CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977) dir. S. SPIELBERG

Perfect vinegar to the acid of terrifying invasion movies, trading allegorical communists for hippies: these aliens communicate through crafts (and solfege with François Truffaut), love kids and laser light shows, and practice curiosity instead of landmark detonation, holding an extraterrestrial Woodstock at Devil’s Peak in Wyoming. Way far out, man.