History YMMV / CloseEncountersOfTheThirdKind

* HilariousInHindsight: The humans who enter the mothership at the end are dressed in red jumpsuits and sunglasses, which in hindsight look like cheap versions of the aliens' outfits from the original ''V'' miniseries (in which the aliens did ''not'' turn out to be cuddly, friendly greys).
* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: Compared to ''Series/{{The X-Files}}''. Which came along sixteen years later.

* DesignatedHero: Guess.

* SugarWiki/FunnyMoments: When the mothership makes its full appearance over the contact base, [[OnlySaneMan one of the technicians]] rushes past Roy and straight into a port-o-let.
** Also, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlKvPpij-QQ&feature=related this]].
** Rolling the ''whole damn giant globe'' over to the trailer to look at it.

* SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome: That spaceship. All of them actually. Imagine a neon display that can fly.
* NightmareFuel: Barry's [[AdultFear abduction scene]], the general scenes of electronics going haywire, and to many, Roy's obvious descent into [[MoreThanMindControl alien-induced madness]]. It's just so very deadpan and the setting so banal, yet his madness is profound.
** Johnny Mathis singing "Chances Are" is just the cherry on the icing.
** According to the making-of documentary, Barry's actor wasn't afraid of the abduction scene at the time. Not only was he 'abducted' into his real-life mother's arms, but Spielberg had told him all about what was going to happen a few hours before.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: Compared to the ''Series/{{The X-Files}}''. Which came along sixteen years later.

* FridgeLogic: Roy drives his car from Indiana to Wyoming, but one scene while he is in Wyoming shows his car to have a Wyoming license plate.
** The book cleared this up; he flew to Wyoming and rented a car there.

* HighOctaneNightmareFuel: Barry's [[AdultFear abduction scene]], the general scenes of electronics going haywire, and to many, Roy's obvious descent into [[MoreThanMindControl alien-induced madness]]. It's just so very deadpan and the setting so banal, yet his madness is profound.
** Johnny Mathis singing "Chances Are" is just the cherry on the icing.
** According to the making-of documentary, Barry's actor wasn't afraid of the abduction scene at the time. Not only was he 'abducted' into his real-life mother's arms, but Spielberg had told him all about what was going to happen a few hours before.

* ScrewTheRulesIHaveANuke: The aliens abduct men, women and children in the 1940's then return them, unaged, 30-40 years later. This isn't exactly nice, but with that display of the mothership at the end no one really wants to pick a fight on the issue of earth's rights and jurisdiction in the matter.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: Compared to the TheXFiles. Which came along sixteen years later.

** Listen carefully for musical {{Shout Out}}s to ''{{Jaws}}'' (when the mothership is communicating with the Devils Tower base) and ''{{Disney/Pinocchio}}'' (when Roy is being led into the ship).

** Although Roy never left his family, it was his family that left ''him!'' On the telephone to his wife, he says he is trying to be a good parent and that he'll do anything his wife wants if she were only to return, implying he sincerley wants to try to put his obsession behind him. Given the way the conversation ends however, do you think his wife was ever considering letting him see the kids again? Its hard to argue that Roy has anything really left for him on Earth?

** Although Roy never left his family, it was his family that left ''him!'' On the telephone to his wife, he says he is trying to be a good parent and that he'll do anything his wife wants if she were only to return, implying he sincerley wants to try to put his obsession behind him. Given the way the conversation ends however, really, do you think his wife was ever considering letting him see the kids again? Its hard to argue that Roy has anything really left for him on Earth?

** Although Roy never left his family, it was his family that ''left'' him! On the telephone to his wife, he says he is trying to be a good parent and that he'll do anything his wife wants if she were only to return, but given the way the conversation ends, really, do you think his wife was ever considering letting him see the kids again? Its hard to argue that Roy has anything really left for him on Earth?

* ScrewTheRulesIHaveANuke: The aliens abduct men, women and children in the 1940's then return them, unaged, 40 years later. This isn't exactly nice, but with that display of the mothership at the end no one really wants to pick a fight on the issue of earth's rights and jurisdiction in the matter.

* ScrewTheRulesIHaveANuke: The aliens abduct men, women and children in the 1940's then return them, unaged, 40 years later. This isn't exactly nice, but with that display of the mothership at the end no one really ants to pick a fight on the issue of earth's jurisdiction in the matter.

* CrowningMomentOfAwesome: That spaceship. All of them actually. Imagine a neon display that can fly.
* CrowningMomentOfFunny: When the mothership makes its full appearance over the contact base, [[OnlySaneMan one of the technicians]] rushes past Roy and straight into a port-o-let.

* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: The communication music has forever been associated with films about aliens. Also, the score is done by [[JohnWilliams John Motherfucking Williams]]. Case closed.
** For reference, the communication music is known as "[[hhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBAOLqBjIFk Wild Signals]]"
** Listen carefully for musical {{Shout Out}}s to ''{{Jaws}}'' (when the mothership is communicating with the Devils Tower base) and ''{{Disney/Pinocchio}}'' (when Roy is being led into the ship).

** For reference, the communication music is known as "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUcOaGawIW0 Wild Signals]]"

* CrowningMomentOfAwesome: That spaceship.

** For reference, the communication music is known as "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnYCboElgHs Wild Signals]]"

* YouFailGeographyForever: the coordinates given in the movie are a couple hundred miles away from the real Devils Tower. Not to mention, the mountains, cliffs, and tunnels around Muncie, Indiana. It's as if this was fiction.