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According to the sci-fi thriller The Fourth Kind, the isolated city of Nome, Alaska, is a hotbed of alien activity. And writer/director Olatunde Osunsanmi is determined to make you believe it—even if it means force-feeding you the story, one abduction at a time.
Through a mix of “real” interviews, recordings, and other footage, along with actor reenactments, The Fourth Kind tells the haunting story of Nome psychologist Dr. Abigail Tyler (Milla Jovovich). While researching sleep disorders, she finds that several of her patients share the same experiences. Many of them, for instance, claim that they’ve woken up in the middle of the night to find a white owl watching them from beside their bed.
Dr. Tyler decides to take her patients’ treatment one step further by hypnotizing them to see what really happens to them at night—but the truth is more terrifying than many of them are able to endure. As the town’s murder and suicide rates continue to rise—especially among Dr. Tyler’s patients—Sheriff August (Will Patton) starts to suspect that Dr. Tyler could be responsible.
Olatunde Osunsanmi really wants you to believe that the events depicted in his film are true. He wants it so badly that he has actress Milla Jovovich open the movie by telling you how very true—and disturbing—it is. He then spends the next 90 minutes barraging you with reminders. Don’t forget, he seems to say, that this is an actor—but he’s playing a real person. Or: Don’t forget that this particularly gaunt and creepy-looking woman is the real Dr. Abigail Emily Tyler. In fact, he spends so much time trying to remind you that it’s true that, after a while, you start to feel like he’s trying to pull one over on you.
Now, I’m not going to spoil all the fun and tell you whether or not he is pulling one over on you (though a quick search online should tell you all you need to know). I will, however, say that the more effort Osunsanmi puts into insisting that it’s all real, the more contrived it feels.
Had he let the story play out, allowing the audience to get caught up in the creepiness of it all, The Fourth Kind could have been a success. There are, after all, some seriously disturbing moments—moments that might just cause viewers to lose a little sleep of their own. At times, it’s even quite convincing. But as soon as you finally get pulled into the story, another little reminder will pop up, and it will pull you right back out again. It’s frustrating—and, worse, it’s distracting.
Come to think of it, though, the constant distractions might actually be a good thing—because, in those few moments when you’re actually allowed to focus on the story, you’ll find yourself cringing not only at the patients’ experiences but also at the unnatural dialogue and the awkward performances.
Still, if you’re willing to sit back and play along, you’ll find that The Fourth Kind has its share of chilling moments. If nothing else, at least it’ll give you plenty to talk about on the drive home from the theater. Skeptics, however, should steer clear. You’ll only end up feeling frustrated—and your snorts and laughter will spoil all the fun for everyone around you.
