E.t. – The Extra-terrestrial

Steven Spielberg was in the middle of re-defining what a science fiction film could do. It was the rare piece of cinematic scifi that managed to give both the sense of wonder and the gentle reality of friendship and love. E.T. does manage that by telling the story of an alien who lands and befriends a young boy named Elliot. There are those who consider E.T. to be the beginning of a slide into scifi sentimentality, and while they certainly have a point, the fact is it is a film that takes a sentimental story and brings awe and wonder along with it. It moves so well, and the effects were top-notch, and when you look at what Spielberg managed to get from child performers like Drew Berrymore and Henry Thomas, you can see there's a lot of quality going on beyond the sweetness of what you might be ale to boil down to a 'Boy-and-his-dog' story. And, like many Spielberg productions, it's the little things - the Alien hiding among the stuffed animals in the closet, the bike ride with the kids silhouetted in the moon. Well, the little things plus John Williams' stirring score. Why it's on the list One of the most beloved scifi films for Gen-Xers.