Aliens: Zone of Silence (2017) User Reviews

Looks great, makes very little psychological sense

[lemon_magic · 4/10 · 7 November 2018]

Oh, by all means, let's have a young woman, who looks like a fashion magazine cover and who weighs maybe 102 lbs soaking wet, go out into the desert all by herself into a mysterious area in the Mexican desert where able-bodied men have disappeared without a trace.

Let's load her up with enough gear to daunt a 22 year old Seal and have her tramp through sandstorms and desert heat in broad daylight without a HAT to protect her from the sun.

Let's have her only backup be a former Marine hacker type hundreds of miles away using communication links and technology that have been known to fail in this "area". Let her plan be to set up motion detectors and cameras around her tent at night so she can see what might be intruding on her campground, while supplying her with nothing to actually defend herself - apparently the plan is to let the tent walls keep out anything really "bad" ,including rapists, biker gangs, militia, wolf packs, or actual aliens.(Seriously, she doesn't seem to have so much as a pen knife.)

Let's have her stick around even when she finds evidence that her missing brother had been there, even though the absolute smartest play would have been to sprint back to her abandoned car and have the marine tech guy call for backup, towing services, rescue crews and everything else. Especially when she starts seeing mysterious flashing lights where no lights should be, and catches them with her camera gear. (THERE'S your evidence - go get help, ya dummy!)

OK - for what it's worth, I agree with the director's decision to let the movie's final glimpse of the "aliens" (or whatever they were) remain ambiguous and amorphous. The whole idea of the movie was that this "phenomenon" was otherworldly and hard to make out, and IMO a crystal clear shot of a Bug Eyed Gray Man etc would have spoiled things.

Also, for what it's worth: the movie works hard to make the most of its location - some of the scenes look great. The actress playing the explorer is attractive and likable and brings a certain feistiness to her role (even if the character acts like an idiot). The dialog between the characters mostly works, especially the early "vacation" footage that takes place before things get harsh. There's some nice japery and humor here and there. The movie even manage to create some anxiety and dread in a few places, and I did care about the heroine's fate.

All in all: for fans of "found footage horror movie" sub-genre or anyone not too particular about how they spend a couple hours exploring the Netflix horror backlog.

Good Effort

[geopick · 4/10 · 2 January 2018]

Aliens is a good effort, and also something of a demo of the latest portable technology. It is a found footage contribution to the alien abduction genre, here filmed in the always beautiful Mohave desert and possibly including Alabama Hills or similar. The story line is pretty thin, but some of the audio and visual effects are cool for a small film. Ms. Hester, however, does a great job portraying her character's changing responses to unseen threats. It will be interesting to see what she does next. This is film for followers of the genre and not many others. The sincere effort made by the producers is appreciated.

Sad

[Dramius1 · 3/10 · 11 February 2018]

The premise was good... Possible aliens in a mysterious zone. But that's the only good thing about this movie. The rest of it was nothing but dumb people making stupid decisions, & then freaking out. Repeat several times over. Its too bad this movie is wasting space.

Disappointing

[carolynnorton · 1/10 · 9 January 2018]

Build up, build up, build up, then . . . .. NOTHING! What is the sense in making a camcorder movie that shows nothing in the end? In the ending sequence, you can't make heads or tails of anything in the light though the images of whatever is in there is transmitted to video. If you want to watch a movie for only its scare value without ever finding out what is scaring people, this stupid movie is for you!

Waste of time

[davidreynolds-18137 · 1/10 · 31 October 2017]

This film could have been made in a 20 minute short and it was the worst lost footage film I've ever seen.Also the film was very frustrating at times because just as you thought you were about to catch a glimpse of something for gods sake anything! There was nothing and thats exactly how this terrible movie ends.

I made an account just to review this travesty.

[komissar-93513 · 1/10 · 15 April 2018]

Once again, a bunch of amateur film students decide to make a film about a lost film, for an audience of film students that should never have been filmed in the first place.

First and foremost, these self-filmed style movies can be amazing. This one was far from it. The continuity made absolutely zero sense. Scenes went from practically hyperventilating on camera to completely calm and collected conversations with absolutely zero buildup, or cooldown period at all. There was no rhyme or reason to the hysteria or lack thereof. I can't imagine anyone in a similar situation behaving like this at all. The characters would also freak the absolute hell out over something that wouldn't warrant a second thought in the real world. The directors of this movie must moonlight filming violent porn, because they are REALLY good at forcing scenes. All of this however was honestly a minor flaw in comparison to the rest. While on the topic of styles though, the film interference effects were too much. There's much better, and more subtle ways to simulate video streaming interference that would be far more effective and less irritating to watch. We get it, it's the zone of silence. Cool it with the effects.

The intended audience was a far bigger issue because as far as I can tell, this was a movie which intended to be for sci-fi fans, but the director was so disconnected from his audience he ended up making a movie for film students. Let's start with the most obvious problem: The entire damn plot. No, there will be no prisoners taken in this review. So old girl's brother, and friend go missing in the Mexican desert in a location that is known for really weird crap happening, alright, so far so good. The Mexican government doesn't care. Alright, sounds realistic so far. So what is the plan?

A) Form a private search party with several friends and relatives, and search the last known location of your brother in hopes of finding clues that may provide answers to his disappearance? B) As a single female, take 800 cameras it out into the middle of the desert, alone, where weird crap is known to happen and people go missing, AND where two able bodied men you know personally have gone missing? I'm sure it'll be okay, it's being streamed on the internet. Internet man will save the day if something happens!

If you answered B, then you may just be a delusional film student or director who needs to go camping or do something that doesn't involve making videos every now and then, because no one in their right mind would choose option B. Option B however is exactly what this movie was, and it was a very poor choice indeed. Not only is the entire underlying plot unrealistic, but it seems like absolutely nothing within said terrible plot added up, made sense, or even resembled something that might actually happen... Anywhere... Ever. Exhibit A) The plan once the main character gets to her destination. She sets up extremely advanced camera equipment, laser motion detection, and very triumphantly states "If anything moves, I'll know!" Yeah that's great... Then what? You're in a tent, in the middle of Mexico, and your only contact with the outside world is some voyer we can't QUITE tell if you hired or is a friend. All the camera equipment in the world won't save you from that crap sandwich. This of course ties back into the theory of the film being for film students, because only a film student would think that's somehow an advantageous situation.

Without describing the entire movie in detail, some other points do need to be addressed. This section will gloss over them. That's not how metal detection works directors. Try learning the basics about the things you're going to put in your movies. In that same vein, that's not how camping works, you hear weird stuff all the time, and funny enough, about 90% of it is animal mating calls. Not every sound heard deserves a hyperventilation scene. That's also not how missing persons cases work, even in Mexico. For the love of god and all that is holy, no one, and I mean no one would go into a place known for weird stuff and missing people in Mexico alone and unnamed. It just wouldn't happen. The Blaire Witch project is dead, just leave it alone and let it rest in peace, please.

This movie, right here, is literally the reason people pirate media. When steaming piles of film student crap are passed off as movies, and you believe you deserve money for it, you're creating a market for piracy. Nobody should have yo spend their hard earned money on a botch job like this. If this were a chicken dinner at a restaurant, I would send it back for being cold and raw. If this were a car repair, I would redeem the warranty on it. If this were a defective electronic, I would return it.

Tired old found film flick

[cncsurf · 1/10 · 7 January 2018]

Would the aliens, witches, and various monsters please abduct the cameras when you torment film students. Please stop with the found film movies. They are boring and mind numbingly boring and predictable. Avoid this movie.

Believable? Nope.

[clintstevens · 1/10 · 20 January 2018]

This movie is derivative of 'Blair Witch', which might be the worst movie I ever paid good money to see...so you know where this review is going. The first question I need to ask; why would any young woman set off through the Mexican desert alone, since her brother and his friend, two able bodied men disappeared there? Second question; is this woman a super human? She totes a 2 man tent, sleeping bag, 4 cameras on tripods, a backpack chock full of recording equipment and necessities like TP, food etc. Third question; where is the continuity in the last half of the movie? Scenes go from the woman calmly talking to her friend back home to hysterics and back to normal conversation to hysterical terror...you get the idea. And last question; why do these hand held camera 'docs' never have any kind of closure?

Pretty chilling alien found footage film

[kevinmeylemans · 6/10 · 17 May 2020]

I liked the acting and script. Director did pretty well. Lotsa tense moments that keeps hold of you. Worth watching if you're fan of found footage horror reality sort of style movies. Subject nothing original but they made sure it stayed interesting to watch and enjoy..

What a waste of time...

[simoncharest · 2/10 · 3 March 2018]

I don't even know where to start... this is a disaster !

I enjoyed it

[randyunseen · 8/10 · 4 August 2020]

I'm usually a little more tougher on reviews on horror movies than this. They tried and mostly succeeded in doing a good job with the story. I thought the desert scenes were well done and creepy. She was mostly by herself with help from her friend on the cloud. (Wifi) I enjoyed that he was watching the perimeter while she was sleeping.

You can't say they didn't try hard, and it was different even if it's like Blair Witch Project. Who cares as long as they have their take on it.

Not the worst FF example

[nebilcs-168-165298 · 6/10 · 11 October 2020]

It's not the best but it is far from the worst. The FF genre rarely delivers a fully fleshed-out scenario or compelling special effects and so the skill (or lack) is whether the journey itself is watchable and whether there are enough twists or fresh ideas to sustain interest over the run time. On the negative side, a *lot* of belief suspension is required, the Mexican desert doesn't seem like the optimal place for a single American female to journey through. even more so with substantial equipment, supplies and no transport for the most part. The beautiful desert scenes mostly carry the film while the remote assistant's domestic footage seems largely out of place.

On the plus side, the lead actress did a good job, there were successfully-crafted moments of tension and a few flourishes which took my rating over halfway.

Waste of one hour in my life

[v-87516 · 1/10 · 16 December 2018]

In the duration of one hour and ten minutes in the film, meaningful content only takes up to ten minutes and it was a bad story. The scenery is of nice attempt but that's it - no valuable information was communicated 90% of the time. In overall quality, it's below college average. So glad that I only watched it on Netfilx and didn't have to pay another ticket and all.

Yawn

[bseaman-20248 · 2/10 · 10 January 2018]

Note to all aspiring film-makers out there: the "found footage" movie is very old and should have died with "The Blair Witch Project". I remember back then thinking that I wish I had not heard all the hype about how scary "The Blair Witch Project" is because perhaps I would've found it disturbing. Film-makers, give this found footage approach a rest. Perhaps if you are low or zero budget and need to make a movie for your film studies class, then you have no other option.

I only watched this movie because I am a subscriber to Canadian Netflix.

Seriously folks, give this a pass.

Boring

[gjpfnnpnwy · 3/10 · 25 June 2021]

Half the movie is a woman walking in the desert, and sitting inside a tent at nighttime. You'll hear a few growling sounds here and there along with camera glitches during the nighttime, which is supposed to indicate the aliens are nearby, but nothing beyond that. The movie has no tension, no atmosphere, no actual payoff for sitting through the entire thing. I was bored after the first 30 minutes. The acting was subpar, and the filming is what you'd expect from a found footage film. The one positive thing was the CGI for the ending scene. That was all right. And I emphasize "all right." The entire budget must've gone into those 2 minutes. Other than that, you'll see lights buzzing in the sky two or three times. That's the extent of the alien presence. 3/10. Unless you're an alien movie junkie, skip it.

Aliens are Boring

[timothygartin · 3/10 · 15 March 2020]

The premise here is that a sister loved her brother so much, she is willing to do anything to find out what happened to him. It isn't really even to find him. She realizes he is gone. She becomes obsessed and ignores every red flag until the end.

This makes her character ridiculous, and stupid. Since she is the entire movie, this makes the movie hard to watch. This movie also suffers from a lack of real scares or tension. We just get spooky sounds and lights.

Pass on this one.

Usual Blair Witch knock-off

[Leofwine_draca · 2/10 · 8 March 2018]

ALIENS: ZONE OF SILENCE is yet another found footage indie tackling the subject of alien abduction. It's similar to at least a dozen others of the last decade with the same premise. The protagonist is a young woman who goes into the desert to look for her missing brother and discovers that aliens might well be responsible. The usual BLAIR WITCH-derived antics ensue, while the film is made on very limited means. There's a little atmosphere and a lot of cliche, but the whole story simply isn't very involving.

Smh

[tbenner-51692 · 2/10 · 17 October 2022]

Could have been a good film. A woman strapped with lights and cameras and an overly sensitive microphone that you could hear her blink, walking around an empty desert. When something bad happens whether its aliens or falling down a low angle slope, the cameras unrealistically glitch and buzz. Very unconvincing found footage. Did I mention the stupid microphone is overly sensitive and has to be the most annoying thing I ever heard. Sensitive like those podcasters that over spend money on microphones and sound equipment just for vocals or stupid asmr crap. Overall the movies was more annoyingly obnoxious thab boring. Watch it if you love listening to every grain of sand crunch underfeet and hearing eyes blink during a walking simulator and oh yeah aliens.

Unrealistic and minimalistic, but still engaging

[Armin_Nikkhah_Shirazi · 6/10 · 20 July 2023]

UFOs and Aliens seem to be a favorite subject for found footage movies, and for any genre effort to stand out from the crowd, it has to offer something others don't.

ALIENS: ZONE OF SILENCE offers a female protagonist who is not just eye candy but genuinely likable, going on a solitary trip in a real-life Mexican patch of desert called "Zona Del Silencio" (giving the movie its title) in search for her missing alien-hunting brother and his best friend. During her trip, she is assisted remotely by a hacker-type who helps her (and us) see what is going on through several cameras.

We see both footage of her and literal found footage of her brother, and it seems recklessness to the point of stupidity runs in the family. Still, despite this, we don't lose sympathy for her (unlike for her brother, at least a little) because we know she is driven by the love for her brother and not recklessness for its own sake.

That a single attractive woman would go on such a trip without any discernible self-defensive measures, how much equipment and gear she seems to be able to carry, and some of the decisions she makes along the way, all these seem quite unrealistic to me.

Also, the minimalist approach of putting most of the film on the shoulders of one actress is risky, but in the end it pays off because she is convincing. It also helps that the movie features gorgeous scenery shots and nice if understated special effects. The latter is not too surprising since the director has been involved in special effects of major Hollywood productions.

So, overall the movie managed to engage me despite the above issues.

The ending is sort of open-ended and we never see the actual aliens (clearly, anyway!), and this may turn some people off. But to me it was par for the course. Very few movies in this subgenre pull off a crisp "Alien Reveal" well (one that did, to the extent that its ending partially salvaged a flailing movie, is THE GRACEFIELD INCIDENTC(2017)), so going the "fuzzy" route is understandable.

Found Footage and UFO fans will probably like this, depending on how much they are willing to overlook the lack of realism in and minimalism of story.

Think about your audience....

[monchbutt · 1/10 · 5 April 2018]

If you're going to make a Sci-Fi movie...think about your audience. We're geeks. If you're going to use a metal detector...research, get some advice and learn how to use it properly. That scene was ridiculous...ugh.

Usually I just read the reviews

[NusseligSinnsykPsycho · 9/10 · 30 June 2021]

I don't understand the low score and bad reviews. This is a must for fans of the "found footage" genre. If you're looking for a scifi movie with truckloads of Hollywood special effects, this is not a film for you. The few special effects in the movie is impressive and does not ruin the FF feeling. I usually just read the reviews. But now I had to set the record straight. This is not a movie made for award shows. But it's a movie that will scare you. I promise you. Found footage fans, watch this and I think you'll agree with my score...

Atmospheric and Charming

[junk-810-381519 · 7/10 · 15 April 2023]

"Zone of Silence" feels like a campfire story. It's atmospheric. Kinda charming.

The negative reviews and ratings are... crazy. Some people don't like it, which is fine. It's those who hate it that confuse me.

This is a short low-budget alien sci-fi. As an alien sci-fi fan, I know how sparse the landscape is. We should be grateful anybody's bothering with the genre at all.

If you go into "Zone of Silence" expecting Hollywood, you'll be disappointed. If you expect crazy effects, you'll be disappointed. If you only like things that are part of the MCU, there's nothing for you here.

But if you're the kind of person who can enjoy imperfect films, it's lovely. It's *fun*. There's a touch of spooky to it.

I felt the isolation and the tension. I like the use of 47 cameras to capture the fear and running and shortness of breath.

At just over an hour, it asks little of the viewer. If you're angry enough at the end to write a one star review, then the problem is *you*.

It's okay to like things.

Just sit back, eat your popcorn, shut up, and watch the movie.

Currently watching this film and I have some good things to say and some things I would like to complain about

[donaldwaynestephens · 6/10 · 16 July 2023]

Story line and cast were great actors did fairly well yet there are a few little things that really bother me. Now I my self if I was an alien hunter after gathering my gear together I myself know anytime we hear about aliens the first l things we always hear about when people are hunting aliens there car shuts down. So here is a pointer be sure to drive a vehicle that does not use a computer or minimal electronics, bring a bike, or better yet a dirt bike that kick starts so you don't have to worry about the electric issues.

If you are at base camp or nerve center and your suppose to be watching the cameras don't get distracted do not go and paint your house while people are investigating to see if the can find aliens. Not just because they are hunting aliens but because you never know what might happen to them i the dark in the middle of no where wild animals or just bad people that are out to do harm. Last of all of you are the investigator and you do not know the area you in never ever would you want to leave you only way of communication in your tent while you go scout the area around camp. Not that all being said I am still watching this film and so far I like most of it but we will see it is currently 7:30 p.m. July 16th 2023 and I'll add more to this momentarily.

7:45p.m. Let's walk of In desert and leave our tent open to the elements, nature and environment so anything can get inside of it. I wish that film makers, writers and/or directors would truly think about things when filming and make it actually realistic. Goose is not a good friend let's just ignore all proper observation techniques. I guess I just really think of how I would do it and I am the type to do my best to keep bad things from occurring because often our actions can reflect the outcome of situations. But I'll tell you it is actually really good film to watch so watch it and leave you opinion.

Found Footage fans, this is one of those little gems we all look for

[WoLf_DiGiTaL · 8/10 · 21 October 2022]

You know what i mean. Wading through countless hours of ff that, let's face it, if we didn't love the genre we would be singing the tune of these uninformed and unenlightened heathens giving this a 1.

But we aint them. Ok.

This is Extraterrestrial FF. Low budget of course but the pacing, the story, and concept are the bomb. This is the kind of movie that if you had a bigger budget would be meh.

But it so works as a found footage. I found myself constantly trying to figure out what's around the next corner. I am being vague because as you know FF is best served with no hype and no expectations. But do trust me on this. For any ff fan this is a must see before plowing back into the morass. I hope you enjoy. Because i sure did. I gave it a ff 8/10.

REAL FOUND FOOTAGE NOT FAKE FOUND FOOTAGE

[HRHPRINCESSRACHEL · 10/10 · 29 July 2023]

She does find her brother ! Everything proves to be genuine like THE BLACKWELL GHOST series's. Found footage is more edgier than fake found footage, because you can feel their fear.

I watch genuine found footage for the truth and to find out if CERN has some kind of control or involvement in some unexplained event's. Ephesians 6:12 warns us that we are not fighting with flesh and blood, but spiritually and whatever these beings appear to be interdimensional thus CERN has opened the door to let them in.

Watch and judge for yourself on YOUTUBE slowing to x25 to see the truth yourself and you will notice something in key part's of the film that can't be faked, as they appear in some part as microbursts and you see what is at the heart of this film.

When she finds her brother, it isn't a pleasant reunion and not for the faint of heart. I know how I would feel in her place ,which makes it raw and in my humble opinion very real and frightening to the weak hearted that are more interested in horror than seeking the truth.

I am interested to see if anybody else has disappeared in that area and learn more about any other anomalies. It's Mexico's Bermuda Triangle and this is why I would advise people not to go there. If I went there -I would stay near my vehicle and not wander too far, as it looks easy to get lost in. I would use my drone to get a 360° pan of my location and submit to social media, so I could be found ,if I were to get into trouble. I have moderate-severe Cerebral Palsy, and still despite needing a wheelchair like taking gift's to my Edomite friends and family in our local parks, forest's and woodlands. So, I can relate to the young woman searching out the truth to be a victim, herself.