Ombis: Alien Invasion (2013)

Don't Believe the Hype

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

Blistering performances.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

OMBIS: ALIEN INVASION is an indie sci-fi flick filmed in New York state. The plot sees residents of a small town attempting to fight back when aliens invade the vicinity, causing death and destruction among mankind. Given the lack of budget, expect plenty of cheesy emoting here and little in the way of genuine sci-fi action. It plays out as more of a family drama for the most part. The cheap picture quality gives it a 1990s look while there are a handful of gooey scenes seemingly copied from that '80s cult flick STREET TRASH.

If you're counting, somewhere between 18 and 19 minutes elapses before an alien meteor hits planet Earth, and the aliens launch their invasion. The first bad looking, B-movie alien doesn't appear until about 33 minutes have passed. Writer & director Adam R. Steigert and a quartet of scribes, including Janeen Avery, Terry Kimmel, Mark Mendola and Michael Sciabarrasi, stockpile clichés galore in this low-budget, unintentionally hilarious science fiction saga. Initially entitled "Ombis: Alien Invasion," "Not Human" reminded me a lot of the 1958 Steve McQueen cult classic chiller "The Blob." The first victim of the meteorite lives long enough for the hero to put him in his car and take him to the local doctor. No sooner has the doctor seen the victim that green slime attaches itself to her. Predictably, she screams, bleeds, and dies. The slime slips into the drain and the sheriff summons a plumber who says that he has seen everything. The poor plumber gets the surprise of his life when the slime attacks him! Later, the defunct doctor is reconstituted and kills a deputy sheriff. . The hero Mark (Jason John Beebe of "Sharknado 2: The Second One") has just enlisted in the U.S. Army when the meteor hits. Although he graduated from high school four years ago, Mark still wears his letter jacket because he says it brings him luck. He is the first of the Metzburgh resident to see the alien being with its three fingered hands and escape from it. The alien is vaguely human-like in stature. At 40 minutes, the humans bring a sample of the green slime to a high school chemistry professor, Professor O'Neil (Bill Choinski), but he too is absorbed by the stuff! He turns into a jolly green giant of a monster. The sheriff's last deputy shoots him before the deputy is himself killed. This is about the time that black-suited, anonymous government types in sunglasses show up to investigate and seal off the town. "Do not be alarmed," Mr. Gray informs the citizens at a town meeting as he explains that a containment team is on the way. A citizen infected with the alien bacteria bursts into the town hall meeting at the high school, and hysteria erupts as it infects even more citizens. Essentially, what we have is a green slime vomit session. One scene obviously played for laughs involves a babe who goes tan and turns green. Meantime, everybody is going stark, raving, berserk in the streets. Clearly, Adam R. Steigert is a better producer than he is a director. One of the most obnoxious characters, an unsavory wife-beater who abuses his two daughters dies when the alien literally blasts him out of his shoes with a powerful extraterrestrial gun. Eventually, Mr. Gray comes clean to Mark and his girlfriend: "It's an alien bacteria from another world. It's highly contagious and extremely deadly. We believe it is one of the reasons there is no life on Mars." Gray goes on to say that they call the alien predator Nemesis and that bullets have no effect on it. If this is bad enough, Gray explains that the town is already marked for destruction. Mark refuses to leave his girlfriend's mother Sara and sister Haley. Gray hands him a pistol, and Mark goes back. He tangles with Nemesis in a life and death struggle. The sheriff and the girls get away moments before the jets arrive and nuke the town. There are some end credits extra scenes.The acting is worse than worse. Everybody recites their lines as if they were reading them off cue cards. Top-billed actor Richard Satterwhite gives what qualifies as the most acceptable performance. He appears to be channeling Dwayne Johnson with his effusive delivery. His best line is: "I feel like a man with no arms in a bowling alley." One of his three deputies uttered by the funniest line: "Mark, what do you want me to say? That the world's being invaded by aliens." The graphics are phony. The green slime is pretty funny, too. It looks like the actors have been splashed with it or they wear a mask covered in green slime. Nemesis looks like a wrestler in a mask. We're talking bottom of the barrel! "Not Human" is not good!

The best film by Adam Steigert yet. Lots of action, thrills and sci-fi adventure. Richard Satterwhite and Alexander S. McBryde are brilliant as the sheriff and Mr. Grey. Ansomble cast of the best talent Buffalo has. The introduction of Aryn Fitzgerald and Richard Winatowski to the DefTone family is brilliant, both have a bright future. Jason John Beebe ans Sara Manzella have a great chemistry together. The town of Metzburgh has never had this much going on at one time. Steigert weaves a story of science fiction horror that captivates the audience. He successfully mixes action and humor. Can't wait for "a Grim Becoming" in 2014.

I have been viewing Deftone Studios films for a couple of years now and the overall quality just increases with each release. Ombis is the best to date! Filming, scoring, and acting in this feature all showcase an incredible amount of talent from an unexpected part of the country, Buffalo, NY. I did not expect to become engrossed in the story, startled by the antagonists, rooting for the protagonists and genuinely believing in the character "Nemesis" as much as I did. The makeup for this character was top notch. The transition makeup from human to...well, not human, was also very convincing. I consider myself something of a "B" horror movie queen and Ombis is one I need to own. Rent it, own it, JUST WATCH IT. Its worth your time and will quickly become a cult favorite.