Product Details

• Actors: Richard Dreyfuss, François Truffaut, Teri Garr, Melinda Dillon, Bob Balaban
• Directors: Steven Spielberg
• Writers: Steven Spielberg, Hal Barwood, Jerry Belson, John Hill, Matthew Robbins
• Producers: Clark L. Paylow, Julia Phillips
• Format: Anamorphic, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, Subtitled
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish
• Dubbed: French, Spanish
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: November 13, 2007
• Run Time: 137 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (464 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000VECACG
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #41,236 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "Close Encounters of the Third Kind (Two-Disc 30th Anniversary Ultimate Edition) [Blu-ray]" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Anybody who has written him off because of his string of stinkers--or anybody who's too young to remember The Goodbye Girl--may be shocked at the accomplishment and nuance of Richard Dreyfuss's performance in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Here, he plays a man possessed; contacted by aliens, he (along with other members of the "chosen") is drawn toward the site of the incipient landing: Devil's Tower, in rural Wyoming. As in many Spielberg films, there are no personalized enemies; the struggle is between those who have been called and a scientific establishment that seeks to protect them by keeping them away from the arriving spacecraft. The ship, and the special effects in general, are every bit as jaw-dropping on the small screen as they were in the theater (well, almost). Released in 1977 as a cerebral alternative to the swashbuckling science fiction epics then in vogue, Close Encounters now seems almost wholesome in its representation of alien contact and interested less in philosophizing about extraterrestrials than it is in examining the nature of the inner "call." Ultimately a motion picture about the obsession of the driven artist or determined visionary, Close Encounters comes complete with the stock Spielberg wives and girlfriends who seek to tether the dreamy, possessed protagonists to the more mundane concerns of the everyday. So a spectacular, seminal motion picture indeed, but one with gender politics that are all too terrestrial. --Miles Bethany

Product Description

Steven Spielberg's classic film is back now on this never-before-released Ultimate Edition DVD, which includes all three versions of the sci-fi blockbuster. Richard Dreyfuss stars as cable worker Roy Neary, who along with several other stunned bystanders experience a close encounter of the first kind - witnessing UFOs soaring across the sky. After this life-changing event, the inexplicable vision of a strange, mountain-like formation haunts him. He becomes obsessed with discovering what it represents, much to the dismay of his wife and family. Meanwhile, bizarre occurrences are happening around the world. Government agents have close encounters of the second kind - discovering physical evidence of extraterrestrial visitors in the form of a lost fighter aircraft from World War II and a stranded military ship that disappeared decades earlier only to suddenly reappear in unusual places. Roy continues to chase his vision to a remote area where he and the agents follow the clues that have drawn them to reach a site where they will have a close encounter of the third kind - contact.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

151 of 165 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I wished upon a star and my dream came true! November 15, 2007

By Ivan K. Samuelson

Format:DVD

Now this is the way it should be. You get all three cuts, all remastered in 5.1 surround and all have been digitally transferred. Thank you so much Mr. Spielberg because this without a doubt has to be one of your best (along with the original ET).

Last night, I watched the original theatrical version and forgot how much was removed for the "Special Editions" and the final "Director's Cut". In my mind, the original version is the best and to finally have it in all it's uncut 5.1 surround sound (which didn't exist back then) glory is simply wonderful.

The packaging is nice, although I found it very difficult to remove the DVDs without fearing I might snap them because the locking mechanism seems to not want to let go of the DVDs no matter how hard I press down on them. I suppose I could look at it in that I shouldn't fear them coming off during shipping and getting scratched up.

The box is nicely designed and inside are some wonderful items. It comes with a poster that gives a time line for each movie and where each cut differs which I found really interesting. It also comes with a book full of bios on the actors and other people that worked on the film. Plenty of in-movie and behind-the-scene shots. Finally, the three DVDs are housed in a tri-fold container. Inside and outside are colorful shots from the movies and it really makes the entire set look nice.

In addition to the three editions of the movies, there is also a new "30 Years" documentary looking back over time at how CE has been a favorite movie that has stood the test of time. Also, the making-of documentary that was on the original Director's Edition that came out a few years ago has been split across the three DVDs. Also included is the 1977 making of documentary which was also on the previously released Director's Cut DVD.

Missing are all the "deleted" scenes that were included on the Director's Cut. So, if you own that one, it might be best to keep it since they are absent from this edition.

Overall, this is an excellent release and no one should be without it. To finally watch it like I did when it first came out back in 1977 (and I lived in Muncie, Indiana at that time so you can just imagine what the crowd did when that came up during the movie) was so refreshing and wonderful that I can't wait to watch it again!

171 of 203 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally Coming To DVD! Preorder Now! March 10, 2001

By Michael Porter

Format:DVD

This two-disc set features a THX-certified 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer of Spielberg's (so far) favored cut of the film (the third!), dubbed the "Collector's Edition" after its 1998 release on VHS and laserdisc, and runs 137 minutes. The anamorphic transfer is minted from a hi-def transfer created at Sony's DVD center in Culver City, California and cleaned up for this release. The disc features both Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 soundtracks, the 102-minute "The Making Of Close Encounters Of The Third Kind" documentary by Laurent Bouzereau created for the 1998 laserdisc, a collection of additional deleted scenes, a featurette on the film's enduring place in the sci-fi film pantheon entitled "Watch The Skies" (which, coincidentally, was the original working title for Spielberg's opus), talent files, and two theatrical trailers. Note that the still gallery on the laserdisc will not be carried over to the DVD. The set also comes packaged in Columbia's new "book-like" special edition casing with extensive production notes.

29 of 33 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Review of the DVD itself November 18, 2007

By SeaKayaker

Format:DVD

OK, here's a review of the DVD itself. (5 stars because the studio finally has released all 3 cuts of the film) There's never enough info out there on the DVD content alone, but there are hundreds of people's reviews and opinions of the movie. Suffice it to say I love the film, always have; simply one of Spielberg's best films ever. And to now have the actual 1977 cut of the film on DVD is a huge payoff for fans of this modern classic film.

OK, this standard DVD release is on 3 discs. The 1977 Original Theatrical Version on disc 1; the 1980 Special Edition on disc 2; and the 1998 Collector's Edition (aka The Director's Cut) on disc 3. The studio split the 101 minute 36 sec "making of" documentary directed by Laurent Bouzerau into 3 parts, one part on each disc. Not very convenient but at least its the same documentary, same length, as was on the 1998/2001 "Collector's Edition" DVD. The two trailers from that earlier release are here although the 1977 trailer here is called Original Theatrical Preview and is 1:20 longer (for this one they add 1:20 footage up front from the air traffic controllers scene; almost sounds as if the narrator is different, see what you think). The Special Edition trailer is the same as on the Collector's Edition DVD. The 1977 "Watch the Skies" featurette has also been released here on the 30th Anniversary Edition as well. What's totally new here is a newly-filmed conversation with Spielberg called "Steven Spielberg: 30 Years of Close Encounters" running 21:21; and a 2 minute 30th Anniversary release trailer. One of the coolest things of all is a 14"x21" glossy poster with a complete guide to the 3 versions (edits) of the film indicating which scenes are unique to each version and which scenes were trimmed, added, excised, etc. laid out in a "timeline" (of the 2 hour+ running time) fashion. Finally CE3K fans can get straight which scenes were in which version after all these years! The reverse side of the poster is the 1977 movie poster. There is also a really nice booklet (lots of pages) with production stills and filmography information on Spielberg and the 4 main stars. The only thing not included here that was on the Collector's Edition DVD are the 11 deleted scenes totalling 24:17 - so between that release and this, you should have pretty much all you need! (The 1990 Criterion laserdisc material would be great to have as well, but it's not a perfect world - this set and the Collector's set together make this fan completely happy!)

Disc 1:
- 1977 Original Theatrical Version (135 min)
- Making of Close Encounters of the Third Kind Part 1 (39:15)
- Original Theatrical Preview (6:02)

Disc 2:
- 1980 Special Edition (132 min)
- Making of Close Encounters of the Third Kind Part 2 (47:30)
- Special Edition Trailer (1:58)

Disc 3:
- 1998 Director's Cut [as it's called on the DVD menu; aka Collector's Edition] (137 min)
- Making of Close Encounters of the Third Kind Part 3 (15:29)
- Steven Spielberg: 30 Years of Close Encounters (21:21)
- Watch the Skies [1977 featurette] (5:55)
- 30th Anniversary Trailer (approx 2 mins)