"New wonders in the world"

While the pacing is sometimes too slow and dull, this is a wonder-inducing sci-fi movie, which has aged well, except for the initial lanky extraterrestrial and the final one, which come off as not much more than puppets (the kids dressed up as aliens work fine though).

The yard sequence is particularly amusing, especially if you know of an eccentric neighbor who does dubious things in the yard in his/her robe (like ME, lol).

The story takes an adventurous turn in the last hour when the events switch to northeast Wyoming. Richard Dreyfuss and Melinda Dillon are quality protagonists.

The Collector's Edition (i.e. the Director's Cut) runs 137 minutes.

It was shot in Mobile/Fairhope/Bay Minette, Alabama; Bernal, Mexico; Dharamsala & Mumbai, India; California (Los Angeles, Burbank, Palmdale, Mojave Desert & El Mirage Dry Lake); Washington DC; and Devils Tower National Monument, Wyoming.