Phil the Alien

After putting myself through this movie, I've asked what is this all about? Well I don;t know how to describe this movie, but I've came to one conclusion "Phil the alien" is gay. And this movie sheds an interesting light at how can one fit into a new environment without trying to put to many heads outta place.

This is the only thing I could truly think of as an overall plot for the movie. Expect for some rather qwerky moments I wouldn't rate this movie highly at all those, most will disagree. This biggest let down is how the movie keeps cutting in n out with scenes, specially a lot that meant nothing to the overall movie. The music also was annoying after a while, that was louder than anythin else so my guess this is a student type of film who are trying also to promote a band.

At the end of the day I feel more attention to this movie as whole, more thinking could of made a more of meaninful movie.

The best of Canadian cinema offers a uniquely demented vision of the world - think the films of David Cronenberg and Atom Egoyan. The worst of Canadian cinema usually stars Matthew Ferguson or Lothaire Bluteau. There is no doubt that Rob Stefaniuk's wonderfully original and hugely entertaining Phil the Alien well and truly belongs in the former category.

Phil the Alien is a film that could have gone incredibly wrong. It takes a truck load of gumption and panache to pull off a movie about a shape-changing alien who crash lands on earth, becomes an alcoholic and joins a Christian rock band. Not to mention a film that includes a subplot about a talking beaver, colour coded alien assassins and a child/whore love story. Somehow the film works and manages to be not only hilarious but also surprisingly insightful and sweet natured.

I'm not sure why Will Ferrell is allowed to ruin every comedy produced in North America by his sheer presence, while Rob Stefaniuk remains in relative obscurity. This guy makes Jim Carrey look about as funny as Tom Arnold, and unlike the majority of his colleagues in the comedy world, he can actually act. The supporting cast are all great and the film really profits from their consistently strong performances.

Phil the Alien is the kind of movie you will either love or hate. I obviously loved just about everything about it, from the cool puppetry (Rob Stefaniuk, take another bow) to the old school special effects and even the band's crappy music. I kept expecting the joke to wear thin but it never did. Phil the Alien is unlike any of the dire comedies that have been excreted from the bowels of Hollywood in recent years. For that reason alone, it deserves to be praised and admired by the largest possible audience.

I was watching this low budget Canadian Movie Phil the Alien. This movie deals with an alien that crash lands in Northern Ontario. He ends up becoming friends with a talking beaver. This causes some funny stuff to happen. In one scene the one guy says "Listen Phil He's a Beaver." Phil Says "He's My Friend OK!" In this movie Phil goes from drunk to being in a Christian rock band to a mass murderer.

There is some strange stuff in this movie that is really funny. There is one scene where Phil needs a cigarette. He keeps yelling demanding a cigarette. He eventually gets arrested for assaulting a cigarette vending machine. Most of the time this movie is pretty funny. There are parts where this movie is slow. The theme song they use "Phil The Alien" keeps getting stuck in my head. There is something enchanting about that song. I can't get over the strange alien sounds Phil makes in this movie. I really enjoyed this movie.

It's a good film, and despite other reviewers stating that it "looked like a Canadian film" - it wasn't all that bad. We're not talking Beachcombers bad, we're talking "rather than buy props for one scene, the crew bought beer." The latex prop aliens and the CGI aren't all that bad. It's not huge on production values, but it's funny, and it has a TALKING BEAVER who can shoot a rifle; That alone is reason to see this. The loyalty scene with the puppies; the evil genius with the pet whales rather than the pet cat you'd be more likely to see in the hands of more serious evil geniuses; the Kill Me! alien in the glass bubble; what more could you want? Hell, there's even underage drinking and sex. It's quite possibly the perfect movie.

I've just watched Suck, also by Rob Stefaniuk, and loved it tremendously, so I had to also see Phil the Alien. While it is not so good as Suck, this movie is funnier, with the same weird feel to it that made me like both films.

The plot is really irrelevant, even if it is truly original and full of good humour. The acting is good with some actors, rather bland with others, but the overall quality is good. We see some common Stefaniuk themes like the hopeless rock band or Nicole de Boer, who has an important role in this film.

Bottom line: a funny comedy for a change, full of Canadians and with a brilliant script. It is not a masterpiece, but it is better than most films I've seen. Way to go, Rob!