I had the luck of watching contact at the cinema when it came out . Being young meant that watching a movie of this grandure in a grand movie theatre with massive screen (something that was dying out at the time) means that this movie has been engraved in my mind . But it is not due to nostalgia or corrupt memory . Contact is a thought provoking mind bending movie ahead of its time . In fact it is the Interstellar of the 90s .

Stunning gorgeous visuals , and a storyline and plot asking some hard questions and providing answers that many might not want to accept as the movie battles between science fitction , science fact and religion in a way that in the end no one is left wanting .

This is not just a movie , this is an event !

What could've been a four-star film, instead devolves into a unexpected character reversal and placating of religious and secular viewer both ("We're not alone") in a misguided attempt to please everyone but should please no one.

For nearly its entirety (150m), Contact is a bold, engaging tale of interstellar messaging (Vega) with its protagonist, Dr. Ellie Arroway (Foster), giving one of filmdom's great speeches in her passion plea for "just the slightest bit of vision" from would-be sponsor, HR-Hadden, a John Hurt performance that should've nabbed him an Oscar (one nom: Best Sound). But in the final ten climactic minutes as Ellie testifies about her space trip in front of a hostile Senate which seems beset with a collective amnesia, forgetting the tsunami in science-bending advances that enabled construction of her machine, one riding on existitng Einsteinian theory (worm-holes), its "10,000" blueprints no Earthling, not even a filthy rich one, could've forged in secret, yet, our heroine completely unravels under what should've been easily handled, cynical questions (most from Sen James Woods who might've received an Oscar nomination himself) in an over-done show of emotion that completely conflicts with the strong-willed, spirited scientist-turned-space-traveler we'd come to cheer ("No evidence!" As if the Greys are handing out souvenir key-chains to their Contactees) (oy). When your boyfriend (McConaughey), as cool a dude as he be, becomes your only booster, someone in the script department surely lost their writing compass.

I like a good love story. Contact has a good love story. But the theme (planetary coupling) is too big for producers to've projected in half-measure. Zemeckis and WB erred in what appears a cave to fears of a status-quo backlash when they seriously deviated from Carl's novel by dumbing-it-down to implausibility (Senate snobs), maybe to intensify the love (Ellie-Palm), most likely to placate inter-galactic isolationists, i.e., god-fearing folk who worship for many reasons, though, "pursuit of truth" could hardly be called one of them, Joss (3.5/4).

For a film which projects better the hope that religion & science can, not only co-exist but work in harmony, watch Paramount's 1953 adaptation of HG Wells 1898 novel, The-War-of-the-Worlds. And while you're movie musing, find the early sci-fi title, Red-Planet-Mars (52) which may've been a basis for this 1997 feature. A curious opening contact with the Martian planet by an American science team is wasted when RPM devolves into ridiculous anti-Red, pro-religion propoganda. Pete Graves stars in what proves a continuation of his pain-in-the-neck "Pricehoffer" persona (Stalag17), but the storyline similarities are many, topped by a "Sparks" reference late. Just product from a parallel pelicula universe? Maybe (3.5/4).

In my 61 years, I have seen many science fiction films. Few have exceeded my expectations as this film did. I remember seeing it in a theater (something I rarely trouble myself with these days), and finding myself at times gripping the armrests in excitement. This film builds like great stories should. However, even the best stories can collapse under the weight of a bad script, poor acting, or shoddy editing. I'm happy to say that none of these issues plagued this film. Ms. Foster delivers an extremely powerful performance and is a wonderful role model for women in science. All of the other actors also deliver memorable performances, but make no mistake, it is Ms. Foster's polished performance you will be thinking about when this film ends.

Much has been made of the last 1/4 of this film, with many viewers feeling a let down. I get that. The amazing build up and tension in the third quarter of the film is quite unexpected, but if you approach the final quarter thoughtfully, you'll see that it makes perfect scientific sense. That's rare in any science fiction film pitched to mass audiences. As such, this film makes an amazing contribution to the entire genera.