Reviews

The best thing about this film is that it was shot in Alabama.

This is the story of a self absorbed young man who is bored. He is also convinced that he is capable of genius. I should end this review right here because the movie doesn't proceed much past this. This first paragraph is the spoiler by the way.

Family and friends try to convince him to get a job, snap out of it, and enjoy his life and attractive girlfriend who loves him (for unexplained reasons) and that he can pursue greatness while not being boring, whiny, self absorbed and an undiscovered genius. But no...

So he decides to isolate himself alone in the woods in a way he cannot get out of. Doing this will inspire him to greatness and writing unforgettable prose he hopes. He does not bring a gun or a knife, just a hatchet. He does not bring enough food or water. Or a first aid kit, phone or GPS, etc. He does bring a number of cameras and lights with him. That alone tells you all we need to know about him. This is another spoiler.

So for most of the film he's getting terrified at night by noises and running in circles in the dark, crying, whimpering begging, etc. None of it has any drama to it or an actual point. He's just really afraid of the dark and being in the woods and a grown man who's still bored. He's also still boring.

The actor is very good however. He began the movie boring and managed to maintain that throughout the film without breaking character for even a moment. He even has the skills to want the viewer to want the lead character to die after about 15 minutes of screen time and for that feeling to grow as the movie goes on. That's rare in a movie. The longer our hero was on screen the more I wanted him to die, please. It didn't even have to involve a ghost or monster. Just trip and crack the coco, please. But no...

At the end he just disappears. Maybe a ghoul ate him. Maybe he went insane. Maybe the spirits or some really uncomfortable looking chairs and a rusty bucket got him. Hard to say, which apparently is the point of the film. Harder to care.

At the end two actors who play the family and loved ones come out with a post script to the gone hero of undiscovered geniuses. But they are not convinced.

The filmmakers believed that they could make a film that might be profound in some way. They did try and deserve some credit for that. "Is too much silence a bad thing?" our hero asks, but he never gives himself or us a chance to find out. He speaks constantly. If you like films about introspective narcissists who have nothing of interest to say, you may enjoy this one.

I saw this film when it first came out at a theater in downtown L.A. part of a double bill with a Bruce Lee movie or maybe a Streetfighter flick, as I recall. It came out a year after the first Star Wars movie and was a better flick. Hands down more interesting. The plot was simple and clear, and like most things derivative.

An alien, who appears to be ill, arrives on earth. Soon two "cops" or Rangers, from another planet show up and a gunfight ensues. They kill the alien and for some reason leave without taking his gun and it's power source. I don't recall exactly why they leave, but it's in a rush as I recall.

A kid shows up and finds what is in effect Sauron's ring. Or your standard magic ring that poisons the holder of it and drives them mad. In this case it's a weapon to begin with. Everyone who had read Tolkein or knew their myths and folk tales knew this was no good.

But there is something in that moment when he finds the weapons, that stands out. A bullied lonely angry teen finds power. You know he's trying to think out what to do with it and that's the theme of the film. A morally weak guy has to make deep moral decisions. He has to do it while the thing that gives him power is poisoning him and he kinda knows it. that's the heart of the film and it's central conflict.

Bad acting and poor special effects happen along the way. But if you are drunk or high it won't disturb you much. I found, in 1978 that the look of the aliens was unique.

It's interesting how the film makers use the aliens. They tell you all you need to know about them with no padding, no excess fat. They save us a backstory that adds nothing that we need to know. They show thought and efficiency in that. Later, at the conclusion of the film, the cops show up and take the weapon (the magic ring that is corrupting) back to be thrown in Mt. Doom or locked away, etc.

Some years later I was watching ET: The Extra Terrestrial when it first came out and I kept thinking, "Where have I seen this ET before". It was in Laser Blast. ET was the little kid version of what the LaserBlast cops grew up to be. No lie look at 'em. Compare them to about half the dinosaur like aliens that have been in the movies since 1978.