewed it at home.

Sound wise, the DTS HD master audio is pure excellence, this new uncompressed version being bit for bit the same quality as the original soundtrack heard in 1977. John William's score sounds awesome and the although dialogue may be a little on the quiet side at times, the overall mix is of such high clarity that it just begs to be played at full volume.

What keeps this blu ray release for being the new standard which all should follow is it's lacking in the features department. Not that it doesn't have special features, but they're not up to the quality they should be. The main documentary on disc two is a port over from the DVD version (filmed ten years ago) and is in standard definition. The jump between high and standard definition is incredibly noticeable, especially with the picture having a black box around it. The documentary is incredibly good, however. Running for around two hours, it's quite informative and goes into a fair bit of detail about the making of the movie. The other main feature is a chat with Steven Spielberg remembering back. This one was filmed specially for the blu ray version and IS in high definition. It lasts around twenty minutes to half an hour I think but is nowhere near as high quality as the documentary, however ironic that may be. Still galleries and deleted scenes round out the release as well as your standard trivia track on the first disc.

Why Spielberg still hasn't done an audio commentary for a film that's three decades old is beyond me and the fact that there's no commentary at all, be it from Spielberg, Dreyfuss, Williams or the effects guys, makes me think that they should've taken a little more time with this release. When films that are infinitely worse than this get commentaries, I just find it hard to believe that a classic such as Close Encounters hasn't got one. Eh, maybe there wasn't space with three HD movies on the same disc. But I find that laughable when it's Blu Ray we're talking about here.

So while the exceptional picture and audio quality of the film itself definitely sets a new standard for anything that is decades old, it hasn't raised the bar for blu ray overall. The lack of a full-HD feature set stops it from being the perfect special edition. But regardless of these shortcomings, I am remarkably pleased with how good the movie looks and sounds in high definition on my PS3 and it's definitely my most watched blu ray.

If you're looking for the ultimate version of ALL the versions of Close Encounters, this is certainly it.

Movie: 3/5 Picture Quality: 4/5 Sound Quality: 4/5 Extras: 4.5/5
MPEG-4 AVC BD-50
Disc size: 49,688,551,851 bytes

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (seamless)
Running time: 2:14:41
Movie size: 36,620,150,784 bytes
Average video bit rate: 22.79 Mbps
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 24-bit
Dolby TrueHD 5.1 24-bit

Special Edition (seamless branching)
Running time: 2:12:29
Movie size: 36,062,017,536 bytes
Average video bit rate: 22.79 Mbps
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 24-bit
Dolby TrueHD 5.1 24-bitmaster)

Director's Cut (seamless branching)
Running time: 2:17:13
Movie size: 37,348,374,528 bytes
Average video bit rate: 22.85 Mbps
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 24-bit
Dolby TrueHD 5.1 24-bit