Alien Raiders

ALIEN RAIDERS is a low budget alien-busting B-movie, set in a shopping mall of all places. It's an entirely derivative film that proudly wears various influences on its sleeve: the dark and shadowy after-hours aisles of INTRUDER; the single-location-under-siege set-up of ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13; the mutating creature from SPLINTER; plus, most notably, the monsters and scenario from THE THING, of which a crucial set-piece or two are borrowed directly.

Still, this turns out to be an enjoyable little movie thanks to some strong writing and direction. Director Ben Rock makes a shadowy and atmospheric moment with some unsettling and in-your-face frightening moments when the aliens are exposed, all down to some creepy soundtrack noises. The choreography isn't quite as good, but the film does benefit from a crisp realism and some well-drawn characters. If you're a fan of the genre you might just consider this to be a little-seen gem.

In Buck Lake, Arizona, the Hastings Supermarket is apparently assaulted by a group of terrorists leaded by Ritter (Carlos Bernard) that takes clients and employees in a hostage situation. One of the team members, Spooky (Philip Newby), examines the hostages detecting who should be executed and releasing the others. When Spooky is killed by the security cop, the six last shoppers and employees are kept tied and submitted to a test in one finger. Sooner the abductors reveal that they are a team of scientists containing an alien outbreak and avoid an invasion.

The tense and claustrophobic "Alien Raiders" has a great concept and good story. The screenplay could have a better development of characters and situation, since the identity of the king was very predictable for me; but considering the simplicity of the plot associated to the low-budget, the result was a remarkable movie with a great make-up and few special effects that exceeded my best expectations. The cast has magnificent performances and it was great to see Rockmond "C-Note" Dunbar and Mathew "Keith Charles" St. Patrick again on the screen. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Refém do Desconhecido" ("Hostage of the Unknown")

This movie is definitely not going to win any awards. It's also not going to make any top 10 lists at the end of the year. It won't even make cult status.

What it will do is entertain you & keep you on the edge of your seat.

The premise is simple. A group of independent "alien hunters" have descended on a small town, and specifically a grocery store where they seem to have found the original infection. Do they do the best job securing the location?? No. Do they seem dis organized, and nervous?? Yes. But I think that adds to the plot. These are not trained police officers, or ex military men. They are regular Joe's that have found something that needs to be stopped.

What's most impressive is the way the tension is built throughout the film. You feel the same claustrophobic tension that you get in Splinter, and there's a similar feeling to the great Spanish film "rec" This movie isn't quite as good in quality as those two movies, but there's a good mix of "what the heck is going on" and "how is this whole thing going to end."

There are very limited special effects in this movie, and when used they add to the story, they don't take away. There's almost no CGI, and that's a good thing. The Sci Fi channel could really learn something about creating movies like this, where you have alien invasions without using incredibly cheap and campy CGI, just a little make up, and some cool camera tricks and hold back the pay off till the last minute. It's an easy formula that's been missing from science fiction films for quite some time. Directors have fallen in love with being able to create big creatures, but don't know how to build tension.

Now, the movie does have plot wholes, and relies on some clichés. The one cop that happens to be a hostage negotiator from "the big city." The ending isn't as surprising as they want it to be. Still, for a direct to DVD movie, this is about as good as it gets.

It's science fiction, so suspend disbelief a bit, and imagine how you would react if you were in the characters shoes. It's an enjoyable little trip.

This low budget but impressive little sci fi horror flick from Warner home video is a radical take on the body snatchers model. Most of the movie takes place in a supermarket where thugs take the staff and customers hostage. But as the film moves on we discover they are hunting aliens who are taken over people and one of the leaders us there. The movie is gory and fun with impressive practical effects and confident direction. It's also surprisingly creative given how many times the treatment has been done. There are some light pacing issues but all in all it's a surprisingly good watch.

3.5/5

I really love it when an independent film is made well. I'm all for the underdog rising above the corporate giants with their millions and billions. A film doesn't always need expensive special effects (yes sometimes they do blow u away, but the use of CGI is getting ridiculous now), and a worthy script with good actors and some creative low budget FX can be enough to keep you entertained....if you haven't been brainwashed yet that is. Getting to my point, Alien Raiders delivers because you don't expect it too (I think they chose the name because of that reason). The name sucks, the beginning with the dodgy camcording makes you think 'is this what it's gonna be like', and then wallop you become absorbed in this little gem. It may be because I love alien movies, and people's interpretations on the whole alien invasion, including what they look like and what power they possess. Yes the film is pretty much all in a supermarket and yes the protectors of the universe do some really stupid things, but we're all human. You have to look at Alien Raiders for what it is and appreciate how well it was delivered for it's small budget. The actors did a great job, they we're very convincing, and the raiders we're relentless throughout which was great. If they think you're an alien well you're in big trouble, coz they don't like aliens not one bit. The twist was mildly obvious but still it could only be one of the 5 or 6 hostages so what do you expect. Those that have been hating on this are not fans of indie flicks obviously, and probably watch Die Hard 4.0 (which I loved by the way) and think that if a car doesn't take out a helicopter then it ain't worth watching. I've seen many bad indie horror flicks and thats why this gets positive comments from me. It stands out from the crowd and except for the supermarket setting has no similarities, and is not a copy of 'The Mist' (which again I loved). Give it a go...if you don't like it....well tough I did.