4/5
The Fourth KindPositively riveting film, and especially interesting due to original camcorder and audio tape recordings used, some of which is positively bizarre, disturbing and unexplainable.
In the year 2000, a psychologist in the Alaska town of Nome (pop., 3590), begins to notice similarities between the stories of several of her patients. Several of the patients report having trouble sleeping and waking up in the middle of the night and seeing a white owl at their window. She decides to hypnotize one of the patients so that he can try to recall in greater detail what he saw, since he believes he owl came into his room and wasn't really an owl... The original video footage of the patient providing his account is electrifying and his shows an incredible amount of fright.
There's footage of another patient that must be seen to be believed, levitating several inches above the bed as he goes under hypnosis to recall his recent encounter. This scene made me do something that I haven't done in year, almost jump out of my seat.
Names are changed, save for that of the main character, Dr. Abby Tyler, who is portrayed by Milla Jovovich. There's also several minutes of footage of interview footage between the director of the movie and the real Dr. Tyler.
A university professor, who works some where in Canada, flew up to Nome during this time and was able to identify some of the vocalizations from the unidentified sources as being Sumerian in origin. He then goes on to discuss what you will see in typical Sumerian artwork, in any museum exhibit, which sort of ties into the story.
The film makes a point of not trying to preach to you any conclusion and in fact, both Jovovich and the director tell you to make up your own mind at the end of the film. Jovovich also warns people at the beginning of the film that some scenes may be disturbing. She was correct.
The film points out that FBI have had over 2000 visits to Nome since the 60s to investigate mysterious deaths and missing persons. Anchorage, by comparison, is 76 times larger and has had about 350 FBI visits during the same period.
The acting is well done. Will Patton (No Way Out), Elias Koteas (Ararat, Exotica) and Hakeem Kae-Kazim (24, Hotel Rwanda) are not household names, but you'll recognize their faces from other films.
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