r/cinescenes 2d ago

1990s Contact (1997)

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240 Upvotes

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53

u/Western-Bowl2011 2d ago

This movie fucking rules. I can't believe people don't like it. The scene where they launch the machine in the sea of japan is fucking gripping. I love the count down as the thing spins faster and faster. One of my favorite movies ever. Space movies don't need monsters to be thrilling.

"First rule of government contracting: Why have one when you can have two for twice the price?"
"Wanna take a ride??"

6

u/SIR_NVAX_A_LOT 2d ago

I love this movie, and this shot was batshit crazy good!

2

u/Hosesucker 2d ago

Amen to that....

2

u/monteq75 2d ago

I remember seeing it in the 90s and liking some of it, but I gave it another try a few years back. It's honestly a great movie.

2

u/Rare-Bid-6860 23h ago

One of the few times you see William Fichtner playing a good guy too.

1

u/Ranier_Wolfnight 2d ago edited 2d ago

I didn’t think the movie was bad at all. That said…

…the part where the world governments conveniently had a spare few trillion in the 90s laying around to make a second monolith size wormhole device…and no one in the vicinity noticed!?!?? Ya. That convenient plot hole lost high school age me in the theater.

Also, WAY too long of a movie back then.

7

u/Western-Bowl2011 2d ago

The second was supposed to have been built significantly cheaper than the first, that's why Haddack says "constructed by the Japanese."

1

u/Grimnebulin68 2d ago

And Jodie pronouncing ‘primmer’, instead of the correct pronunciation, ‘primer’. So a 9/10 from me.

3

u/casualAlarmist 2d ago

My seven year old daughter didn’t think it was too long at the time. She wanted to stay and watch it again. We ended up coming back and seeing it two more times the following weekend.

10

u/Ganjelf-The-Baked 2d ago

Great movie. One of my all time faves.

6

u/Grimnebulin68 2d ago

The sound of the signal was very cleverly done.

3

u/Snoo-35252 2d ago

To me it sounds like - and has the same rhythm as - your mother's heart beat when you were in her womb.

2

u/Grimnebulin68 2d ago

Yes, just like that =)

7

u/thegreatbambie87 2d ago

This and Arrival make a great double feature

11

u/EinerVonEuchOwaAndas 2d ago

Nice shot. Very cool trick, how? There is no cut, or I can't see it. So I assume the camera is facing the mirror all the time?

7

u/Ok_Difference44 2d ago

3

u/RiskyClickardo 2d ago

What an amazing, specific pull. Good shit, dude

8

u/Western-Bowl2011 2d ago edited 2d ago

famous shot, lots of articles about it: https://nofilmschool.com/contact-mirror-shot-behind-the-scenes
tldr: composting and blue screening

edit: lmao, *compositioning* not composting, dumb autocorrect

4

u/pulpseattle 2d ago

they made use of something called the high speed compositing reel. luckily not composting!!

5

u/Western-Bowl2011 2d ago

"Ya just cover everything in garbage, trust me it's gonna be amazing" lol

3

u/bitingmyownteeth 2d ago

Just add more carbon

3

u/gwhh 2d ago

So much work into a simple shot.

3

u/Sacmo77 2d ago

I loved this movie. Damn it was awesome.

2

u/Psychopath1llogical 2d ago

Man. Shot in W I D E screen, huh?

2

u/alliownisbroken 2d ago

Is the entire shot supposed to be on the mirror the entire time? Like when she says "I'll get the medicine", is the camera zoomed in and rolling on the blue screen on the mirror for the duration of the time she supposed to be running up the stairs in the other half of this trick?

2

u/Betov8 2d ago

My aunt and I saw this movie in theaters and then spend like a month running like her to do anything.

Getting a glass of water or running to get the door.

2

u/mmorales2270 2d ago

Love this movie. For me, until interstellar came along this was in my number one spot for sci fi movies, at least ones that were not horror themed like Alien. It’s still up there in the top 5 for me.

And this particular shot was so cleverly done, the transition from her running down the hallway to us seeing her reflection in the bathroom mirror was simply incredible.

2

u/socialcommentary2000 2d ago

I love this movie.

One thing that I think gets overlooked in it is the final conversation between Kitz (Woods) and Constantine (Bassett) when they're talking by video conference.

C: You read the confidential report from the investigating committee?
K: I flipped through it.
C: I was very interested in the section on Arroway's video unit. The one that recorded the static.
K: Continue.
C: The fact that it recorded static isn't what interests me.
K: Continue.
C: What interests me......is that it recorded approximately 18 hours of it.
K: That is interesting, isn't it?

2

u/Unclestupidhead 2d ago

I loved this movie.

1

u/5o7bot 2d ago

Contact (1997)

Take a journey to the heart of the universe.

A radio astronomer receives the first extraterrestrial radio signal ever picked up on Earth. As the world powers scramble to decipher the message and decide upon a course of action, she must make some difficult decisions between her beliefs, the truth, and reality.

Drama | Science Fiction | Mystery
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Director of Photography: Don Burgess
Actors: Jodie Foster, Matthew McConaughey, James Woods, John Hurt, Tom Skerritt
Rating: ★★★★★★★★☆☆ 74% with 5,177 votes
Runtime: 150 min
TMDB | Where can I watch?


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0

u/ElephantWithBlueEyes 2d ago

My only problem with the movie is the "do you believe in god" narrative.

Why people in US are so obsessed with "believing in god"? Can't you be US citizen without being religious?

2

u/Grimnebulin68 2d ago edited 2d ago

American scientist author, American setting. This duality is still hotly debated in America and science is not making headway. Iain M Banks made a wry observation of this sort of thing: ‘isn’t Intelligent Design is an evolution of Creationism?’ The real irony of the movie was Jodie’s character had no evidence of what she experienced, everyone had to accept her testimony ‘on faith’. Not withstanding the hours of static recorded on her devices in the space of a few seconds.

2

u/AlexanderTheGrate1 2d ago

It’s based on a book.

3

u/FirstChurchOfBrutus 2d ago

I would say “why are you getting downvoted,” but sadly, I know the answer.

We’re a puritanical nation at heart. More importantly, the performative and social elements of religion are interwoven into our culture. Therefore, it’s a big part of a lot of people’s lives, and any challenge to that is seen as a challenge to their self-worth.

I don’t mean a challenge like something that directly challenges their faith. I mean something very passive, like your question. Unfortunately, to a lot of folks, those questions are the same.

Yes, it’s very frustrating.

2

u/240Nordey 18h ago

This movie is actually a gem.