Day 182: The Fourth Kind

When the Blair Witch Project came out, I heard stories of people believing it was real. I never knew anyone who thought it was real, of course. The same cannot be said of this movie, Olatunde Osunsanmi should be given some kind of credit for fooling people I know into believing this was more than a fictional narrative.

The story itself is sort of bare-bones: through hypnosis, a group of people in Alaska start recalling what might have been an alien abduction. There are psychotic episodes and violent breakdowns as the truth comes closer to being revealed.

Really, any artistry in the movie is in how hard it works to convince you it is a documentary. From the director playing himself to Milla Jovovich breaking character to tell you she is playing a real person. There is footage of the "actual" doctor that Jovovich plays and then "real" footage set up against staged footage for you to compare and contrast. Except that it is all staged. Everyone is an actor and none of this ever happened.

How much you enjoy this will depend on how much you are willing to suspend disbelief. I was unable to relinquish my skepticism and therefore, did not enjoy it. Your mileage may vary.