Alien Hunter (2003)

An alien black box is found in the South Pole, where a government agency is conducting botanical experiments.

Director:

Ron Krauss

Writers:

J.S. Cardone (story), Boaz Davidson (story),

Stars:

James Spader, Janine Eser, John Lynch

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
James Spader	...	Julian Rome
Janine Eser	...	Dr. Kate Brecher
John Lynch	...	Dr. Michael Straub
Nikolai Binev	...	Dr. Alexi Gierach
Leslie Stefanson	...	Nyla Olson
Aimee Graham	...	Shelly Klein
Stuart Charno	...	Abell (as Stu Charno)
Carl Lewis	...	Grisham
Svetla Vasileva	...	Dacia
Anthony Crivello	...	Pilot
Kaloian Vodenicharov	...	Co-Pilot (as Kaloyan Vodenicharov)
George Stanchev	...	Airman
Rufus Dorsey	...	Navigator
Roy Dotrice	...	Dr. John Bachman
Woody Schultz	...	Sam

Storyline

In 1947, in New Mexico, a radio operator receives a signal following patterns and while investigating the occurrence, he vanishes. In the present days, the same signal is transmitted from a base in the Falkland Islands to United States of America, and a satellite captures images of a unknown object in Antartic. The cryptologist Julien Rome (James Spader) is invited to investigate the mystery in the South Pole, and he flies to a research base. While a team tries to open a weird shell probably from the outer space, Julien solves the message, indeed a distress signal ordering not to open the case.

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Plot Keywords:

alien | ice block | stabbed in the throat | airplane | agriculture | 

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Taglines:

Earth just got its final warning!

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some violence

Details

Country:

USA Bulgaria

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

19 July 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Beacon

Filming Locations:

Newhall, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nu Image Films, Millennium Films, Sandstorm Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The black & white footage shown to Julian Rome is footage from The Thing from Another World. This footage was also used in the remake of The Thing from Another World, John Carpenter's The Thing, and it is the film that R.J. MacReady finds in the destroyed Norwegian camp.

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Goofs

Julian has a scarf that is set differently in three scenes in a row. Once over a jacket, a second time not. These kind of mistakes repeat in many more scenes.

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Connections

References E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

User Reviews

Science fiction by the numbers.

James Spader plays a cryptologist who is summoned to the Antarctic where a research station has uncovered something in the ice shelf that is emitting radio signals in a non-random pattern. As the ice melts around it, the scientists discover that it is some sort of alien pod. Too late, Spader decyphers the message which is telling them not to disturb the vessel.

This film takes a little bit from several other science fiction movies and blends the parts into a pretty weak story. There's nothing new here, but at least the filmmakers realize that and set about with providing simple entertainment.

You could do a lot worse at the video store.