The Phoenix Incident

source: The Phoenix Incident

I came upon this movie from some stupid "top ten" list. At this point it boggles my mind how this poorly-conceived and -orchestrated red herring would be on a "top ten" list for anything. It's an uninspired "found footage" film from a time when "found footage" was about five years' out of vogue, but it can't even stay true to that style choice as the viewer is constantly presented with novel camera angles which defy explanation or stretch the bounds of belief. For instance, the camcorder strapped to a helmet as a 1997 stand-in for a go-pro, or the helicopter cam on a helicopter which blows up (for entirely unclear reasons)--not the only instance in this film where ostensibly destroyed or unavailable (e.g. classified) footage is simply spliced in with no explanation given. Unbelievable on many levels. Not to mention that the end result is entirely unimpressive and indecipherable anyways, leading one to believe that they actually did film this entire thing with a cheap 90's camcorder strapped to a helmet perched atop a drunken chimpanzee. This film manages to hit all the familiar cliches while simultaneously eschewing any semblance of a meaningful/logical plot. The dialogue is repetitive and unconvincing, the characters are one-dimensional at best, and their portrayal substitutes screaming for actual emoting. This is one of those films that suffers from a pronounced overabundance of characters yelling "go, go, go"-type lines during action sequences. Which I suppose is to fill in for the fact that you won't be able to tell who is where or what is happening for like 90% of these sequences thanks to the shaky and blurry camera work--those prone to seasickness should not board this cinematic titanic. All-around, one of the worst films I've seen in awhile. I would recommend it to folks looking for a film slightly better than a Tommy Wiseau production--but only ever so slightly. This film is a perfect candidate for MST3K-style riffing.

This is a found footage film, so adjust your expectation accordingly. it's low budget, but they do what they can with what they have. it's at least better then the countless found footage horror films out there. At least this is more in the sci if genre, which makes it already stand out. That, and the fact that it's based on a true story helps. Even though we have still to get a official explanation to what the lights above the city where.I mean there's a official explanation, but it's far from the truth. Hopefully this film will at least open up discussion on the topic, if nothing else then to entertain you for a couple of hours.

**mild spoilers** I saw the very similar film "The Phoenix Tapes 97" weeks earlier from here, and was blown away at how oddly compelling it was, while using an actual 1990s video camera to make it look like actual footage from 1997 rather than relying on unconvincing video effects to make it look like old footage, and how that acted as a perfect cover to hide any CGI or unconvincing costumes. I didn't know this film, The Phoenix Incident, was going to follow the same route. It's almost ironic (not ironic) that after I had praised "Phoenix Tapes 97" for using an actual 90s camera and not relying on unconvincing video effects, this film "The Phoenix Incident" relies on unconvincing video effects. The core of the film is a found footage story of the supposed four missing hikers during the Phoenix Lights incident, just like in "Phoenix Tapes 97" although in this film they use the actual names of the supposedly missing hikers. The video effects to make the footage look like it's from 1997 is thoroughly unconvincing and during some of the later scenes of the movie, seemingly start to not work properly, as the footage looks oddly smooth and crisp and clear, like they removed their 1997 filter for a few minutes at a time. This found footage story is long, drawn out, and boring until it gets to the spooky alien stuff. Crowding around it to try to keep the story going is a very long framing device of a "documentary" chronicling the story of the "coverup" of the Phoenix Lights incident, involving the military, a crazy religious man as a red herring, and a supposed ongoing war against aliens that has been fought throughout the middle east and Africa prior to the Phoenix Lights incident. It's all rather tedious, with some brief moments of genius, such as the revelation that the "lights" themselves weren't a UFO sighting, but actually flares dropped by the military... to distract from a genuine dogfight between F-16s and 2 triangular alien craft, which we actually get to see unfold from both the F-16 pilots point of view and from the hikers watching from the ground. The film finally picks up at this point, but foregoing its horror aspect and becoming an odd action thriller tone, as the four hikers go on a high speed ATV chase from the aliens, complete with action movie-style twists, turns, and explosions, followed by a shootout at the crazy religious guy's ranch. This odd tonal shift, while trying to stick to its found footage style, seems to make the film come apart as it loses focus of its original plot. The video effects to make it look like 90s video are almost completely gone by this point, with only some barely-there film grain as a token reminder of what it was originally supposed to be. There's even dramatic Hollywood-style music going on during these sequences, and it's never clear who is even holding the camera at times or why they're still filming. This movie doesn't seem to be able to fully commit to one style or another. There's an insistence on being a found footage film, while using the military coverup framing device to be like a mockumentary film, while containing multiple intricate and sometimes CG-heavy action scenes more befitting a gritty action thriller. Rather than failing at all three, like most films, the action thriller parts of this film are actually cool and beautifully executed, especially the dogfight with alien craft. This film should have committed itself to the military angle and sharply reduced or possibly even left out the entirety of the found footage angle. "The Phoenix Tapes 97" does this exact same story with the found footage aspect done with an actual 1990s video camera for a far more authentic look while by the nature of its much narrower scope is much more taut and concise than "The Phoenix Incident" is.

Really pretty much half 0f it was talking and it was annyoing then when there were parts of the acting it was terrible probly the worst movie ever and they call this a thriller horrible tons of shaking cameras and the quality sucks this movie is horrible dont watch a 1 hour and 23 minutes wasted on garbage. and yes the acting sucked i mean if ur going to try to make a movie at least tell them its a documentary and by the way i hate them it look like a straight action movie then and of course Hollywood has to ruin to make even more horrible.

Fun movie to watch with friends, especially if you're fans of the actors.

The found footage trope is an overused plot device. I'm biased against shaky camera nonsense, simply because it can (and would be) digitally repaired. Anyone can create a fixed-point to line up the camera motion frame-by-frame using a home computer; There's an example of this somewhere on Youtube using the movie 'Cloverfield'. I loved the creature effects in this film. George Loucas did a fantastic job. I wish he would replace whoever does the crappy CGI for SYFY originals. The aliens looked great. The overhead dog-fight with the UFO was great. Even the silly way the UFO crashed worked for me because (at least) it looked something actually hit ground. I enjoyed the visuals so much that I wish it were most of the movie. The actors were great and very believable at the start. I thought this was a real home video edited into the movie. But towards the alien contact it became apparent that they weren't receiving direction. They were improvising their reactions and lines during the chase scene & before the abduction. It went from believable to totally fake with one sundown. One con of this film is the use of real footage to create a documentary appearance. It was way too random and unsorted. It needed smother editing - for instance; we're watching the action unfold, it cuts away to a news reel, then back to the action and again to a news reel. A 101 course in how to make a documentary would have worked here. The news and interview were just to fill time, because there was only enough "found footage" for a short film. Time fillers are easy though; Doesn't this director know you can stretch moments with a black screen, heavy breathing and a little suspense? The "less is more" type of film-making that was used in (say) 'Jaws' that Spielberg created whenever the shark was broken. It's a 6 out of 10 for me. I'd still recommend it for the FX and some of the acting. The plot itself was based on the real life "Phoenix Lights" event, but there's no real dialogue here, zero direction and basically it plays out like those scenes in a video game you want to skip through. Even on a cheap budget this could have been a great collector for the UFO enthusiasts. This is purely directorial failure.

The Phoenix Incident starts off nicely, inspired by actual phenomena and using mockumentary approach to cover the issue. Characters, both from recording and supposed interviews, are relatively convincing. This is one of the better groups seen in found footage genre that audience can easily invest on. Unfortunately, persisting problem of jerky cam, cumbersome editing and frantic off screen view are dominant. One or two might be bearable, but the culmination of them all eventually hampers the movie. This mockumentary is a collection of tapes surrounding the event of alleged alien or UFO sighting back in 1997. It follows the group of young men as its main plot and then displays the accounts reflecting back to the fated night as well as possible cover up. Most cast of this type are random journalists or awkward family, this one has better on-screen characters, at least before the screaming and blabbering start. They seem believable as a group of friends, they may fumble with occasional juvenile antic, but a decent cast goes a long way to give a sense of realism, which is the goal of found footage genre. The interview scenes also present air of seriousness, be it may the whistleblowing dialogue or the eyewitnesses accounts. However, the transition is poor and the camera work is abysmal. For guys whose hobby is filming, these on-screen characters are not handy with camera. This shaky cam can be disruptive, especially towards the latter half where the events are revealed. The movie shows some special effects, presentable yet only a few seconds each. The movie shows promise early on, but just like many before it, the intrusive shaky cam and awful editing ruin it.

I really had high hopes for this movie as I had just watched Phoenix Forgotten and I thought maybe this would be as interesting or even better... But it's not even close. There are too many technical errors and storytelling errors to enjoy it. Things that I found were wrong with this movie: -The classic footage is not 4:3 and the aging effect is not realistic -The characters aren't interesting -While filming the Phoenix Lights they suddenly start filming themselves instead of the UFO sighting. Who would actually do that? -The aliens are bad CGI and look like the xenomorph from the 'Alien' movies -The news channels have names that don't make sense, very unconvincing -There are too many camera angles. Also too many cameras in Gayson's place. Why does he have all those security cameras? Also it's 1997! -Gayson's theories and everything he says doesn't fit the movie. There is some Heaven's Gate mixed in ("recycling the Earth", the bunk beds in his compound, the portrait of the Alien is the exact same that 'Do' from Heaven's Gate had and don't look anything like the aliens in the movie) and it all doesn't fit the movie because the aliens aren't even trying to get them alive, they for no reason seem to kill them and then take them, and they are not stealthy at all at doing it. -One of the guys shuts the trunk in a hurry and leaves a camera in the trunk? There are so many things in this movie that don't make any sense. If you're gonna watch a found footage Phoenix Lights movie, watch the 2017 Phoenix Forgotten. It's way more enjoyable and has character development.

LOVED this film! It kept me engaged throughout. Some really beautiful shots as well. The characters were really well developed, and it made me feel so bad for the families. Really well done, I would def rec!!! The mix of found-footage with traditional narrative made this seem like a film that cost 5mm, not 1mm. The performances were incredible as well. I am still not sure if the film is based off of real events, or if the guys were made up......its THAT convincing! The pacing was incredible, the direction was incredible, and the story really had me connected to the characters. Does anyone know about the director? This was really, really fun and I would love to see more.