The Bottom Line
Pros
- Strong cast
- Good production value
- Interesting characters
- Great setup
Cons
- Tame action
- Monsters not scary
- Silly title
Description
- Starring Carlos Bernard, Mathew St. Patrick, Samantha Streets, Rockmond Dunbar, Jeffrey Licon, Courtney Ford, Derek Basco
- Directed by Ben Rock
- Rated R
- DVD Release Date: February 17, 2009
Guide Review - 'Alien Raiders' DVD Review
Alien Raiders could've been an awesome movie, sort of like The Thing meets Die Hard, but its potential is never fully realized, and it ends up more like Leviathan meets Under Siege.
The setup is great: a team of commandos storms a small-town supermarket one evening, sealing employees and customers alike inside. What seems like a robbery turns out to be much more when it's revealed that the team has tracked deadly alien life forms to the store. The parasitic aliens may have attached themselves to any seemingly normal person, so the commandos have a "spotter," a person who survived being infested and now has the ability to tell if someone is being controlled by an alien by just looking at them.
However, when their spotter is shot by an off-duty cop (whose colleagues have now surrounded the store), the group has to resort to more crude measures -- like the scene in The Thing with the blood samples, but more painful. When the king alien is exposed, the hostages realize the danger lies not in the commandos but in the creature. They form an unlikely partnership inside, while the police outside begin to suspect that there's more going on than meets the eye.
The strength of Alien Raiders lies in its cast and characters. Strong performances abound, from the stars to the supporting actors, and character development is similarly impressive, form frustrated stockboy Benny to distrustful Officer Steadman to wannabe gangster Manny to druggie spotter Charlotte.
Unfortunately, with such great characters and such a strong buildup, the payoff is negligible. The action is underwhelming, and the creature itself is a big letdown. Still, the film's very watchable, thanks to high production values and the performances, but you have to wonder what could've been.
The DVD
Special features include behind-the-scenes featurettes and additional footage.
Movie: B-
DVD: B-
