Starman

Starman is certainly a bit of a departure for director John Carpenter. It seems that after the box-office disappointment of The Thing (1982) he decided that his next return to the alien film should be something less scary and more in line with the E.T. (1982) template. The result is a John Carpenter film that is decidedly more gentle natured than we had seen up to that point. After learning about humanity from the space probe Voyager 2 an alien crash lands on Earth and assumes the identity of a dead man. He enlists the reluctant help of the wife of this deceased individual in his mission to return home. Needless to say, the authorities pursue him, hell bent on preventing his departure.

This change of pace for Carpenter is another film which shows the care he gave to all his movies. The story is solid, if nothing especially great. But it's nicely shot and paced, with some engaging performances, especially from Karen Allen as the bemused woman taken along for the ride by the alien. Jeff Bridges puts in an original enough turn as the starman, although it is definitely quite surprising he was Oscar nominated for it. In essence this is a road movie with a romantic sub-plot that is based around a sci-fi premise. It's fairly successful in each of its sub-genres and is a very likable piece of work overall. And for what it's worth, I much preferred it to E.T.

In a joint venture by the governments of the world, a space probe is launched into the farthest reaches of the Galaxy bearing a message from the United Nations, as well as `Greetings' in fifty-four languages; it's purpose is to attempt to contact any extraterrestrial life and proffer an invitation to visit us here on Earth. In `Starman,' directed by John Carpenter, Jeff Bridges stars as the alien who responds, only to be met with a less than cordial greeting once he arrives. Encountering hosts with a militaristic, if-you-can't-identify-it-shoot-it-down attitude, Starman is forced to take refuge and elude the very ones he has traveled so far to see. The burning question of course is, why? And, unfortunately, nobody seems to know. For his striking portrayal of Starman, Bridges deservedly received a Best Actor nomination from the Academy, and it proves to be the highlight of the film. From the outset, even as he is transformed into the vessel he must occupy during his stay with us ( a terrific sequence), his presence on the screen is captivating. He truly creates a unique character, distinct in form and substance, from the physical gestures that define him, to the subtle emotional depth he so aptly demonstrates and uses so well to convey to us who this being really is. It is through him that we are drawn in to this story of the travails with which he is beset during his sojourn upon our world, and with him we can only try to understand the motivation of powerful men who seem to live their lives in fear of the unknown or diverse. As Jenny Hayden, the young woman who through circumstances beyond her control becomes involved with Starman, Karen Allen adds just the right touch of sympathy to underscore the emotional situation in which Jenny finds herself ensconced. And there's just enough chemistry between her and Bridges to make this special relationship between their characters work effectively. Ultimately, how they relate to one another, and the tenderness with which they pursue their objective, becomes the real thrust and focal point of the story. Carpenter, in fact, would have been well advised to have stayed more within the parameters of that relationship and explored the workings thereof, rather than divesting the story into other, less fruitful areas and surrounding the main characters with a plethora of stringent stereotypes. While an entertaining film, `Starman' is surprisingly lacking in originality and imagination, both in story and direction; not to say this isn't a worthwhile endeavor, because it is, and it's definitely worth seeing. But it just seems that Carpenter could have mined the emotional depths a little more, developed the connection between Starman and Jenny more fully. Had he taken that path, this could have been a truly exceptional movie. As it is, it's a good film, better than the average sci-fi offering (especially for it's time, 1984), but given that Bridges brought so much to this with his creation of such a memorable character, the movie as a whole could have been so much more. The supporting cast includes Charles Martin Smith (Mark), Richard Jaeckel (Fox), Robert Phalen (Major Bell), Dirk Blocker (Cop #1) and M.C. Gainey (Cop #2). Although it is not what you would call a `great' or `classic' movie, `Starman' does succeed in making us take pause to reconsider some of our possibly preconceived notions of the way things are or should be; in the end, it's a call for understanding and love between all people everywhere, and a proposition put forth for universal peace. And with a theme like that, combined with the terrific performance by Bridges, you could do a lot worse for an evenings entertainment. I rate this one 7/10.

In 1977, the Voyager 2 travels to the outer space with messages of peace and greetings from Earth. A small alien spacecraft comes to Earth to make contact with Earthlings but the military airplanes shoot it down. The spacecraft crashes in Chequamegon Bay, Wisconsin and the alien wanders in a form of energy to the house of the young widow Jenny Hayden (Karen Allen), where he uses the DNA from a hair of her husband Scott (Jeff Bridges) to take his human form. The Starman contacts his mother ship and he needs to be in a crater Arizona in a couple of days to return to his star; otherwise he will be left behind and will die.

The Starman forces Jenny to take him to Arizona and she is hostile with him in the beginning. However, she learns that he is a peaceful being and she chooses to help him. But the army is chasing them and the despicable NSA chief George Fox (Richard Jaeckel) wants to hunt him down while the SETI scientist Mark Shermin (Charles Martin Smith) wants to help The Starman since he is sure that he has come to visit Earth peacefully.

"Starman" is still a wonderful sci-fi after thirty years. Nominated to the Oscar and to the Golden Globe, Jeff Bridges has magnificent performance and chemistry with Karen Allen. John Carpenter succeeds once again and makes a movie with a beautiful story, with drama, romance, action and humor. I saw this movie many times in the past on VHS but today I saw it on Blu-Ray. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Starman - O Homem das Estrelas" ("Starman - The Man from the Stars")

Note: On 25 August 2020, I saw this film again.

Note: On 28 February 2025, I saw this film again.

Given director John Carpenter's predilection for horror - I'm thinking HALLOWEEN and THE THING, of course - you wouldn't imagine him to be best suited to the job of directing STARMAN, a cross-country romance with a science fiction twist. And yet he does a blinding job, and STARMAN proves to be a fine little movie; in parts poignant, touching and altogether human.

Although this film came out in the wake of E.T., I find it superior to the overly-sentimental Spielberg movie. The storyline is subtle and the developing central relationship is slow paced, taking time to get to know the protagonists and present them in a realistic light. The love story between Allen and Bridges is low key throughout, and even the love scenes are handled sensitively.

Allen has always seemed to me to be a completely natural actress, free from artifice; she has a rare ability to inhabit her roles which makes you wonder why she didn't become a bigger name. Opposite her in an Oscar-nominated performance stands Jeff Bridges, playing it kooky and mannered as the alien-in-a-man's-body; there's something oddly moving about his role in this film and he soon had me completely engaged in his character.

Yes, I'll admit that I shed a tear or two at the moving climax, even though I'm a totally non-romantic person when it comes to films and you can usually find me watching gory horror flicks instead. Saying that, watch out for the utterly eerie scene at the opening when a baby transforms into a man. This scene scared the hell out of me when I saw it as a kid, and even today the icky sound and physical effects bring to mind a certain ice-bound Carpenter classic!

I'm amazed more people didn't point out the similarities in plot to E.T. when this adult version of basically the same tale came out. Maybe it was because Jeff Bridges performance is absolutely mesmerising, that you're much more interested in the characters than the plot, so you don't notice.

Basically, a perfect little movie. Beautifully and simply set up, the characters develop naturally in such a way that keeps you hooked right through to the end of the film. The strength of the central relationship distracts you from little infelicities, such as the fact that "Jennyhayden" seems remarkably incurious about her alien visitor - even after she gets to know him, it's not until he's about to leave that she asks him what his world is like! The film nicely points out the irony of our having extended welcoming greetings to the Universe, while our own mutual distrust causes us to shoot down every unexpected flying visitor. Having established that, however, Richard Jaekel's character seems to be pursuing the violent solution for its own sake without really exploring any motivation. When Charles Martin Smith points out that our behaviour does appear a little rude, Jaekel doesn't even have an answer for him - he's just going to try to kill the alien because that's his role in the movie I guess!

"Do you know what I find most beautiful about you? You are at your best when things are at their worst."

Well, it has been 19 years - I guess that the "boy baby" has grown up. Time for the sequel, methinks!!