118. E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (Summer of Spielberg)

The Summer of Spielberg begins with Spielberg's biggest hit, the classic 1982 alien/divorce family film E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial.   Adjusted for inflation, this is the fourth-highest-grossing movie of all time. Beloved by generations, it is a lot of fun, yes… but it's also some dark, dark shit. Laci explains why it's always been so difficult for her to watch, even though she knows how good a movie it is.   There is much gushing about puppets. There has maybe never been a better puppet in a movie. And there may have never been three better child actor performances than the brothers and sister in this movie.   Next week: Jurassic Park (1993) with our special guests, Kristie & AJ of the In Love With Horror podcast!   Watch this episode in full on YouTube: https://youtu.be/dFtaf-8wxjA   Time stamps: 00:03:35 — We have a new theme song! 00:05:57 — Our histories with E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial 00:15:50 — Pre-movie predictions 00:32:28 — History segment: Development and production of E.T. (the character and the movie) 00:58:15 — In-depth movie discussion 01:42:27 — Final thoughts and star ratings   Artwork by Laci Roth.   Music by Rural Route Nine. Listen to their album The Joy of Averages on Spotify (https://bit.ly/48WBtUa), Apple Music (https://bit.ly/3Q6kOVC), or YouTube (https://bit.ly/3MbU6tC).   Songs by Rural Route Nine in this episode: "Summer of Spielberg" - https://youtu.be/yglAqqLEaoI "Winston-Salem" - https://youtu.be/-acMutUf8IM   "Snake Drama" - https://youtu.be/xrzz8_2Mqkg  "The Bible Towers of Bluebonnet" - https://youtu.be/k7wlxTGGEIQ   "Summer of Spielberg" theme song credits: Words and music written by Matt Stokes Performed by Wade Hymel (drums/guitar), Laci Roth (vocals), and Matt Stokes (vocals/guitar/bass) Produced by TJ Barends, Wade Hymel, and Matt Stokes Engineered and mixed by TJ Barends at Bare Sounds Studio in Ponchatoula, Louisiana   Sources: Spielberg: The First Ten Years by Laurent Bouzereau - https://bit.ly/4bVwS5T  "Spielberg speaks! Jaws Blu-Ray in the works with no 'digital corrections!' by Eric Vespe | Ain't It Cool News, 2011 - https://bit.ly/3VF4MGq  E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial 20th Anniversary Special, 2002  - https://imdb.to/3KH1wnv