Alien Nation (1988)

In 1988, Earth makes the first contact with an alien civilization. In 1991, these aliens, known as Newcomers, slowly begin to be integrated into human society after three years of quarantine.

Director:

Graham Baker

Writer:

Rockne S. O'Bannon

Stars:

James Caan, Mandy Patinkin, Terence Stamp

1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
James Caan	...	Matthew Sykes
Mandy Patinkin	...	Sam Francisco
Terence Stamp	...	William Harcourt
Kevyn Major Howard	...	Kipling
Leslie Bevis	...	Cassandra
Peter Jason	...	Fedorchuk
Conrad Dunn	...	Quint (as George Jenesky)
Jeff Kober	...	Josh Strader
Roger Aaron Brown	...	Bill Tuggle
Tony Simotes	...	Wiltey
Michael David Simms	...	Human Dealer
Ed Krieger	...	Alien Dealer
Tony Perez	...	Alterez
Brian Thompson	...	Trent Porter
Francis X. McCarthy	...	Capt. Warner (as Frank McCarthy)

Storyline

A few years from now, Earth will have the first contact with an alien civilisation. These aliens, known as Newcomers, slowly begin to be integrated into human society after years of quarantine but are victims of a new type of discrimination. When the first Newcomer police officer, Sam Francisco is assigned his new partner, he is given Matthew Sykes , a mildly racist veteran, the animosity between them soon gives way to respect as they investigate the Newcomer underworld, and especially Newcomer leader William Harcourt.

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Plot Keywords:

police | buddy cop | black comedy | alien race | investigation | 

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Taglines:

Prepare Yourself.

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Genres:

Action | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 October 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Future Tense

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$16,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$25,216,243

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$32,155,047

Company Credits

Production Co:

American Entertainment Partners II L.P.,Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The language of the newcomers is called Tenctonese. The written version seen in graffiti and signage does not reflect the spoken language, but uses Tenctonese characters to represent English letters, saying such things as "no smoking" and "authorized personnel only".

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Goofs

George's son is credited as George Jr., though he is named Richard in the film.

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Quotes

Det. Sgt. Matthew Sykes: [looking at a pistol target] That is pitiful! That is goddamn pitiful! How long you been shootin'? What are you going to do if you catch a perp running out of a liquor store, wave your written exam scores at him?

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Alternate Versions

In UK cinemas, 2 versions were shown in different cinemas. In some cinemas, certain Newcomer native dialogue was subtitled into English and in others it was not. This happens most notably in the scene where George and the morgue attendant discuss the Newcomer corpse and recognise aspects of the body as representing the drug addiction. Also a short dialogue between Harcourt and Kipling after Harcourt first meets George and Matt where Kipling tells Harcourt that Sykes was the policeman in the shootout at the film's opening.

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Connections

Featured in Alien Nation: Three to Tango (1989)

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Soundtracks

SURFIN' SAFARI
Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love
Performed by The Beach Boys
Courtesy of Deck Records
By Arrangement with Original Sound Entertainment

User Reviews

Underrated film from the 80s'

While the eighties was rife with weird sci-fi films and epic films, a simple and biting film about alien visitation made a nice little landing in 1988. Alien Nation was one of those films that expertly grasped the the sci-fi/mystery sub genre with a decent story and good visuals.

The casting in the film was rather perfect, with the subdued Mandy Patinkin playing Francisco while the normally hotheaded James Caan got his licks as a racist cop named Sykes. Either way, their polar opposites worked perfectly in the film, showing a growing bond between the two as they shook off their differences and made a rather capable team. What I especially liked was how each player sincerely became their character, which is something that is pretty rare in many sci-fi films. While I do wish the movie was a little longer and put some more scenes of George integrating into his new position at the beginning, the film was good as it was.

Alien Nation proved to be one of the last good non-CGI sci-fi films. While Gattica is one of the few films that followed this ideal, at least we can look back at the genre before it became nothing more than an excuse to show off pretty effects.