National Film Vault

FILM NOTES

Universal Pictures released E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in June 1982, with Steven Spielberg directing at the height of his commercial and creative powers. The film became the highest-grossing release of its time, displacing Star Wars, and remains a defining work of the New Hollywood era's transition into the blockbuster age. Its blend of suburban realism and science fiction gave it an emotional register that set it apart from contemporaries.

The cell titled Gertie and Michael captures Drew Barrymore and Robert MacNaughton in a darkened interior, their faces lit by warm practical light from below across three closely related frames. Elliott, played by Henry Thomas, is also present in the sequence. The slight shift in framing across the frames suggests a cut within the same scene, preserving a quiet, intimate moment among the three siblings.