Why does E.T. die, and what does the ending of E.T. the Extra–Terrestrial mean?
Few movies have ever had the long- or short-term success of Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra–Terrestrial.
But embedded in the all-time blockbuster are some of Spielberg’s most powerful messages and most abstract and impactful filmmaking.
At the center of it is the deeply unsettling fact that in the film, E.T. died. For a kid’s movie, this is, in the words of the kids of the era, “heavy.”
Themes about death and dying are related to ideas of change, growth, and renewal, with implications as core to our existence as anything in all of the narrative. E.T.’s death, and the circumstances surrounding it, are actually the key to understanding the lasting impact of this seminal movie, much more than just “kids’ fare.”
But why does E.T. die? Why did E.T. get sick? It’s not just a technical explanation we are searching for, looking at the clues about his species within the film itself, but also from a larger perspective. E.T.’s character is a powerful concept of metaphor, even within the story.
Author: George Edelman
This article comes from No Film School and can be read on the original site.
