- Darkstar Pictures Announces Free Online Film Festival!
- Stunning First Look at Indie Fantasy THE WANTING MARE [Trailer]
- Stunning First Look at Indie Fantasy THE WANTING MARE [Trailer]
- Stunning First Look at Indie Fantasy THE WANTING MARE [Trailer]
- SKYLINES Is Coming! [Poster Premiere]
- Who Hunts Who in HUNTER HUNTER? [Trailer]
- MONSTER HUNTER Coming for Christmas [Trailer]
- Saskatoon Fantastic Film Festival Returns with In-Person Event [Line Up]
- LUNATIQUE Director Returns with WASTELAND 3 Promo [Short Film]
- Win a copy of JAMES CAMERON'S STORY OF SCIENCE FICTION [Contest]
- Slice of Life, Blade Runner inspired short
- Is Snowpeircer a sequel to Willy Wonka?
- Re: Yesterday
- Re: Yesterday
- Yesterday
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- LUNATIQUE Director Returns with WASTELAND 3 Promo [Short Film]
- A Comet Destoys Earth in GREENLAND Trailer
- Interactive WAR OF THE WORLDS Adaptation Out Now!
- 8K Trailer for Train to Busan Sequel PENINSULA Drops Hard!
- Making a Bomb Shelter in a Funhouse is a Bad Idea in IMPACT EVENT [Trailer]
- Retro Slave: FOX's Post-Apocalyptic Sitcom WOOPS!
- TRAIN TO BUSAN Sequel PENINSULA Gets a Teaser Trailer
- New on Blu-ray and DVD for March 11, 2020
- The Apocalypse Kills Women in ONLY [Trailer]
- Trailer for TheWalking Dead: World Beyond Spin-Off Series
- BORDERLANDS Movie From Eli Roth in Development
- A Woman's Mind Unravels in BIGHT HILL ROAD [Review]
- TIFF 2020: Vanlife Gets a Reality Check in NOMADLAND [Review]
- TIFF 2020: APPLES, THE WAY I SEE IT, PIECES OF A WOMAN & ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2020: The Truth Tellers Return with THE NEW CORPORATION: THE UNFORTUNATELY NECESSARY SEQUEL [Review]
- TIFF 2020: NEW ORDER is Brutal, Violent & a Must-See [Review]
- TIFF 2020: ENEMIES OF THE STATE, Or Are They? [Review]
- TIFF 2020: HOLLER Explores Life in a Dying Town [Review]
- Fantasia 2020: THE OAK ROOM, MARYGOROUND & CLIMATE OF THE HUNTER [Capsule Reviews]
- UNCLE PECKERHEAD is One Note but Fun [Review]
- Dave Franco Shows Potential as Director with Debut Feature THE RENTAL [Review]
- VIFF2020: Director Loretta Todd on the Making of Her Debut Feature MONKEY BEACH [Interview]
- TIFF 2020: APPLES, THE WAY I SEE IT, PIECES OF A WOMAN & ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2020: The Truth Tellers Return with THE NEW CORPORATION: THE UNFORTUNATELY NECESSARY SEQUEL [Review]
- TIFF 2020: NEW ORDER is Brutal, Violent & a Must-See [Review]
- TIFF 2020: ENEMIES OF THE STATE, Or Are They? [Review]
- NO ESCAPE Director Talks Influencers, Escape Rooms & Writing [Interview]
- TIFF 2020: HOLLER Explores Life in a Dying Town [Review]
- The Funny Side of Alien Invasions: You have to SAVE YOURSELVES! [Trailer]
- Kodi Smit-McPhee Goes to the Future to Save the Present in 2067 [Trailer]
- First Look at Denis Villeneuve's DUNE [Trailer]
- Fantasia 2020: LAPSIS, THE COLUMNIST, MINOR PREMISE, FEELS GOOD MAN & HAIL TO THE DEADITES [Capsule Reviews]
- BUNRAKU Writer/Director Returns with LX 2048 [Trailer]
- BLOOD QUANTUM Writer/Director Talks Inspiration, Zombies & Representation [Interview]
- Fantasia 2020: THE OAK ROOM, MARYGOROUND & CLIMATE OF THE HUNTER [Capsule Reviews]
- Sylvester McCoy Talks SENSE8, DOCTOR WHO & THE OWNERS [Interview]
- Fantasia 2020: PVT CHAT, PATRICK, TIME OF MOULTING, SLEEP [Capsule Reviews]
- Scholar Mitch Horowitz Breaks Down Faith, Horror & CURSED FILMS [Interview]
- Actor Cosmo Jarvis Talks About his New Thriller THE SHADOW OF VIOLENCE [Interview]
- Director Jay Cheel Talks Making of Horror Documentary CURSED FILMS [Interview]
- Europe is in Shambles in UNDERGODS [Trailer]
Jack In
Latest Comments
Latest Forum Posts
PA News
Latest Reviews
Older News
Crew
Marina Antunes
Editor in Chief
Vancouver, British Columbia
Christopher Webster
Managing Editor
Edmonton, Alberta
DN aka quietearth
Founder / Asst. Managing Editor
Denver, Colorado
Simon Read
UK Correspondent
Edinburgh, Scotland
Rick McGrath
Toronto Correspondent
Toronto, Ontario
Manuel de Layet
France Correspondent
Paris, France
rochefort
Austin Correspondent
Austin, Texas
Daniel Olmos
Corrispondente in Italia
Italy
Griffith Maloney aka Griffith Maloney
New York Correspondent
New York, NY
Stephanie O
Floating Correspondent
Quiet Earth Bunker
Jason Widgington
Montreal Correspondent
Montreal, Quebec
Carlos Prime
Austin Correspondent
Austin, TX
Latest news








Imagine that you wake up tomorrow morning and while watching/reading/mainlining the news, you see a headline that reads something along the lines of "Aliens Have Landed on Earth." We've seen the Hollywood take on the close encounter – hostility, military in full response mode, guns blazing - but is that the way humanity would really respond?
In haunting fashion, very much reminiscent of his previous documentaries, filmmaker Michael Madsen takes on the ultimate "what if" scenario exploring how humanity would react in case of a close encounter with an alien being(s) and to work through the step-by-step of the scenario with the help of the people who are, in real life, tasked with that job.
We may not realize it but somewhere along the line, world organizations have actually considered how to deal with this event and the United Nations, the organization that represents the largest percentage of the world's population, has an office dedicated with organizing the group that will make first contact with the landing party. The Office for Outer Space Affairs is a real thing, an office led by an astrophysicist whose job is to devise a plan and organize the team, made up of experts from various fields, from biology and theology, responsible for first contact. Madsen, with the help of experts ranging from a retired lawyer who has spent a large part of his time thinking and speculating about interstellar law, to former British military leaders and media experts, walk through the step-by-step of how to deal with the landing considering everything from a media blackout to the exact wording to use in the press releases to minimize hysteria.
The group also walk through the considerations that have been reviewed prior to first encounter. The very fact that the alien has landed means that it is likely not here to destroy us – at least not immediately; if that was the intent, it would have taken care of that from outer space. So why is it here? The group of experts speculate how the event would unfold in minute detail and it's both a fascinating and scary exercise.
Madsen's films have a haunting quality to them. Beautiful images set to music and voiceover that capture the seriousness and gravity of the subject matter and the approach works beautifully here to accompany the images, themes and subject matter of The Visit. In a present where alien stories go hand-in-hand with sensationalism and incredulity and in the face of our ever changing understanding of the universe and the growing knowledge that life beyond our planet is likely, the OOSA seems not only a good idea but a requirement and I, for one, am thankful that someone has and is considering how to handle the first encounter.
The Visit is a fantastic introduction not only to the group but to serious consideration of first contact.
Recommended Release: Another Earth
You might also like






