Alien Visitor (1996) User Reviews

disappointing interpretation of interesting concepts

[Snaug · 6/10 · 26 December 2000]

This a movie which needs the story to carry itself: the scenery is nice but there is nothing much else to be seen. The story touches on a number of important social subjects such as protecting the environment and tolerance between cultures as well as SF subjects such as time-travel and alien visitors. Unfortunately it does not deliver on any of these subjects. It points out problems but never hints at any solution. And how do the aliens solve these problems? Well, they have a superior intellect and solve everything through their mind: time and space travel, energy production and everything else you can think of. I do not expect the makers to have all the answers, but just summoning up things which are wrong does not validate this movie.

The beginning was promising, but I ended up being disappointed in the end

Enormous potential, but misses by a whisker.

[Sadim · 6/10 · 15 July 1999]

This film had the potential to be a truly great flick .. but was let down badly by its 'sledgehammer' approach to environmental issues, and the appallingly bad acting in the closing scene.

As an armchair greenie, I was pleased to see a film that brought the issues of sustainable resource development to the forefront .. but the continuous hammering on a single issue became annoying.

There are, however, some excellent moments in the movie.

The concept of "You breathe the foul air" as a dismissive insult is particularly evocative, and the ever-changing scenery does far more to draw attention to Ullie Birve's 'alien-ness' as She than all of Hollywood's FX could ever do.

Unlike most science-fiction of the 90s, this was not a chance to show off technological whizz-bangery .. and Rolf de Heer has, with just a few camera angle & location changes, done a masterful job of showing us changed perceptions.

Syd Brisbane, another de Heer favourite, plays the role of The Man with just the right combination of wide-eyed wonderment and plodding suburban pig-headedness .. but there needed to be more made of his Saul-like conversion if his later, unseen role was to be believed.

Which brings us to the final scene.

Althea McGrath's narration was quietly brilliant throughout the film, and her on-camera acting in the final scene was OK, if not outstanding. But oh, her grandchildren ...

Chloe and Phoebe Ferguson got quite good reviews for their roles in another de Heer film, "The Quiet Room" .. but unfortunately in Epsilon, their minor (but crucial) roles as "Child" and "Child" in the campfire sequence don't work.

In fact, the closing scene makes the entire movie like the fire itself: it casts light, it crackles and flares .. but eventually the wooden performances in the dying embers of the film leave nothing but ashes .. and the mood that de Heer has tried to conjure up blows away like so much smoke.

Which is a pity because, as I began, this movie could have been so much more.

Love story yes, environment no

[HEFILM · 7/10 · 23 March 2020]

The film is a mix of things that shouldn't work but many do. Despite it's unity of style--virtually every scene is shot exactly the same way, the two leads are so good and work so well together that the fact it's a talkfest kinda' doesn't matter, and the fact that it's best element is the relationships/love that develops between sexy alien and dorky earth man builds an emotional pull probably because it's all a film about the two of them. Each actor is well cast and couldn't be better, she seems convincingly superior and times, he seems doltish but later quite handsome and rather deep==these attributes being displayed at the perfect moments. We never learn the names of either character in the film--a device that works. The film is full of devices, some pretty distracting.

The film is very much like a stage play, even a planetarium show, only the multiple locations and constant time-lapsing make it purely a movie at the same time. The style is unique enough to work much of the time.

Being science fiction, it will naturally draw some smart ass retorts and deserves some of them, but the film is about differing world views, the details of those worlds may be wrong at times, but it's really just a framework, you can almost say it's about the differences between men and women and how they can work for and against each other.

What fails is the filmmakers "hug a tree/save the earth" message. For a film that becomes so much about two people's relationship to then try to jump the a broad view "issue" it's trying to sell fails. It has to. Stories are at their best when we relate specifically to individuals, not when they try to boil down individuals into groups and causes.

The framing device of the movie of the whole story being told round a campfire to two kids leads to a clunky final scene selling the tree hugger message. Now don't get me wrong I'm all for tree hugging but it's like having too much candy all at once. Even the right message and idea can be delivered in the wrong way.

Again though this is a big though minor problem compared to what the two actors do and the parts they play. The film credits them and the crew with coming up with additional script material--a rare credit to see from a writer director.

At times fascinating and moving at less times a bit the same and ham handed in it's message. Still worth a look and memorable. Good music score helps too.

Film has full frontal female nudity right at the start, rather than in a key love scene later, it feels like a commercial decision to do it this way.

Action is not needed -- but substance and consistency are.

[AEEd · 29 July 2003]

The basic vision of this movie struck me -- and still strikes me -- as an excellent starting point. The cinematography is marvelous and the devotion to environmental and societal questions is admirable. Even without any answers, the importance of the questions the film highlights gives it validity. Unfortunately, the writing and direction left huge holes in the logical development of "She" as an alien character. "The Man" is required to fulfill each of "She's" requirements in thought pattern and relationship development. Unfortunately "She" violates every premise she, herself, dictates. Even "The Man's" most notable leaps in understanding are insulted and demeaned by the alien visitor. When "She" stoops beneath the level of Earth human cruelty by destroying "The Man's" favorite tree (with which he had "shared blood") every supposed superiority of the proposed advanced galactic peoples is totally eradicated. The lesson seems to be that trying to communicate with a less developed individual will destroy your own more delicate feelings and understandings. What could have been a thought provoking challenge to our society wound up being a cheap grouping of pot-shots taken at civilization by childish, dissatisfied, spoiled whiners.

Intriguing Concept And Timely Message

[shirlag · 7/10 · 5 November 2015]

This movie and it's concept reminded me very much of a children's book I wrote and I wondered if the writer and makers of the film struggled as much as I did with how to tell a story with a message. I kept wondering if I had at least succeeded in telling an environmental sci-fi story without clobbering readers to death with my message. I also wondered if it's possible to tell the truth about a terrible situation without being all about the message.

I found the film interesting enough to stay with it to the end and I was never bored. There were times when it seemed so professionally done and I found the acting more than satisfying but at other times, it seemed a bit amateurish. Visually, the cinematography is good and it's an enjoyable film to watch. For it's message, I very much want people to see it. I agree with an earlier review that the narrative wasn't needed and didn't add anything to the story. There were some inconsistencies with the narrative that bothered me also. The story is told by a grandmother to her two young grandchildren. The narrative drops off and the viewer begins watching the actual story unfold. I wondered if the grandmother in her telling of events to the children, edited the story for parts where the two main characters of the film work out their sexual relationship.

On another note, I could see a correlation between the native music that opens the film and its theme. I assume the music was aboriginal but felt it could have been better at setting the mood and laying down some subliminal connections between the native people of Australia and the mystery surrounding the alien and the truth of her message.

All in all, I would recommend it. I wish it were more polished and thought out a bit better at the end but at the same time, it has beauty and worth few films bother to convey.

This deserves to be better known.

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 19 June 2023]

A wandering surveyor (Syd Brisbane) camping in the desolate Australian Outback suddenly encounters a mysterious young woman (Ullie Birve) one night. It turns out that she's an alien from the planet Epsilon, accidentally sent down to Earth, and stranded there for the time being. As they get to know each other, she berates him and the human species for their ignorance and wanton destruction of their own planet. Up to now, he'd never thought much about it, but she forces him to actually think about these things.

This ultra low-budget outing is going to be MUCH too slow, talky, and philosophical for some tastes, but as it is, it's an interesting take on alien visitation cinema. Yes, it does come off as pretty familiar: we've seen stories like this in such classic sci-fi flicks as "The Day the Earth Stood Still". We have a human being here who's largely shunned holding himself accountable, and is only (forcefully) reminded of his ignorance by this extraterrestrial visitor. It's also rather predictable that these two should fall in love, but Brisbane and Birve are so good and so engaging that it seems only natural that the man and woman should make a connection. (She comes off as thorny at first, but endears herself more to the viewer as time goes on.)

Framed by the storytelling device of having a narrator (played by Alethea McGrath) relating the tale to her granddaughters, "Alien Visitor" may not have true mass appeal, but it accomplishes a fair bit on its budget, what with all of its rather pointed dialogue, and its intimate & emotional content. In the end, it didn't leave this viewer unaffected, and it drove home the point that one person *can* make a difference in the world around them.

Seven out of 10.

A Tourist Hates Where They Are

[jmatthewphipps · 2/10 · 17 April 2021]

This reminds me of tourists. American, German, etc. And this movie is tedious with it.

Years ago, we were filming an ecological short film on the dry lake bed near Edwards. We were in full BLM compliance, I handled the permits and the oversight for the film. Everything we took into the desert, we took out. We also did a lot of packing out of other people's trash.

In the middle of filming, a German couple, tourists, came by to see what we were doing. They harangued us. "They would never allow this in Germany. You are destroy the environment." This movie, is that very experience, but made feature length. An alien tourist lands on Earth and spends the entire time saying, "They would never allow this on Epsilon."

thought provoking gem

[formicidae · 8/10 · 4 September 2003]

It's no surprise that this movie never had any theatre play in my neck of the woods. No CGI, no explosions, no "action", just plenty of hard-hitting dialogue and a story about overcoming denial and making good decisions.

"Alien Visitor" is a simple tale about how a good natured fellow has his worldview transformed by a woman from another star system. Like most of us, he is aware of Earth's environmental and social problems, but refuses to take any personal responsibility for them, and does his best to ignore the issues altogether. "She" is disgusted by this "Earth mentality", and ruthlessly and repeatedly forces him to face the truth and his own complicity in the planet's destruction.

The movie is primarily a morality tale, and one that should be mandatory viewing in my opinion--the issues are too important to be ignored. But it is also an impressive look at other little concepts, like the stubborn human psyche, or how relationships mean more than anything else. It shows us how difficult it is to shift long-held viewpoints, even with irrefutable evidence, and how it is often love that helps us finally accept ideas that are otherwise too agonizing. Finally, it shows us that we do at least have the power to change ourselves for the better if me just make the effort.

For all this, and that fact that it's all done without a major budget, I give "Alien Visitor" an 8/10.

My god, that STUNK....

[Voivod666 · 1/10 · 16 April 2004]

Not only do alien visitors look exactly like furry armpitted human woman and not only are alien visitors able to perfectly speak English (with an Australian accent) they ALSO call their stars by the SAME names our Earthly astronomers have given them!

And topping all that off, all alien life knows just how mean, evil, wasteful and destructive us humans are. And they're quite willing to tell us just how bad that is.

If you ever have the chance to see this movie, don't. Well, unless you suffer from insomnia or the choices are this movie or exploratory surgery without anesthesia.

This movie tries to get a moral, ecological point across but only succeeds in making you yawn and pray it ends soon.

A good film...

[_t_ · 8/10 · 16 August 1999]

Epsilon is the story setting in the outback Australian. "She" is naked, lost when accidentally lands on earth from her planet, Epsilon. Then, she meets "the man" who is camping in the bush. She learns from the man that she is on earth which she has heard that it is the worst planet in the universe. In the conversation, she tries to show the man that why the earth is not a good planet to live. Their relationship develops quite quickly during their journey. They try to find their common to live together. Finally, she decides to live on earth with the man although she did not like living on this dirty earth at first.

The film is very rich in the cinematography. I think Australian nature is already beautiful and this film makes it more wonderful. And I really love the plot that does not directly teach people how to treat the earth good. The writer uses an old woman to tell the story of "she" and "the man" to two little girls. I know that this film is teaching me something but I do not feel like I am taking a lesson. I also like this film because of the well done story-line leading by just two main characters and three story tellers.

Childish

[jonasatmosfera · 2/10 · 17 April 2021]

Ok, we all know air pollution is bad and that we humans have been messing up with the planet since we fell from some tree not so long ago.

The whole film feels like a high school play written by. Kids from the Sierra Club.

I do not think that the film has such a powerful message that would change anybody's attitude toward the environment.

Not even the beauty of the Australian outback was given a special place in the film.

It is one of those films that it is good for insomnia.

Sucks Bad!

[choc · 30 November 2000]

Simplistic, pragmatic, tedious and unforgiveably boring. It's very difficult to make a good movie out of a conversation - which is really all this is. I kept waiting for there to be some real action. Never happened. Don't even bother with this one unless you like pretty scenery and nothing else.

Seen it before, will no doubt see it again.

[spotter-8 · 4/10 · 1 May 2018]

This is yet another movie where an alien with superhuman abilities comes to Earth and tells us all the things we're doing wrong. Think 'The Day The Earth Stood Still'. In the early version, we're all warned about the perils of nuclear war. In a later version, we're lectured about damaging the ecology. In a future version, no doubt we'll be warned about some other thing that we dim, stupid, primitive humans are getting wrong. The various aliens might as well be powerful demigods come to Earth to teach us how to live, and somehow the 'correct' way to live always adopts the liberal/progressive hot ideas of the day. But those people aren't big on gods or religions, so they use omniscient, almost all-powerful and more than a tad supercilious aliens.

Great Concept, Overindulgent Execution

[rohonnag · 3/10 · 21 December 2014]

IF you want to see this same concept done PROPERLY, see the Bollywood film P.K. Its a masterpiece, as for this film I am giving this a 10 star rating just for the good concept.

-1 For the alien who is supposed to be naked, but in one early show the camera is misplaced and her lower garment can be seen.

-1 for the alien who can speak PERFECT Aussie and knows what a frog is and has no issue with earth words or language or connotations.

-1 for wasting time on the round and round time lapse over indulgence in the start. We get it director, you just discovered time lapse!

-1 For the entire movie having a voice over, thats just lazy screen play!

-1 For the entire damn movie being about two people just speaking.

-1 even if the entire movie is some people speaking, it can be better done, like the man from earth

-1 for having an environmental theme and NOT showing any polluting factories and extreme crap humans do! that would have made this film a LOT better!

over all a huge missed opportunity so 3/10 rating!

The Woman Who Fell To Earth

[flatrich · 9/10 · 7 September 2003]

I'll try, but this is a very unique film with an outstanding cast. It really needs to be seen. Let's just say that had Nick Roeg's The Man Who Fell To Earth worked this well back in 1976 it would be known today for content rather than David Bowie.

A&E is showing Epsilon under the title Alien Visitor late at night with a few little censorship blurs to hide Ullie Birve's brief nudity, but if they put it up in prime time unmasked for all the world to see I'll bet they wouldn't get one nasty letter.

The plot is similar to TMWFTE or Starman or a dozen episodes of a dozen sci-fi TV shows. A woman from the star (or perhaps planet - we never really know) Epsilon drops in on a lad hiking out in the Australian outback unexpectedly and they fall for each other, but that's where comparisons to most alien visitor plots fade away.

The visitor (Birve) is not happy to be stuck on Earth, a planet reviled throughout the universe for its inhabitants' inability to see their inevitable self-destruction. The Earthling (Syd Brisbane) is just an easygoing guy living a simple life and doesn't really register the reason for her distain. Especially after she illustrates her point by jumping him around on his own planet in the wink of an eye and without even the celestial special effect of a Star Trek transporter.

Director Rolf de Heer uses fixed camera positions to record time passing rapidly mixed with gentle cuts into long fluid pans that effortlessly move the viewer with the main characters as they explore the Earth. It is a wondrous device, only possible in a movie, and we immediately share the Earthling's sense of amazement at the visitor's power over nature's physical laws but also learn with him that magic is the least important aspect of their encounter.

The underlying ecological discourse between the two hasn't lost one bit of relevancy since the film was made in 1995. If anything, the message has become more urgent in the 21st century.

Humans are killing the Earth and something must be done about it - by humans.

Epsilon is beautifully edited and shot by Tania Nehme and Tony Clark. Director Rolf de Heer also played with sci-fi in Encounter at Raven's Gate (1988).

Personally, I'm buying the DVD!

A fairy tale for the eco-socialist.

[ikerrin67 · 10/10 · 31 August 2006]

If your are looking for science fiction alone, then you will hate this movie. Yes it involves aliens, but they aren't really the point. This is a movie that is so green that it might as well advertise as a documentary about the world.

I loved the film for it. It is such a peaceful serene film, and i could watch it again and again. Its a meditation on what life could be like if we cared about the planet, it is so green that it makes Greenpeace look like an oil company. At the same time, it is a love story, and one in which two people make their own universe together. One of my all time favourite films!

One of my favorites...

[StevRR · 9/10 · 6 September 2001]

If you liked "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" - you'll probably like this film. Don't look for special effects - it's more about ideas. It's a bit on the preachy side, but it's head and shoulders above most of the easily forgettable movies produced these days. By the way, it doesn't have much action either - just some simply presented ideas worth thinking about.

Intelligent and charming sf

[colsim · 9/10 · 24 November 2000]

Epsilon proves that science fiction need not be only about huge special effects, cross marketing and vapid story lines. (Don't get me wrong, I like these things to, they just aren't essential)

This film has an incredible heart, a storyline which while fairly simple is nonetheless thoughtprovoking and powerfully emotional, some fantastic performances from The Man and She, who are under the camera in every scene and shine and beautiful cinematography.

Rolf de Heer is like an Oz Cohen brother, he has put his hand to a wide variety of genres of film and never once failed to deliver a masterpiece (or near masterpiece)

It may be hard to find this film and you may find it a little slow to begin with, but just let it draw you in and feel your consciousness evolve. (Ok, that maybe a little over the top but it is pretty profound)

A Thoroughly Enjoyable Story!

[liberalgems · 10/10 · 14 February 2007]

This movie is quite original! It's dream-like quality is simply delightful. I thought to myself while watching this film, "imagine what could have been accomplished with a larger budget and a harder edge!" This is a subversive story, one that political conservatives will detest. With chests puffed-out they will sing the following chorus: "What gives an "extraterrestrial outsider" the right to condemn the human race's destruction of the environment, and ostracize our precious way of life? A filmmaker with guts, that's who!

The love affair between two lonely strangers, is shown to be both confusing and inspiring. While one being is obviously an alien with a unique ability to control time & place, she is in some ways, all too human! How ironic!

While message movies are - for the most part - out of vogue. I dearly hope that when they come back in fashion they tackle issues regarding the health of the world's environment with a vengeance!

Awesome message

[manafusion · 9/10 · 2 February 2009]

Awesome ideas with a great message...! For the age of the movie this is a great concept. Don't expect great effects or action. The movie's quality is based on conversation and messages. I recommend this movie to all people who are concerned about global warming and other futurer problems. Nowadays Global warming and the behaver of humanity is a great convcern for all people, so therefore this movie is good to watch for people that think that can make a change in the world. Support this movie by having more copy's for the public. of May somebody can tell me where to purchase the DVD or VHS. All where sold out... May somebody like to sell his copy. (-: If so please contact me via manafusion(0)gmx.de ...

People are easily impressed by scornful aliens.

[bus7821 · 29 July 2003]

Got a screed about all of mankind's faults? Can't get anyone to pay attention, however, because we've heard it all a thousand times before? Even fellow greenies react to it with a half hearted, "right on" (while suppressing a yawn.) Get a job on a sci-fi movie, and put those same words into the mouth of a contemptuous alien. Suddenly people think the words have become profound and thought provoking. I'm starting to understand how "The Day the Earth Stood Still" got an 8/10.

Great movie.

[piotr-kwiecien · 9/10 · 17 December 2011]

Great movie. If you are very educated person with open mind without rigid, automatic thinking and you can think out of the box you will love this movie. If you aren't then this movie will be a harsh attack on your ego and the illusionary personality it created. You will hate it... As shown in the movie such identification/attachment to illusionary mental concepts of religion, ideology, status, wealth, race, nationality, country and other similar is caused by a lack of control over one's mind. Identifications with such fleeting mental concepts are only possible when a person's mind is not open and has become very rigid. Such identifications/attachments have proved to be extremely dangerous and destructive to all life on this planet. The madness of human mind can be clearly seen on global scale. What has been happening around the world is a direct projection of all individual minds of all people. The history of human kind is a history of mental illness. If you look at the history of human kind using medical criteria you would come up with a diagnosis of severely psychopathic mental disorder. As explained in the movie, considering the current state of life on our planet projection of such mental attitude is no longer acceptable...

An incredulous ride from end to end

[kengibson2001-1 · 4 September 2011]

First of all there are so many things wrong with this movie, but let me start with the first. This film is a combination of feminist, and extreme environmentalism that advocates bringing our technology back to the stone age, or worse.

The beginning starts out well, but leaves the viewer disappointed. First of all if you were expecting this movie to be realistic you have another thing coming.

1. An alien lands on earth accidentally and meats up with a outback cowboy. First of all not only does she look hominid, she is an exact copy of a human being. Nothing even looks remotely different about her compared to a homo sapien .Not only does she look human, but she lands on planet earth speaking a perfect version of the Queen's English even though the human is Australian so the universal translator failed there, if that is what she used.

2. She has the ability to travel anywhere and anytime she wants, but lacks even a basic knowledge of astronomy. She can't even identify her home system, so much for the superior galactic mind even though in relative terms Epsilon isn't that far from here. She also can't teleport back to her home planet.

3. Her ideas while radical even by our modern standards still run out of the human mindset that has been with the US for the better part of 50 years. Think Eco-Nazis planning to return us to caveman days.

4. She arrogantly chastises the human race for their arrogance but it is pretty obvious she is way more arrogant. She is also prone to violence and doesn't seem like she is that enlightened. She even cut down the human's favorite tree he has had since childhood, therefore being part of the problem she hates, and totally destroying her claim that the universe is better than human beings.

5. The narrator claims they got rid of all the books, newspapers, cities within her lifetime. Couldn't have been much longer than 40-60 years. Like they deconstructed it brick by brick. Not a long enough time-span if you think about. Would probably take centuries especially if you couldn't use technology.

Overall this is a terribly pretentious movie that makes Al Gore look good. I wonder how much pollution the producer caused to make this movie and transport them to various places like the outback, or the desert near Las Vegas.