THEY LOOK LIKE PEOPLE

WARNING: The following movie review is for a film that is not horror--it's not even science fiction for that matter. So no, this is not a film that would typically be reviewed on this site. You may be asking yourself "Okay then, so why are you bothering with this movie?". My loyal readers, it is for you that I make these sacrifices. You will find, as I did, They Look Like People labeled "horror" on Netflix...my friends, do not believe it.

They Look Like People Movie Review

So what does that leave us with? A movie about a guy with schizophrenia rooming with an old friend, a guy with no self esteem and a crush on his boss. For an hour and twenty minutes the boys rekindle a friendship, do guy stuff and, eventually, Crazy Guy lets Somewhat Less Crazy Guy in on his secret--aliens...or...somebody...is about to attack the city. He prepares for it...kind of. Less Crazy Guy makes no real connection with his boss. There is a slight bit of tension in the final scene...and then nothing happens.

And the viewer does this

It goes without saying this film doesn't work as a horror film, but it truly fails at being a good psychological movie, drama, comedy, or anything else it may have actually tried to pull off. They Look Like People only has two redeemable qualities--it is shot well, and is only 80 minutes long.

On A Scale Of One To Ten: 3

They Look Like People Movie Trailer

POD

Pod Movie Review

Siblings Ed (Dean Cates) and Lyla (Lauren Ashley Carter of Jug Face fame) travel to assist their brother Martin (Brian Morvant), a war veteran who may or may not have captured an alien. This 2015 horror film relies strongly on slowly building suspense, and after struggling a little to get going, the movie does eventually start pulling the viewer in. There's a lot of bickering amongst the siblings as Martin tries to convince them the government is spying on him and he is housing an alien, Ed tries convincing Martin he's nuts, and Lyla...well, I think she just wants a drink. As a viewer you try to figure out what's real, what isn't, is the government really involved, and who will survive. A lot of people have compared this movie to the 2006 film Bug.

I'd be offended too

Okay, I guess I can see that comparison somewhat, but I hate the movie Bug so much that anything compared to it will probably seem all the better. The acting in this movie is actually pretty decent--I like Carter (not just to look at either), Cates does a fair job, and Morvant, when he's not trying to channel the spirit of Brad Pitt in 12 Monkeys, is okay in his role as well. The build up and suspense eventually break down to a creature-feature throwback, and that's not such a bad thing. As an added bonus fans of classic horror will be delighted to see this one throughout. This low budget film isn't for everybody--there's not much gore, the story is slow at times, and there isn't much to see in terms of the mystery in the basement, but I think it's certainly worth watching.

On A Scale Of One To Ten: 7

Pod Movie Trailer