It’s hard to encapsulate the spirit of an era without simply wading in an assemblage of references. And yet KIDS VS ALIENS evokes the kids’ adventure films of the ‘80s without resorting to blatant nods. It isn’t a full pastiche, either, as there’s enough in the film to differentiate from its numerous predecessor. Director Jason Eisener (who also co-wrote, with John Davies) brings to life the exuberant glee of children’s imaginations along with the gory horror of splatterpunks to create something familiar but undeniably unique and new.
Gary and his friends (Dominic Mariche, Asher Grayson, Ben Tector) love making their epic movies together. Sci-Fi action epics that utilize their love of special effects, wrestling, and monsters, they work together on their films alongside Gary’s older sister, Samantha (Phoebe Rex). When teenager Billy (Calem MacDonald) shows interest in Samantha, though, the kids find themselves left behind. While that schism escalates, the whole group finds themselves in the middle of a new nightmare that involves aliens intent on snatching up people to bring back to their underwater ship for sinister purposes.
KIDS VS. ALIENS is probably exactly what you think it is. If nothing else, you understand that it will be children squaring off in some sort of combative mode against extraterrestrials. But those familiar with Jason Eisener’s past work know that it will come with some additional viscera and violence in only the best of ways. So while the concept in KIDS VS. ALIENS isn’t surprising, at least after reading the title, the genuine entertainment in the 75-minute all killer, no filler film is still new and delivers in specific ways that are not expected. The strength for this actually lies in the title as well, with the “KIDS” portion being solidly constructed before it moves into the equally dope “VS. ALIENS” half of the movie.
Mariche, Grayson, and Tector shine as the main “kids,” providing naturalistic performances as real enthusiastic youngsters without ever grating. They get unhappy but not whiny; excited but not ridiculous; aggressive but not in any way approaching caricature. It’s a difficult line to walk, especially for young performers, made even more important by the fact that they are the focus of so much of the movie. If they tipped too far over into any of those annoying elements, it would seriously diminish the enjoyment of KIDS VS. ALIENS (looking at you, parts of PSYCHO GOREMAN).
The teens, led by MacDonald, are cartoonishly evil in only the way that ‘80s cinematic bullies can be. The type that seemingly always takes it too far and are possibly only motivated by sinister cruelty. This can read as too over-the-top to some, but it’s also a film where aliens harvest people’s flesh, so are we really debating the rules of reality on this? The main crew of kids are enough of a grounding force that it allows for more flights of fancy. This is also greatly assisted by Rex who is truly excellent as Samantha. She perfectly portrays that early teen type who is caught between the world of playing with her younger brother and being interested in the local bad boy, all before transitioning into a believable and badass action hero.
In addition to the fine acting, KIDS VS. ALIENS soars thanks to some great work on the technical side. Andrew Gordon Macpherson turns in a score that is also a throwback to the ‘80s movies that spawned Eisener’s film without echoing specific themes or composers from that decade. DP Mat Barkley does some impressive work that also departs from the era-specific looks of Dean Cundey and Vilmos Zsigmond, trading in for more of a handheld approach. There are still stylistic flourishes with dramatic lighting, lens flares, and expressive color that help integrate the fantastical narrative elements with the “realism” of the cinematography. There are some terrific sequences underwater and in the spaceship that are tremendously creepy with sickly orange lighting that highlights the shocking and awesome gore (of both the human and alien variety).
KIDS VS. ALIENS does the herculean task of conjuring up memories of those kids on bikes films of yesteryear but without all the winking or blatant references that bog down lesser movies. Eisener smartly makes the brilliant kids’ performances the bedrock on which to build his horror sci-fi flick, allowing him to go on flights of grotesque fancy with his monstrous aliens. It’s just a good time at the movies that is a synthesis of a nice callback to the feelings of 40 years ago while creating a tremendously new experience.
KIDS VS. ALIENS will be out in theaters and on demand from RLJE films in the beginning of 2023 (and will be on Shudder thereafter).
Tags: Aliens, Andrew Gordon Macpherson, Asher Grayson Percival, Calem MacDonald, Dominic Mariche, Fantastic Fest 2022, Jason Eisener, Mat Barkley, Phoebe Rex, RLJE Films, Shudder
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