Within Devils Tower
In Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Roy Neary’s visions matter because they transform an unexplained UFO encounter into something that can be located on a map. Before he knows the name “Devils Tower”, Roy is haunted by a distinctive mountain shape that repeatedly appears in his thoughts and actions.
Page outline Jump by section
Introduction
In Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Roy Neary’s visions matter because they transform an unexplained UFO encounter into something that can be located on a map. Before he knows the name “Devils Tower”, Roy is haunted by a distinctive mountain shape that repeatedly appears in his thoughts and actions. What begins as a private obsession gradually becomes evidence. When televised footage finally reveals the real Wyoming landmark, the image in Roy’s mind acquires a geographical destination. Spielberg turns a psychological mystery into a navigational one: the vision is not symbolic, but directional. [Intermountain Histories]intermountainhistories.orgIntermountain HistoriesClose Encounters of the Third Kind and Devils Tower…It begins with Neary forming small structures without conc…
This progression is central to the film’s treatment of UFO contact. Rather than receiving a clear message, Roy receives fragments—a shape, a compulsion, a recurring form. The significance of Devils Tower emerges when those fragments align with a real place.
Mashed Potatoes, Clay and Repetition
After his close encounter with the UFO, Roy begins seeing the same shape everywhere. The image does not arrive as a verbal instruction. Instead, it manifests through repetition. He absent-mindedly moulds objects into the same form and becomes increasingly unable to ignore it. One of the film’s most famous scenes shows him sculpting a miniature mountain from mashed potatoes at the family dinner table, an act that appears irrational to everyone around him but feels urgently meaningful to him. [Intermountain Histories]intermountainhistories.orgIntermountain HistoriesClose Encounters of the Third Kind and Devils Tower…It begins with Neary forming small structures without conc…
The importance of these scenes is not that Roy recognises Devils Tower immediately. He does not. The audience watches him struggle with an image whose meaning remains hidden. Spielberg repeatedly presents the mountain as a visual puzzle:
- Roy sketches it.
- He shapes food into it.
- He builds larger models from clay and household materials.
- He becomes increasingly consumed by reproducing its contours. [Intermountain Histories]intermountainhistories.orgIntermountain HistoriesClose Encounters of the Third Kind and Devils Tower…It begins with Neary forming small structures without conc…
The repetition functions as evidence within the story. Roy is not pursuing Devils Tower because he has chosen a destination. He is pursuing a form that has embedded itself in his consciousness. Each recreation reinforces the impression that the image originates outside his ordinary experience.
The growing scale of the models also mirrors the growth of his conviction. What begins as a small gesture at the dinner table develops into an overwhelming attempt to reconstruct an entire landscape inside his home. The mountain becomes the physical record of an obsession that he cannot explain but cannot abandon. [Intermountain Histories]intermountainhistories.orgIntermountain HistoriesClose Encounters of the Third Kind and Devils Tower…It begins with Neary forming small structures without conc…
The Television Recognition Scene
The breakthrough occurs not in the sky but through television.
After weeks of compulsive modelling, Roy sees a news report connected to the government’s evacuation operation near Devils Tower. The broadcast includes images of the Wyoming landmark. For the first time, the mysterious shape in his mind is matched to a real location. Roy immediately recognises it as the mountain he has been recreating. [Facebook]facebook.comRoy Neary, Close Encounters of the Third KindAfter Roy's wife leaves him due to his erratic behavior, he sees a TV report about a… [Medium]fran-delpizzo.medium.comSteven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind | MediumSoon after, Roy and Gillian both see a news report on the TV, and…
This moment is crucial because it converts subjective experience into something externally verifiable. Up to this point, Roy’s behaviour could be interpreted as psychological breakdown, trauma or obsession. Once the television footage appears, the audience sees that the shape has a real-world counterpart. The mountain exists independently of Roy, yet matches the image that has dominated his thoughts. [Medium]mheadd.medium.commashed potatoes and digital modernization 1d6e347c3513There is a scene in Steven Spielberg's 1977 film Close Encounters of the Third Kind…Read more…
Spielberg stages the revelation through mass media rather than direct discovery. Roy does not travel through Wyoming searching for clues. Instead, the answer arrives through a broadcast intended to support the government’s cover story. Ironically, the attempt to control information gives Roy exactly the information he needs. [Medium]fran-delpizzo.medium.comSteven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind | MediumSoon after, Roy and Gillian both see a news report on the TV, and…
The scene also links Roy to other witnesses. Jillian Guiler experiences a similar recognition, suggesting that the recurring image is not unique to one individual. The vision becomes a shared phenomenon rather than a private hallucination. [Medium]mheadd.medium.commashed potatoes and digital modernization 1d6e347c3513There is a scene in Steven Spielberg's 1977 film Close Encounters of the Third Kind…Read more…
Private Compulsion Becomes Geography
The significance of the television revelation is that it turns an inner experience into a route.
Before the recognition scene, Roy’s mountain is an abstract shape. Afterwards, it becomes a destination that can be located, travelled to and reached. The image acquires coordinates. The gap between vision and place collapses. [Medium]mheadd.medium.commashed potatoes and digital modernization 1d6e347c3513There is a scene in Steven Spielberg's 1977 film Close Encounters of the Third Kind…Read more…
This transformation reflects one of Spielberg’s most distinctive ideas about UFO contact. The aliens do not merely communicate information; they reorganise human movement. Roy is drawn across the American landscape because a mental image has become a geographical instruction. The Tower is no longer a symbol. It is a point on the map.
The film therefore treats Devils Tower differently from a conventional climax location. Many stories reveal a destination first and then send characters towards it. Close Encounters reverses the process. Roy receives the destination long before he knows where it is. The mystery is not whether the place exists, but where the place belongs in the world. [Intermountain Histories]intermountainhistories.orgIntermountain HistoriesClose Encounters of the Third Kind and Devils Tower…It begins with Neary forming small structures without conc…
By the time Roy reaches Wyoming, the audience understands that the journey began much earlier, with a shape appearing in his mind. The mountain’s importance lies not only in its role as the site of contact but in its function as proof. The repeated vision, the mashed-potato sculpture, the clay models and the television recognition scene all establish the same conclusion: Roy’s obsession was pointing towards a real landmark all along. [Intermountain Histories]intermountainhistories.orgIntermountain HistoriesClose Encounters of the Third Kind and Devils Tower…It begins with Neary forming small structures without conc… [Facebook]facebook.comotatoes LOL. Am I alone in this? 😁…
Amazon book picks
Further Reading
Books and field guides related to Roy Visions Mapped T 56 C386. Use these as the next step if you want deeper reading beyond the article.
The UFO Experience
Hynek created the close-encounter framework that inspired Spielberg's film title and served as an adviser on the movie.
Passport to Magonia
One of the most influential books on UFO culture and the mystery-oriented approach echoed in Spielberg's work.
eBay marketplace picks
Marketplace Samples
Example marketplace items related to this page. Use the search link to explore similar finds on eBay.
Endnotes
-
Source: fran-delpizzo.medium.com
Link: https://fran-delpizzo.medium.com/the-artist-and-the-obsession-close-encounters-of-the-third-kind-e55b963ba1a4?source=———9—————————-Source snippet
Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind | MediumSoon after, Roy and Gillian both see a news report on the TV, and...
-
Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/JoshHorowitzMTV/posts/this-is-important-this-means-somethingroy-neary-close-encounters-of-the-third-ki/1565700058731285/Source snippet
Roy Neary, Close Encounters of the Third KindAfter Roy's wife leaves him due to his erratic behavior, he sees a TV report about a...
-
Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/12117541695/posts/10160495937726696/Source snippet
otatoes LOL. Am I alone in this? 😁...
-
Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/3164534807204454/posts/4251950355129555/Source snippet
1977 Now: August 19, 2025...
Published: August 19, 2025
-
Source: mheadd.medium.com
Title: mashed potatoes and digital modernization 1d6e347c3513
Link: https://mheadd.medium.com/mashed-potatoes-and-digital-modernization-1d6e347c3513Source snippet
There is a scene in Steven Spielberg's 1977 film Close Encounters of the Third Kind...Read more...
-
Source: youtube.com
Title: Close Encounters of the Third Kind | Roy’s Mashed Potatoes | Voyage
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qirRRYSvesSource snippet
2 Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) | Something's Wrong With Dad | Richard Dreyfuss, Teri Garr...
-
Source: intermountainhistories.org
Link: https://www.intermountainhistories.org/items/show/226Source snippet
Intermountain HistoriesClose Encounters of the Third Kind and Devils Tower...It begins with Neary forming small structures without conc...
-
Source: Wikipedia
Title: Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Close_Encounters_of_the_Third_KindSource snippet
Close Encounters of the Third Kind... Roy boarding the UFO. Climbing Devils Tower behind the faltering Jillian, Roy exhorts Jillian to...
-
Source: movie-locations.com
Title: Close Encounters Of The Third Kind
Link: https://movie-locations.com/movies/c/Close-Encounters-Of-The-Third-Kind.phpSource snippet
1977Discover the film locations for Close Encounters of the Third Kind, around Mobile, Alabama; California; and Wyoming, including the De...
Additional References
-
Source: alamy.com
Link: https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo/close-encounters-of-a-third-kind.html -
Source: flaszonfilm.com
Link: https://flaszonfilm.com/2024/01/22/close-encounters-of-the-third-kind-and-mashed-potato-shaped-dreams-of-hollywood-greatness/Source snippet
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND and Mashed...22 Jan 2024 — CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND and Mashed Potato-Shaped Dreams of Holl...
-
Source: bookerhorror.com
Title: close encounters of the third kind 1977 director steven spielberg
Link: https://bookerhorror.com/close-encounters-of-the-third-kind-1977-director-steven-spielberg/Source snippet
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977...Close Encounters of the Third Kind begins as United Nations investigators scramble to a site...
-
Source: youtube.com
Title: You Tube Close Encounters of the Third Kind (4/8) Movie CLIP
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdkS0TgEG30Source snippet
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (4/8) Movie CLIP - Roy's...Close Encounters of the Third Kind (4/8) Movie CLIP - Roy's Mashed Potatoe...
-
Source: reddit.com
Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/movies/comments/1iccnu5/close_encounter_of_the_third_kind_where_were_the/Source snippet
get to the tower during the evacuation looks like it might have...
-
Source: catalog.afi.com
Link: https://catalog.afi.com/Film/67160-CLOSE-ENCOUNTERS-OF-THE-THIRD-KINDSource snippet
Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) - AFI CatalogMeanwhile, Jillian sees the same report and connects the Devil's Tower to her own obsess...
-
Source: cowboystatedaily.com
Title: [Roy Neary]({{ ‘roy-neary/’ | relative_url }})’s mashed-potato vision finally made sense.Read more
Link: https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/05/31/50-years-later-sci-fi-fans-still-find-their-close-encounters-at-devils-tower/Source snippet
50 Years Later, Sci-Fi Fans Still Find Their 'Close...31 May 2026 — 50 Years Later, Sci-Fi Fans Still Find Their 'Close Encounters' At D...
Published: May 2026
-
Source: youtube.com
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAZvteaUEwISource snippet
5 Roy Experiences His First UFO Sighting | Close Encounters of the Third Kind...
-
Source: youtube.com
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c6cVxHOZsQSource snippet
tching several people climb the tower. Highly recommend a visit...
-
Source: youtube.com
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFOGOEegHqwSource snippet
3 Close Encounters Of The Third Kind Mashed Potatoes...
Topic Tree