Release Date: November 6, 2009
Studio: Universal Pictures
Genre: Mystery/Sci-Fi/Thriller
Rated PG-13   1 hr 38 mins

CAST:

Milla Jovovich:  Abbey Tyler
Will Patton:  Sheriff August
Elias Koteas:  Abel Campos
Hakeem Kae-Kazim:  Awolowa
                                          Odusami

The Fourth Kind features an interesting premise: a film based on the events surrounding an alien abduction that incorporates footage from the actual incidents into the film. When the initial reviews came out, many stated that this footage gave credence to an otherwise mediocre film; I was intrigued, but waited until The Fourth Kind was released on DVD to watch it.

It’s at this point where I would caution those who know nothing about The Fourth Kind to stop reading. If you have any interest in watching the film, but have done no research on it, stop reading now and come back once you’ve seen it. I won’t be spoiling any plot points, but I will kill the overall experience of the film. Still reading? This is the last chance to keep your Fourth Kind cherry intact…

Here’s the kicker: everything’s fake! While this may seem obvious to those in the know, I have read a few reviews where the viewer was duped. I unfortunately knew everything going into the film, so it certainly wasn’t as affecting as it originally would have been. The fact that The Fourth Kind so dubiously lies to the audience really divided fans; they either felt cheated and hated the film or appreciated the originality involved. I fell into the latter category, but it’s unfortunate that the film itself isn’t better, because it really never rises above mediocrity despite the original idea.

Milla Jovovich appears onscreen to start the film, and starts speaking like she’s making a public service announcement about some kind of humanitarian cause. “I'm actress Milla Jovovich, and I will be portraying Dr. Abigail Tyler in The Fourth Kind,” she begins. “This film is a dramatization of events that occurred October 1st through the 9th of 2000 in the Northern Alaskan town of Nome. To better explain the events of this story, the director has included actual archived footage throughout the film.” Knowing the falsities of the film, the introduction is particularly laughable, simply because Milla is so serious about the whole thing.

The Fourth Kind revolves around said psychologist, Dr. Tyler, whose husband was recently killed. She has been administering hypnosis to her patients, and each one tells a startlingly similar story about being watched by a white owl, along with other disturbing trends about their sleeping habits. After a session where the hypnosis causes one patient to flip his shit, Dr. Tyler is called to the man’s house, where he is holding his family hostage. The predicament doesn’t end well for the family, and Dr. Tyler soon becomes concerned that something otherworldly is happening in Nome.

Director Olatunde Osunsanmi incorporates the “real” footage often by using a splitscreen; Jovovich and company are shown reenacting the scenes while the supposed original footage is played alongside. At times I felt like I was watching A Haunting on the Discovery Channel (that’s not a compliment). But at other points, the footage does work surprisingly well when showing the scarier segments of the film. I could feel the hair rising on the back on my neck when the more ghastly events were displayed. It’s a shame that this tension and atmosphere wasn’t retained for the rest of The Fourth Kind, as the film might not have been received so negatively otherwise.

I found The Fourth Kind to be an interesting, if flawed, film. I am grateful that Osunsanmi at least tried something different in his approach - something that doesn’t always happen when a director makes his first “mainstream” film. However, this ingenuity doesn’t mean that the movie is very good, as it barely rises above a mediocre status. Still, The Fourth Kind is entertaining at points and certainly worth a rent to those interested.

The Fourth Kind

March 31, 2010

DIRECTOR:

Olatunde Osunsanmi

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Reviewer: Gregory J.