"Metamorphosis: The Alien Factor" is a 1990 science fiction thriller written and directed by Glenn Takakjian. Starring Tara Leigh (Sherry), Dianna Flaherty (Kim), Katherine Romaine (Dr. Nancy Kane), Marcus Powell (Dr. Viallini), and George Gerard (Dr. Michael Foster), "Metamorphosis" features a cast of mostly unknowns. Distributed by Trimark/Vidmark, the same company that brought us such classics as "Leprechaun" and "Warlock: The Armageddon," this low budget creature flick actually boasts some really cool special effects work.
Any sci-fi creature feature needs some good special effects to make the main monster believable, but the characters are what will really sell the film to the audience. "Metamorphosis" doesn't exactly hit the mark here, but the central characters in the film have just enough depth to carry the film. Don't get me wrong--there are definitely some moments of bad acting, but that's expected of an early 90s b-movie.
In particular, Dr. Viallini (Marcus Powell) has this strange wannabe British accent, and it's well...awkward. Brian (Patrick Barnes) is quite bad, and even our lead character Sherry (Tara Leigh) has some cringeworthy lines. My favorite would have to be Sherry's sister Kim (Dianna Flaherty), she's cute and spunky, but is comparable to Tara Leigh in her cheesiness. Honestly, I actually like my sci-fi and horror with extra cheese--so it's a good thing in my book!
Where "Metamorphosis" falters is in its story arc and execution. The film begins in the middle of the action, backtracks, and then catches up with itself. Personally, I don't always enjoy films that use that method, but that's just me. By jumping around in time, the viewer loses track of the story, and can become lost. Secondly, there's a lot of exposition going on in the flashback scenes. I know that it's a bit necessary here, but I just feel there's an easier way to explain the story without bogging the viewer down with jargon and information--show me, don't tell me.
Additionally, there's a lot of extra time spent on characters wandering the halls of the Talos facility searching for the monster. If the filmmakers had given the creature some sort of motivation, it would have helped give clues as to where it would show up. Instead, the slimy behemoth that was formerly Dr. Foster just appears after a character takes a long stroll down a corridor. There's no actual jump scare either! It literally just shows up!
Finally, and this is just a personal gripe of mine, but I think this film needed to have a couple more aliens eating people. This is something that's only hinted at, and it's a letdown that it wasn't used more prominently in the film.
Flaws aside, I think "Metamorphosis: The Alien Factor" is a fun b-movie sci-fi flick. I'm slightly partial to it because I can remember watching the trailer way back when I was a kid. You'll have to check your brain at the door with this one, but I really like movies you can just have fun watching.
A really cool side note: "Metamorphosis" began as the sequel to the cult classic "The Deadly Spawn"!
Good-
- Really cool creature effects
- 90s cheese
Bad-
- Slightly off story arc and execution
- Some bad acting
No comments:
Post a Comment