Movie Review: The Alien Factor

I like to think that I am open to low budget, no budget, old, local, independent movies. I think I am generally fair when watching these movies, but man, I am being tested. Perhaps I am not as open as I thought I was. This Sci-Fi Invasion bosses challenge is truly testing me. There are a boatload of incredibly boring and bad movies here that I am struggling to get through. The latest movie is no exception. It is called The Alien Factor and is just really bad.



The movie came out on 1978 after being shot over the course of two years prior. While the movie was made in and released in the late 70's, it looks like it is from the mid-1950's. I do not know if his by design or not. While I do not think this is a good movie, I am willing to cut it from slack based on what I recently learned about the writer/director, Don Dohler. He was a no budget indie filmmaker on Baltimore who made his own films to show off his DIY skills and admittedly did not care much about screenplay or directing of actors. He also had a magazine called Cinemagic where he did step by step special effects stuff.

As for The Alien Effect, it was his first movie and he jumps right in and lets you see stuff, he does nothing to try and hide his creatures or effects in darkness or clever angles. The first scene of the movie shows a couple parked out in some field to make out and drink bourbon when they are ambushed by some big monster that drags the guy right through the open window and leaves the girl in shock.

It turns out that an alien spaceship crashed a nearby field. The ship had been bound for am alien zoo and the collected specimens are now loose and killing whatever townsfolk they come across. We get shots of a random biker driving down the down the road, a couple who discover the ship, a guy who literally has the life drained out of him, and others who happen to stumble across any of the three distinct aliens. It is all up to the sheriff to find a way to stop them.

Now, it really doesn't help that the quality of this transfer is beyond awful. The print is scratched and marked up, is not terribly clear, and the audio is even worse. I am not complaining as I cannot really expect much from these 50-movie budget packs, but it doesn't help the enjoyment of the movie. Not in this case anyway.

The Alien Factor is undeniably bad, but it does have a certain energy to it, credit for a guy who went out and just did it. I would not really recommend you go out of your way for it. It is not a good movie, just admirable for the conditions under which it was made.

Not Recommended.