The Aurora Encounter (1986)

User Rating:

4.2/10   

Director:

Jim McCullough Sr.

Writers:

Melody Brooke (host writer)
Jim McCullough Jr. (writer)

Release Date:

29 December 1986 (West Germany)

Genre:

Family | Sci-Fi | Western | Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

At the end of a century when man still dreamed of flying, the people of Aurora, Texas, had an encounter that was out of this world.

Plot:

A tiny alien lands in the small town Aurora in Texas in the times of the Wild West. He flies around in his spaceship and checks out everything...

Plot Keywords:

Alien | Handicapped Actor | Kids And Family | Independent Film

Cast

Jack Elam	...	Charlie
Peter Brown	...	Sheriff
Carol Bagdasarian	...	Alain (as Carol Bagdarsarian)
Dottie West	...	Irene
Will Mitchell	...	Ranger
Charles B. Pierce	...	Preacher
Mickey Hays	...	Aurora Spaceman
George 'Spanky' McFarland	...	Governor (as Spanky McFarland)
Mindy Smith	...	Sue Beth Mikeska
Carly McCullough	...	Ginger
Tracy Kuehnert	...	Becky
Paula Barrett	...	Secretary
Foster Litton	...	Bartender
Kaye Winters	...	Mrs. Mikeska
Lois Lane	...	1st Woman

Runtime:

90 min | West Germany:86 min (video)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #27861) | UK:U | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Aurora, Texas, USA

Company:

Jim McCullough Productions

Trivia:

Mickey Hays was a child who suffered from progeria, a disease that made him age rapidly. He got the part in this movie through the work of the Make A Wish Foundation, which grants the wishes of children with terminal diseases. Mickey's wish was that he could star in a real Hollywood movie, so the MAWF arranged for him to have the part of the little alien in this feature.

Movie Connections:

Featured in I Am Not a Freak (1987) (TV)

The wheels come off a great idea......

'The Aurora Encounter" is based on a much publicized "airship" that supposedly crashed near Aurora Texas in 1897. This event was no doubt greatly embellished by the press, and eventually became so 'fictionalized" that any trace of believability vanished. Taking the standard U.F.O. plot and placing it back in the old west is a great idea, that unfortunately does not live up to it's potential. "The Aurora Encounter" is badly scattered, and that is it's main problem. Despite the presence of the wonderful Jack Elam, what you get is a part sci-fi, part western, part "Goonies" clone, that is too simplified for the sci-fi fan, too devoid of action for the western fan, and too boring for the "Disney" crowd. - MERK