Reviews
[REVIEW] Is ‘Fire in the Sky’ (1993) The Greatest Sci-Fi Movie Ever Made?

Nowadays, if you asked a casual fan of High Strangeness if they knew of any high-profile alien/UAP-related stories, they’d probably mention Chris Bledsoe and his book UFO of God. But if you asked that question two or three years ago, they would mention one of two people: Betty/Barney Hill or Travis Walton. I’ve read both Fire in the Sky and The Walton Experience (both are basically the same book) and listened to the times when Art Bell had Travis Walton on his show. The story is fascinating! But…there is information under the surface that makes me question Travis’s experience. Nonetheless, Fire in the Sky was a blindspot on my watchlist, and I figured what better month than “based on a true story” to give it a watch?
It should be noted there are many issues with this story from both Travis Walton and Mike Rogers. While I’m more familiar with everything regarding this story pre-2021, I will discuss the post-2021 issues to the best of my ability.
Fire in the Sky follows a group of six loggers (there were seven in the true story): Travis Walton (D. B. Sweeney), Mike Rogers (Robert Patrick), Allan Dallis (Craig Sheffer), David Whitlock (Peter Berg), Greg Hayes (Henry Thomas), and Bobby Cogdill (Bradley Gregg). This group, led by Travis, is working on clearing brush in the White Mountains in Snowflake, Alaska. Due to a tight deadline, they find themselves working long shifts. At the end of the night, the six men pack into Mike Rogers’s truck and head home through mountain paths. Allan Dallis makes note of a “fire” in the sky, prompting Mike to stop his truck. Travis jumps out and decides to check out the object. Suddenly, he’s consumed by a beam of light and thrown backward. Thinking he’s dead and freaked out by this object, Mike guns it out of there. By the time he gets the guts to go back and check on Travis…he realizes Travis is gone.
Once back in town, Mike calls the cops, and the five of them wait for the police. A search party is called the very next day, to no avail. The town descends into chaos, reporters flood this small town, and a witch hunt ensues. Many of the townsfolk think the other loggers killed Travis and nearly begin to march with pitchforks and torches. Travis eventually reappears five days later…but he is nothing more than the shell of the man he once was.
What’s very clear from the film is that neither writer Tracy Tormé nor director Robert Lieberman believes a single ounce of Travis’s story. Part of me believes that if Tracy and Robert lived in this town when this happened, they’d be a part of the angry mob. It’s frustrating that Lt. Frank Waters (James Garner) is given more credibility than any of the men involved in the incident. Rather than giving proper justice to both sides of the story, the writer and director make their allegiance to their respective sides well-known.
That being said, the film is a joy to watch. Robert Patrick is, and always has been, one hell of an actor. Funnily enough, Robert Patrick learned, not too long before the making of this film, that he is related to Mike Rogers! You can feel Patrick’s passion in every second of screen time. Most notable is the polygraph scene. Tired of being looked down upon and hated by everyone in town, he loses it when asked to come back for a second polygraph test. In the most “I know what I saw!” moment in the film, Mike Rogers has told his truth and is frustrated that it’s not enough.
While the film does a great job at fomenting the hoax angle, there is one scene specifically this film is known for: the testing scene. Coordinated by Industrial Lights & Magic, the scene where Travis explores the spaceship and gets tests run on him is both exhilarating and terrifying. From the gooey space pods to the skin-like wrap and eye needle, this scene hasn’t been topped in Sci-Fi horror. ILM has long been known for pushing the boundaries of visual effects, and this scene is particularly gorgeous. I can’t imagine what it would be like to watch this in theaters in 1993.
All that being said, this film takes way too many liberties for my liking. The scene where Travis wakes up in the spaceship and is tested on is the most notable of exaggerations. In Travis’s story, he was initially knocked out by the beam of light. He then woke up in an almost hospital-like room. Three short, hairless aliens surrounded him. Travis attempted to fight them off and was eventually taken to another room by a human wearing a helmet. The room he was taken to was the last thing he remembers, as three other humans put a plastic sheet over his face. From there, the next thing he remembered was walking down a highway.
I can understand why that might not be too exciting for a feature film, but it’s very different from what we get in Fire in the Sky.
Now, we should get to the evidence that points to this being a possible hoax. The UAP was described as your classic two-pie saucer. I wholeheartedly believe that UAPs are not the classic UFOs we see in 50s sci-fi movies, so that’s a red flag for me. Next, we have the fact that Travis and Duane’s father was a huge fan of Ufology (and there are reports that the brothers believe their father was abducted, but that could be heresy). Also, we have real reports that Travis and his brother Duane wanted to be abducted. When Travis went missing, his brother was definitely worried but didn’t seem as worried as a brother should be. This could possibly be because Travis and Duane [reportedly] had a pact that should one of them be abducted, the one who was taken would try and talk the aliens into coming back and taking the second brother.
There’s also the fact that Travis’s company was behind schedule and on the verge of losing their contract to finish the logging job. An abduction would be a great way to prolong that contract! What type of person would cancel a contract when there’s an investigation into a missing person? While the team was working late to finish their job, it was noted by a crew member that on the night of the abduction they stayed longer past dark than they had before.
In 2021, things get messy…kind of. Mike Rogers posts on Facebook denouncing The Walton Experience and stating that he no longer considers himself a witness. A month later, he spoke with a producer making a new documentary about Travis Walton. In this conversation, which the producer recorded, Rogers mentioned that the incident was a staged hoax. Rogers was upset that Walton did not include him in discussions regarding the film’s remake–the two would eventually make amends with each other, and Mike Rogers retracted his statement.
Take that information for what you will.
Fire in the Sky is lighting in a bottle. It was a time when filmmaking was preparing to break into a new spectrum of filmmaking. It’s not just a fascinating look at a supposed real-life story, it’s scary. It’s authentic. It’s emotional. There are parts of Travis’s story I believe, and parts I don’t. While Fire in the Sky may be exaggerated, it’s a beautiful film that tells a beautiful story in a timeless way. If you’re a fan of Ufology, aliens, or High Strangeness in general, you must check this film out. To me, Fire in the Sky is the greatest Sci-non-Fi about alien abductions.
Reviews
[REVIEW] ‘The Dead Thing’ Takes Ghosting To A Whole New Level
The Dead Thing follows Alex (Blu Hunt), a young woman who works late hours, lives by the rays of a sunlamp, and is looking for the one connection that will make life seem less cyclical. When Alex meets Kyle (Ben Smith-Peterson), it seems like things will finally be going in her favor. But all that glitters is not gold. As quickly as he came, he vanished. Hurt, confused, and pissed, Alex tries to get to the bottom of why Kyle disappeared from her life. Some stones are meant to be left unturned.

Elric Kane has been a prominent voice in the film and horror space for a long time. One of my fondest memories of Kane is his longtime hosting gig on the Shock Waves Podcast. The amount of film knowledge and obscure films I learned about from him and Dr. Rebekah McKendry singlehandedly fueled my interest in collecting physical media. Hearing how passionate and intense they were with their love of the genre is also what started me down the path of writing. While Dr. McKendry has previously dipped her toes in the feature filmmaking game, it’s now time for Elric Kane to do so.
Cut to: The Dead Thing.
The Dead Thing follows Alex (Blu Hunt), a young woman who works late hours, lives by the rays of a sunlamp, and is looking for the one connection that will make life seem less cyclical. When Alex meets Kyle (Ben Smith-Peterson), it seems like things will finally be going in her favor. But all that glitters is not gold. As quickly as he came, he vanished. Hurt, confused, and pissed, Alex tries to get to the bottom of why Kyle disappeared from her life. Some stones are meant to be left unturned.
Writer/director Elric Kane’s (and co-writer Webb Wilcoxen) singular debut feature film is a superbly crafted supernatural spectacle. The Dead Thing starts slow and deliberate; rather than rushing into an overwritten plot with underwritten characters, Kane and Wilcoxen allow the audience to sit with Alex in her neverending love life. One aspect of Alex that I, and hopefully many will, appreciate is how Alex is written. Rarely does Alex feel written from the perspective of the male gaze. Her life may not be going in the exact direction she wants, but the film never makes it out to be a her problem. At no point do they try and make Alex out to be a floozy or condemn her for the life she’s living, instead they make those who live the same kind of lifestyle feel seen. The film asks the audience if they ever feel like there’s no escape; too many of us can relate to that.
It doesn’t matter how a character is written if the acting doesn’t deliver, and Blu Hunt delivers. Set aside the fact that she has one of the most badass names I’ve ever heard, Hunt provides an astounding lead performance. Whether she’s walking alone down a Los Angeles street, or playing off of her longtime friend Cara (Katherine Hughes), coworker Chris (John Karna), or the mysterious[ly handsome] Kyle, Hunt gives it her all. It helps that Ben Smith-Peterson and the supporting cast all give overwhelmingly brilliant performances.
Supernatural stories aren’t usually my go-to. They can be too overwritten, too style over substance, too “elevated”, or just plain boring. The Dead Thing quickly finds its footing and lets the audience accept it or not. Kane and cinematographer Ioana Vasile (who was a still photographer for Pontypool!!!) wonderfully capture the sometimes-solitary, sometimes-overstimulating beautiful hellscape that is Los Angeles. It should also be noted that one of my favorite actors in the world, Matt Mercer is a producer on this film.
The Dead Thing hits the perfect blend of claustrophobic loneliness and endless yearning. Just like Dr. Rebekah McKendry, it’s clear that Elric Kane doesn’t just talk the talk, he walks the walk. For his debut feature film, The Dead Thing doesn’t need resuscitation. I’d say run, don’t walk, to check this one out, but if you do…look left and right before crossing the street.
The Dead Thing hits Shudder on Friday, February 14! Watch it with your partner if you can, or watch it alone with a tub of ice cream and an overflowing glass of wine. I won’t judge.
Reviews
[REVIEW] ‘Bride of Chucky’ Takes The Franchise In A New Direction
Bride of Chucky follows two groups of people who inevitably meet up for a final climactic finale. Tiffany Valentine (Jennifer Tilly) procures Chucky’s (Brad Dourif) body following the events of Child’s Play 3. Her goal is to perform a voodoo ritual to put his soul back into a human’s body. Through a questionable series of events, Chucky kills Tiffany and puts her soul into the body of a doll. The side story follows Jade Kincaid (Katherine Heigl) and Jesse Miller (Nick Stabile) who elope, with a thousand dollars, from Jade’s overbearing police chief uncle Warren (John Ritter). After Chucky kills Warren, Jade and Jesse are fingered for the murder. That’s when hijinks ensue.

The Child’s Play franchise is all over the place. What started as a [fairly] serious slasher series surrounding a killer doll would morph into a Nightmare on Elm Street-like horror comedy before self-correcting to find a solid middle ground. I’ll be the first to admit that I have never really cared much for this franchise. Child’s Play frightened me when I was a kid, and it wouldn’t be until my college years that I decided to watch Bride and Seed–this altered my overall opinion of what the franchise stood for. Watching Child’s Play 2 and 3 back in college left me wondering how a franchise as culturally impactful as this one fluctuated in style and substance.
Bride of Chucky follows two groups of people who inevitably meet up for a final climactic finale. Tiffany Valentine (Jennifer Tilly) procures Chucky’s (Brad Dourif) body following the events of Child’s Play 3. Her goal is to perform a voodoo ritual to put his soul back into a human’s body. Through a questionable series of events, Chucky kills Tiffany and puts her soul into the body of a doll. The side story follows Jade Kincaid (Katherine Heigl) and Jesse Miller (Nick Stabile) who elope, with a thousand dollars, from Jade’s overbearing police chief uncle Warren (John Ritter). After Chucky kills Warren, Jade and Jesse are fingered for the murder. That’s when hijinks ensue.
Before the comments start, let’s return to the opening comment regarding Child’s Play turning into a horror comedy. Chucky was always one for quips. Like Freddy Krueger, Chucky would hit a one-liner shortly before or after his kill. These jokes worked to help cut through Chucky’s horror. It gave some momentary relief from the kills. Bride of Chucky is just one long gag, and for me, it’s frustrating. Like Nightmare, Bride of Chucky has lost the plot. Every scene seems to exist to facilitate a setup for the next bit or one-liner, rather than having moments of comedy flow naturally. The doll sex scene and swinger couple bits are just poorly thought-out filler.
I know this is going to anger some of you, but Bride of Chucky is a seriously awful movie.
There are a few moments that I do truly enjoy and work well in the overall Child’s Play universe. Tiffany kills the officer she buys Chucky’s body from with a nail file and then uses it to file her nails. The moment Tiffany stabs Chucky in the back at the cemetery is a great character moment, but it makes everything that led up to it pointless. With the exception of a few moments here and there, Bride of Chucky ends up being a chore to watch rather than entertainment. For a genre that has always been political, gay representation has been lacking for quite some time. The character of David Collins (Gordon Michael Woolvett) is a welcome addition to the story, but he feels underutilized in the grand scheme of it all.
While I may not care for the franchise much, I’ve done some research on it over the years. Bride of Chucky features many recycled bits from other Child’s Play scripts and you can really feel it. The kills are few and far between and feel overly forced. Child’s Play 4 was initially put on hold after the abysmal box office of Child’s Play 3 and maybe writer/director Don Mancini should have taken another year or so to really flesh out the canon of Chucky. Now, don’t get me wrong, I like the idea of Tiffany becoming a doll and becoming pregnant with Chucky’s baby. But I don’t think the ends justify the means.
Cult and Curse of Chucky, thankfully, take the series back to a more grounded and to-the-roots nature of what Child’s Play was, and I’m glad it took nearly a decade after Seed for it to come to fruition. Mancini is an excellent voice in horror, but time and constraints are necessary for his vision to be fully realized. Those who are Child’s Play die-hards will probably disagree with everything I’ve said, and that’s okay. As a casual Chucky fan, Bride of Chucky feels nothing more than a nu-metal, Hot Topic, try-hard entry into the franchise. The kills look solid, and Dourif gives an incredible vocal performance (as always) but there’s little to no substance to Bride of Chucky.
No wonder half of all marriages end in divorce.