Rating: C+
Dir: Brian Duffield
Star: Kaitlyn Dever
This one is certainly unusual in a couple of ways, one of which should be apparent from the limited list of actors above. There is basically only a single significant character in the whole movie. It’s Brynn (Dever), a young woman who lives in a small town where she has, for some reason initially unexplained, become persona non grata. She lives in her family home by herself, and still seems to regret the loss of her best friend, Maude, years ago. These issues, however, become somewhat trivial one night, when she gets an unwelcome visitor, in the form of an extraterrestrial: your archetypal Grey. Though she succeeds in fending it off, despite its telekinetic powers, this is only the start of her ordeal.
It turns out the area – and perhaps the world as a whole – is undergoing an alien invasion. Brynn’s efforts to flee prove unsuccessful, and even her home proves to no safe refuge, as further varieties of interplanetary visitors, in different shapes and sizes, seek to subdue her. Making matters worse, her neighbours are subject to takeover by parasitic organisms implanted by the invaders, and so can no longer be trusted. Which is a good place to mention the other unusual element: the lack of dialogue. Not a shortage. A near complete lack. Wikipedia says there are five words across its entire running-time. [Quentin Tarantino’s head just exploded…] I guess that doesn’t include the aliens, who appear quite chatty, albeit in their own, incomprehensible way.
Both this and the movie’s singular focus do feel quite gimmicky, and it has to work pretty hard to get around its own, self-imposed limitations. This doesn’t always work. For instance, the reason why she’s hated by everybody else in the town is only revealed as the result of a fairly contrived set of circumstances. Everything following this seemed a huge stretch, not least the aliens’ reaction to it. Mind you, their actions are a bit dubious all round, such as basically wandering Earth naked. If I’m engaged in the hostile takeover of an alien world, you can bet I’m putting pants on. See also Signs, though at least it doesn’t appear water is harmful to them here. Well, not unless it’s at a rolling boil, anyway…
There’s a religious element here that isn’t exactly subtle. Brynn is racked with guilt, and cannot obtain absolution for her sins by herself, only through working with a greater force. Though it’s not exactly entirely complimentary towards organized faith, particularly in its conclusion. All this seemed unnecessary padding. I felt it was much better when it is not trying to be anything more than a straightforward horror movie. It does a great job of pitting a plucky but largely unskilled woman against a home invasion, albeit of the close encounters kind. I did wonder what I would do in her shoes: who would I call if I found myself in possession of a genuine alien? Shame the Weekly World News is no longer in operation…