Presented without even a stab at sincerity as a “lost” sci-fi movie from 1957, Alien Trespass rides an uneasy line between spoof and homage, not wanting to be either and sort of becoming both. Had the makers gone the extra mile to create an air of authenticity – for instance, not shooting present day on-location news reports against a green screen – there might be a little more to chew on, though audience familiarity with McCormack, Lauria, and Patrick leaves little chance a marketing department could create any sort of Blair Witch mystique. The cast is obviously game, though, and clocking in at 84 minutes, the film ends up being a nicely brisk bit of business.
The film starts with a faux news reel outlining the story of how Alien Trespass became a famous lost film – there was a contract dispute, so the studio didn’t release it. Points for realism and all, but seeing as how this is fiction, it would’ve been nice to inject this bit with a little more imagination. Maybe something that aped the apocryphal story of Sinatra yanking The Manchurian Candidate from circulation because of the JFK assassination? Nevermind that none of this dispute shows up on screen and that this make believe backstory is irrelevant. It serves as more of a distraction than as a set-up or even a nice passing detail.
The feature presentation centers on folks living in a desert town in 1957 when a UFO shoots out of the sky and crashes into the side of a mountain. Dr. Ted Lewis (Eric McCormack), the director of a nearby observatory, is one of the first to investigate the scene and becomes inhabited by an alien named ‘Urp’, who compares himself to a Federal Marshall (kind of a reach to make it to that joke, but it works). Urp is hunting the Ghota, a rubbery, cylindrical alien that is now loose and terrorizing the town below, turning anyone it meets into a puddle of goo. Tammy (Jenni Baird, who feels a part of the time period like few other cast members) joins forces with Urp and, along with some punk kids, tries to convince the local Police Chief Dawson (Dan Lauria) and Officer Vernon (Robert Patrick) that there’s a monster on the loose. In classic ’50s sci-fi fashion, the police believe it’s all a prank, so it’s up to Urp and the citizens of Earth to save their own hides.
The dialogue is suitably ’50s and the score is lousy with Theremin, which is put to great use. The ridiculously fake rubber monster is perfect, directly lifted from the era, and is probably the biggest bullseye of the whole production. Even the kid from the wrong side of the tracks doesn’t do anything worse than unscrew the tops of salt shakers. Creating this squeaky clean feeling of older horror flicks is a great move and works well. As pointed out later by Goodwin in an interview, they captured an optimism that was always mixed with the paranoia of sci-fi movies in the atomic age, a time when anything could be possible, from heating your food faster to being totally obliterated by space monsters.
What hurts the film is the confusion of tone. Sometimes it wants to be a straight-forward B-movie while other times it wants to be a mockumentary (this confusion is made worse if the film is accompanied by the optional introduction featuring the “sons” of the major players of the “original” film). The characters will be all wink and nudge in one scene, then play it straight in another. The straight scenes are always the best and one wishes Goodwin would’ve pushed to make the film in black & white with unknowns – anything to put the whole idea that this is a lost film over the top.
Billing itself as “a new cult classic” (always a red flag), Alien Trespass definitely isn’t. It’s a shame, considering some of the great spoof episodes of The X-Files, from whence R.W. Goodwin arose and a credit the press for the film touts whenever possible. This is a movie of good ideas that never quite came together, that no one could ever fully commit to. But all involved clearly set out to do little more than entertain and, in that, they succeed.
The film is presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic and is standard DVD quality. The colors have been pumped up to suggest Technicolor, though they never quite get past the HD look. Audio is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround and is very sharp.
“Watch the Skies” Alien Trespass Featurette – A press featurette with the cast, pushing the ‘lost film’ joke further down the field, using clips from the “Meet the Person” extra and the news reel from the beginning of the film. (8:21)
“Meet the Person” with Edwin R. Burroughs – A fake 1957 interview with the “cast” of Alien Trespass. (10:33)
Breaking News – A fake on-location report where the print for Alien Trespass was reportedly found. (1:53)
Live News Update – Fake update of the fake on-location report that serves as lead up to the theatrical trailer. (0:38)
R.W. Goodwin Interview – A brisk overview from the director on the creation of the film. (6:26)
Eric McCormack Interview – An even brisker talk with the star of the show. (1:55)
Theatrical Trailer #1 – (1:10)
Theatrical Trailer #2 – (1:27)
It’s a shame the makers couldn’t fully commit to the ‘lost film’ idea behind Alien Trespass, but that doesn’t ruin all the fun. It’s still worth a look.
Rangeland Productions presents Alien Trespass. Directed by: R.W. Goodwin. Starring: Eric McCormack, Jenni Baird, Dan Lauria, Robert Patrck. Written by: Steven Fisher. Running time: 84min. Rating: PG. Released on DVD: August 11, 2009. Available at Amazon.com
