Fest Track On Sirk TV Film Review: ALIENS ARE COMING!! ON MONDAY!! [Dances With Films NY - New York, New York]

The aspect of conspiracy theorists and UFO buffs can sometimes be people who just want to come together to find community. In "Aliens Are Coming!! On Monday!!" which functions more as a long short than a full feature occurs in a story of a group of like-minded people that come together because their leader (the head of a small town museum) has some how took possession of knowledge (created in a prologue) of an impending alien invasion. It is all done in camp and of course, the style is done in a mockumentary Christopher Guest structure. Geoffrey Davin, who also directs, plays the museum owner who brings together the group from over the internet. It is a cross section of the would-be bimbette, a black female scholar, a quiet but hardworking man who lives in his parents' basement, a gay man who claims he speaks to aliens and a 14 year old kid who was just trying to get away from his absentee guardians. Compounding (or perhaps bringing a bit of sense to the proceedings) is the museum curator's wife who thinks that this entire exercise is a bunch of hooey. She goes along with her husband but the 48 hour exposes more than consistently trust issues in their marriage.

The confessionals build in an interesting way, some with more texture than others. The would-be bimbette character steals the show in many ways because she is the most manic but carries a very specific theme in the idea of being "special". The others in some way, shape or form, just want to be accepted. After an early scare (not really) the group troes to organize more but it becomes (with the addition of bourbon for the older adults) a way to let go of their feelings (most of these groups are about therapy anyway). Ultimately "Aliens" runs as a comparatively long "Ghosts" episode. There is of course a MacGuffin structure to the entire proceedings which comes out well (if the end) and is economical if not expected. "The Aliens Are Coming..." is a light approachable piece of comedy (not unlike a stage play) which is very aware of itself and yet commits and relegates itself in its notion of tropes while still delivering on the promise it makes. B

By Tim Wassberg