"Xtro" (1983) is a very weird little slice of Sci-Fi Horror and one of the few British films that landed on the UK film censors' infamous 'Video Nasty' list. The film is incredibly bizarre and quite bloody, and while it isn't a must-see it is warmly recommended to fans of cult-cinema and weird stuff.
While playing with his son, Sam Phillips (Philip Sayer) is abducted by an alien force. Several years thereafter he returns (in a somewhat bizarre manner), and isn't quite the same anymore... This may not really be a proper plot description of "Xtro", but the film really is way too bizarre in order to properly describe it without spoiling it. "Xtro" is weird from start to finish, and that is exactly what makes it interesting. "Xtro" has an undeniable Trash-feeling, which also only makes it more valuable for my fellow cult-cinema fans. The film landed on the Video Nasty list due to its gore. The gory scenes are intense and includes one particularly nauseating 'birth'-sequence. "Xtro" is still probably one of the less explicit films on this list, which generally shows that film-censors lack both intelligence and art-appreciation. The storyline actually quite interesting, though sometimes a bit too confused. It gets quite goofy at times, but then it has its genuinely ingenious moments.
It is worth mentioning that this is the first film featuring the sexy Maryam d'Abo, who is best known for her Bondgirl role in "The Living Daylights" (1987). She plays a French au-pair-girl here. The performances are generally pretty good, especially for a film that has seems somewhat trashy and cheap. The gore- and make-up effects vary between brutally nauseating and cheesy, depending on the particular sequence. Overall, "Xtro" is recommendable to my fellow fans of bizarre Horror, though I wouldn't say you've missed a lot if you decide to skip it.
