Visiteurs extraterrestres

"Fire in the Sky" can be appreciated only if you are into UFO movies, and if you like scary alien abduction scenes. The film is based on the allegedly true story of Travis Walton's alien abduction. After seeing the film, and becoming extremely interested in the subject, I read the book by Travis. Reading it, I found out that the abduction scene was changed in the movie. Whether what happened in the book was real or not, the change in the film was good, because those ten minutes of abduction scene are, quite possibly, among the most frightening pieces of footage in film history! I couldn't go to sleep for a month after that. It was tough to deal with. I recommend it because I know that there are some of you out there who like UFOs, and like a good scare!

How many times have you seen the words, 'Based on a true story,' at the beginning of a Hollywood film? Normally, when that's written, what you see on screen is about as far away to what actually happened as you can possibly get. However, 'Fire in the Sky' is almost quite close to what really happened (obviously, if you believe what the story is all about).

Travis Walton was a logging worker in 1975 who, while up in the mountains, was abducted by a flying saucer right before his co-workers' eyes. This is the account of what happened. One criticism is that it heavily favours the account of Walton and his co-workers, over those sceptical of their fantastical claim. However, when you think about it, Fire in the Sky would have been a pretty dull film if all that happened was Travis decided to hide in the woods for a few days while his mates made up crazy stories about what they've seen.

This is a great film - kind of like a 'real life' episode of the X-files. And, you can enjoy it on two levels: if you're a 'Mulder' and believe in aliens, UFOs etc, you can look at it as a documented account of what actually happened. However, if you're a 'Scully' (i.e. a sceptic) then you should be able to enjoy it by simply seeing it as a good piece of dramatic science-fiction.

Either way, if you're into sci-fi or drama, you should quite enjoy it. It's also worth looking into further - the real Travis Walton wrote quite a comprehensive book on the subject matter and there's plenty of 'evidence' to back up his claims if you do some research on the internet.

An Arizona logger mysteriously disappears for five days in an alleged encounter with a flying saucer in 1975.

For most of the film, we get more or less a drama. We know the logger has been abducted, but the authorities do not necessarily believe the other loggers. So there is some struggle, some argument, some emotional tension. Nothing too science fiction. And, indeed, they could have made the film completely without any of the science fiction if they wanted to.

But no, we also get a glimpse of where the logger went... and it is pretty wild. The film would be good either way, but those who like alien films will appreciate the effects and design that went into this. Definitely an understated modern classic.

Fire In the Sky didn't get much attention when it came out, I never heard of it before watching it twenty-seven years later, and to be honest this movie deserves a chance. If you like alien abduction movies this one is certainly worth a watch, with a couple good scenes that will get your full attention as there is some good suspense and tension building. The story, based on true events (not everybody will believe this story) is well written and filmed. It's entertaining to watch certainly if you're into this kind of stuff. The cast did a good job playing their respective characters, they all gave a believable performance. I'm surprised I never heard of this movie before as I watch tons of movies, especially in this genre. Give this one a shot, you won't regret it.

This movie has a good plot, a good cast and a good feel to it. It is obviously a low budget movie, but one done well. The story is about an alien abduction, but instead of focusing on the aliens and what they did, the focus is on the people involved and how do they react "under fire".

You can call it a "TV psychological thriller" more than a sci-fi. I expected something dumb, instead I found not a masterpiece, but a good movie, one that was worth the watch.

James Garner had a really weird role, but he is old, so he gets what they throw at him; Robert Patrick does a good role and, even if he did play in some silly movies in his time, I think he is a good actor, one that can surprise if properly cast.