'Alien On Stage' Review | SXSW 2021

South By Southwest is upon us! I love a film festival and I'm really excited to have the chance to cover SXSW for the first time. From March 16–20, I'll be sharing my thoughts on all the hits (and misses) that I watch.

A massive thank you to Contra Zoom Pod for press access to SXSW! Be sure to check out CZP for full SXSW 2021 coverage.

Alien On Stage (2020)

Director: Danielle Kummer and Lucy Harvey
Cast: David Mitchell, Lydia Hayward, Luc Hayward, Mike Rustici, John Elliot, Carolyn White, Jaqcui Roe, Scott Douglas, Jason Hill, Peter Lawford

Synopsis: British Bus driver's amateur stage show of Ridley Scott's Alien, accidentally makes it to a famous London theatre! With awkward acting and special effects requiring more luck than judgement, will their homemade homage be alright on the night?

Review:

This is precisely the kind of film/documentary I go to a film festival hoping to watch. Off-beat and quirky, about something really endearing and/or inspiring, and delivered with some humour -- preferably dry or dark.

Alien On Stage is a documentary following a group of bus drivers from Dorset, UK who moonlight as amateur actors and decide to stage Ridley Scott's masterpiece Alien (1979) that gets the attention of some diehard Alien fans. Before they know it, this group of am-dram actors are performing their play on the West End in London.

How can you not come away from the doc smiling from ear to ear?

I spent the majority of my 20s living in England and not only fell in love with pantomime, but the rich theatre culture that is pervasive across the entire of the United Kingdom. Alien On Stage brought back a lot of fond memories of watching the most random plays in London and more times than not, being completely absorbed with the performance.

Alien On Stage as a documentary is not revolutionary in any way shape or form. It tells the story of this Dorset crew in a traditional style that we're all familiar with. Perhaps there was room for some innovative storytelling given the Alien motif, which there are touches of, but given that this is Danielle Kummer and Lucy Harvey's first documentary out the gate, I think they did a really great job.

And to be honest, the point of this documentary is not about the style, filming techniques, pacing, etc. etc.. The point of Alien On Stage is the shared passion between Kummer, Harvey, and the play's cast and director -- a passion so deep that not only is a stage play is created but a documentary about the play is created, too. You never know where one seemingly small decision in your life is going to take you. And for this group, the decision to forgo the traditional pantomime for one year brought them to a theatre in Leicester Square where Joan Collins performed the very next day.

Alien On Stage was seen during SXSW 2021 in partnership with Contra Zoom Pod.