Editorials
‘The Fourth Kind’ Blended Fiction and Reality for a Unique Experiment [The Silver Lining]
In this edition of The Silver Lining, we’ll be covering Universal’s underappreciated alien horror movie, The Fourth Kind.
While I usually take eye-witness accounts with a sizable grain of salt, I’ve always been obsessed with ufology and extraterrestrial conspiracies. Not only are these tales of mysterious lights and unexplained disappearances entertaining on their own, but they also make for some pretty chilling horror fiction, especially when it comes to mockumentaries and found-footage flicks. In fact, one of the first major found-footage productions is Dean Alioto’s infamous The McPherson Tape, which predates even The Blair Witch Project with its believably lo-fi thrills.
This pairing of pseudo-science and simulated reality makes a lot of sense when you realize that ufology is more interesting when you suspend your disbelief and entertain the notion that these stories could be real. That’s why Olatunde Osunsanmi’s 2009 thriller The Fourth Kind is such a fascinating little experiment, playing with both documentary and horror tropes in a unique way that hasn’t been replicated since.
Starring Milla Jovovich as Dr. Abigail Tyler, the film follows an ill-fated psychologist as she researches a series of seemingly paranormal occurrences in a small Alaskan town. Traumatized by her husband’s violent death, Dr. Tyler throws herself into her work, slowly uncovering what appears to be an ancient alien conspiracy that threatens those closest to her.
Part elaborate hoax and part dramatic re-enactment, the script was supposedly inspired by real life investigations, gaining traction among UFO enthusiasts after a viral marketing campaign convinced the public that Nome, Alaska is an alien abduction hotspot.
Once the first trailer dropped, many horror fans were convinced that The Fourth Kind was going to live up to its name and become this generation’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind, introducing alien abduction lore to a brand new audience.
SO WHAT WENT WRONG?
Grossing $47.7 million on a $10 million budget, The Fourth Kind wasn’t exactly a flop, but its financial achievements don’t necessarily translate to critical success, as proven by the film’s 18% score on Rotten Tomatoes. While the flick clearly caught audiences’ attention with its unique approach to visual storytelling, it was absolutely massacred by most media outlets.
The most common complaint was aimed at the film’s re-enactment gimmick, with several critics claiming that the frequent fourth wall breaks and intercutting between dramatic scenes and “archival footage” impaired their suspension of disbelief instead of strengthening it. The split-screen comparisons between the film’s versions of events were also controversial, as some viewers argued that the experience would have been more effective as a traditional found-footage movie instead of this mixed-media hybrid.
Even when the gimmick worked, it was still undermined by the inherent phoniness of the “real” footage spliced into the movie. These segments rely heavily on digital filters and overused horror tropes (like having static conveniently obstruct the view when paranormal activity occurs), leading to mixed results when attempting to scare viewers with their authenticity.
The film’s marketing campaign was also a little too believable for its own good, as the studio incorporated real missing person cases into fake news articles in an attempt to convince audiences that these disappearances were paranormal in nature. This led to residents of Nome, Alaska claiming that Universal Pictures was exploiting their suffering for profit, with the campaign’s misleading use of real newspaper outlets resulting in a lawsuit that further damaged The Fourth Kind’s reputation.
THE SILVER LINING
Appropriately enough, The Fourth Kind is the sort of movie that only works if you want to believe. If you accept what Osunsanmi is trying to do and decide to go along for the ride, you’ll be rewarded with a surprisingly bleak and existential thriller that’s a lot smarter than most folks gave it credit for back in 2009. It might not always be true to life, but there’s no denying that the flick is one hell of a scary simulation that digs deep into alien abduction narratives.
While it’s clearly a fabrication, the story is remarkably well researched as it creates a sort of “greatest hits collection” of elements from (allegedly) real reports of extraterrestrial contact. In fact, while I consider myself a skeptic when it comes close encounters, even I had an experience that sounds eerily similar to the movie’s description of owl-related replacement memories after being experimented on by otherworldly beings.
Even the film’s controversial claims about Nome aren’t entirely unwarranted, as the city has an eerily high number of unexplained disappearances, as well as many reports of unidentified flying objects. This attention to detail is likely the reason why the movie’s original script showed up on the 2008 Blacklist as a favorite among producers.
The re-enactment approach isn’t always effective, but the film still boasts several genuinely chilling moments that are enhanced by its avant-garde presentation. The ending is an especially great example of the format’s horrific potential, with Charlotte Milchard’s performance as the “real” Dr. Abigail Tyler elevating the scares in a shockingly grim conclusion. I also really enjoy the haunting recordings of supposedly real UFO sightings that play over the end credits.
Even if you don’t think that The Fourth Kind is a particularly good movie, it’s easy to appreciate Osunsanmi’s attempt at trying something new within the genre. This hybridized form of storytelling probably won’t be to everyone’s liking, but I see it as the next logical step of the classic “based on a true story” trope. Honestly, I wish there were more horror movies willing to experiment with blurring the lines between fiction and reality. After all, at the end of the day, what you believe is yours to decide.
Watching a bad movie doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad experience. Even the worst films can boast a good idea or two, and that’s why we’re trying to look on the bright side with The Silver Lining, where we shine a light on the best parts of traditionally maligned horror flicks.
The problem with filming sequels back-to-back is that, unless you can afford expensive reshoots, there’s no easy way to adjust course in between movies if fans react badly to where the story is headed. That’s why it’s important to have a complete narrative thought out well in advance lest you accidentally kill a budding franchise.
However, this isn’t always the case. Every once in a while, it seems like the cinema gods smile upon certain chaotic productions and gift moviegoers with complete franchises that feel like more than the sum of their hastily produced parts. Ted Nicolaou’s Bloodlust: Subspecies III is precisely one of these miraculous pictures, with the raw talents of the artists involved (as well as the continued support from Romania) turning the feature into an effective conclusion for a series that kind of made things up as the filmmakers went along.
That’s why I’d like to invite my fellow readers to join me on this third part of our journey through the Subspecies franchise as we look into Bloodlust and talk about how it remains a surprisingly satisfying finale to the original trilogy.
A Trilogy Planned on the Fly
Released only a year after Bloodstone found plenty of success in rental stores and mail-in VHS catalogues worldwide, 1994’s Bloodlust was produced at the same time as its predecessor in (mostly) the same locations and with the same team. This means that the movie benefited from all the same upgrades as Bloodstone, with the crew now being more experienced with the ins and outs of surviving a low-budget Romanian production and the cast really settling into their characters.
At this point, everything from location scouting to the makeup process had been streamlined, with Wayne Toth and Norman Cabrera, the main duo behind special effects, even switching out time-consuming prosthetics for latex gloves in order to speed up Anders Hove’s monstrous transformation. The titular “subspecies” demons were also once again relegated to a mere cameo appearance due to the laborious puppetry required to bring them to life.
The only real hiccup came from the fact that actress Denice Duff had replaced the first film’s Michelle (Laura Mae Tate) and was immediately expected to portray the character as both an innocent victim in part II and as a secondary villain in part III. According to behind-the-scenes interviews, the hectic production schedule that blended two different movies meant that Duff would often find herself having to alternate between two incredibly different versions of Michelle during the same shooting day – though it’s obvious that she’s having more fun with Bloodlust’s more traditionally vampiric version of her character.
In the finished film, we pick things up immediately where the previous entry left off as Rebecca (Melanie Shatner) is forced to leave her vampire sister Michelle (Duff) behind in the dungeons of Castle Vladislav due to the rising sun. This allows Mummy (Pamela Gordon) to use Michelle’s blood to revive the vicious Radu (Hove) so that he may continue his quest for the coveted Bloodstone – a magical artifact that perpetually drips the Blood of Saints.
Meanwhile, the dreamy US embassy agent Mel (Kevin Blair) agrees to help Rebecca plan a rescue mission, though they’re unaware that Radu has become infatuated with Michelle during his attempts to guide her growing bloodlust. This all culminates in a climactic confrontation meant to tie up all of the series’ loose ends in one of Full Moon Pictures’ most ambitious productions.
The Evolution of Radu
Like its predecessor, Bloodlust: Subspecies III was also warmly received by fans who argued that the series was an even bigger success than Full Moon’s other major horror franchise, Puppet Master. This praise wasn’t unanimous, however, as 1994 had seen the rise of a more modern breed of sexy vampire popularized by Anne Rice, with old-school Nosferatu like Radu being viewed as obsolete when compared to the likes of Lestat and Gary Oldman’s take on Dracula.
In a way, one might argue that Nicolaou’s film is something of a swan song for the classic vampire story, as Bloodlust combines all of the traditional elements we tend to associate with these tales into a single tragic yarn that ties a neat little bow on Radu’s story as well as the old-fashioned monster movies that he represents. The finale remains shocking despite the fact that this is the third time we see Radu get brutally killed onscreen, with the brief tease that he may one day return feeling more like a nod towards the nature of evil rather than sequel bait.
The film dabbles a bit in gothic romance and even explores the inherent power fantasy behind transforming into an immortal creature of the night, but the filmmakers never lose sight of Radu as a demonic force even when he’s willing to betray his beloved Mummy for Michelle’s sake. In fact, his twisted “love” for his fledgling makes him even creepier as we get the feeling that his passion comes from a dark and disturbing place.
Anders Hove is at his absolute best in this film, with the effects department boosting his moments of what the younger generation would call “aura farming” whenever Radu emerges from shadows like a 90s version of Count Orlok. There are even a couple of surprisingly effective jump-scares here, which is why I’d argue that Bloodlust cements Radu as one of the most memorable cinematic vampires of all time despite his humble origins.
Subspecies Saves Its Best For Last
Nicolaou and Vlad Panescu also saved the best for “last” (more on that in a bit) regarding the film’s visuals, with the cinematography and overall atmosphere of Bloodlust absolutely surpassing what we saw in the previous films. Everything feels appropriately climactic this time around (including the wonderful soundtrack that was co-composed alongside an authentic Romanian orchestra), and I appreciate how this is the fastest-paced entry in the trilogy since the film doesn’t need to waste time setting anything up.
Bloodlust still suffers from some of the same low-budget blemishes as its predecessors, but there’s so much creative passion here that no amount of wonky effects work or stilted dialogue can get in the way of appreciating the flick’s gothic grandeur. That’s why it’s not surprising that the movie’s definitive(-ish) ending would later be retconned as fans begged for more Radu.
Of course, the next entry in this series would be a different kind of vampiric endeavor altogether, with the filmmakers attempting to engage with the same trends that ultimately killed Radu and his antiquated kin. That, however, is a story for another time. For now, I’ll merely insist that Bloodlust: Subspecies III remains a highlight of Full Moon’s expansive catalogue and is definitely worth seeking out today.
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