Alien Trespass pays homage to 1950s sci-fi thrillers with a story of a spaceship, carrying an alien marshal ferrying a murderous alien creature to jail, that crash lands near a remote desert town, throwing everyone into a panic. Given how cheesy movies of the period were, it's somewhat surprising that Alien Trespass turns out to have quite a bit of panache and credulity to go with its faithful look at a quieter, simpler time.
Set in 1957, the movie follows the effect that the arrival of the alien marshal Urp (Marshal Urp, get it?) has on the populace. Shortly after his ship crashes – and his prisoner escapes – Urp assumes the body of a local scientist, Dr. Lewis (Eric McCormack) and sets about finding his prey, a Ghota – a beast with one eye and huge tentacles who kills. And turns invisible! In fact, the Ghota looks a lot like Kang and Kodos from The Simpsons, but I digress.
Some kids necking (hee hee) at Lover's Lane or Lookout Point or Inspiration Point see the crash, and when they investigate they're attacked by the monster. But naturally, the police don't believe them or their seedy looking greaser pal (told you it was set in the fifties). Meanwhile, Marshal Urp, in the doctor's body, is stealing cars and trying to, uh, blend in.
One of the scenes – no spoilers here – takes places in a movie theater while the kids are watching The Blog. Yes, the one with Steve McQueen, where he himself is a kid trying to warn a small town about a gelatinous monster! And of course, while everyone's watching this movie, the real monster attacks.
I have to admit that I had pretty low expectations for this movie. It's set in the 1950s, the apex of cheesiness. It's got a cheesy title. It has no recognizable stars, other than Dan Lauria (The Wonder Years) and Robert Patrick (Terminator 2). You can't expect Close Encounters with that sort of lineup. But Alien Trespass has something that movies like Plan 9 from Outerspace and, more recently, The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra wish they had: a heart. Endearing, winning performances by Jenni Baird (as the waitress who helps Urp) and McCormack help lift this above the usual low-budget ennui.
Set in 1957, the movie follows the effect that the arrival of the alien marshal Urp (Marshal Urp, get it?) has on the populace. Shortly after his ship crashes – and his prisoner escapes – Urp assumes the body of a local scientist, Dr. Lewis (Eric McCormack) and sets about finding his prey, a Ghota – a beast with one eye and huge tentacles who kills. And turns invisible! In fact, the Ghota looks a lot like Kang and Kodos from The Simpsons, but I digress.
Some kids necking (hee hee) at Lover's Lane or Lookout Point or Inspiration Point see the crash, and when they investigate they're attacked by the monster. But naturally, the police don't believe them or their seedy looking greaser pal (told you it was set in the fifties). Meanwhile, Marshal Urp, in the doctor's body, is stealing cars and trying to, uh, blend in.
One of the scenes – no spoilers here – takes places in a movie theater while the kids are watching The Blog. Yes, the one with Steve McQueen, where he himself is a kid trying to warn a small town about a gelatinous monster! And of course, while everyone's watching this movie, the real monster attacks.
I have to admit that I had pretty low expectations for this movie. It's set in the 1950s, the apex of cheesiness. It's got a cheesy title. It has no recognizable stars, other than Dan Lauria (The Wonder Years) and Robert Patrick (Terminator 2). You can't expect Close Encounters with that sort of lineup. But Alien Trespass has something that movies like Plan 9 from Outerspace and, more recently, The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra wish they had: a heart. Endearing, winning performances by Jenni Baird (as the waitress who helps Urp) and McCormack help lift this above the usual low-budget ennui.