Alien Autopsy

The unfolding story of a magnificent British hoax is told with enthusiasm and some welcome humor. Whether the alien autopsy film is part of a United States Government conspiracy, an outright fake, or something else, is explored in this cleverly scripted film. Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, although unknown to me, were totally acceptable as the perpetrators of the "Alien Autopsy" hoax. Harry Dean Stanton as the original cameraman who supposedly was at Roswell in 1947 filming an actual alien being, is excellent. This hoaxed story of escalating proportions certainly set the U.F.O. world spinning, and I found it to be very entertaining from an American perspective. - MERK

The British TV Yoof presenters Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly make their big screen debut (if you ignore their cameo in "Love Actually" where they interview the ageing rocker played by Bill Nighy). It's one of the strangest stories of modern times, the Londoners who discovered the Roswell alien autopsy film.

The cast also includes Bill Pullman as a Hollywood producer who wants to hear their story and Harry Dean Stanton as the original cameraman. Not forgetting the great Omid Djalili (the jailer in "The Mummy" and "Casonova"s servant) who gets to play a kebab shop owner.

I feared this would be a one joke movie (and maybe it is) but surprisingly it keeps its pace due to it's an amusing story with some good performances and some quirky characters including a Hungarian gangster and a granny obsessed with biscuits.

I doubt you will be rolling in the aisles but it's funny in its own way. Not to mention the choice hits of 1995 on the soundtrack. Unless you hate Ant + Dec (looking at the message board there certainly are) or the X-files, it is a Brit-com worth seeing.

I went to the premiere last night and wasn't sure what to expect - my initial thoughts were that Ant and Dec would fizzle out in a medium to which they don't fit. I was pleasantly surprised, however.

Overall, Alien Autopsy is a very funny, whimsical film. The script is patchy in places - subplots get twisted and don't really tie together satisfactorily in the end - but this is made up by the pleasure (and it really is a genuine pleasure) to see Ant and Dec putting in strong performances in the lead roles. This is the sort of film that the critics would be sharpening their knives for. I think those knives can be put back in the drawer.

Make no mistake: this isn't your traditional British comedy. The cameos fit perfectly into the plot and everyone has a purpose. There are no big faces included for the sake of it. Somehow, it works.

This is an enjoyable film and good family entertainment. It won't win any awards, but it's harmless, clean fun - and very good harmless clean fun at that.

ALIEN AUTOPSY Let me say first off that from frame one, the mentality of this movie is lost on non-UK residents! Americans will simply be agog by the acting, the dialogue and the venue (not to mention a 1000 other things British). Awe ight, mate? Gotnoo mowtuh? What's cute about this movie is that it is MORE believable than the actual current 'Roswell Scam' which is an alien craft that crashed in the New Mexico desert in 1947. Yeah, right. And I'm the Queen of Sheba. No, really I am! The acting is typical British, the pace and settings are well thought out and the script is also very well written (if you're a Brit!). The plot is cute, i.e. a guy buys a 'Roswell' film, supposedly of the Alien Autopsy, but the film is old and it disintegrates before he gets it home. Now he's in debt for $30,000 to a local London thug from whom he borrowed the cash to purchase the 'original' film! What to do? Make your OWN film of course .... and then the fun begins. All in all, a very watchable, well-presented movie that will keep you smiling at the antics of the main character (a London 'wide boy'). For foreigners (anyone NOT British), well, just try to keep up and follow along. This is not your typical US B-movie, pretending to be something it's not. It's just a lot of tongue-in-cheek fun for a Sunday afternoon.

This film isn't bad, it's a good 6 out of 10. Ant and Dec's acting skills are, to be frank, not really up to much but the plot line is so outrageous that you end up ignoring the acting just to keep up with which country they are in and who they are talking to. It takes a while to relax into the 'flow' of the film, but when you do it becomes quite enjoyable. Characters like Voros (played by Götz Otto) will intrigue, interest and even slightly scare you. The actually autopsy scene is cleverly put together and 'snortingly-funny' as one of my friends put it. I think the fact that the film is based on a true story is the only reason the plot is accepted in your mind as you watch it.

And when the cast list rolls across the screen, you will (as the whole of our cinema did) sigh, stretch then snigger quietly to yourself as you remember the more... interesting... parts of the film.

It has to be said however that I won't be buying it on DVD, BUT it takes up two hours and allows you to relax.