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[Review] Face the Unexplained in the ‘Strange Septembers’ Documentary
Since the dawn of man, human beings have been looking to the sky in both awe and suspicion. Be it angels or extraterrestrials, there are literally thousands of reports of people witnessing or even coming into contact with celestial beings, stretching all the way back to ancient times. Of these alleged incidents, however, few are as emblematic to UFO-aficionados as the Betty and Barney Hill abduction, and the Exeter encounter. Jeff and Jess Finn’s documentary Strange Septembers ambitiously attempts to chronicle both events through a series of interviews featuring a collection of ufologists, government officials and a few others.
For those who aren’t familiar with these stories, Betty and Barney Hill were an interracial couple from Portsmouth that claimed to have been abducted by an alien craft in rural New Hampshire in September of 1961. Both were considered respectable members of their community, often involved in civil rights issues, so their story came as a shock when it was finally publicly disclosed in 1963, sparking a surge of public interest in extraterrestrial phenomena.
The Exeter incident, on the other hand, was a highly publicized sighting of unidentified lights in the skies over Exeter in 1965, once again in New Hampshire. The incident was considered notable due to the amount of respectable witnesses present and the apparent proximity to the Hill abduction, leading to a massive amount of conspiracy theories and a new wave of ufologists attempting to piece together the facts and find out what really happened.
Narrated by none other than the original Robocop, Peter Weller, the documentary swiftly explains the basics of these mysterious events while still leaving enough room for the imagination. Interviews with family members of the deceased witnesses help to build a sense of proximity to the events, reminding the viewer that the people involved were just regular folk caught up in extraordinary circumstances, which is refreshing when much of the film can be viewed as purely fact-based and ‘educational’.
Estelle Parsons and James Earl Jones, who previous played Betty and Barney Hill in the 1975 TV movie The UFO Incident, add their own flair to the story, discussing some of the racial and political issues that plagued America at the time and proposing their own theories amongst other relevant figures. Even so, Strange Septembers is informative and surprisingly impartial in its presentation of personal opinions and government responses, neither condoning nor condemning even the most outlandish and obviously misdirected explanations.
This impartial approach is what will ultimately define how much the audience enjoys the film. Some of the information-heavy segments may carry a certain overbearing National Geographic vibe, which reduces the entertainment value considerably for those already not invested in ufology and paranormal studies. Overall, however, Strange Septembers does a remarkable job of making these real life stories seem interesting without resorting to improbable conclusions or exaggerated events, which makes it a must-watch for fans the ‘genre’ and casual viewers looking for a believable mystery.
You can rent the documentary over at the film’s official website.
Scream Factory brought Frank LaLoggia’s 1988 Halloween movie Lady in White to Blu-ray several years back, and now Vinegar Syndrome gives the film a 4K Ultra HD upgrade.
Vinegar Syndrome’s Lady in White 4K release is available now and shipping now!
Watch the trailer below and grab your copy from Vinegar Syndrome today.
This limited edition 4-disc 4K UHD/Blu-ray x 3 set comes with a spot gloss hard slipcase + slipcover combo (designed by Dylan Haley), includes a 40-page perfect bound book and is limited to 8,000 units. It is only available on their website and at select indie retailers.
The full Special Features package includes…
- 4-disc Set: 1x 4K Ultra HD (High Bitrate BD100) / 3x Region A Blu-ray
- 4K UHD presented in Dolby Vision High-Dynamic-Range
- Newly scanned & restored in 4K from its 35mm original camera negative
- Presented in three versions: 126-min Pre-Release Director’s Cut (UHD+BD), the 118-min Extended Home Video Cut (BD), and the 113-min Theatrical Cut (BD)
- New group commentary track with writer/director Frank LaLoggia, alongside actors Lukas Haas, Joelle Jacobi, and Len Cariou for the Pre-Release Director’s Cut
- New commentary track with Frank LaLoggia, moderated by Scott Neumyer for the Extended Home Video Cut
- New commentary track with authors Emma Westwood and Stephen A. Russell for the Extended Home Video Cut
- Archival commentary track with Frank LaLoggia for the Extended Home Video Cut
- “Learning How to Fly” (10 min) – an interview with actress Karen Powell
- “A Snapshot in Time” (9 min) – an interview with actress Lisa Taylor
- “Human Touches” (6 min) – an interview with actress Lucy Lee Flippin
- “Still Relevant” (16 min) – an interview with actress Rose Weaver
- “75% Listening, 25% Editing” (9 min) – an interview with editor Steve Mann
- “Welcome to Willowpoint Falls” (6 min) – a location featurette hosted by Benjamin Scrivens, founder of Fright-Rags
- “Dream Talking: Looking Back” – a visual group commentary for the Pre-Release Director’s Cut with Frank LaLoggia, and actors Lukas Haas, Joelle Jacobi, and Len Cariou (103 min)
- Deleted Scenes with introduction and optional commentary by writer/director Frank LaLoggia (36 min)
- Behind-the-scenes footage with introduction and optional commentary by writer/director Frank LaLoggia (16 min)
- Extended behind-the-scenes footage (73 min)
- Introduction from the 20th anniversary dvd release
- Promotional ‘industry sales’ trailer (7 min)
- 40-page perfect bound book with essays by film historians Molly Henery, Mark H. Harris, and Heidi Honeycutt (limited edition only)
- Multiple radio spots
- Theatrical trailer
- Multiple TV spots
- Workprint trailers (7 min)
- Still gallery
- Reversible sleeve artwork
- English SDH subtitles
1962. Nine-year-old Frankie Scarlatti enjoys a homespun childhood in a rustic Western New York town. The entire community gets into the spirit of Halloween, but then two bullies prank Frankie by locking him in his school cloakroom, leaving him trapped for the night. Alone and afraid, his slumber is interrupted when the ghost of a little girl appears, and Frankie witnesses the specter of her murder by an unseen assailant. Later, while recovering at home, the girl’s ghost appears to him again. With help from his older brother, Frankie begins investigating the circumstances of her death. He soon discovers that her murder was one of several unsolved crimes connected to a local child-killer. As the town’s bucolic veneer fades and long-buried secrets and tensions bubble to the surface, all of the clues to the mystery seem to point towards a huge mansion inhabited by a reclusive woman known as “The Lady in White.”
A nostalgia-driven ghost story wrapped within an intricate murder mystery and coming-of-age drama, writer-director-composer Frank LaLoggia’s passion project Lady in White remains one of the most beautiful and original American horror films of the 1980s. Featuring acclaimed actors Alex Rocco (The Godfather), Len Cariou (Executive Decision), and Sydney Lassick (Carrie, The Unseen), it boasts the first starring role by Lukas Haas (Mars Attacks, Inception) as well as breathtaking photography by Academy Award® winner Russell Carpenter (True Lies, The Lawnmower Man). Vinegar Syndrome is honored to bring this genre masterpiece to 4K UHD, newly restored from its original 35mm camera negative and presented in three versions: its pre-release director’s cut, its extended home-video version, and its original theatrical version, along with an abundance of both new and archival extras.
Paul Lê wrote here on Bloody Disgusting back in 2023, “Over the years, fans have described this film as gateway horror, but they liken it more to The Watcher in the Woods than, say, Hocus Pocus or Casper. There are chilling moments that warrant its PG-13 rating.”
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