Xtro

In 1982, following the release of Spielbergs E. T in cinemas, John Carpenter had remade The Thing. The classic story of an alien intruder at a military and scientific base, discovered frozen in a block of ice. While Carpenters version was initially met with disgust and disdain in equal measure, another film, a low budget outer space shocker involving another visitor from beyond, was wrapped in the UK. Somewhat overlooked but finding momentum in the vhs rental shops of eighties Britain and that of course was Xtro. There were some parallels with ET concerning a young boys special relationship with an alien but this film was much darker and disturbing. A father is abducted by a "light" in the sky and, after 3 years, returns home to relocate his wife and specifically his son. The father however, is much different now and conceals alien dna within having being "changed so i could live there" referring to the alien world in which he was taken. Reborn in the most gruesome and notorious sequence in the film ( hands over your eyes) which still stands out as a superb example of practical effects on a shoestring. The rest of the film becomes somekind of kitchen sink drama as the mans wife, her new partner, a french housesitter and the son become implicated in the events that unfold while trying to reveal the true motives of the husband!!! Two sequels were made, neither related to this or each other, some years later by the same director who also composed the soundtrack to the film. Not for everyone but worth viewing if you enjoy your horror or scifi with a serving of splatter!

I had been warned off watching 'Xtro' for years having been assured by everyone who had ever heard about it that it was cheap, awful and nasty trash. Suddenly I found myself with the inexplicable urge to watch it. "MUST see Xtro! MUST see Xtro!" became my mantra. Then finally I managed to find a copy. I held my breath as I fed it into my video player. I expected it to be bad. Real bad. Ted V. Mikels bad. Even Donald G. Jackson bad. (and that my friends is quite possibly as bad as it gets!) But even worse, with lots of added gore. However I was most surprised to find that 'Xtro' wasn't all that bad at all. Crappy acting, no budget, and the "special effects" aren't special or actually all that effective, but despite all that I was hooked from the word go, and satisfied when it ended. This is a superior sci fi video nasty. It's stupid yes, but it knows it is, and it delivers the goods. The plot itself is simple: man abducted by aliens returns years later to reunite with his son, but that in no way conveys just how freakin' STRANGE this movie is! Plus it contains nudity from Maryam D'Abo (the loveliest of the lovely D'Abo sisters), an unforgettably bizarre birth screen, a demented clown, and plenty of gore. It even features obscure 80s synth-poppers Tik and Tok! Beat that for sheer oddness! So forget the anti-'Xtro' brigade and give it a look. Fans of weird sci fi and horror movies will absolutely love this one! Highly recommended to b-movie buffs.

Xtro (1983) scared me when I was a kid. The very idea of a kid's being tormented by aliens freaked me out big time. The special effects were graphic and sticky from what I remembered. I wish this movie was available to rent because the only copy I could find to watch is the very first one that was released during the early 80's. I am surprised that this film isn't widely recognized as one of the nastiest and bloody horror films of it's time period. Two scenes tripped me out big time, one involving the father and the other with the poor kid and his G.I. Joe doll.

Priceless stuff. I would recommended a viewing of this strange film if you could find a decent copy.

After being abducted by aliens three years earlier Sam (Phillip Sayer) returns to earth and reunites himself with his wife Rachel (Bernice Stegers) and son Tony (Simon Nash). While Sam was away Rachel moved on with her life and started seeing Joe (Danny Brainin) and after the arrival of Sam at the couples flat Joe begins to suspect that Sam is not all that he appears to be.

‘Xtro' is not a bad little sci-fi horror movie in my opinion. While it suffers from bad, wooden acting and a sometimes incoherent plot the film is generally well thought out and capably directed by Harry Bromley Davenport. The biggest complaint I have with the movie was the lack of character development with regards to the alien. While some creatures or villains are scarier when the viewer is unaware of its origins I feel this particular life form would have benefited from at least a slight background story which was sadly lacking. However, though the plot can be sometimes a little confusing, most of the story eventually comes across well despite leaving a few unanswered questions and being slow in places. As I previously mentioned the film was fairly well directed and this really comes through in a few scenes which generally have an extremely trippy and unnerving effect.

The effects in ‘Xtro' are quite surprisingly of very good quality especially considering the budget for this flick. Though one or two of the make-up effects looked rather out-of-place from the rest most of the effects were well produced and made ‘Xtro' a rather gory movie which should keep gore fans happy. This movie found its way onto the infamous Video Nasty list and though it probably should not have been put there one can almost understand why as it features a couple of particularly brutal scenes involving women. Having said that there are far more vile movies out there and it would seem ‘Xtro' was just a poor victim of media propaganda.

‘Xtro' is certainly worth a look in my opinion for sci-fi/horror fans. Complete with a delightfully erratic and haunting 80's soundtrack the movie is fairly entertaining despite its shortcomings. ‘Xtro' is probably not for those who expect a lot of action but instead a good movie for people who like slow-paced movies with various plot aspects to think about. My rating for ‘Xtro' – 7/10.

"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.