Three tales of starfaring visitors. "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," "Starship Troopers," "Starman"

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND COLUMBIA TRISTAR HOME VIDEOS 137 MINUTES, $27.95

Writer-director Steven Spielberg's blockbuster 1977 movie about unidentified flying objects and alien beings visiting Earth put a benevolent face on concerns about flying saucer "spottings," a far cry from such evil invasion scenarios as Orson Welles' classic "War of the Worlds." Following middle-class Americans like Richard Dreyfuss and Melinda Dillon, whose lives had been turned upside down by these encounters, as they seek answers to their experiences, the picture even puts government officials and scientists in a good light. The aliens, once they land, prove as cuddly as Spielberg's later effort, "E.T.," so that humans can travel back to the extraterrestrials' home planet without trepidation at the end, a conclusion added to this Collector's Edition version when the movie was re-released. Special effects are properly spectacular, and Spielberg earned a best director nomination, though the Academy once again shunned his audience-pleasing efforts and awarded the Oscar to Woody Allen for "Annie Half" Dillon also lost out, as Vanessa Redgrave walked away with the best supporting actress award for "Julia." The DVD has an entire second disc devoted to special features, most prominently a "Making of ..." documentary, a "Watching the Skies" featurette, and 11 deleted scenes.

STARSHIP TROOPERS COLUMBIA TRISTAR HOME VIDEOS 130 MINUTES, $27.95

Making no attempt to portray aliens as friendly, this 1997 big-screen version of Robert Heinlein's classic 1959 science-fiction novel, they are loath-somely vicious insects out to destroy our planet. The titular Earth forces, virtually all of them wholesome youngsters, are sent into outer space to take the battle to the bugs' home, and the picture resembles nothing more than a World War II propaganda flick. Director Paul Verhoaven has an absolute ball with the bloody battle scenes, although the special effects sometimes border on the cheesy, it also is a bit disturbing to think that our planet's survival ultimately lies in the hands of Neil Patrick Harris, TV's Doogie Howser! The two-disc Special Edition is loaded with extras, including commentary from cast members Harris, Casper Van Dien, and Dina Meyer, as well as Verhoeven, screenwriter Ed Neumeier, and composer Basil Poledouris; a pair of rabble-rousing propaganda documentaries, "Death from Above" and "Know Your Enemy"; a "Making of ..." featurette; deleted scenes; screen tests; and a slew of special effects features.

STARMAN COLUMBIA TRISTAR HOME VIDEOS 115 MINUTES, $14.95

This film reduces the alien-earthling encounter to a one-on-one basis, with visitor Jeff Bridges assuming the image of Karen Allen's dead husband and, once she gets over the shock, recruiting her to drive him cross country for his scheduled rendezvous with the mother ship. Most of the fun comes from watching Bridges learn to move and speak like a human, a performance that won him a 1984 best actor Oscar nomination. (He lost to F. Murray Abraham, for "Amadeus.") Director John Carpenter and the film's writers, Bruce A. Evans and Raynold Gideon, take a more jaundiced view of government agents and scientists than Spielberg did, as all but one of them are determined to capture the alien and dissect him. Once again, ordinary citizens are shown in a more favorable light, helping the fleeing couple stay one step ahead of their pursuers. Still, is it any wonder that so many extraterrestrials come as invaders rather than tourists?

COPYRIGHT 2004 Society for the Advancement of Education
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