Alien Hunter

Just woke up on a Saturday morning and this movie was just beginning on SciFi... I'd seen the name before, but honestly did not expect much, specifically because of the name, it's terrible and does not describe this movie at all. So not expecting much, I was more than pleasantly surprised! I had no idea James Spader was in it and he played the role well, mainly because he didn't need to act much. The plot was similar to a number of other films as folks have mentioned, but sufficiently different enough to keep you guessing. For a made for TV movie, I thought it was well done and would recommend it to anybody who is looking for some decent scifi. While it would have been much better broadcast in HD (the channel was, the movie wasn't), it was good entertainment with which to start the weekend. Now if they'd just change that frackin' name...

I wasn't expecting much from this film since I've never heard of it and the cover of the DVD is cheesy, but I was pleasantly surprised that 2003's "Alien Hunter" is a worthwhile sci-fi flick.

James Spader plays the main protagonist in this story about a small group of scientists at an Antarctic station who find some kind of alien pod emitting a repeating transmission. Should they open it or shouldn't they?

As you can probably tell, the plot borrows heavily from "Alien" and "The Thing." In fact, the film even includes footage from the original "The Thing;" no doubt an homage. You'll also see aspects of other films like "Outbreak," "Close Encounters," "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (the classroom scene) and Star Trek (the mind-meld). Despite its lack of originality "Alien Hunter" is an interesting, well-done sci-fi flick. It's not as good as "Alien" but it's almost as good as "The Thing" remake and blows drivel like "Independence Day" out of the water.

The film has creepy elements and good suspense, but hardly any hardcore horror or gore, so if you're a horror/gore hound you might want to pass.

As stated above, I thought this would have been more of a "B" movie, and I suppose it is, but it's technically impressive (in other words, this isn't the work of amateurs) and has a serious vibe; the score's great too. Another reviewer insists that it's a parody but this isn't even remotely true. "Alien Hunter" is an intelligent and fairly austere sci-fi story with almost zero humor (regular, black or satirical). Does he even know what a parody is? The film's only sin is that it borrows too heavily from other films. If it had been released in the late 70s it would be deemed a great film like "Close Encounters" and "Alien."

James Spader plays a good protagonist. I like him for some reason. The rest of the characters are likable except one antagonistic scientist and Spader's ex-student/girlfriend, who comes off bland and lifeless. This is made up by the appearance of Leslie Stefanson who plays Nyla. Leslie is a hot girl-next-door type who will melt any man's heart in seconds. Watch out for the visuals of her in the "cornfield."

The film runs an hour and a half.

Bottom line: If you're not an exclusive horror/gore aficionado and appreciate intelligent sci-fi films like "Alien," "Close Encounters" Star Trek and "Outbreak," be sure to check out "Alien Hunter," as long as you can forgive lack of originality.

GRADE: B

An unoriginal, overly predictable and only mildly entertaining low budget rehash of a sci-fi formula that we've all seen a hundred times before - a group of scientists in isolation confronting some unknown alien something, and in of all places (surprise, surprise) Antarctica!

The film features James Spader and an almost nameless supporting cast (with the exception of Carl Lewis, who's actually not that bad for a non-actor) - who deliver ho-hum performances that do little to invigorate the script's unimaginative dialogue. To make things worse the film's pace is slow, there's almost no subplot, and the few action sequences are stereotypical and not that exciting. Its little wonder that this thing went straight to DVD. What is a wonder is why Spader - an excellent actor at times, who won the Cannes Best Actor award for `Sex, Lies and Videotape', and did a splendid job in the innovative sci-fi flick `Stargate' - chose to sign onto this lackluster project. Or maybe not, if you look at his career, for it seems he has invested his talents in more misses than hits.

The most remarkable thing about `Alien Hunter' is how they managed to cram in so many elements from so many great sci-fi films, and still have the thing turn out so listless and contrived. There are huge borrowed bits from `The Thing' (both Howard Hawks' original and John Carpenter's excellent 1982 remake), `Contact' and `Outbreak'; a few hints of `Alien', CE3K', `The Andromeda Strain', `Kubrick's `2001' (i.e. the `alien black box') and `Mission To Mars' (i.e. the mystery message); and even a little dash of `Sneakers' and `A Remarkable Mind' (although not sci-fi films, they share a `cryptology' connection). Hell, there's even cornfields and Antarctica, just like the recent `X Files Movie'. And the luminous translucent spaceship at the end looks exactly like something that was plucked from an outtake from `The Abyss'.

Its all been done before and done a whole lot better, although I will admit there were a few mild surprises towards the end. I could say a little bit more about the plot, but there's absolutely no need. You already know over half this movie without ever seeing it. (5 out of 10)

Reading over the reviews for this film, I see that pretty much everyone agrees that while it's not an A+ Top Notch effort, it certainly isn't as bad as it could have been.

What's good about it:

1) James Spader (!), who's incredible in everything he's in. 2) Pretty good Visual Effects. 3) Nice Musical Score.

What's average:

1) The other performances. 2) The story (as many have pointed out, it's a mosaic of other movies).

What's monumental:

You will never see another movie in which the end credits has as many crew members with last names ending with the letter "v."

What's unforgivable:

The title! "Alien Hunter" is an absolutely terrible name. Surely they could have come up with something a little more enticing. It sounds like a reject Jean-Claude film title.

I'm still amazed that they were able to cast James Spader in this. I mean, JAMES SPADER!!! :)

Bored? Nothing else to watch or rent? Give this movie a try.

I thought it was great. Yes, ripped off many films, but a good screenplay nonetheless (kept the film moving) and more importantly, a surprising ending. Not oscar material, but I'd give it thumbs up. The base was totally unrealistic however. "The Thing" base was more like what it would be. And the title "Alien Hunter"... totally for marketing. It should have been -- in fun sci-fi form -- "It came from Space" or something. Cause it wasn't about hunting an alien. The geneticist guy was too 1-dimensional. They should have slowly developped his attitude instead of making him an idiot from the start.