mugwamp-983

Its refreshing to see a sci fi movie tackle a complex subject such as alien phenomenon while stringing the viewer along with a good mystery concept. Alien Code does a good job on some levels. But falls short in other areas.

Kyle Gallner does a great job of giving his all-in for this low budget indie. He plays the down and out cryptographer shanghaied by government spooks to decode a mysterious object. He wasn't the first, so what happened to the expert hired before him. Strange temporal anomalies start occurring. Not to mention visitations from other worldly men in black.

The story line is great. The editing perhaps falls short leaving the viewer grasping a few times to put the pieces together. The subject matter is cerebral. I like these type of movies.

When Scoot McNairy plays the lead you know the main character is an average joe. Because no one can play an average joe better than scoot. He does his part making the audience connect with his seemingly laconic life.

Scoots character, Cliff is not doing so good as a salesman. He has a kid in the hospital and a wife in group therapy. Much of his character development is spent at the beginning observing his time on the road. Its evident he has financial short comings.

There are two superfluous dialogue scenes with Stephen Dorf then later Rose Mason which could have been removed and you wouldn't know it. Except they serve to reinforce two things. One, that Cliff really does try to do something other than take Ricky's offer, and two, he did lack scruples in his past.

There is parallel part of Cliff's character portrayal which reveals something flawed in his past. His past life does catch up with him in the form of a former associate called Ricky. Kit Harrington. We don't know what Ricky was like before, but it becomes apparent that he is a lot more calculating and capable of evil than Cliff realized he could be.

Ricky makes an offer to Cliff he can't refuse. The movie picks up pace at this point. There is violence and double crosses and everything you would expect. Cliff has no idea what he is in for.

Look, this is/was a fantastic science fiction series. It had everything. It was original, and different. Without a second season there is no point in even watching the first season.

The discovery of the anomaly, and the character development is a very slow process. By the time the season ends many plots and subplots are revealed. Including new characters. But they are left completely wide open and you really get nothing out of the first season.

I am amazed how garbage zombie series just keep spawning new spin offs. Or garbage alien invasion rehash series keep popping up. But with Night Sky we finally got a completely original, sophisticated science fiction series and it gets canned first season without closure.