What does it mean to be a believer? The Fourth Kind poses the question, "do you believe in abduction theories". Many of the people that I sat in a theater for the running time of 1 hour and 38 minutes would most likely say no they were not believers. Some may hesitate before answering, and maybe a few would be willing to actually entertain the idea for a few minutes before shaking their heads in disbelief. Truthfully I'm not going to say that I am a believer, but I don't know if I can say for certain that I'm a disbeliever. Truth is if I saw what appeared to look like a UFO right now I'd probably wonder what type of hoax the "Balloon Boy's" father was up to now, but I went into the film with an open mind and was pleasantly surprised with the outcome.
The Fourth Kind is an unusual film that mixes the reality of a psychologist's study tapes and audio recordings with over dramatized footage, using Hollywood stars to portray various "characters" in the film. But this film does not pretend to be anything other than exactly what it is. The opening scene of the film is Milla Jovovich standing before a camera making a statement that every scene in the film is supported by archived footage of events that took place in Nome, Alaska in October 2000. Then again at the end Milla and director Olatunde Osunsanmi restate that we have to make a decision on our own as to whether we believe or not, and that the film is to simply bring to light actual documented footage and audio clips of events that took place in 2000.
The unusual collaboration gives the film a unique choice in editing and offers you a side by side comparison of some of the events. Even with the addition of Hollywood mixed with archived footage I will confess that I did jump during sections of the film. I did question some of the footage, but I had to keep in mind that when watching a film like The Fourth Kind you must allow yourself to have a suspension of disbelief. You have to allow yourself to forget about the limits of reality and "the real world" and allow your brain to wonder into the world of disbelief. I have heard that many people could not believe anything that took place during the film. They laughed during the "encounter" footage, and I even heard one person walk out of the theater say "with you being an aspiring filmmaker I cannot believe that you thought that film was any good." Now that was he only comment I laughed at during my entire time at the theater.
The Fourth Kind is a film that simply asks you to take an hour out of your day to simply experience any other person's experiences. Accept them for what they are, or are not. Then to make a decision as to whether or not you can believe what you just witnessed. If you can allow yourself to let your mind wonder, ingest, and then decide you may just walk out of the theater with something to talk about and maybe even a film you enjoyed, rather than feeling as through you wasted your time and money.
Now trust me, this film is not for everyone. If you do not have any doubts in your mind that abduction theories absolutely positively do not exist, than I may suggest you try for a different film this weekend. But if you are looking for something a little different than the typical Hollywood style film, and you accept the film for what it is and nothing more, than I would say this just might be he film for you.
So, are you willing to give yourself and this film the opportunity to share with you one persons experiences so you can decide for yourself?
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