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DVD Review: The Fourth Kind, starring Milla Jovovich, Will Patton and Elias Koteas

By Kevin Hopp on Tue, Mar 9, 2010 at 12:24 pm

[image-1] The Fourth Kind doesn’t use the shaky-cam technique used by so many other movies to "bring the audience into the movie," but they do put “real footage” in the frame next to Jovovich’s reenactment in an effort to prove what they are dramatizing really happened. It is certainly interesting to compare the two, and it's a good attempt at convincing the audience. While this technique can get annoying (it's used too much), it is different and fun.

My problem with The Fourth Kind is that it tries too hard to convince you that what you are seeing is real, and as such, often has the opposite effect. This movie can be fun if you just let your common sense and intelligence go out the window, but if you're unable to shut your head off, The Fourth Kind isn't for you.

There are no real special features on the DVD; only deleted scenes which don’t really add anything to the movie. While this is an attempt to keep the “documentary” feel, it doesn’t really sell the DVD. I would have liked something a little special, like maybe some audio commentary from the director — but that would ruin the concept, I suppose.

Overall, if you are a fan of alien abduction stories The Fourth Kind is a flick you should jump on. For everybody else, rent this movie and try not to draw any late fees.

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The Fourth Kind, the title a reference to the ranking of alien encounters, is a movie unlike any other. The DVD of this “documentary” hits stores today, and I took a look back to see if I truly do believe — or at least if the movie is worth $15 worth.

The film begins with Milla Jovovich coming right out and saying she is portraying a real-life character, named Dr. Abigail Tyler, and that what you are about to see is real and backed up by the actual footage. We soon learn that Dr. Tyler’s husband was murdered, and as she picked up his patients she started to notice an alarming pattern. It seems that the people of Nome, Alaska are all experiencing bizarre events, suffering from memory loss and are providing evidence of what may be alien abductions. Despite cautions from her friends, Dr. Tyler gets closer and closer to these events until "the phenomenon" effects her too. Is it little green men? Evidence of inbreeding in Sarah Palin country? Just a bunch of crazy mumbo-jumbo? We don’t know.