The Roswell Crash: Startling New Evidence (2002 TV Movie) User Reviews

CSI: Extraterrestrial style

[NewDivide1701 · 7/10 · 20 June 2006]

The word is still out, case still open as to whether or not an extraterrestrial spacecraft crashed in Roswell New Mexico in 1947, but this documentary brings forth a far less prejudice view of the latest investigations into the conspiracy theory.

The Roswell incident became really popular during the UFO craze in the 1990's, along with the successful X-Files. This documentary into investigating the Roswell crash may be a bit out of touch with todays society with the ending of X-files after an 8 year run, along with being in the 9/11 world.

But it still brings forth CSI like investigations to see whether or not something crashed there. Though not conclusive, the CSI like investigations are leaning towards in favour of the conspiracy theorists.

The show was real but was quickly covered up.

[etsmail-inbox · 8/10 · 11 December 2013]

I personally supervised the sealing and preservation of the items recovered from the 2002 Roswell Dig site in 66 paper bags that measured approximately 8 inches in diameter and were full of materials including soil samples and what the Archaeologist-Dr. Bill Doleman referred to as HMUO's (Historic Materials of Unknown Origin). During the briefing to the archeology team he explained that they would dig, sort and remove all objects from their surrounding soil which did not appear to be natural to the dig site and did not appear to have been recently deposited by human beings. I personally sealed these items and secured a chain of custody on them, then my company transferred them to a safety deposit box in the Wells Fargo Bank in Roswell, NM. They were later transferred to two separate University's for scientific study. I was never told the results of the scientific analysis of the objects that we recovered at the dig site. I later learned why. In 2002 the TV show did not reveal the analysis but promised a future episode would. Shortly after the show aired the Syfy (then SCIFI channel) was purchased by NBC and the future digs and shows covering them were canceled. I left Future Security and returned to Texas and at about the same time, Future Security came under legal scrutiny by the State of New Mexico and ended up going out of business. After coming back to Texas I had extreme difficulty finding work in Law Enforcement and I checked with my former employees and found that they all had extreme difficulty finding employment of any kind, especially with the government or in jobs that required a license by the government. Additionally the Cast and Crew of the Syfy special, including the archaeologists all had similar career difficulties. In September 2003 the Syfy Channel aired another special about the Roswell Crash but the team was dramatically reduced in size and were not allowed to dig in the same area as before. They also did not reveal anything about the previous dig materials analysis either. In 2009 Dr. Doleman revealed that 13 items which mainly amounted to what I would call discarded trash-a small piece of a plastic trash bag, several pieces of different colored threads or fibrous materials, and several rocks that were "burned" were all that was recovered and sent to laboratory for further examination. This smacked of a huge cover up in my mind, because not only did this contradict what I had personally witnessed as metallic materials recovered at the site but it doesn't add up that only 13 objects were allegedly recovered when we collected 66 bags of material that was as big a large grapefruit? You would think that there would have been at least one object per bag, meaning at least 66 objects, way more than the 13 that was acknowledged. Also I find it odd that the Syfy Channel was bought out right after the airing of the show and all future digs at the site was canceled. I thought it peculiar that they were bought by NBC which is a known mass media government propaganda arm. Furthermore, the company I worked for was shut down by the State of New Mexico and everyone involved with the original dig has had a difficult time in finding work, especially with the government. I will let everyone draw their own conclusions but I believe that there is still a very strong cover up of the Roswell UFO crash going on. Personally I don't know if it was a UFO crash site but from the materials I saw, which I believe to be man made, I would have to believe that at least one 1947 era Army Air Corp or other man made plane.

Chasing smoke in New Mexico ........

[merklekranz · 7/10 · 26 August 2010]

It is my belief that the purpose of any DVD is to entertain, and to that end "The Roswell Crash Startling New Evidence" succeeds quite well. The controlled dig at the Roswell crash site may have turned up nothing, but it was something new, and an interesting investigation. The computer enhanced memo in the 1947 photograph, is another fresh piece of research. If you are intrigued by the U.F.O. phenomena, then this DVD offers much to enjoy, even if it is nothing more than chasing smoke in the New Mexico desert. Crash or no crash there are enough fresh eyewitness interviews, and investigations, for me to recommend "The Roswell Crash Startling New Evidence" as entertainment. - MERK

A work of FICTION

[sitdownbike · 16 December 2002]

What a complete waste of time. Bryant Gumbel totally marks out for the UFO industry. Not even Pro Wrestling fans are more devoted than Mr Gumbel.... Absolutely no time at all is spent with opposing view points.

And where is the startling new evidence promised in the title? Much of the time in this show is spent on an "archaeological dig" where the weather balloon was found. Which turns up absolutely nothing that they are able to point to as evidence! You would think that if a UFO crashed there some small piece would still be embedded in the ground despite the 1948 cleanup. They do haul dirt off site for chemical analysis and promise to "keep the public posted". Hey, Bryant! I'm turning blue over here! The analysis was no doubt completed while the show was in post production, so if they had found something, it would have been included as a voice-over.

Update Dec 2005: It has been three years since the original air date and the SciFi Channel just ran this show again. Still no information on evidence found in dirt excavated from the site. I may be leaping to a conclusion here, but to me no news means they FOUND NOTHING!

So the only thing new was a supposed computer enhancement of a photograph. In the photo, an officer is holding a document. Supposedly this document is an order to cover up the "truth" about the UFO crash or at least that is what the computer enhancement "reveals". If you figure that the photo was taken with the standard 5 X 7 press camera of the era, on the photo, what is being enhanced is a spot less than 1/2 inch across. Add to that the document is being held at an angle to the camera, and you can barely distinguish where one word ends & another starts. Some evidence. They could make up whatever they want.

The rest of the show is a bunch of ex-military people who have decided that their pensions are not enough so they write UFO books and hit the lecture circuit, accusing each other of spreading misinformation. Thats the one thing that they are all correct about.

THIS SHOW IS FICTION!

Startling new evidence... That the show never tells you.

[chatolokes · 4/10 · 7 February 2007]

Its been roughly 60yrs since the Crash took place. Out of those 60yrs, we are probably as clueless as the people who saw the original broadcast of the crash were.

I though this show would air some light, and although it kept you from changing the channel, at the end it just says, log on to sci channel .com for updates ... WTF ? what was the whole point of the show then ? During the 2 hr program , I say about 100 bags of dirt were taken for analysis.. by the end of show, it never tells you what they found. It only explains 60 "particles" of "unknown" origin were found. Well can someone elaborate on that ? I don't see why you even include 1hr footage of experts to dig around the crash site and then not mention what the studies found..

It shows a letter in which is held by one of the top military leaders involved in the crash. when Computer technology is enhanced, It spells out important info .. something that says along the lines of " .. the victims of the crash have been sent to Washignton. The "saucer" is currently being sent for further analysis". ALl this is meaningful due to the picture that the document is shown, being a pic sent to the press explaining that the crash was by a Weather balloon. ALthough it gets you excited, At the end it gives a major let down.

Ninety Minutes Down the Drain

[Steve_Nyland · 3/10 · 10 February 2021]

This absurd packaging of everything you already knew about the "Roswell Incident" has a marvelously telling moment when the archaeologist leading the expedition to excavate the very furrow where their alien spaceship allegedly impacted realizes they could be excavating any of the furrows within the former sheep pasture. How they chose that one particular spot to dig is very curious as nobody who found the said wreckage in 1947 is involved with the spectacle, directly advised the crew, or for that matter is even still alive. New Mexico looks pretty much the same and nobody left out a marker plaque to commemorate the spot, so any spot is as good as the one they chose. It's in the same state, same county, likely on the same ranch land and maybe even within a stone's throw of where whatever came to earth ended up. But give us a break.

They do, by picking another spot to excavate while the archaeologist wanders around until finding the remains of a modern day weather balloon, demonstrating that weather or observation balloons really did fall to earth on this sheep ranch often enough to be notable. If you are going to send a balloon train aloft New Mexico seems to be the place to do it, both in 1947 and 2002, likely 2021 as well.

The only other useful insight provided by the production comes from Dave Rudiack's c.2000 era PowerMac Photoshop enlargement of the message held in the hand of General Whatshisname while kneeling by the unimpressive scraps of balloon target remnants shown to the press in 1947 as a handy coverup to a sheep rancher having found a classified observation device. Dr. Rudiack uses various zoom and rotate techniques before adding his own translation to the fuzzy typing from 1947 and argues that it purports to refer to the victims of a crashed flying saucer. That we the people have not heard much else about this hypothesis speaks volumes for the results, which was about as scientific as putting shapes to cloud formations.

But it did kill 90 minutes of pandemic quarantine time, so I guess the production was successful. Just, really really stupid.

Don't listen to the "sinister idjut"

[PopeyeBarrnumb · 13 July 2004]

Mostly I'm offering this "review" as a contrary reply to the other (negative) comments ("review").

This isn't the best "documentary" in the world, but it is good. And definitely good enough. It is NOT fiction, and only a certain type of person would call it such, to put it politely.

It has some interesting information in it. It interviews some people with interesting things to say. The ending is a let down, but I think they were hoping to do a sequel. Which I don't think they have done to date. I'm not a huge Bryant Gumbel fan, but even he doesn't destroy this film.

Personally, I'm glad they finally are doing some films about this stuff without the Idiot so-called "skeptics" blabbing their fat mouths with stupid comments and inane commentary and taking up valuable time that can be filled with real information. That gets old REAL quick. Especially the shows that act like they are doing an "objective" report, but are really just mouthpieces for the naysayers to denounce anything and everything without room for true objective skeptical research, analysis and reporting.

That's why I refuse to call myself a "skeptic" anymore, and call most so-called skeptics, "skepters", or "skepTicks", or "skeptFleas", and now refer to myself as a Skeptique. (a la trekkie, trekker, trekist, etc.) That being a true, open-minded, objective, analytical, questioning, intellectual person. As opposed to the unfortunate others. (Randyites, et al.)

It's nice to see some people attempting to do some real science regarding these things. They need to do more, but I doubt that will happen, because most so-called scientists are definitely not of the Skeptique mindset. In fact, most "scientists" I've ever met seem to be pretty close-minded, non-far-seeing, barely creative, logical-if-you're-lucky, and the like. (it's no wonder we still don't have a "cure" for cancer, among other similar situations)

Anyway, watch this film at least twice.