Home/Episodes/Close Encounters of the Third Kind
‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Sean Fennessey
May 20, 2025 · Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) · Drama · Sci-Fi · 2:08:11 · ▶ Listen on Spotify
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Half-Assed Internet Research
Bill SimmonsPeter Biskind's analysis from Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: 'Spielberg's movies in particular are colored by longing for the absent dad and nostalgia for authority. His families are often fatherless. The plots are set in motion by the moral and emotional vacuum at the center of the home and resolved by father surrogates.'▶ 21:18
Chris RyanSchrader's quote about Spielberg wanting to make a film about a common man: 'Who the fuck wants to see that? This is supposed to be the greatest event in the history of the earth. At least make the character equal to the event... Steve wanted to make a movie about the porter, a guy who would go off to Mars and start a chain of McDonald's.'▶ 19:05
Sean FennesseySpielberg's later explanation about changing the protagonist from a cop/soldier to a regular guy: 'people in uniform are not relatable to regular people. They're figures that exist outside. They manage society. They're not in society.'▶ 19:46
Casting What-Ifs
Sean FennesseyRichard Dreyfuss — References that there's an amazing list of people who were considered for Dreyfuss's part, calling it 'one of the greatest casting what ifs of all time'▶ 31:43
Most Rewatchable Scene
Bill SimmonsMultiple scenes including the air traffic controller scene, Barry's room going bonkers scene, and Dreyfus's UFO encounter through the highway chase▶ 48:05
Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award
Chris RyanIf I had the chance to be one of the first human beings to have meaningful contact with an extraterrestrial life form race, I'm hitting the fucking transfer portal. Goodbye, family. Anyone can have a family.▶ 1:25:47
Hanks or Cruise
Bill SimmonsTom Cruise — Ultimately picks Hanks, but says he would have enjoyed Cruise and it depends on what year of Cruise - 1987 maybe, but late 90s Cruise would turn it into an action movie▶ 1:45:10
Chris RyanTom Cruise — Favors Hanks by pointing out Cruise can't believably play a regular guy working for the Muncie Power Department, whereas Hanks could do it▶ 1:45:41
Is This Movie Better With
Bill SimmonsJay Williams from First Take questioning Claude's heroism: 'I know Claude the Cone pulled it off... But how hard was that really? So he figured out six sounds of a synthesizer. Now he's a hero'▶ 1:57:36
Chris RyanDoris Burke — Doris Burke talking about Roy's oldest son Brad, saying 'We see you, Brad. You may not be able to solve fractions, but now you're going to have to solve being the man of the house'▶ 1:56:06
Sean FennesseyWilford Brimley — Wilford Brimley saying 'and what does she find in that spaceship, Mitch? Heartbreak. Heartbreak.'▶ 1:58:43
Probably Unanswerable Questions
Bill SimmonsIt's kind of cool never knowing whether Roy came back or not - prefers the mystery unsolved▶ 1:59:53
Chris RyanWhat do Ronnie and the family think when they come home and see what Roy's done to the house? Why does Roy get fired - unclear reason?▶ 1:59:56
Sean FennesseyDid Roy ever come back? Did he ever see his family again? Why don't people age on the ship?▶ 1:59:47
Who Won the Movie
Chris RyanSteven Spielberg — Spielberg - reconfirmed why he's his favorite director and makes the platonic ideal of movies▶ 2:06:30
Movies Referenced (61)
| Title (year) | Links | Mentions | Mentioned by | First |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alien (1979) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 24 | Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan | ▶ 10:17 |
| Jaws (1975) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 24 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | ▶ 3:32 |
| Aliens (1986) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 19 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | ▶ 6:36 |
| Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 15 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | ▶ 6:03 |
| Twilight (2008) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 5 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey | ▶ 15:50 |
| War of the Worlds (2005) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 5 | Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | ▶ 1:45:13 |
| Borat (2006) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons | ▶ 1:28:03 |
| Carrie (1976) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey | ▶ 1:09:21 |
| Jurassic Park (1993) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Sean Fennessey | ▶ 13:02 |
| Saving Private Ryan (1998) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan | ▶ 42:05 |
| Schindler's List (1993) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons | ▶ 13:02 |
| Star Trek (2009) | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Bill Simmons | ▶ 10:14 |
Directors Referenced (12)
| Name | Links | Mentions | Mentioned by | Known For | First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steven Spielberg | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 86 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | Schindler's List, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Saving Private Ryan | ▶ 3:11 |
| François Truffaut | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 12 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The 400 Blows | ▶ 37:51 |
| David Lynch | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 4 | Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | ▶ 37:57 | |
| Denis Villeneuve | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Sean Fennessey | Blade Runner 2049 | ▶ 1:05:40 |
| John Ford | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | ▶ 44:22 | |
| Michael Mann | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Bill Simmons | The Insider, Collateral, The Last of the Mohicans | ▶ 1:46:18 |
| Douglas Trumbull | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 2 | Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons | Blade Runner | ▶ 1:06:06 |
| Tony Scott | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 2 | Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan | Unstoppable, True Romance | ▶ 1:21:39 |
| Herbert Ross | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 1 | Sean Fennessey | ▶ 36:09 | |
| John Huston | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 1 | Sean Fennessey | The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Chinatown | ▶ 38:01 |
| Stanley Kubrick | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 1 | Bill Simmons | A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon | ▶ 1:32:54 |
| Wes Anderson | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 1 | Chris Ryan | The Royal Tenenbaums, Isle of Dogs | ▶ 2:04:50 |
Actors Referenced (69)
| Name | Links | Mentions | Mentioned by | Known For | First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Dreyfuss | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 25 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Mr. Holland's Opus | ▶ 5:41 |
| Steve McQueen | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 22 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | The Great Escape | ▶ 11:54 |
| Melinda Dillon | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 19 | Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey | Magnolia, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, A Christmas Story | ▶ 5:49 |
| Cary Guffey | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 9 | Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan | Close Encounters of the Third Kind | ▶ 1:09:21 |
| John Williams | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 9 | Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey | Jurassic Park, Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope | ▶ 38:45 |
| Bob Balaban | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 5 | Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey | Gosford Park | ▶ 37:43 |
| James Caan | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 4 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey | Thief, Rollerball, Misery | ▶ 1:31:01 |
| James Lipton | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 4 | Sean Fennessey | Bolt | ▶ 1:52:54 |
| Julia Phillips | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 4 | Bill Simmons | The Sting, Taxi Driver, Close Encounters of the Third Kind | ▶ 28:02 |
| Amy Irving | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Bill Simmons | Carrie | ▶ 26:58 |
| Donald Trump | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Bill Simmons | Home Alone 2: Lost in New York | ▶ 1:02:14 |
| Gene Hackman | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey | The French Connection, The Royal Tenenbaums, Unforgiven | ▶ 1:31:01 |
Writers Referenced (7)
| Name | Links | Mentions | Mentioned by | Known For | First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Schrader | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 8 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, Chris Ryan | First Reformed | ▶ 12:34 |
| J.J. Abrams | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 3 | Sean Fennessey | Star Trek | ▶ 2:05:12 |
| Christopher McQuarrie | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 2 | Sean Fennessey, Bill Simmons | The Usual Suspects, Mission: Impossible - Fallout | ▶ 1:07:32 |
| Bill Walsh | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 1 | Bill Simmons | Mary Poppins | ▶ 1:17:07 |
| David Koepp | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 1 | Chris Ryan | Jurassic Park, Stir of Echoes | ▶ 27:43 |
| Jackie Files | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 1 | Bill Simmons | ▶ 16:48 | |
| Tony Kushner | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 1 | Chris Ryan | Lincoln, Munich | ▶ 27:39 |
Cinematographers Referenced (2)
| Name | Links | Mentions | Mentioned by | Known For | First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Kahn | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 2 | Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey | Jurassic Park, Minority Report | ▶ 1:11:55 |
| Adam Macbeth | IMDb ↗Lb ↗ | 1 | Chris Ryan | ▶ 19:22 |