Alien TrespassMovie Reviews

Poster art for "Alien Trespass."

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So-so
Avg. Critic Score: 48 out of 100 Mixed or average reviews Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
10 OK for kids 10+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 83
    Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum

    The characters in Alien Trespass (directed by X-Files producing alum R.W. Goodwin) are specimens of Sputnik-era determination, led by a gung-ho Eric McCormack. Read full review

  • 75
    Boston Globe | Ty Burr

    It's pretty endearing - a low-budget labor of schlock. Read full review

  • 75
    San Francisco Chronicle | Peter Hartlaub

    Retro escapist fun. Read full review

  • 70
    Variety | Todd McCarthy

    Good silly fun, Alien Trespass is a dead-on spoof of cheapo '50s sci-fi programmers done with plenty of self-deprecating humor. Read full review

  • 50
    Washington Post |

    Those who fondly recall "The Blob" would seem to be the target crowd for a fastidious pastiche that attempts to coax laughs by maintaining a poker face. Read full review

  • 50
    The Hollywood Reporter | Frank Scheck

    Although it's refreshing that Alien Trespass doesn't indulge in the sort of mindless, gross-out humor that afflicts so many current cinematic spoofs, it errs too much on the other side, offering mere pastiche instead of witty satire. Read full review

  • 50
    The New York Times | Jeannette Catsoulis

    A charmingly sentimental but ultimately pointless hommage to the sci-fi classics of yesteryear, Alien Trespass proves only that while styles and technology have moved on, the affection for corn is everlasting. Read full review

  • 50
    Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert

    It tries to be the best bad movie that it can be. Read full review

  • 50
    USA Today | Claudia Puig

    Alien Trespass is good-natured, but it's a wan send-up. When it comes to paying homage to classic "B" horror movies, "Monsters vs. Aliens" is the more clever alternative. Read full review

  • 50
    Los Angeles Times |

    While Alien Trespass stays true to the era and the genre, it forgets that its mission in this galaxy is not merely to pay tribute but to entertain. Read full review

View more reviews for Alien Trespass on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says OK for kids 10+ Retro-style sci-fi action spoof tries hard but doesn't work.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this spoof was made as a loving tribute to '50s B-movie sci-fi -- and, as such, has the same squeaky-clean feel and mild peril of those films. There's some sci-fi violence, but since it's being perpetrated by a guy in a rubber suit, it's hard to be too alarmed when men, women, and children are dissolved into goo. Expect a fair amount of pipe smoking (accurate for the era) and some kissing and ogling.
  • Families can talk about the look, feel, and themes of '50s sci-fi. What did many of those movies have in common? How do they compare to today's sci-fi movies? Is it just the effects that have gotten more sophisticated, or have other things changed, too? Why?
  • Families can also discuss whether the '50s B movies idealized the era they were filmed in. Was everything really that squeaky clean? How do you think today's society will be portrayed in movies down the line?
The good stuff
  • message true2 Positive messages: Recreating the style of a '50s sci-fi B movie, the film does have a gentle message about not judging those who are different -- in this case, an alien lawman -- without getting to know them. Departing from '50s standards, the main female character is resourceful rather than weak or passive.
What to watch for
  • violence false2 Violence: Mostly fairly stylized sci-fi violence; for example, a monster attacks with tentacles, dissolving its victims into brown, foamy goo. Some scuffling and ray gun blasts directed at monsters. A policeman shoots the hero in the shoulder.
  • sex false2 Sex: Some kissing; some flirty talk between a husband and wife while she's wearing a nighdress. Teens make out but stop to talk about "going all the way"; their dalliance is interrupted by a crashing spaceship. When alien lawman Urp inhabits Dr. Lewis' body, there's some confusion, as Urp is attracted to a woman who's not Dr. Lewis' wife. But it's played as chaste romantic slapstick with some smooching.
  • language false1 Language: Aside from the occasional "hell," minimal.
  • consumerism false1 Consumerism: Some mentions of brands like Coke, Rolaids, and Edsel.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false2 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Extensive pipe smoking (accurate to the period the movie is set in); a character is presented as a hard-liquor drunk.
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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