District 9: #NoNeedToBelieve

The number one question I always get when I tell people I write this blog is, ‘What’s your favorite alien movie?’ No question, it’s got to be District 9. The only movie that grabbed my attention and so beautifully told a great story in the first 10 minutes was Pixar’s ‘Up’. From there the story never lets go and is a constant adventure through a set of circumstances that everyone can identify with. How they incorporate the aliens, and their obvious symbolic nature with Africa’s immigration issues, deserves the award alone. The acting, special effects and direction allow this to really set the standard unlike any movie since Alien. My favorite hands down.

Battleship: #DecentContact

I haven’t loved a movie this much since Battle LA. I dragged a few friends with me who weren’t huge alien movie fans and they were pleasantly surprised how entertaining it was, more than Cowboys and Aliens at least. The effects were latest standards, especially the sounds, and the technology the aliens used was pretty creative. The plot line was easy to follow without too many holes and I thought the main character did a good job after a rocky start. Rihanna was pretty bad though, check out all of her lines and you’ll see why.

Let’s remember, they took a board game and turned it into a full on movie. For that, and the great way they incorporated it, they get extra credit. They don’t address all the things that make a great alien movie like why they came to earth, or a greater symbolic message, but I enjoyed it.

Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind: #DecentContact

Although being an older movie from the 70s, I still had high expectations for Close Encounters of the 3rd kind has it’s considered such a classic in the genre. I could appreciate that there were some original themes and ideas that have been copied over the last 3 decades, but I left the movie feeling just MEH.

So many open questions for me after the movie…so the aliens chose this guy and made him crazy to the point where he left his family and destroyed his life, losing his job and everything he had? Why not pick someone without a family to leave behind?

This movie is prime for a remake in the next 10 years, with a larger focus on the science and algorithms around the iconic sounds and visual displays that everyone remembers about this movie. Instead the original spends too much time developing the characters, having them hike around some random mountain and generally being bat-shit crazy. Could have spent more of the time as Contact did with how and why they are communicating in this way. Loved the addition of visual dynamics to the initial contact and could give a new director the ability to do something truly amazing with today’s special effects.

This original original is watchable, not great by any means, but entertaining enough.

Contact: #NoNeedToBelieve

Simply one of my top three favorite movies ever made. You can love this movie on so many levels, and being an alien movie fan is certainly one of them, but this is one of the few movies I’ve reviewed that anyone can enjoy. Old, young, conservative, liberal, male, female, I just can’t see a demographic that wouldn’t like this movie. There are so many great aspects, from the acting, the writing, and the way the film addresses so many topics in such a great way. Overall I honestly recommend watching this and keeping an open mind; the film is a journey to end of the universe.

Star Trek - First Contact: #TakeMeToYourDealer

I’m not a huge trekkie by any means, but I did enjoy this movie. The dialog around why contact matters, how this can affect the world and the event itself is very well done. Not a fan of the bumbling borg people, but don’t let this distract you from the uplifting message that we can be a better civilization if things like food, shelter and clean water are provided to all. Meaning becomes an internal bettering of oneself, not the pursuit of money and possessions. Although idealistic and unpractical, it’s certainly a nice idea.

Super 8: #DecentContact

2011 was a fantastic year for alien movie fans with several high profile movies coming out including Battle: LA in March and then two alien movies in the middle of the height of the summer movie season within six weeks of each other, one being in 1800s Wild West and the other in 1979 Ohio.

Since this was produced by Spielberg and directed by JJ Abrams, I had fairly big expectations for Super 8. You knew it was going to be a wild ride and it sure delivers. A slow beginning explodes into a whirlwind adventure following a set of kids throughout their small rural town. A decent story, although a bit cheesy at times, was well thought out and includes some classic coming-of-age moments.

The biggest thing about this movie was the fact that you could easily watch this was your 12 or 13 year old nephew (it is PG-13). It’s graphic and loud, but not overly violent and never inappropriate. It’s not one of the best alien movies I’ve ever seen, but it is surely #DecentContact.

Alien Nation: #TakeMeToYourDealer

I’m not one for old movies, which I define as anything before 1995, and a sci-movie from the 80s that’s watchable is incredibly hard to come by. So, that said, I went into this movie with extremely low expectations.

Overall, Alien Nation is simply a cop movie with aliens added in, but without much creativity added around the aliens. The fact that they aliens look almost identical to us except for the lack of hair is pretty ridiculous. The acting was pretty terrible as well, but for some reason the story kept engaged. I wanted to turn it off a few times but held on, and then, when it was over was glad that I watched it.

It’s not a great movie, but it’s certainly one of the best alien movie from the 1980s. Watchable? Yes, if you #takemetoyourdealer. 

Cloverfield: #DecentContact

The movie opens from the view point of one of main characters filming interviews of attendees at his friend’s going-away party, purposely erratic, low angles and kind of crappy quality. That said, it worked well for the intro as you get a good sense of the story and build a connection, but I wish they had ditched the jumpy handheld direction later in the movie. The dark, running away from monsters scenes got a little bit much for me, and when the crazy shit happens later, I would have preferred high end, Michael Bay production levels. Speaking of which, why hasn’t Bay ever done an alien movie (and don’t you dare say Transformers). 

Overall, the movie was very entertaining. If you like alien movies, and was able to watch ‘The Blair With Project’, you’re going to love this movie. If all that running and shaking made you a bit queasy, there’s still a lot to see here. Very watchable and a well written story. Lots for alien movie fans to like here and I’m surprised 3 years later there still isn’t a sequel, although it sounds like they are working on it. 

Attack the Block: #TakeMeToYourDealer

Being a huge arsenal fan, I have a soft spot for any media from Britain. Techno music, crappy TV and the fun movies about a group of British kids. So, that being said I went into this low-budget movie with decent expectations.

The alien aspect was a bit off for me with very little offered in terms of why they were there and where they came from. I would almost call this more of a monsters movie, than an alien movie. 

The other thing that really irked me was the acting. Any time you have a group of untested youth actors, you’ll have some impressive performances and others show their inexperience. On multiple occasions i wanted to fast forward the scene as I couldn’t stand the awkwardness. 

Besides that though the movie is pretty decent. The story progresses well and I was happy to sit through a few bad moments for some good entertainment. Have a few cocktails and enjoy. 

I wouldn’t be surprised if this gets picked up a few years from now by the major studios and given an american re-work, with more of a horror focus. 

Alien: #NoNeedToBelieve

Considering this movie was made in 1979, and I didn’t see it until 2011, there are some pretty big draw backs. “Old movies” are laden with long silent patches, strange audio that makes it hard to understand the dialog and generally over the top “baaad doop ooop” sound effects. Compare the audio work in Alien vs “Cowboys and Aliens” for example. 

Despite how old this movie was, I did generally enjoy it. There were two or three parts that it dragged on a bit, and some of the plot lines, especially around the first kills, were incredibly obvious. Screaming out “O man, this guy is so dead. Turn around!!!” can be fun though. Alien was also generally scary, and I usually hate scary movies, but this was a more suspenseful entertaining scary. Good thing I had my wife to hold on to! (yes I am aware I’m a big baby and it’s her that should be holding on to me) With long drawn out scenes, walking in to dark alleys and lots of steam coming out of seemingly nowhere, you’re on the edge of the seat just waiting for something to happen. 

The other problem I had with the movie was the stupid damn cat. I’m not a huge cat person in general, and maybe I would have been more attached to the pet if it was a dog, but no offense fluffy, if its my life on the line you’re getting left. 

Overall, the movie is a worth a watch, again considering how old it is, and I recommend it. It’s the first alien contact movie that happens in space and was very creative for 1979. Now time to watch to Aliens…

NIGHTNIGHT by DEDDY