The Alpha Incident

Granted, when I sat down in 2021 to watch the 1978 sci-fi horror movie "The Alpha Incident" for the very first time, I wasn't really harboring much of any expectations, especially since the movie had managed to land a rather low rating here on IMDb.

Still, I had the chance to sit down to watch it, and with it being a movie that I hadn't already seen, of course I found the time to do so. Though I might as well have just skipped on this one. Yeah, "The Alpha Incident" was by no means a grand cinematic experience, much less of an entertaining movie.

The storyline told in "The Alpha Incident", as written by Ingrid Neumayer and directed by Bill Rebane, wasn't really interesting. Nothing much of any worth took place throughout the mundane course of this movie, which made for a dull and uneventful viewing. And that ultimately reflected poorly on the overall viewing experience as the movie was lacking greatly in entertainment value.

There was a whole lot of sitting around and blaming each other amongst the characters in the storyline. And does that make for good entertainment? Perhaps to some, I suppose. But not to me.

The acting in the movie was fair enough, though I can't really claim to have witnessed anything extraordinary or outstanding as the movie trotted along.

My rating of "The Alpha Incident" lands on a generous three out of ten stars. This movie was a swing and a miss, not much of any real sci-fi over the storyline, and even less so in the horror department. Sure, I am not much of a sci-fi fan, but "The Alpha Incident" was a fairly weak addition to the sci-fi genre.

The Alpha Incident involves a microorganism from Mars escaping due to the stupidity and carelessness of a railroad baggage handler. Not to mention the imbecility of NASA scientists sending the thing by regular express mail so as to not cause any attention.

So now with the quick thinking that characterizes science fiction movies like these the organism is quarantined at a remote rail station and five people are kept in isolation while scientists work to find a cure, for what they're not sure, but we soon see.

The only cast name I'm sure you might remember is Ralph Meeker, the rest are total unknowns, at least to me they are. The film is an interesting idea, but one more suited to a television episode of The Outer Limits.

If ever there was a movie worthy of criticism, the Alpha Incident is it. Borrowing heavily from Night of the Living Dead, this film is a complete bust. The story keeps the viewer somewhat interested, and the characters aren't that terrible, but nothing could save this film from its blatant, rip-off ending.

Here's the scoop. A couple of average white collar types come into contact with an unknown substance (I gather that's the sci-fi part IMDB makes mention to, because other wise this movie is pure drama) and must remain cooped up in a train station, without sleep in order to survive. Each character is unique and different, but unfortunately, not very interesting. You have your smart mouth, your damsel in distress, your play-it-cool man, the nervous/shy guy, and of course, the complete moron. That may be the only saving grace to this film, the complete moron named `Hank.' Hank is a really funny character and is the only one who kept my attention, only because he's so innocent and dumb. Notables? The film has one, count it, one scene of true gore, but at least it's a goodie.

I recommend leaving this one on the shelf if you're looking for a sci-fi film, because this really isn't a science fiction piece. Sure the cover art on the box might make you think it is, but looks can be deceiving. However, I still give this one a 4 out of 10 for it's classic portrayal of characters. The way the actors talk and move within their parts is perfect. The smart mouth always laughing, the damsel always worried; it's something out of a comic book gone wrong. Anyway, unless you want to see what an impact Night of the Living Dead truly had, don't bother with this.

I think the previous posters were a little hard on this movie. Yes, it's not a very good movie - it's slow, with some bad dialogue, characters that are annoying and/or unsympathetic, and an ending that rips off NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. Yet at the same time, I thought that the premise of the movie was intriguing, and I had to admire the fact that independent filmmakers on a really low budget were tackling something as difficult as a dialogue-driven movie, one that was intended for the drive-in crowd. True, it's not successful overall (to say the least), but occasionally there is something a little interesting, making you think that, with more time and planning, they might have been able to succeed. So while I "boo" the finished results, I will at least applaud the filmmakers intentions.

Another Bill Rebane film, so yet another interesting, if not entirely successful movie. This one involves a microorganism from Mars infecting several people at a rail depot. They feel fine, but the trouble is, if they fall asleep, their brains explode! This might also happen to the viewer too because you'll have a hard time staying awake during the long stretches of nothing in this film.

That's being harsh. Every Bill Rebane film is worth a watch, but basically you have four people in a room, trying to stay awake by drinking coffee, arguing, smoking, and taking speed while scientists work hard on a cure. You get to see the brain exploding thing happen once, so if you're into films for the gore you might want to take that on board. Also: there's a boob.

I wouldn't say this was as much fun as The Giant Spider Invasion or Demons of Ludlow, but more on a par with the equally strange and slow moving The Game. The acting is generally fine (especially from Buck Flower) and things do pick up near the end, but it's a bit of a slog. Worth a watch though, because I feel Bill Rebane always tried to make his films at least a bit different from the norm.