E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

How does a wrinkly brown alien with a glowing finger make grown adults cry harder than any human actor in 1982? Steven Spielberg pushes every emotional button he can find, and he finds a lot of them. The middle stretch, when the house fills up with government guys in space suits, slows way down and gets genuinely scary for little kids. Then you remember Henry Thomas, who plays Elliott like a real lonely ten-year-old instead of a movie kid, and you forgive everything. Drew Barrymore’s scream when she first meets E.T. is still the funniest reaction shot of the decade. Peter Coyote’s keys jingle like a horror villain’s boots. The bike crossing the moon is a picture basically every person on Earth has seen. It made $797.3 million worldwide on a reported $10.5 million budget and holds 99% on Rotten Tomatoes. A 9.3 because it built the template for every kid adventure that came after and still beats most of them. $67 says you buy a bag of Reese’s Pieces this week and swear it’s a coincidence.

What works: Henry Thomas gives one of the most honest kid performances ever filmed, and the bike chase is pure movie magic.

What doesn’t: The quarantine stretch in the middle turns slow and grim, and the faceless agents in space suits are too scary for the youngest viewers.

Who it’s for: Families with kids old enough for a few scary minutes, and every adult who wants to remember what being ten felt like.