The film, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, communicates particularly meaningful commentary on the concept of authority and social status throughout the film. Various characters, as well as some missing characters, as well as the treatment of ET bring to light reactions to social status and authority as well as how people tend to use or misuse their authority.
At the beginning of the film, the viewer can only hear ET, and it is through the sounds he makes that they understand his sense of panic, his distress as he tries to escape from potential danger. The sounds he makes though sound like a mix between a pig’s grunt and a dog’s bark. Then on meeting Elliott, ET is treated more like a pet than an equal. Elliott even makes the comment, “I found him, he belongs to me!”, asserting his ownership of his new friend. Throughout the film, ET is referred to as a goblin, a bald monkey, and and a pig. Another instance demonstrating ET’s status is when he is dressed up by Gertie. When Elliott’s older brother Michael finds him, he comments, “Let him have his dignity!” ET is repeatedly demeaned and belittled, even by the children who become his friends. Even the scenes showing the searchers looking for him are reminiscent of a slave-catcher searching for a slave, digging through the underbrush for tracks.
Another interesting absence of authority is that of Elliott’s father. This lack of authority figure has a dramatic impact on the plot of the story as well as the character development. One of the driving forces in Elliott’s ability to keep ET hidden is his mother’s relative neglect. She does enforce some rules and standards within her home, exerting some authority, but as a result of her husband leaving her and traveling to Hawaii, she seems overwhelmed by her responsibilities as a caregiver and breadwinner. It seems relatively easy for Elliott and Michael to get around and outsmart her. She, as well, as all the majority the adult figure in the film, seem oblivious to the drama unfolding, literally under her nose. Spielberg's use of this universal feeling of alienation from parental figures makes Elliott and his siblings very relatable characters.
The main authority figure present throughout the film is the shadowy government agents and scientists who are searching for ET. For most of the film, they are unsuccessful as Elliott and ET seem to continually outsmart them and his mother. Elliott also makes mockery of his teacher’s authority in the scene where he releases the frogs from death and mutilation by dissection.
If an authority figure, such as a father had been present in the family, the situation would have unfolded very differently and Elliott’s response to ET would have been different as well. Elliott is the quintessential child of divorce, dealing with his parent’s situation and feeling isolated, until ET appears and fills to emptiness that his father’s absence produced. This film is the story of an imaginary friend who has come to life to fill a void in a child’s life.
After ET is discovered and captured, a pseudo-father figure does appear, in the form of the “Keys” a government agent who bonds with Elliott in his weakened condition, by saying “Elliott, he came to me too. I've been wishing for this since I was 10 years old, I don't want him to die.” Keys is a strange character, as the viewer is not given any real background information on his intentions, but he is randomly inserted as a benevolent authority/father figure within the seemingly malevolent group of scientists and government agents. When he appears in the first half of the film, it is always in shadows, not even showing his face and making him appear to be a shady character who is after ET for some nefarious purpose. Even Elliott does not seem to trust him, hiding ET’s resurrection from him. In the end, he joins the family as ET returns to his “family”, seeming to support his escape, despite his intense tracking of the alien earlier in the film.
Questions- How would Elliott’s adventure with ET be different if his father had been present?
What is the role of the government agent “Keys”? Is he an antagonist? An ally?
What does the portrayal of suburbia in this film communicate? Is it positive and uplifting? Or dark and full of unhappy people?
