Mikaela

Directed by Robert Zemeckis
Screenplay by James V. Hart and Michael Goldenberg
Screen story by Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan
Based on the novel by Carl Sagan
Starring: Jodie Foster, Matthew McConaughey, James Woods, John Hurt, Tom Skerritt, William Fichtner, David Morse, Angela Bassett, Geoffrey Blake, Maximilian Martini, Rob Lowe, Jake Busey, Jena Malone, Tucker Smallwood, Larry King

Contact, based on the novel of the same name by Carl Sagan,
is the story of a free thinking radio astronomer (Jodie Foster) who discovers an intelligent signal broadcast from deep space.
She and her fellow scientists are able to decipher the Message and discover detailed instructions for building a mysterious Machine.
Will the Machine spell the end of our world, or the end of our superstitions?
Will we take our place among the races of the Galaxy, or are we just an upstart species with a long way to go?

Summary written by Ed Howell {eon@combase.com}


Dr. Eleanor Arroway (Jodie Foster) has spent her life searching for truth in the study of radio astronomy.
Palmer Joss (Matthew McConaughey) has spent his searching for truth through faith in God.
When Ellie discovers a stunning message from an extraterrestrial intelligence, they and everyone on Earth will be forced to challenge their own assumptions.
In the inevitable first contact, will humankind be able to find a compromise between science and belief?

Summary written by Kasreyn (kasreyn@bloomington.in.us)


無意間在第四台看到這部電影
雖然沒有從頭看
但是卻忍不住一直看下去
除了劇情是我中學的時候很有興趣的天文學宇宙學的理論(愛因斯坦相對論, 蟲洞)之外
電影還傳達了一種無法言喻的人文精神
一種強烈信仰
不是只宗教
而是像愛因斯坦對真理的信仰
還有對宇宙生命的謙卑和尊敬
女主角Jodie Foster演得非常傳神very convincing
She seemed as if she was a scientist who believed in her studies; who is true to her belief that only science existed, not God;
She was firm on the fact that she experienced something no one else has, even though she was denied and misbelieved by most, she held on to this belief.
I was touched by the moment when she saw the galaxy through the travel in the worm holes.
She kept marveling with awe "this is so beautiful, more than I imagined."
I would imagine how moved she felt at the divine moment, it would be a hundred times more intense than the humility
we feel when we are overwhelmed and bathed in the power of nature.
I think the movie is trying to show us that we should be more humble and realise that we are only a tiny part of the immense universe among numerous other beings beyond our comprehension.

Here is a quote that I found inspiring. When the leading role, the scientist, was questioned in court about the authencity of her experience, she replied :
"I had an experience. I can't prove it.
I can't even explain it, but everything that I know as a human being, everything that I am tells me that it was real.
I was given something wonderful, something that changed me forever.
A vision of the universe that tells us, undeniably, how tiny and insignificant, and how rare and precious we all are.
A vision that tells us that we belong to something that is greater than ourselves, that we are not--that none of us--are alone.
I wish I could share that. I wish that everyone, if even for one moment, could feel that awe and humility, and hope, but... that continues to be my hope.

Another significant point in the movie lies in the meaning that the character Palmer Joss symbolizes.
Below is a quote from a web page I found: http://www.ldsfilm.com/movies/Contact.html

At the end of the film, Joss states his belief that the goal of science and the goal of religion is ultimately the same: the quest for truth.
When a reporter asks Palmer Joss if he believes Ellie's story, he answers: "As a person of faith I am bound by a different covenant than Dr. Arroway.
But our goal is one in the same. The pursuit of truth. I for one believe her."

Ellie has sought for evidence of extraterrestrial life, and Joss has found a connection to God,
both of them doing these things in order to find a connection to something larger than themselves, so that they need not feel so alone in the universe.