Starman

I have always admired Jeff Bridges, but it wasn't until now that I realized he made movies when he was younger. So I was surprised to see him in this role as an alien who does not understand anything of what's happening here on earth. I can now understand why he became such a star. His performance is really good, maybe one of the best things Bridges ever did in his career! But the movie is good on all levels. A strong story, that succeeds in avoiding all the predictable jokes about a stranger getting to know the customs of a new environment (like e.g. Crocodile Dundee, or Blast from the Past), good actors, strong directing and great special effects (Bridges' transformation from a baby to an adult!) that never predominate the rest of the story. It's hard to believe this movie is already 18 years old! Like many of these '80-movies, it has this timeless quality that makes a movie worth watching even twenty years later (just like Out of Africa, The Natural, Tootsie, E.T., Blade Runner,...). If you're looking for a sweet and strong movie that gets into your heart, watch this!

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 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.

Jeff Bridges is one of my favorite actors and it's a shame that he has not yet won an Oscar. He has been acting for thirty-five years and only been nominated four times. Starman (1984) gave him his third nomination and while he had tough competition that year, F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hulce in Amadeus, his performance is brilliant and every bit as good. The way that Bridges takes the character and the little glitches in his movement and speech are fascinating. It is a complete transformation and it's flawless. I was reminded of how Dustin Hoffman played his character in Rain Man with all his little stutters and twitching, but Hoffman studied the disease and had something to work with. Bridges pulls this performance off from scratch and hits a bullseye. Karen Allen and Charles Martin Smith are both good as well and the score is wonderful. The story may be a bit derivative and there are some story lulls, but who cares. This is a must-see movie simply for Bridges performance.

*** out of ****

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.