Starring Richard Dreyfuss, François Truffaut, Teri Garr and Melinda Dillon
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Roy Neary (Dreyfuss, Mr. Holland’s Opus) is a blue-collar worker who has an encounter with an unidentified flying object. Neary's wife (Garr) and children are at first skeptical, then concerned, and eventually fearful, as Roy refuses to accept a "logical" explanation for what he saw and becomes obsessed to find out the truth about UFOs.

Neary's fascination eventually puts him in contact with others who've had close encounters with alien spacecraft, including Jillian (Dillon), a single mother whose son disappeared and Claude Lacombe (Truffaut), a French researcher who believes music can be used to communicate with alien visitors. Lacombe's theory is put to the test when a band of government researchers and underground UFO enthusiasts (including Neary) join for an exchange with the alien visitors.