Page 36 - ThePhoenix1988-89

Keep your money for a rainy day, avoid 'Alien Nation' e We don't see the everyday buying aliens known as "newcomers" are human partner. Cites takes on a By Rock Reiser Baker went with the screenplay. quarantine for three years. These gun-fight a "newcomer" kills his beings, this movie gives us drug- Sometimes a movie comes and selling of drugs by human bigger than the average human, new partner Detective George. have different weak spots and be- Francisco, a "newcomer," and the along that seems too interesting 10 running aliens! come intoxicated drinking sour two uncover a plot by evil "new- pass up,and yet more often than not The opening scene is a televi- milk. Cites, a sergeant in the San comers" to manufacture an alien the movie falls short of our sion video of the initiallanding,and Francisco police force, hales the drug ten times the potency of any expectations. Alien Nation starring the subsequent quarantine of the "newcomers," and is extremely human drug. The drug was sup- James Kahn (as Sergeant John film providing an interesting twist aliens. The year is 1991andagroup upset that "slag town" (Cites' name posedly smuggled onto Earth by Cites), and Mandy Patinkin (as totheall too common police versus of slave labor aliens (from God for the newcomers), is his heal an evil "newcomer"and he is sub- Detective George Francisco) is no drug dealer scenario; however, knows where) escapes to Earth and Cites and his partner witness an sequently killing off the competi- exception. Itbegins as a promising that is as far as director Graham are welcomed by being thrown into apparent holdup and in the ensuing tion. The drug has one side-effect ,--------------------------------------, :~~;~i~~es~~:~:coen~~::at: into a bizarre conglomeration that RES E R V E 0 F Fie E R s: T R A I N I N G COR P S looks like a cross between E.T. and Carl Malden. Anyway, to make a boring story short, the two go through the movie hunting down the criminal "newcomers" and establishing motives, thatare essentially irrele- vant to the main plot. The special effects are interesting but the story is overused and Kahns' talents are basically wasted. The evil aliens are brought to justice, the drug is destroyed, and the world issafefor human drug consumption. Believe it or not, there are a few brightspots. Patinkin underall his "newcomer" makeup gives a very warm and endearing. per- fcrmance. and Kahn does a good job Of portraying a bigoted human who comes to realize that