Invasion from Inner Earth

I saw this film on TV about 20 years ago, and while the film was pretty bad, I could not help but notice that in its basic premise was potentially a very powerful idea. There is something about the idea that some huge conflagration is consuming the rest of the human race, but the people in the film are isolated from it, and watch as it happens from far away. Every now and then they make contact with the force that is destroying the rest of the world over their radio, but they are not important enough either to be singled out or to be meaningfully communicated with.

I remember thinking, that's a pretty cool idea. Someone could actually make a good movie out of it. And finally, someone has, the movie SIGNS.

A couple of people are trapped in a log cabin during an alien invasion of the Earth. They communicate with the unseen aliens and gradually make it back to civilization after much discussion. Every cliche in the book is used, and the low budget assures terrible special effects. Bad all around. Made in someone's back yard in Wisconsin.

I saw this movie under the title "They" as part of the Nightmare Worlds 50 DVD collection released by Mill Creek. Easily one of the best sci-fi flicks filmed in Wisconsin circa 1970's I've seen this year, mostly because of the mention of Rhinelander, Wisconsin. I admit I was a little let down by the fact there wasn't a single Hodag (Do a Google search if need be) to be found.

Still, killer smoke bombs are without a doubt the most original villains ever. The film is only mostly terribly acted or over acted if you're a bearded cast member in this film and the snow mobile scenes are gratuitous if not plentiful. The scenery is white, the bad guys are red, and everyone owns a checkered flannel shirt.

OK, This is a painfully bad film, the soundtrack is off the wall, the actors are only actors in the sense that they are in the act of doing things in the snow that are (maybe accidentally)captured on film, and the special effects consist of smoke bombs and flashlights with red cellophane covering the lens. For me to sum this movie up in one word, it would be, AWESOME

Lovers of these types of films (Le Bad Cinema), like myself, will find this flick both charming and indispensable. If you got enjoyment out of such fine films as They Saved Hitlers Brain, Mano's or Curse of the Headless Horseman. You will love this...errr "They".

INVASION FROM INNER EARTH is one of those "non-movies" made during the 1970s. A "non-movie" is a film that: A) can be described as regional filmmaking. B) no budget. C) no recognizable actor. D) probably made by students. E) it's a genre movie, usually sci-fi or horror, that's very ambitious (in this case, UFOs and invasions) even if it can barely afford to pay for film stock! F) the soundtrack is a collection of stock music (the main theme was good though). G) was probably released in one or two theaters somewhere in and around where the film was made (hence, the regional aspect of the flick). H) the advertising (or video box cover) is always deceptive. There's no mention in the script that the aliens are from inside the earth, which makes me wonder why did they bothered to give it that title.

There were a lot of "non-movies" made in the 1970s (and in the 1980s, they morphed into the "direct-to-video" category) and IFIE epitomizes these kind of obscure, regional movies few people saw when they were made. The film itself is not very good. There's just no story. And what story there is doesn't make much sense. The dialogue is at times painfully bad. The direction hardly creates any tension. And the ending is inexplicable. But as bad as it is, the film is totally harmless, and in a certain weird way, as some sort of quaint charm to it.

The premise for this movie was interesting enough, and there are some very developed characters in it like the TV talk show host, and his two guests. Unfortunately they only have about five minutes of footage. The main characters are believable and the acting competent. So what went wrong? It's almost as if they started making this movie on an interesting idea, but quickly realized that they had no idea where it was going, because by the time the movie concludes, you feel like you were played for a fool, and wished you never wasted your time. It seems like they made up the plot as they were making the movie. I know it requires a certain amount of cognitive dissonance to watch a movie like this, but this one is so awful you can't even enjoy how lousy it is. Here are a group of people in a winter wilderness with nothing but a ham radio to communicate with the outside world, but they start having a debate about what is going on by reading newspaper articles? What the....? Where are they getting this information about a situation that just started?, and in such an isolated place? By the end, if you don't get disgusted enough to just shut it off before then, it has to be one of the most idiotic movie endings you will ever see. It's like it is for some other totally different movie. I won't disclose it, but believe me, you will want to throw the DVD in the trash.