Unplugged on Ufos [DVD] [2006] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

As soon as I watched this movie I loved it. I do agree with the previous reviewer that the interview shooting is poor and over-eager to use cut-aways of Dan nodding emphatically or shaking his head (to give the impression that they used more than one camera for the conversation - which they most likely did not), however, the interview is more about offering a narrative to the excellent UFO footage.

Other than the Bill Meir photo-stills there is a wealth of truly eerie and baffling material - my personal favourite being the UV-light space-shuttle shots of the twelve-mile long ufos orbitting the planet (so detailled you can see them pulse). Aykroyd's knowledge of the subject merely puts the shots in a context - you don't have to be a rocket scientist to know that what you're looking at is not built by us (be it real or hoax).

Unlike almost all the UFO ocumentaries I've seen though, this one does something original: It tries to convince the viewer of the existence of UFOs. It uses a credible and respected host with good insight into the case-histories of the phenomena; it uses the best and most credible photography and video footage (with the exception of the too-good-to-be-true Mier's pictures) and it does not drift into obviously dubious material like the Space Brothers cults of the 70's or interviews with the local weirdo. Thuis documentary uses only credible witnesses and credible footage because it is not trying to debunk the evidence.

It is a good step in the right direction.

This is quite an odd video - not for the subject matter so much as for the style of presentation. According to filmmaker David Sereda, he was so fascinated by a UFO-related conversation he had with actor Dan Aykroyd that he just had to interview him in front of the cameras, and this video is basically a conversation between the two about a range of issues related to UFO phenomena. Apparently, Aykroyd has long been interested in the subject and had recently interviewed a number of prominent ufologists for his own UFO-related show for Sci-Fi (before the series was abruptly and mysteriously cancelled before it ever made it to air). Aykroyd, it's important to note, does not pretend to be a scientist or an expert (even though Sereda bills him as one of the greatest minds on earth), and he really doesn't have any vast truths to communicate - he's just, like so many of us, fascinated and well-read on the subject, a believer who wants to push the UFO debate more firmly into public awareness.

The production quality of the actual interview leaves something to be desired. I think both men were there facing each other, but the shots of Sereda show him against a white background while Aykroyd looms in front of a shadowy background, with all manner of strange close-ups and camera angles of him interspersed throughout. To my eyes, at least, the presentation sometimes takes on the look of a mockumentary, especially when Aykroyd lights up a cigarette.

Since the topics cover a wide range of issues, from space shuttle sightings to alien abduction to parallel dimensions to Men in Black and beyond, you almost need to have at least a basic background in the history of UFOs and alien literature to put some of what is discussed in a proper context. On the other hand, the conversational tone of the presentation may appeal to the uninitiated much more than a dry, scientific discussion ever could. Those of us who consider ourselves armchair ufologists may not gain a lot out of the discussion at all, as it mainly focuses on familiar sightings, events, and speculation. Some of the newer UFO videos presented here may prove interesting, as I saw several clips I had never seen before, but none of them are in any way explosive - there's really no substantive evidence of any kind on display here. I also think the filmmakers made a big mistake by including a significant number of Billy Meier photos - sure, these are some of the clearest UFO photographs ever taken, but the vast majority of ufologists view Billy Meier's "evidence" as thoroughly bogus.

Basically, I have to go down the middle on this one. You need to be able to put a lot of the subject matter in its proper context in order to closely follow the conversation, yet those who know enough to do just that probably won't glean a lot of new information from the presentation. In addition, the fact that many of the same videos and photographs are replayed several times over the course of the production gets a little annoying.