Genres

Visitors Review

Drago_Head_Tilt 2012-05-19 01:06:46

51

Journalists are permitted to look around the military base in thenotorious Area 51, just to prove that there are no aliens there. But inthe lower levels there are indeed extraterrestrial lifeforms thatescape and kill. One is a faceless humanoid who can replicate anyone(leading to boring who-is-the-alien situations stolen from THE THING),the other a tentacled man-in-a-suit monster (not a bad retro creation,a cross between ALIEN and EVIL SPAWN/WASP WOMAN). Another nice, wisealien is called J. Rod. A very boring Syfy release from the Director ofTHE DEVIL'S TOMB. With Bruce Boxleitner as a Colonel, Jason "whathappened to may career?" London and Rachel Miner as heroic grunts, JohnShea as a famous news anchor and Andrew Sensenig. Mukerjee was alsoCo-Producer.Movie reviews @ spinegrinderweb.com

2012-05-18 13:30:22

Truly Dissapointing

Year after year I scoop up and purchase this series in hopes that there will be something semi-good. I thought the first couple of years, this series put out some enjoyable decent little films, but now I just want to scream! Please After Dark, put a little effort before we diehard fans start turning away. 51, Banshee and a few others have really stunk. Now I guess I'll just wait before I run out and buy the next offering. Here is the thing your company needs to understand, we horror fans will support almost anything - as long as there is some kind of effort on your side. Please give us something better than this kind-of made for TV - Syfy Channel reject. I'm begging you... This last entry had me wishing I had watched Leprechaun again - and that stunk - but at least the makers of Leprechaun tried.

2012-05-14 18:07:48

SO SO SCI FI FROM SYFY

Once again the Syfy network has decided to offer an original film via the After Dark franchise. The difference is that this time around they've got a fairly decent flick. It's not Oscar material but it never pretends to be either.Due to the public outcry over secrets being held at what has been called Area 51, the military and top level politicians have decided to allow a couple of journalists in to see that they have nothing to hide. Of course we know they do have something to hide and as we watch base commander Col. Martin (Bruce Boxleitner) explain to his men, the only things these journalists will see is what they want them to.The two journalists are Sam Whitaker (John Shea), a top network news anchor, respected for his in depth investigative pieces and Claire (Vanessa Branch), an online journalists who's blog is the most read news site looking into cover ups. Along with them are their camera people. These four and the Col. head down to the first level where he will allow them to see that there is nothing to hide except a few military secrets.What they don't know is that there is a deeper level to area 51, one that does indeed house not just one but several aliens. For whatever reason these aliens, completely different from one another, are about to break free and seek freedom. Talk about bad timing.The base goes on lockdown and the tour group takes cover where they can. Unfortunately one alien, the big bulky scaly one with claws, seems to enjoy popping heads off soldiers and making blood squirt everywhere. Yes, the costume is pretty bad but it harkens back to the good old man in suit monster movies. It doesn't take itself seriously and it's a good thing.The other alien is a little more difficult to deal with. It has the ability to change form into anyone it touches. Like the film THE THING, we suddenly have an alien who could be any one in the group. So of course they split up every now and then.Topside we have two soldiers with back stories that just don't seem to matter with the exception that both were heralded for bravery or cowardice and now have a chance to redeem themselves (which you know they will before the film ends). The question is can they do so before the entire base is blown sky high and can they stop the aliens from escaping at the same time?As I said earlier, this movie doesn't take itself too seriously. Instead, it's like a classic B movie with plenty of action, enough story to get by and an alien that is rather cheaply made. There's also a twist included near the end but who am I to reveal what little secrets this film has? All in all it's in good fun and for those looking for a short distraction it will do the trick.

Paul Haakonsen 2012-05-14 15:34:27

What a pleasant surprise...

Alright, first of all, don't rear up and get all defensive when you seethe word SyFy here. Despite their endless need to release less thanmediocre TV movies upon the world, then the occasional gem pops outfrom their production line. And "51" is just one of those rareoccasions.We are all familiar with the story behind Roswell, the crash of 1947,and the secret military base known as Area 51, right? Right! Then youare already up to speed with the base story of "51". A group ofreporters are allowed onto the otherwise restricted Area 51 grounds fora tour and to tell the story, when something goes awry. Alien lifeformsescape captivity and threaten all within the Area 51 base. And thestory is a fast-paced story, with lots of action and some suspense aswell.The aliens themselves were actually not too badly made, though therewas a bit too much resemblance to the aliens from the Alien franchisemovies, in regards with their tail and such. But other than that, thenthe aliens actually looked cool. There was sort of a mixture betweenalien and pumpkinhead going on. As for the morpher (shapeshifter), wellthe make-up and effects were good enough. But for me personally, then Iwasn't too keen on the idea that he looked like a featureless humanwith no skin. The concept of 'patient zero' was cool though.As for the cast in "51", well being a TV movie and all, there were nomajor Hollywood blockbuster names, but there were some familiar facesfrom the TV though, such as Jason London (playing Aaron Schumacher),John Shea (playing Sam Whitaker) and a couple more. The people in themovie were doing a fair enough job with their roles, but the movie wascarried by Jason London, in all fairness.I was pleasantly surprised by "51" and being interested in the wholeRoswell and Area 51 thing, this movie was a nice addition to thesubject. It proved to be entertaining and exciting, so thumbs up forthis SyFy movie.

jynx242 2012-05-13 13:44:12

Well - It is exactly what it sets out to be

I really enjoy the cheese factor of SyFy original films. They are thekind that friends and I get together and watch and make fun of. Weoccasionally have "live chats" on the internet while watching them sofriends from all over the country can connect and laugh together.That being said - and taken in that context - this movie was absolutelyfun! Yes - there is a low budget. Yes - the the plot, script, sets, andspecial effects were a little lacking; but it is a SyFy original movieand should be taken in that context. It was a cheesy alien romp thatleft me smiling. Certainly not a great movie, but I was definitelyentertained.

marine_snipr_arshad 2012-05-13 07:42:55

terrible

This film is literally the biggest pile of elephant sh$t I have everseen in my life.I would rather slowly impale my eyes simultaneously with searing whitehot forks than watch this goddamn sh#t again.The aliens look like potatoes and the main alien sounds like MicrosoftSam. The actors are straight up terrible they try and act concerned andserious but come off as dopey and cliché' as hell. What the hell is upwith the military personnel looking like fat wow playing nerds.I thought the buff black guy would at least add some flavor but alas hewas a pussy. This film could not have possibly have had a $1,000,000budget because I could have produced something better with my crappyiPhone in my back yard with my semi retarded mates.The directors should kill themselves.I actually went out of my way to make an account so i could write thisabhorrent review. P.S I lost the DVD so Ill just take the receipt back with a piece ofsh*t; same thing.Out.

Gladys_Pym 2012-05-06 18:55:14

Missed most of the possible targets

OK.An opening scene which is green screen is a SERIOUSLY bad start. Itinspired no confidence, and was seriously un-immersive.The acting wasn't ALL bad, but was certainly patchy.Direction OK, script a bit rubbish, the aliens not too bad. OK, to befair, they died a bit easily, but then masks/CGI/whatever, I thoughtthey were OK.Just could have been far better.I wish IMDb didn't have the 10 line limit. This one isn't worth anymore than I just gave it.

TheLittleSongbird 2012-05-06 05:01:40

Lazy and dull

I was actually interested in seeing 51 because I like movies withaliens in if they're done well. Sadly, 51 wasn't done well at all in myopinion. It is not the worst movie I've ever seen, but it is one of thelaziest with its far from stylish or mood-enhancing editing and, withthe rip offs of The Thing and Aliens, its unoriginality.What also spoilt it for me was the complete lack of suspense andtension, it was just dull in the pace(the 90 minutes 51 is felt twiceas long to me) and derivative in its execution instead. Add to thatcheesy dialogue, shallow characters that I didn't give a toss about andsome of the most phoned-in acting I've seen in a while, and you alreadyhave a bad movie.And need I mention the unexciting and very predictable story in that Icould smell how it was going to end a mile off, and clichés so many andso frequent that I could write a book on them? Overall, a lazy and dullmess. 1/10 Bethany Cox

Polar Bear 2012-05-01 02:25:08

Better Than I Expected

When I watched this I believed I was in for another terrible B ratedmovie, but I must admit, out of all the B rated movies I have seen,this is by far the best one. The actors were not amazing, but betterthan usual in my opinion. The special effects were also better thanmany other B rated movies I have seen, although they were stillterrible in comparison to bigger movies of course. The story line wasalright and I quite enjoyed it, although I thought the end was a bitweird... Anyway, not the best movie I have seen, but still a pleasantsurprise.I give this movie a 4/10 for making a good effort with their lowbudget.

2012-04-30 19:07:23

51 IS NOT THAT ORIGINAL

Be warned...51 is NOT a "true" After Dark original like others in the series. 51 is a SyFy channel tv movie and it shows. Unlike earlier ADO superior efforts, 51 is an amateurish attempt to cash in on the iconic legend of Area 51.Under Jason Connery's (son of 007 Sean) pedestrian direction, the plot is fairly simple: a group of reporters is inexplicably granted permission to tour the legendary Hangar 18 and upon their arrival, one of the captive aliens stages an uprising resulting in the release of other dangerous aliens.There are no CGI monsters, rather a return to the men in rubber suits circa the 1950's. Connery even allows the camera to dwell shamelessly on these creatures to further stress the low budget.B movie stalwarts Bruce Boxleitner, Jason London, Rachel Miner and John Shea try gamely but given their material, there's not much hope. And let's not forget the friendly Yoda clone---how original!51 is sort of entertaining in a quirkish way but certainly not a classic!

fgeek 2012-04-28 15:34:41

Sucks badly

One of the worst movies I have seen. There isn't anything worth ofwatching. I do like horror/scifi -genre, but this definitely does notbelong there. More like action/comedy/scifi. I don't want to spoil youtoo much, but I definitely suggest you to watch another movie or go topizza with your girlfriend.Few things I did not like in this movie at all: 1) Aliens looked stupid2) Aliens without other special skills than transforming to look-a-like3) Stupid reporters 4) Why on earth would army let people inside armybase just because there is rumors of aliens..I wonder how much money they used to make this crap. One should thinkof the children living in starvation.

trashgang 2012-04-28 03:52:01

childish script

I follow the After Dark series and I know that many people do complainabout the entries. Some are good but most of them aren't. This is themost hated one in the new issue of After Dark and I must agree. Fromsecond one you know what you will get, SyFy, yes, not known forquality. Although that I must admit that the effects this time wererather good. But the flick fails completely in script. After the SyFy logo we see a journalist standing before the fences ofArea 51. They really looked stupid but not only that, she's standingbefore a green key. If you watch closely you can see that even the keybeing made to cut out the green wasn't perfect at all. I have mypicture before the gates of Area 51 and it isn't what is shown here.Nevertheless, back to the movie. It's okay to tell a story about Area51 but when it becomes really ridiculous then you know that you are indeep sh*t. Come on, an alien talking English? And just look what theydid with the story, first it's an attack by a baby alien, of coursethat you could see coming. The mother itself do looks like the aliensfrom Xtro. On the other hand they even ripped-off Alien. There's a shotwere a soldier is facing the head of the alien, it's like the one ofRipley facing the alien, just the same, dripping teeth included. The acting couldn't convince me too, it was all a bit to cliché. JohnShea was just standing there and almost didn't do anything except atthe end. Bruce Boxleitner (remember Tron)wasn't convincing too.They even tried to make the flick believable by adding the so-calledroom were the Roswell alien was dissected. But the talking alienentered that room and it ruined it all. It just bored me a lot, why does this is included in the After Darkseries is an enigma for me. If there wasn't a bit of gory shots I wouldrecommend it to my 10 year old child. Let Area 51 just be Area 51.Gore 0,5/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 2/5 Story 1/5 Comedy 0/5

chrisma5803-299-176192 2012-04-20 11:29:12

Area 51

This film is the biggest pile of crap I have seen in a very long time.The acting is dire. The aliens are terrible. The dialogue is terrible.You can even see the man inside the small alien as it/he is talking. Itwas the longest 90 minutes of my life. I will never get those 90minutes back. I have given it 1 out of 10, for the guts to put this outon DVD. Was it a straight to DVD movie? It should have been straight tothe bin. Avoid this movie at all costs, it isn't even worth downloadingfor free. A complete waste of time, there tons of better movies outthere so don't waste time on this one. The actors (sic) should beashamed of themselves for doing this movie.

2012-04-20 01:31:33

Low rent alien dirge, about what you'd expect

51, or Area 51, or whatever you want to call it, is another Sci-Fi Channel co-production (like the cringe-worthy Scream of the Banshee) with this year's After Dark lineup. With that all in mind, you probably already know what you're getting here. Directed by Jason Connery (son of Sean) and featuring genre stalwarts like Bruce Boxleitner, Jason London, Rachel Miner, and John Shea all slumming it here as the fabled military base succumbs to an attack by the aliens they've been keeping prisoner for years, 51 delivers the goods for those looking for low-quality shocks and splatters. It really is better than the sum of its parts however, even with the overly weak acting and occasional unintentional hilarity that arises during some of the action sequences. All in all, 51 isn't the worst flick of this type you'll come across, and that has to count for something I guess in the end.

2012-04-17 03:57:57

trying to be several movies and failing at all of them

Too bad the cast was wasted here, because this movie is trying very hard to be Alien, Hangar 18, and who knows what else...and failing miserably at all of them. Cheesy, cheap, dull, illogical, and more.

2012-04-16 13:46:02

Not much of a hardship on the brain........

The most telling feature regarding this film is the director: Jason Connery. While I won't say it's a name usually associated with (be polite) crap, but, it is. Had I known he was the director I don't think I would have sought out this film. Jason London being a part of this project also didn't help. But I do like Bruce Boxleitner and John Shea even though both have followed the path leading to less (be polite) than sterling work of late. The so-called monsters/aliens might as well have been made of tinfoil, they looked that artificial. I was also expecting larger numbers and different types considering where they were housed. But no, just a handful, locked in a complex that was obviously on the cheap, judging from the lack of decent lighting. As far as thrills, spills, and chills, very little of any, comparatively speaking (par for the course), this was rudimentary fare. Watchable.

Boba_Fett1138 2012-04-15 00:55:13

What's with all the hate? It's pretty good for what it is.

This has got to be one of the most hated recent movies. People call itthe worst and make fun of it, so of course I wasn't expecting thismovie to be a masterpiece or any good really. However I have to befair; I was pleasantly surprised by it and actually enjoyed watchingit.Really, as far as aliens versus humans, low-budget,action/science-fictions flicks go, this one is pretty good. And trustme, I have seen a lot of these type of movies, of which most did somuch more wrong and poorly than this movie ever did. It was was prettygood for what it is and it definitely serves its purpose just fine.With its budget, acting and writing quality, you could call this amodern B-movie but one of the aspects about B-movies often is that theyare quite enjoyable movies to watch, as is the case with this movie. Ofcourse I recognize all of the bad aspects of this movie and all of itsplot holes and weaknesses but quite frankly it never took away any ofthe fun I had with watching this movie.It's a movie that really 'borrows' heavily from other, better knowngenre movies, most notably "Alien" and "The Thing". But I'm evenwilling to forgive the movie for doing so, since it works within thecontext of the movie.The movie does feature some pretty good creature design. All of thealiens are pretty cool and monstrously dangerous looking ones.Definitely not something cheap looking, like a guy in a rubber suit(while if of course still is a guy in a rubber suit but that is besidesthe point).Pretty good and enjoyable for what it is.6/10 http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

Paul Adcock 2012-04-14 10:35:08

51 out of 100

If this were a test paper I'd give it 51 out of 100. I was reallydisappointed with this film as I'm generally a keen devotee of area 51films. However, from the get go I knew I was in for a good serving ofhigh definition amateur hour. The news anchorwoman scene which servedas the film's opening just didn't look right & neither did a similarscene which served as the film's conclusion. The acting in most scenesis a little dodgy, although much of the blame must be attributed to thelackluster script & lack of finesse in the editing department. By poorediting I mean there should have been more closeups & camera angles. Still though, it could have been worse. What I did like about this filmwere the creature effects. Also, for those interested in lashings ofblood & gore there were sufficient quantities of both. And to betruthful it was actually quite amusing watching the actors labor liketroopers through some of the weaker scenes. In conclusion, don't watch this film if you're expecting somethinggreat. If, however, you're like me & just can't resist a horror flickeven with a guaranteed cheese factor, knock yourself out.

chiownknee60 2012-04-11 21:38:28

Another After Dark Original Abomination

Nudity: 0 out of 10 (the only skin you see in this film is on people'shands and faces). Gore: 2 out of 10 (a handful of alien impalements and bites).Two intrepid reporters (one of which is the gorgeous Vanessa Branch),along with their two camera-wielding companions are permitted to take atour of the mysterious military base in Nevada, Area 51.On duty, patrolling the base, are several men and women in the armedforces, including Sergeant Hannah (played by After Dark icon, RachelMiner). Unbeknownst to them, there are aliens being held captive asexperimental subjects on site. This raises important ethical questions,like whether aliens have rights too while on American soil.The aliens want out.The reporters want a story.The military wants neither.For better or worse, the aliens orchestrate a successful break out oftheir cells, interrupting the reporters' tour.Is there enough man and woman power to stop the aliens, keeping thewhole affair hush-hush? Or will the aliens escape Area 51 and terrorizethe American population? There's your plot.- As bad as After Dark Original "Scream of the Banshee" turned out tobe, "51" doubled-down with the cow chips and managed to play an evenmore putrid cinematic hand.A failure on every level, "51" definitively shows once and for all howfar The After Dark Horror Fest has fallen. (Aside: seeing Rachel Minerin this dung heap briefly reminded me of her memorable appearance inthe inaugural year of AD's horror line-up in the vastly underrated"Penny Dreadful").No cliché is left unturned here.An uninspired soundtrack that will have you yawning by the 10 minutemark.Blatant theft from far, far superior movies like Aliens and The Thing.Lazy editing.This was such a miserable viewing experience that I am going to leavethe review at that.I am going to go stick my finger down my throat to get it out of mysystem.

Michael O'Keefe 2012-04-11 13:45:51

Don't set expectations high.

You have to give ScyFy channel credit for trying. Every once in a whilethey do come up with a very good movie...this is not one of them. Youcan tell there was some work on the FX, but good acting is noneexistent. Political pressure forces the Air Force to allow a fewwell-known reporters, namely competitors Sam Whitaker(John Shea)andClaire Fallon(Vanessa Branch). Whitaker is a nightly news reporter;while Fallon is a popular author and news blogger. Along with them acamera crew hoping for the story of a lifetime. What is the governmenthiding at Area 51? Col. Martin(Bruce Boxleitner)is to host limitedaccess to the secretive base, where supposedly aliens from a 1947spaceship crash in New Mexico is being held. The visitors are only tosee what the government is allowing them to see. But during the tour amalfunction in a holding cell lets extraterrestrials to escape, settingoff a battle with special forces. Of course, the news folks getinvolved. Also in the cast: Rachel Miner, Jason London, Lena Clark andAndrew Sensenig.