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Invasion Earth
UK 2016
produced by Steven M. Smith (executive), Paul G. Andrews (executive), Tariya Wells (executive), Gregory Schmauss (executive), Duane A. Sikes (executive) for Greenway Entertainment
directed by James Twyman, Steven M. Smith (co)
starring Charlotte Gould, Phoebe Delikoura, Nigel Thijs, David Shaw, Sammy Johnston, Cameron Bell, Darren James King, Colette Hughes, Cavan Holsgrove, Jonathan Jules, Ylana Lovell, Jon-Paul Gates, Tony Fadil, Rebecca Hughes, David Artus
written by James Twyman, music by Jon Bentley
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Dr. Carson (David Shaw) runs an alternative clinic - basically an old
farmhouse in the middle of nowhere - for the rehabilitation of addicts of
one form or another, and of course he got your typical mix of inmates here
who mostly have chosen his treatment to a prison sentence, from racist
Derek (Darren James King) to fallen from grace and heroin-addicted teen
idol Vicky (Phoebe Delikoura), from nymphomaniac Ada (Charlotte Gould)
to woman in a man's body Simon/Cheryl (Cameron Bell), and everything
in-between. In fact, he has that explosive a mix that he has hired former
special forces man Thomas (Nigel Thijs) to keep things in check. But
despite the explosive mix, it seems the therapy sessions are going really
well and the worst thing Carson has to worry about is a sensation-hungry
TV personality, Pierceson (Jon-Paul Gates), who has sworn to wreck
Carson's clinic for no other reason than to have a good story that pretty
much writes itself, no matter whether it's true or not. But Carson manages
to handle that rather beautifully. Thing is, what nobody knows, aliens
have landed in the neighbourhood to apparently prepare an invasion, and
while Vicky's in voluntary solitary to overcome her withdrawal symptoms -
and Thomas who was to watch over her is distracted by horny Ada - the
aliens brainwash her to be one of theirs, and soon she's gone to come back
as a killing machine. Now as all of the group works together, they manage
to overcome Vicky (if not without losses), but now the aliens have caught
their sense and start decimating them, starting with Carson as if to
chopping off the head of the snake. Now most of the inmates are tougher
than they look and think, also thanks to what they've learned Carson's
therapy - but are they even remotely up to fighting an extraterrestrial
force they can't even begin to understand ...
Now there's one thing one can certainly not blame Invasion
Earth for, and that's not being daring: The first part of the film
actually plays like a socio-realist drama with an agenda - that in all
honesty might hit some clichés along the way but for the most part stays
very grounded and is rather nicely carried by the actors. But halfway
through the movie, the film completely changes tune rather surprisingly
(even if there were plenty of hints to that before) and becomes a mix of
alien invasion story and survival horror - and somehow it all makes sense,
as the film manages to use the carefully set up characters in their new
surroundings and gives them arks that go beyond just their addictions. And
a very subtle directorial effort sees to it that despite its thematic
shift the movie comes across as a coherent whole - and a cool ride at
that.
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review © by Mike Haberfelner
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Robots and rats,
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love and death and everything in between,
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Tales to Chill Your Bones to
the new anthology by Michael Haberfelner
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