THE VISIT (Michael Madsen, Denmark/Austria/Ireland/Finland/Norway). 85 minutes. Rating: NNNN
You know all of those sci-fi thrillers where aliens land and it turns out the world’s governments have secret protocols for just such an event? Well, that little detail is real – except that the protocols aren’t secret.
Austrian filmmaker Michael Madsen‘s nifty what-if project simulates an ET arrival, interviewing the real officials and specialists who would spring into action and even showing them performing simulations of their expected duties. It’s strangely pleasing to see anonymous functionaries get their moment in the spotlight, even if they’re only playing pretend, and Madsen constructs the whole thing with just the right amount of incredulity.
The Nightvision crowd will love this.
Apr 29, 6:30 pm, TIFF 2 Apr 30, 1 pm, Hart House May 1, 9:30 pm, TIFF 2
