Intense scene from Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Very "simple" setup that delivers a great moment thanks to the actors, the camera movements, the light, dialogues...
The lighting, blocking, sound, sound mixing, editing, acting, and writing in this scene are basically as good as it ever gets. It's simply one of the most well directed scenes of all time. It's stunning.
My father was a heavy transport pilot in the Navy during WWII, and a commercial airline captain into the early 80s. He was not a man prone to exaggeration or emotional extreme, but I watched him watch this scene when this movie was in the theater, and he was on the edge of his seat. He later said it was the most accurately portrayed aviation related scene he’d ever seen in film.
I love the long pause of the pilots when they're first asked to report. You can picture them in the cockpit looking at each other contemplating their careers.
@@robynperdieu3434 Thanks. I was out there last year and took the pic. Then I got notified that COVID was closing everything down and had to drive all the way back to Chicago.
@@robynperdieu3434 Nothing surreal, other than how unbelievably quiet it was. I was lucky enough to be able to walk the path all the way around. It was beautiful, and since it was winter, not too many people. Also, the day before, I pretty much had The Badlands to myself, lol.
that's why I love Quentin Tarrantino so much. DO you realize Vincent Vega went to the toilet 3 times. Once is Jack Rabbit slims, once in Butch's apartment and once at the Diner.
That is why I love Tarratino films. Do you realize in Pulp Fiction, Vincent Vega went to the toilet 3 times, once in Butch's apartment, once in the diner and once at Jack Rabbit Slims. You won't see Dominique Toretta taking a shit.
Speilberg directed, Michael Khan edited and Vilmos Zsigmond photographed it. Zsigmond was responsible some other very visually rich movies. Heavens Gate, The Deer Hunter, Blow Out, Deliverance, notice how he shoots almost everything from 25-45 degree angles giving the image a lot of perception depth.
@GaryGuevara Really? You've seen EVERY movie ever made before Spielberg? Um, try Robert Altman, Billy Wilder, Howard Hawks, Joseph von Sternberg, Ernst Lubitsch...
“Traffic is quite luminous and is exhibiting some non-ballistic motion”. The fear in the controllers eyes. They know what that means. The best of Spielberg.
What makes this brilliant is the attention to detail, both technical and behavioral. They would never portray a scene like this today. It would be dumbed down and full of crappy cgi instead of it being a theater of the mind type scene.
That's because the people have been dumbed down to now mostly responding only to overloaded visual and sound effects in movies instead of compelling stories and simple tension scenes.
@@smaze1782 Per the IMDB trivia page, these were real air traffic controllers brought in for the film. The way they speak and know the language so naturally really lends to the realism of this scene.
I keep forgetting how brilliant this scene is. A masterwork of suspense with no score, use of non-actors, static shots and not a single special effect. Pound for pound maybe the best 3.5 minutes Spielberg ever directed.
I completely agree. The direction for the voice actors for the pilot's is superb. The weary inflection of their voices when asked if they want to report is such a powerful touch. Those voices communicated so clearly to me that they were scared, couldn't process what they had encountered, and they were not going to officially report and damage their careers.
maybe not sacked directly, but the fact that they reported a UFO, even in the general sense of an unidentified flying object, would hang over them for the rest of their career even the rest of their lives. Even if the incident was later found to have an earthly explanation, it would have an impact on their career advancement
that's the thing, an UFO is an UFO, you report it, could be anyone, anything. This happens IRL. and as long people will say " i don't know what I saw" there will be forever that huge alien thing. " Yes I report an UFO. sned in some jets to control or intercept whatever is this shit."
Good observation. I always wondered why they wouldn't say anything. This makes total sense. You see something remarkable like this, and officials think you are full of shit...
Exactly- one of the pilots says- "we don't want to report one of those either" Neither pilot wants to even mention the phrase UFO - The pilots know they'll be ridiculed if they make a report- maybe even grounded.
FYI: "Spielberg wanted the air traffic controllers’ dialogue to sound as authentic as possible, so he cast real air traffic controllers - David Anderson, Richard L. Hawkins, Craig Shreeve, and Bill Thurman from Los Angeles ARTCC in Palmdale - to play them."
Great scene...I don't think most filmgoers are thinking about the audio mix, but the use of overlapping dialogue here, where you can follow several conversations at once, is brilliant...
This is brilliant filmmaking. They easily could have cut to the POV of the pilots at any point, but the decision to keep everything isolated in the ATC Tower (and let the audience's imagination fill in the blanks) makes this so much scarier and more memorable.
@@johnnycats5157 that’s actually really cool and I never knew that. I just guessed he had a capable liaison on the set. They did a hell of a job without being actors.
Only an expert movie maker could make this scene so riveting and entertaining. Bravo. It is my favorite scene from "Close Encounters". NoSx. No car chase. No swearing. Not one frame was wasted. The close-ups and pan outs were done with skill and perfection. The talking over each other was astoundingly perfect. The joining of each of these men around the main controller was perfect.
My favorite scene in the movie. I saw Close Encounters of the Third Kind when it was in theaters. I was 16 years old. It was so well-directed and so realistic. Before it came out, I had a map in my bedroom with pins for every UFO encounter that had occurred as well as pins for the disappearances that had occurred around the world. I was an original nerd. I used to whistle the 5 note tune in high school after seeing the movie. Movies like CE3K will never come again. Directors like Spielberg will never come again. The dumbing down of our minds in America will soon eradicate all we knew from that time.
The acting and the intensity is great! It’s like your not watching a movie but in a control tower watching this unfold in real life. A beautiful piece of cinema.
It’s actually in an Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) which is different from a control tower that you see at airports. ARTCC’s are responsible for large sectors of airspace unlike an airport control tower that controls the airspace in a small radius around the airport.
As an airline employee, I have jump seated on many DC-10s, 747, L-1011s and A310s, and have listened to the ATC 'chat'. I have also seen a few 'anomalies' which I have never reported, but can only imagine what these pilots are seeing in disbelief !
only 24 cuts in the 3:26 scene. Freaking brilliant, all of it is in your head. One of the all time best written and photographed scenes in all of cinema
You can picture the pilots in the cockpit just looking at each other after being asked if they want to report, and realizing what would happen to their careers if they did.
This is what you call acting, no dramatic camera movements, sound cues or close ups of the face. this is genius how they make everything so realistic. All round great opening to a movie. I also heard that the chatter is spot on to what you would normaly hear in ATC
Showing ATC Personelle at their Radar Monitors during mundane flight operations, then interjecting an unknown object with Flight Crews along with ATC Operating Staff trying to make sense of it all; Brilliant! Then it makes some of the Audience Members wonder: How Often do Incidents like the one in the Movie happen and if those involved can maintain their cool like those depicted in this movie.
Not that often in North America or Europe. When situations do arise, focus on the job and stay calm. Not to worry... Just like in this scene, supervisors will be heading to your station to monitor and advise.
"Wait a second..., Standby One. Ok Center Air East 31, the traffic has turned he's heading right for my windshield we're turning right immediately and leaving flight level 350 now." -Terrifying
@@tonyfasce5332 yeah, and Bear Lodge, the Native name for the Tower, is a very spiritual place. Many legends associated with this ancient tree. In the movie, they mention the north face a lot, so one has to wonder at the significance of it. In the Bible, Book of Daniel, they talk about a tree being cut in half...one has to wonder if it is THIS ancient tree?
@@tonyfasce5332 also, I have been there a few times and each there were surreal happenings. For instance, I was walking the outer trail and I tried to get to the other trail by cutting through the grass...I walked and walked for a couple hours but only got a few feet closer. Finally gave up and went back the way I came with blisters on my feet.
Seconds later the UFO whips by and they report they're out of flight level 340, which means they plunged a thousand feet very quickly. Must have been very noticeable and frightening to the passengers.
Sounds strange, but this is my favorite scene from Close Encounters. It is so real, it makes you feel like you’re in the ATC center experiencing exactly what’s going on.
This scene is so real! I was 11 in 77 when this came out and this scene knocked my socks off. What a hook. Always thought that was Morgan Freeman, sounds just like him.
In my opinion, this is one of the finest movie scenes ever filmed. I think this, along with earth coordinates being discovered in the glass lorry, are the best in the movie.
@@PlayerFalcon4- it’s when the French translator realises the message being received from the aliens is actually coordinates on earth and not a place on in space. They fetch a globe from an office and find out it’s in Wyoming.
When I saw this scene as a kid I thought it was actual footage the way it was portrayed left an indelible message that we are not alone as the whole movie portrays
Am I the only person who was fascinated by this movie when I first saw it on the big screen at age 12, so much so that I saw it multiple times on the big screen? It was so realistic that I became a believer in life elsewhere, at least for a while.
I was 8, and similarly influenced...because of all the sci-fi/super effects of current films, kids now (and future generations) will never quite understand the tremendous effect of the spaceships silently and brilliantly twisting around the highway curves...we lost our breath and our minds were sent into a new dimension...
Randy Joe. Look at USS Nimitz navy commander David Fravor's pilots story of the " Tic Tac UFO " encounter.... Look on TH-cam. Then you'll be a believer......again.
I can to this day remember walking out of our local cinema (i was 17, out with some buddies for a birthday dinner,) and hearing almost nothing outside but excited kids chattering and those 5 musical notes....
The inter connecting conversations in this scene are magnificent. You always hear the relevant dialogue louder than the other but still hear what the other party is saying. It's so realistic. The sound editing , mixing and superb acting, and pacing. This film is a masterpiece.
Black guy witnessing an earth changing event yet he's staying totally professional and in charge. This is the best understanded moment of a monumental film.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind is a masterpiece. The single greatest Extra-Terrestrial Encounter ever put to film. This scene especially, is one of those moments that will always be one of the best ever done in film history. As fantastic as all of the rest of this wonderful movie is, this scene stands out as simply brilliant. CE3K is for me, Steven Spielberg's best movie he ever made, period.
This is Spielberg's genius, he's not showing us anything, but he's scaring the crap out of us with atmosphere and fantastic performances. A lot like Jaws before we see the shark.
Hitchcock understood this too. He stated as a director "you must make the audience suffer suspense as long as possible " With today's films, I feel exactly that way, but in an entirely different sense of the word 'suffer'
Alfred Hitchcock used a similar technique to mess with the viewer's mind. Ever the clever wit, he said when creating suspense, "you must make the audience suffer" Today's audiences suffer, but in a different way, I think 🤔 It's a pity so few movies are worth watching these days
TWA and Allegheny... long gone. What a fantastic scene. 100% accurate except for one thing. "Center, this is TWA 517, Traffic now looks like extra bright landing lights, I thought Aireast had his landing lights on?" That's always bothered me, TWA is in his 6 o'clock @ 15 miles. TWA 517 wouldn't expect to see AE31's landing lights as they'd be pointing forward 15 miles ahead. Picky, picky, I know, but the only thing that spoils the scene for me...
If you listen to the dialogue carefully, controller Harry (David Anderson) states to TWA 517 that Aireast 31 is "opposite direction", however the SSR returns show TWA following Aireast. Clearly the players are following a script but the radar isn't.
Kind of surprised in the radio calls that the TWA 517 did not include “heavy” in their callsign considering the controller early in the scene said the TWA was an L-1011.
Yep, that always bothered me. Also the ATC Computer sets off a short term conflict alert, between a squawking acft and a primary target. These are the only two technically incorrect items in otherwise a fantastic scene.
I'd be really irritated if I'd been the primary controller, and all those yahoos were chattering on around me. "What was that, Air East 31? I couldn't quite catch it. Everyone around me won't shut up."
One the best scenes in all UFO movies. The detail is incredible on how it would most likely be in a real air traffic control tower. I believe I read somewhere the African American ATC is a real one used by Steven Spielberg because he wanted nothing less than the real thing. Spielberg thinks of everything. A classic movie.
This is one of my favorite scenes from the movie. I used to think that Morgan Freeman was playing the air traffic controller until I learned otherwise. He's the real thing- a real air traffic controller.
EVERYTHING moves ballistically, along parabolic curves, as the kinetic energy of an object is dissipated during the course of its motion along a path. So for something to exhibit "non-ballistic motion", it would inherently need to defy the laws of physics as we currently understand them.
I assume the pilots were commenting something about the aircraft moving up and down which didn't exist really then however that some jets of today can do with VTOL. Which the US had Harriers at the time of this movie.
@@Seriona1 As I understand it (And I'm not an expert) even aircraft move ballistically, just with different thrust. A Harrier can't turn on a dime; or do backflips in mid-air while hovering. Basic Newtonian Physics need the engines to be pointed one way for the Jet to go the other way. Non-Ballistic Motion means you're in the 'Twilight Zone'.
When we saw this in theaters back in 77 or 78...(forever ago, LOL...I'm 57 so bear with me) It was so eye opening and on the edge frightening, because of so many unknowns of the time, America really did go to the movies back then, and a ticket for adults was $1.75.... It wasn't till a few years after this movie that I had found out that they used authentic ATC personnel for this movie making it that much sweeter. I really believed we were spoiled with Spielberg and Lucas, as they dominated the movies from the mid 70's all the way through the 80's and even into the 90's... It was the best of time for Hollywood. America what happened with you!!!????
What is brilliant about this scene is that not once do they show the perceptive from the pilots view its all focused on the air traffic controllers. If this was shot like a film today they'd show us the pilots and their reaction
Knowing pilots even today reporting anything remotely like this would risk your career and license to fly until it’s Independence Day all over again 1996........
One of the most captivating sequences. I vividly remember gasping for breath watching this on screen when I saw it in the cinema in my youth. However, it must always be what happens in reality when there is a UFO.
It just feels. so. real. lol It's just so fucking brilliant---it's like, you think about it and you see it, and you're like, "Duh, of course this is how you set the scene for a UFO film and of course it'd be cool to do it from the perspective of air traffic controllers---cus of course pilots out there and the air traffic controllers would discover this stuff." But then you think more and you realize...that if you'd had the opportunity to make this film and not Spielberg, you'd have fucked. it. UP lmfao cus you would've NEVER have thought to start a UFO film like this! You'd have put the camera in the cockpit of these pilots and you'd have blown the mystery and sense of wonder right from the beginning, and made it even MORE basic with stock CGI shots and stuff. And then you realize, this Spielberg is just a straight-up visionary---and most of us will never be storytellers like him. Ever. One of a kind filmmaker, Spielberg is. One of a kind.
I like how this & the drunk scene in Jaws are like these one-off scenes that are kind of separate from the rest of the drama and I think they're both the best scenes in those movies
In the case of this film, the scene was shot well before the movie got the green light. They found out they could get tax breaks if they shot at least one scene of the movie before the end of the year. This was picked because it was the easiest to do, and did not involve any of the principle actors.
Any kind of airplane scene in movies are completely bogus. Sometimes you see one airplane takeoff and another plane land and supposed to be the same airplane, but this scene to me is the best. Looks like they hired real air traffic controllers for this one.
Ah, the old days when I worked ARTCC... with flight strips! I used to assist with accident investigation on occasion. There shouldn't have been that many people near the console though... controller, backup, supervisor, and maybe a strolling SE. They should have had the pilot say, "Heck yeah I wanna report! That guy should have his license revoked no matter what planet he's from!" 😆
Hi Orbiting Eyes, I wanted to get into ATC over 40 years ago, and I’ve continued a keen interest ever since. This scene really resonated with me when I first watch Close Encounters. One part of the script that I never worked our is what the controller says at around the 42 sec mark - “I’ll take a look at broadband”. Is this an action to turn off some sort of filtering that better detects primary targets ? Thanks.
@@5milessep, yes, that's exactly it, though I don't recall using that particular terminology. The old radar processors in this era of equipment were quite interesting beasts, plus those gigantic Aydin Vector displays. 74LSxx logic in huge stacks with some core memory to boot. The backup processor was called "the DARC". We were in trouble if we were in the DARC, lol. It was actually a newer processor that used 74154 ALUs, but for some reason it was regarded as less trustworthy. Some of the audio and radio equipment in the center were phenomenally old... a decade older than me, with tubes. The console keyboards used magnetic reed switches of a bizarre design... so obsolete by 1990 that the gov paid millions for special runs to produce replacements. I hated working on the ancient audio select switches when I was in the Comm unit... for some reason my shift supervisor decided I was particularly good at that job. Had to think fast to get out of it. But we had great fun with teletype paper tape chads... oh the practical jokes you can play on ex-navy guys! 😆
@@orbitingeyes2540 thank you for a fascinating insight into the ATC surveillance kit of the 1970s, it was a fantastic read. I’m not surprised that they thought the DARC backup wasn’t as reliable as the exiting processor, some people have an archaic view of newer technology. Much appreciated 😀
@@5milessep Happy to share those memories. One other note on this scene, all of the console keyboards have the backlight turned up way too bright - it would surely cause glare on the radar display and that's a bad thing... they never operated them like that. I think someone wanted certain keys to not be readable or perhaps for extra light in the dimly lit control room. The color codes are all in the right place though. I think this was probably filmed in the training facility in Norman, OK. The equipment shown in the movie remained in use through the mid 1990s until the overdue and over budget IBM replacements came along. The originals at SLC ARTCC had 1958 date stamps on them.
Remember that cinematic drama must overtake real events. The other controllers would not have left their busy screens to listen to another unfolding event while their charges are wandering around the sky.
The strongest scene in the film. I always felt it would have been a better film if continuing in the same vein as the opening sequence. More mystery and tension.
This scene...and the USS Indianapolis scene in Jaws...are brilliant in both their simplicity (no special effects) and their riveting dialogue...and are, by far, my 2 favorite moments in cinema. The 70's were a fantastic time for movies.
This could be the best sequence directed by Spielberg. You don't see the UFOs, but just hear the radio traffic and the air traffic controllers. Yet, it is chilling.
Love the overlapping dialogue between the controllers even the 2 guys at 1:40 on the close right saying to each other..."I've never seen anything like that the traffic is really moving though" "How about an SR-71" "No not at that altitude" Fantastic directing and actor from the real ATC controllers
The framing in this scene is just so ridiculously great. Spielberg and cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond make the most out of every shot. At 2:18 and especially 2:48 and the framed reflection on the screen at 3:06. Outstanding!
Everything about this scene is perfection. They could have shown the pilots view which would’ve ruined everything. This way the viewer can use his or her own imagination as to what’s going on up there.
The lighting, blocking, sound, sound mixing, editing, acting, and writing in this scene are basically as good as it ever gets. It's simply one of the most well directed scenes of all time. It's stunning.
They're barely acting.... 😎 👍
@@olivierdelyon8196 I believe they are real air traffic controllers that's why
@@halon7476 yes. They were.
I agree !!!! And the fact that there is NOT ONE SINGLE NOTE OF MUSIC in it is pure genius
A masterclass in production.
My father was a heavy transport pilot in the Navy during WWII, and a commercial airline captain into the early 80s. He was not a man prone to exaggeration or emotional extreme, but I watched him watch this scene when this movie was in the theater, and he was on the edge of his seat. He later said it was the most accurately portrayed aviation related scene he’d ever seen in film.
Cool story. 😎
Wow...I'll bet he saw something. That's awesome.
Yeah, well, in civil aviation no one says 'over', or 'out' come to that, and they didn't in the 70s either. .
lol stop making up story
lol speeky engrish
I love the long pause of the pilots when they're first asked to report. You can picture them in the cockpit looking at each other contemplating their careers.
I love your icon. :)
@@robynperdieu3434 Thanks. I was out there last year and took the pic. Then I got notified that COVID was closing everything down and had to drive all the way back to Chicago.
@@Nhamp2000 Awesome. Did anything surreal happen while you were there? I have been many times and something happens every time. :)
@@robynperdieu3434 Nothing surreal, other than how unbelievably quiet it was. I was lucky enough to be able to walk the path all the way around. It was beautiful, and since it was winter, not too many people. Also, the day before, I pretty much had The Badlands to myself, lol.
Yeah I was thinking the same thing.. Pair of them are like "Wtf?" "Do we want to ruin our careers?"
Two or three conversations at once. No music. THIS is filmmaking. GOD bless you Steven Spielberg.
that's why I love Quentin Tarrantino so much. DO you realize Vincent Vega went to the toilet 3 times. Once is Jack Rabbit slims, once in Butch's apartment and once at the Diner.
That is why I love Tarratino films. Do you realize in Pulp Fiction, Vincent Vega went to the toilet 3 times, once in Butch's apartment, once in the diner and once at Jack Rabbit Slims. You won't see Dominique Toretta taking a shit.
spielberg at some point always has that type of dialogue in his films... 3 or 4 different conversations at once... fantastic filmmaking
No. Music. 100%
@@mohanicus Yeah y'know SurprisingLY the OnLY Other time I remember seeing that is in the Original black&white "The ThinG"
literally a radar scope, radio dialogue and the facial expressions of controllers.
Yet it's one hell of a scene.
Considering that those were real ATCs, it worked really well.
Speilberg directed, Michael Khan edited and Vilmos Zsigmond photographed it. Zsigmond was responsible some other very visually rich movies. Heavens Gate, The Deer Hunter, Blow Out, Deliverance, notice how he shoots almost everything from 25-45 degree angles giving the image a lot of perception depth.
Classic Spielberg, people talking over each other throughout this film.
In my humble opinion, a work of genius.
I found it annoying, but adds greatly to the realism.
hardest thing to do for actors. fantastic scene
@@ericfletcher8454 How do you know?
@GaryGuevara Really? You've seen EVERY movie ever made before Spielberg?
Um, try Robert Altman, Billy Wilder, Howard Hawks, Joseph von Sternberg, Ernst Lubitsch...
John Grabowski because I shoot TV and films for a living and have shot overlapping dialog scenes
No dramatic music. No CGI. Actors are 100% believable.
They weren’t actors, they were real ATCs.
@@musicmanfelipe And they did a good job acting.
I think he's the
“Traffic is quite luminous and is exhibiting some non-ballistic motion”. The fear in the controllers eyes. They know what that means. The best of Spielberg.
What makes this brilliant is the attention to detail, both technical and behavioral. They would never portray a scene like this today. It would be dumbed down and full of crappy cgi instead of it being a theater of the mind type scene.
That's because the people have been dumbed down to now mostly responding only to overloaded visual and sound effects in movies instead of compelling stories and simple tension scenes.
Exactly...!...spielberg is a master at it
Brandon Hill so true Brandon. This is my favorite scene in the whole movie. The atc guys are so authentic.
@@smaze1782 Per the IMDB trivia page, these were real air traffic controllers brought in for the film. The way they speak and know the language so naturally really lends to the realism of this scene.
@@deloreanman14 Especially Morgan Freeman an fantastic air traffic controller from way back......
I keep forgetting how brilliant this scene is. A masterwork of suspense with no score, use of non-actors, static shots and not a single special effect. Pound for pound maybe the best 3.5 minutes Spielberg ever directed.
I completely agree. The direction for the voice actors for the pilot's is superb. The weary inflection of their voices when asked if they want to report is such a powerful touch. Those voices communicated so clearly to me that they were scared, couldn't process what they had encountered, and they were not going to officially report and damage their careers.
It's like the pilots say "No" as they know they will be sacked for reporting
maybe not sacked directly, but the fact that they reported a UFO, even in the general sense of an unidentified flying object, would hang over them for the rest of their career even the rest of their lives. Even if the incident was later found to have an earthly explanation, it would have an impact on their career advancement
that's the thing, an UFO is an UFO, you report it, could be anyone, anything. This happens IRL. and as long people will say " i don't know what I saw" there will be forever that huge alien thing.
" Yes I report an UFO. sned in some jets to control or intercept whatever is this shit."
Good observation. I always wondered why they wouldn't say anything. This makes total sense. You see something remarkable like this, and officials think you are full of shit...
Exactly- one of the pilots says- "we don't want to report one of those either" Neither pilot wants to even mention the phrase UFO - The pilots know they'll be ridiculed if they make a report- maybe even grounded.
Back then, if you reported something strange, you would be considered crazy
This is frankly one of my favorite scenes from any movie ever. Outstanding. Superb.
No ATC scene is this well done anymore. Absolutely awesome.
They're real controllers. They understand how to deliver the jargon.
The boss's hand on the air traffic controller makes the gravity of the situation just that more palpable
The authenticity and plausibility of this scene is gripping.
FYI: "Spielberg wanted the air traffic controllers’ dialogue to sound as authentic as possible, so he cast real air traffic controllers - David Anderson, Richard L. Hawkins, Craig Shreeve, and Bill Thurman from Los Angeles ARTCC in Palmdale - to play them."
Ah that explains how professional they sound, they're the real deal.
I thought that was a young Morgan Freeman doing a cameo appearance?
Great move. They were fantastic.
Yeah,I saw this movie 🍿 in 1977,when I was in High School.🏫 I thought it was;a pretty,good,movie for that time.😊
@@janetlawrence9749pretty sure that’s him too..unmistakable voice
Great scene...I don't think most filmgoers are thinking about the audio mix, but the use of overlapping dialogue here, where you can follow several conversations at once, is brilliant...
This is brilliant filmmaking. They easily could have cut to the POV of the pilots at any point, but the decision to keep everything isolated in the ATC Tower (and let the audience's imagination fill in the blanks) makes this so much scarier and more memorable.
Most accurate / realistic ATC to pilot interchange produced for a movie I’ve ever seen. Even to this day.
Sully was great too
Spielberg actually hired real ATC people for this scene. None of these people are actors. Brilliant move.
@@johnnycats5157 that’s actually really cool and I never knew that. I just guessed he had a capable liaison on the set.
They did a hell of a job without being actors.
Only an expert movie maker could make this scene so riveting and entertaining. Bravo. It is my favorite scene from "Close Encounters". NoSx. No car chase. No swearing. Not one frame was wasted. The close-ups and pan outs were done with skill and perfection. The talking over each other was astoundingly perfect. The joining of each of these men around the main controller was perfect.
My favorite scene in the movie. I saw Close Encounters of the Third Kind when it was in theaters. I was 16 years old. It was so well-directed and so realistic. Before it came out, I had a map in my bedroom with pins for every UFO encounter that had occurred as well as pins for the disappearances that had occurred around the world. I was an original nerd. I used to whistle the 5 note tune in high school after seeing the movie. Movies like CE3K will never come again. Directors like Spielberg will never come again. The dumbing down of our minds in America will soon eradicate all we knew from that time.
Spielberg is a master, creates tension and suspense just looking at those screens and actors faces.
The acting and the intensity is great! It’s like your not watching a movie but in a control tower watching this unfold in real life. A beautiful piece of cinema.
It’s actually in an Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) which is different from a control tower that you see at airports. ARTCC’s are responsible for large sectors of airspace unlike an airport control tower that controls the airspace in a small radius around the airport.
A terrific scene. The whole build-up of the tension in this film is cinematic brilliance.
Fantastic scene to a great film. Still the best UFO movie to date.
I agree, this a forgotten movie. So good whatever the decade!
As an airline employee, I have jump seated on many DC-10s, 747, L-1011s and A310s, and have listened to the ATC 'chat'. I have also seen a few 'anomalies' which I have never reported, but can only imagine what these pilots are seeing in disbelief !
DC-10? L1011? You must have been flying in the 70s.
I also noticed they mentioned airlines, TWA and Pan AM, which no longer exist 🤔
@@ernesthill4017 Actually DC-10, A310 and L-1011s flew well into the 1990s and early 2000.
@@dhakaboy1 thanks, you know your aircraft ✈️
Text book example of creating suspense and tension in the mundane by letting people and dialogue be real. Entire scene is a mini 3 act movie
only 24 cuts in the 3:26 scene. Freaking brilliant, all of it is in your head. One of the all time best written and photographed scenes in all of cinema
You can picture the pilots in the cockpit just looking at each other after being asked if they want to report, and realizing what would happen to their careers if they did.
This is what you call acting, no dramatic camera movements, sound cues or close ups of the face. this is genius how they make everything so realistic. All round great opening to a movie. I also heard that the chatter is spot on to what you would normaly hear in ATC
Maybe 74 Gear can do a video on what’s accurate here.
My favorite part of this scene is how serious everyone got when they were asked if they wanted to report officially
Yeah. You can almost see the pilots in their cockpits looking at each other, knowing what would happen to their careers if they did. Different era.
1 of my favorite scenes
Showing ATC Personelle at their Radar Monitors during mundane flight operations, then interjecting an unknown object with Flight Crews along with ATC Operating Staff trying to make sense of it all; Brilliant!
Then it makes some of the Audience Members wonder: How Often do Incidents like the one in the Movie happen and if those involved can maintain their cool like those depicted in this movie.
Not that often in North America or Europe. When situations do arise, focus on the job and stay calm. Not to worry... Just like in this scene, supervisors will be heading to your station to monitor and advise.
"Wait a second..., Standby One. Ok Center Air East 31, the traffic has turned he's heading right for my windshield we're turning right immediately and leaving flight level 350 now." -Terrifying
I think it is Aries 31. Aries, as in the goat. Think about what the goat stands for. There are many hidden messages in thus movie that apply to today.
@@tonyfasce5332 yeah, and Bear Lodge, the Native name for the Tower, is a very spiritual place. Many legends associated with this ancient tree. In the movie, they mention the north face a lot, so one has to wonder at the significance of it. In the Bible, Book of Daniel, they talk about a tree being cut in half...one has to wonder if it is THIS ancient tree?
@@tonyfasce5332 also, I have been there a few times and each there were surreal happenings. For instance, I was walking the outer trail and I tried to get to the other trail by cutting through the grass...I walked and walked for a couple hours but only got a few feet closer. Finally gave up and went back the way I came with blisters on my feet.
Seconds later the UFO whips by and they report they're out of flight level 340, which means they plunged a thousand feet very quickly. Must have been very noticeable and frightening to the passengers.
I stand corrected , it us Air East. But he sounded like Aries...so i wonder if that was intentional?
Sounds strange, but this is my favorite scene from Close Encounters. It is so real, it makes you feel like you’re in the ATC center experiencing exactly what’s going on.
This scene is so real! I was 11 in 77 when this came out and this scene knocked my socks off. What a hook.
Always thought that was Morgan Freeman, sounds just like him.
I thought so too.
I always return to it. An entire film in one scene. Haunting.
Excellent scene! Still gives me goosebumps... too cool!
same here
Me too Lawrence Johnson
Spielberg is a genius. Worth an Academy Award for directing for that scene only. Has was far far ahead of his time.
In my opinion, this is one of the finest movie scenes ever filmed. I think this, along with earth coordinates being discovered in the glass lorry, are the best in the movie.
"earth coordinates being discovered in the glass lorry" I dont understand that reference can u explain?
@@PlayerFalcon4- it’s when the French translator realises the message being received from the aliens is actually coordinates on earth and not a place on in space. They fetch a globe from an office and find out it’s in Wyoming.
I wonder how many times this has happened all over the world for so many years? I want to believe!!
When I saw this scene as a kid I thought it was actual footage the way it was portrayed left an indelible message that we are not alone as the whole movie portrays
yeah the actors play is quite good.
Truly a brilliant, magical scene.
And hearing things like L1011 makes me all nostalgic
You cannot get any more realistic than this!
Am I the only person who was fascinated by this movie when I first saw it on the big screen at age 12, so much so that I saw it multiple times on the big screen? It was so realistic that I became a believer in life elsewhere, at least for a while.
I was 8, and similarly influenced...because of all the sci-fi/super effects of current films, kids now (and future generations) will never quite understand the tremendous effect of the spaceships silently and brilliantly twisting around the highway curves...we lost our breath and our minds were sent into a new dimension...
Randy Joe. Look at USS Nimitz navy commander David Fravor's pilots story of the " Tic Tac UFO " encounter.... Look on TH-cam. Then you'll be a believer......again.
I can to this day remember walking out of our local cinema (i was 17, out with some buddies for a birthday dinner,) and hearing almost nothing outside but excited kids chattering and those 5 musical notes....
The inter connecting conversations in this scene are magnificent. You always hear the relevant dialogue louder than the other but still hear what the other party is saying. It's so realistic. The sound editing , mixing and superb acting, and pacing. This film is a masterpiece.
One of the best movies ever made. Top 10!! 🙌🏽
In light of the recent congressional hearings, this scene takes on heightened reality. Hats off to Mr. Spielberg.
Black guy witnessing an earth changing event yet he's staying totally professional and in charge. This is the best understanded moment of a monumental film.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind is a masterpiece. The single greatest Extra-Terrestrial Encounter ever put to film. This scene especially, is one of those moments that will always be one of the best ever done in film history. As fantastic as all of the rest of this wonderful movie is, this scene stands out as simply brilliant. CE3K is for me, Steven Spielberg's best movie he ever made, period.
Filmed at Los Angeles ARTCC ("Los Angeles Center") in Palmdale, Calif. The principal controller here was actually an FAA controller at this facility.
no wonder he sounds so real.
This is Spielberg's genius, he's not showing us anything, but he's scaring the crap out of us with atmosphere and fantastic performances. A lot like Jaws before we see the shark.
Hitchcock understood this too. He stated as a director "you must make the audience suffer suspense as long as possible "
With today's films, I feel exactly that way, but in an entirely different sense of the word 'suffer'
Alfred Hitchcock used a similar technique to mess with the viewer's mind.
Ever the clever wit, he said when creating suspense, "you must make the audience suffer"
Today's audiences suffer, but in a different way, I think 🤔
It's a pity so few movies are worth watching these days
1:26
"I"m going to need those TPS reports ASAP, so if you could that, that'd be great . . . "
TWA and Allegheny... long gone. What a fantastic scene. 100% accurate except for one thing. "Center, this is TWA 517, Traffic now looks like extra bright landing lights, I thought Aireast had his landing lights on?" That's always bothered me, TWA is in his 6 o'clock @ 15 miles. TWA 517 wouldn't expect to see AE31's landing lights as they'd be pointing forward 15 miles ahead. Picky, picky, I know, but the only thing that spoils the scene for me...
You're right but the scene is so good I completely let that slide easily ;)
If you listen to the dialogue carefully, controller Harry (David Anderson) states to TWA 517 that Aireast 31 is "opposite direction", however the SSR returns show TWA following Aireast. Clearly the players are following a script but the radar isn't.
Kind of surprised in the radio calls that the TWA 517 did not include “heavy” in their callsign considering the controller early in the scene said the TWA was an L-1011.
Yep, that always bothered me. Also the ATC Computer sets off a short term conflict alert, between a squawking acft and a primary target. These are the only two technically incorrect items in otherwise a fantastic scene.
SUPERB ‘textbook’ on how to shoot a scene, how to do everything.
The scene with the reflection of their faces in the glass, awesome!
"negative, we don't want to report one of those either..." LOL
I'd be really irritated if I'd been the primary controller, and all those yahoos were chattering on around me. "What was that, Air East 31? I couldn't quite catch it. Everyone around me won't shut up."
One the best scenes in all UFO movies. The detail is incredible on how it would most likely be in a real air traffic control tower. I believe I read somewhere the African American ATC is a real one used by Steven Spielberg because he wanted nothing less than the real thing. Spielberg thinks of everything. A classic movie.
Well, that would explain why he never appeared in other films. Good info.
This is one of my favorite scenes from the movie. I used to think that Morgan Freeman was playing the air traffic controller until I learned otherwise. He's the real thing- a real air traffic controller.
EVERYTHING moves ballistically, along parabolic curves, as the kinetic energy of an object is dissipated during the course of its motion along a path. So for something to exhibit "non-ballistic motion", it would inherently need to defy the laws of physics as we currently understand them.
I assume the pilots were commenting something about the aircraft moving up and down which didn't exist really then however that some jets of today can do with VTOL. Which the US had Harriers at the time of this movie.
@@Seriona1 As I understand it (And I'm not an expert) even aircraft move ballistically, just with different thrust. A Harrier can't turn on a dime; or do backflips in mid-air while hovering. Basic Newtonian Physics need the engines to be pointed one way for the Jet to go the other way. Non-Ballistic Motion means you're in the 'Twilight Zone'.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Projectile_motion
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ballistics
Awesome dialogue, even the side conversation regarding the object potentially being an SR-71
I know it's just a movie, but I wonder how many times incidences like this happened for real.
When we saw this in theaters back in 77 or 78...(forever ago, LOL...I'm 57 so bear with me) It was so eye opening and on the edge frightening, because of so many unknowns of the time, America really did go to the movies back then, and a ticket for adults was $1.75.... It wasn't till a few years after this movie that I had found out that they used authentic ATC personnel for this movie making it that much sweeter. I really believed we were spoiled with Spielberg and Lucas, as they dominated the movies from the mid 70's all the way through the 80's and even into the 90's... It was the best of time for Hollywood. America what happened with you!!!????
I was 3 years old when I saw this for the first time. It's crazy to revisit it now and understand everything they're talking about
I think I was about ten and have been fascinated since seeing this movie.
What is brilliant about this scene is that not once do they show the perceptive from the pilots view its all focused on the air traffic controllers. If this was shot like a film today they'd show us the pilots and their reaction
Wonderfull scene...
A perfect blend of realism and mystery.
This movie will always be relevant. Spielberg was a master of not being constricted by a timeline.
"How about an SR-71?"
Ah not at that altitude
Our dad took us to see this in 1979. Ive been fascinated by it to this day.
Knowing pilots even today reporting anything remotely like this would risk your career and license to fly until it’s Independence Day all over again 1996........
One of the most captivating sequences. I vividly remember gasping for breath watching this on screen when I saw it in the cinema in my youth. However, it must always be what happens in reality when there is a UFO.
It just feels. so. real. lol It's just so fucking brilliant---it's like, you think about it and you see it, and you're like, "Duh, of course this is how you set the scene for a UFO film and of course it'd be cool to do it from the perspective of air traffic controllers---cus of course pilots out there and the air traffic controllers would discover this stuff." But then you think more and you realize...that if you'd had the opportunity to make this film and not Spielberg, you'd have fucked. it. UP lmfao cus you would've NEVER have thought to start a UFO film like this! You'd have put the camera in the cockpit of these pilots and you'd have blown the mystery and sense of wonder right from the beginning, and made it even MORE basic with stock CGI shots and stuff. And then you realize, this Spielberg is just a straight-up visionary---and most of us will never be storytellers like him. Ever. One of a kind filmmaker, Spielberg is. One of a kind.
One of the best scenes in the movie along with the flight 19 scene. Still gives me chills!
Great scene! I've always loved the actors in it (excellent line deliveries), the camera angles and the lighting. Solid dramatic build. Good stuff!
I like how this & the drunk scene in Jaws are like these one-off scenes that are kind of separate from the rest of the drama and I think they're both the best scenes in those movies
In the case of this film, the scene was shot well before the movie got the green light. They found out they could get tax breaks if they shot at least one scene of the movie before the end of the year. This was picked because it was the easiest to do, and did not involve any of the principle actors.
One of the most memorable scenes in that movie. Genius!
Any kind of airplane scene in movies are completely bogus. Sometimes you see one airplane takeoff and another plane land and supposed to be the same airplane, but this scene to me is the best.
Looks like they hired real air traffic controllers for this one.
Could watch this every day.
"I wouldn't know what kind of report to file."
Ah, the old days when I worked ARTCC... with flight strips! I used to assist with accident investigation on occasion. There shouldn't have been that many people near the console though... controller, backup, supervisor, and maybe a strolling SE.
They should have had the pilot say, "Heck yeah I wanna report! That guy should have his license revoked no matter what planet he's from!" 😆
Hi Orbiting Eyes, I wanted to get into ATC over 40 years ago, and I’ve continued a keen interest ever since. This scene really resonated with me when I first watch Close Encounters. One part of the script that I never worked our is what the controller says at around the 42 sec mark - “I’ll take a look at broadband”. Is this an action to turn off some sort of filtering that better detects primary targets ?
Thanks.
@@5milessep, yes, that's exactly it, though I don't recall using that particular terminology. The old radar processors in this era of equipment were quite interesting beasts, plus those gigantic Aydin Vector displays. 74LSxx logic in huge stacks with some core memory to boot. The backup processor was called "the DARC". We were in trouble if we were in the DARC, lol. It was actually a newer processor that used 74154 ALUs, but for some reason it was regarded as less trustworthy. Some of the audio and radio equipment in the center were phenomenally old... a decade older than me, with tubes. The console keyboards used magnetic reed switches of a bizarre design... so obsolete by 1990 that the gov paid millions for special runs to produce replacements. I hated working on the ancient audio select switches when I was in the Comm unit... for some reason my shift supervisor decided I was particularly good at that job. Had to think fast to get out of it. But we had great fun with teletype paper tape chads... oh the practical jokes you can play on ex-navy guys! 😆
@@orbitingeyes2540 thank you for a fascinating insight into the ATC surveillance kit of the 1970s, it was a fantastic read. I’m not surprised that they thought the DARC backup wasn’t as reliable as the exiting processor, some people have an archaic view of newer technology. Much appreciated 😀
@@5milessep Happy to share those memories. One other note on this scene, all of the console keyboards have the backlight turned up way too bright - it would surely cause glare on the radar display and that's a bad thing... they never operated them like that. I think someone wanted certain keys to not be readable or perhaps for extra light in the dimly lit control room. The color codes are all in the right place though. I think this was probably filmed in the training facility in Norman, OK. The equipment shown in the movie remained in use through the mid 1990s until the overdue and over budget IBM replacements came along. The originals at SLC ARTCC had 1958 date stamps on them.
Masterful work all round
USS Indianapolis/Air Traffic Control Indianapolis Center - Spielberg is excellent with scenes that have something to do with Indianapolis.
Indianapolis Jones maybe??
Remember that cinematic drama must overtake real events. The other controllers would not have left their busy screens to listen to another unfolding event while their charges are wandering around the sky.
One of the best action scenes where nothing really happens. Still you grab the arm of your chair till your fingers go white.
The comments are spot on and the film is very good but it just can't hold up to this scene...it's a tour de force all by itself!
The strongest scene in the film. I always felt it would have been a better film if continuing in the same vein as the opening sequence. More mystery and tension.
This scene...and the USS Indianapolis scene in Jaws...are brilliant in both their simplicity (no special effects) and their riveting dialogue...and are, by far, my 2 favorite moments in cinema. The 70's were a fantastic time for movies.
I saw this in the theater when it opened! One of the most fondest movies from my childhood!
I read once that that guy was an ATC equipment tech so he spent a lot of time in towers so he knew how to speak.
Spielberg employed him because actors couldn't deliver the ATC jargon convincingly.
This could be the best sequence directed by Spielberg. You don't see the UFOs, but just hear the radio traffic and the air traffic controllers. Yet, it is chilling.
One of the most gripping scenes in movie history.
Love the overlapping dialogue between the controllers even the 2 guys at 1:40 on the close right saying to each other..."I've never seen anything like that the traffic is really moving though"
"How about an SR-71"
"No not at that altitude"
Fantastic directing and actor from the real ATC controllers
2:01 Is the point when being Air Traffic Controller can become stressful, you gotta stay real frosty when situations arise.
I love the guy with the tie. He just appears. "Ask them if they want to report?"
“How about a SR-71?” “Not at that altitude”.
The framing in this scene is just so ridiculously great. Spielberg and cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond make the most out of every shot. At 2:18 and especially 2:48 and the framed reflection on the screen at 3:06. Outstanding!
This scene could be a "mini movie all in its self!!"....
Saw it in 78’ as a 10 year old and STILL it’s my all time favorite movie 🛸 👽
Everything about this scene is perfection. They could have shown the pilots view which would’ve ruined everything. This way the viewer can use his or her own imagination as to what’s going on up there.