First contact will likely be a messy, terrifying affair if it happens in the foreseeable future. Humanity is a divided, tribal and superstitious lot even today. However, the potential of world-changing, seismic shifts in politics and Earth is great when it comes to first contact scenarios. When or if alien life makes contact with Earth, any number of factors could change the dynamic of the interaction. While we can’t imagine what real first contact will look like, there are some pretty cool movies about it. Today, we’re looking at the ten coolest movies about first contact!
Ten Coolest Movies about First Contact
Flight of the Navigator
Photo Credit: Nerdist
This fun, upbeat 80’s movie depicts the adventurous David, a young boy who encounters an alien race. He is transported to their home planet and back at light speed. The journey causes him to return a decade after he left, though, causing his younger brother to be six years older than him when he returns! This film is a classic, full of fun and optimism.
District 9
Photo Credit: Digital Spy
On the other end of the spectrum is the dark and gritty District 9. Imagining first contact as an allegory for apartheid, District 9 takes place in South Africa. Following the appearance of a race of aliens on Earth, the South African government segregates them into ghettoes and treats the aliens as subhuman. This is sci-fi at its best: forcing us to examine our prejudices through the lens of a new perspective.
Independence Day
Photo Credit: Den of Geek
Sometimes first contact doesn’t go that smoothly. In this classic sci-fi action film, Will Smith stars Stephen Hiller, a pilot tasked with defending Earth from an alien invasion. This film envisions what kind of response Earth would have if it was suddenly, violently invaded by aliens. Themes of colonialism, bravery and determination run throughout. This film was pivotal, both for Hollywood blockbusters in general and for Will Smith’s career in particular. It also has one of the coolest speeches in the history of sci-fi movies, courtesy of Bill Pullman’s Thomas Whitmore character.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Photo Credit: Orlando Weekly
This Spielberg classic follows Roy Neary, a blue-collar worker who makes contact with an alien race. The resulting effects that the UFOs have on Roy form the film’s dramatic tension. Roy’s relationship with his wife and children is strained as he obsesses over the UFOs. Finally, when the aliens make contact with Earth, Roy is selected to go with them so that they might learn more about humans.
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Photo Credit: IMDb
This mid-century classic sci-fi film works largely due to its near Biblical proportions. A stranger from space named Klaatu descends to Earth to issue a warning to the leaders of its countries. He warns that all humans must begin living in harmony, acting as one united race. Otherwise, forces from beyond the stars will consider humanity (and its burgeoning atomic power) a threat. Such a threat would be met with lethal force. The film’s messianic imagery and timeless tale of nonviolence make it a classic worth watching.
Starman
Photo Credit: Variety
A love story dressed up as sci-fi, Starman follows the titular character, played by Jeff Bridges, as he falls to Earth to learn about humans. The naïve but affable Starman takes the form of a widow’s recently deceased husband, much to her surprise and horror. The widow, named Jenny, gradually warms to the Starman, and the two go on a quest to a crater that houses Starman’s ship. The journey is long and fraught with danger, as the Army tries to apprehend the alien in order to study him. Along the way, the two fall in love, showing that love can transcend even the stars.
The Abyss
Photo Credit: Hollywood Reporter
The Abyss, an excellent James Cameron sci-fi romp, explores a unique type of first contact. In this film, aliens have been on Earth for quite some time. However, they live deep beneath the ocean. Combining Cameron’s love of deep-sea exploration and sci-fi, the Abyss was a watershed moment for sci-fi effects. With top-notch acting and gripping storytelling, this is another sci-fi flick you owe it to yourself to watch!
Super 8
Photo Credit: YouTube
Directed by J.J. Abrams and produced by Steven Spielberg, Super 8 is as much a coming-of-age story as it is a tale of first contact. Channeling the feel of classic 80’s films like ET and the Goonies, this throwback movie follows a group of kids who discover that the military is hiding an alien. This alien is peaceful, however, and just wants to go home. If the premise sounds familiar, that’s largely because it has been done more recently in Stranger Things, another excellent sci-fi.
The Man who Fell to Earth
Photo Credit: Winnipeg Film Group
David Bowie was an odd man, and his appearances in film are a testament to that. He was also a complete genius, which this excellent film confirms. Bowie plays Thomas Jerome Newton, a very humanoid-looking alien. He comes to Earth seeking water for his home planet, which is in the middle of an apocalyptic drought. The film, equal parts melancholic and meditative, is a long look at what makes us human. Vices like alcohol and sex addiction plague even the titular man who falls to Earth, making us examine what it is to be human.
Star Trek: First Contact
Photo Credit: Den of Geek
The hint, after all, is in the name. Star Trek had, up to this point, only hinted at the historical event that led to first contact with the Vulkan race. In this Next Generation film, however, the crew of the Enterprise travels back in time while pursuing the Borg. They discover that they arrive a day before Zefram Cochrane completes work on the first human warp drive. That event will lead to the Vulkan Empire taking note of humanity and extending an invitation to join the galactic community.
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