Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

Almost Human Blu-ray Movie Review

Almost a Remake

Reviewed by Michael Reuben June 17, 2014

Where does one draw the line between influence and theft? Artists in every medium have been lifting ideas and techniques from each other for as long as anyone can remember. "Good artists borrow; great artists steal", according to a famous quote attributed to Picasso that no one has been able to verify. The trick is knowing what to steal and how to make it better.

Ever since horror films went mainstream with Halloween and Friday the 13th, literally everyone wants to get into the game. When The Blair Witch Project proved that a couple of amateurs could succeed with just a video camera and a good idea, the floodgates opened. Seldom, though, does anyone have as original an idea as the "found footage" concept that powered Blair Witch, and whenever such a rare bird appears, it is immediately imitated so widely that the novelty quickly wears off. Within no time at all, everyone is sick of it, and soon a call rings out for getting "back to basics". That was exactly the attitude of writer/director/producer Joe Begos and his producing partner and editor, Josh Ethier, in making Almost Human. A devoted horror fan, Begos wanted to make an "old school" genre film with plenty of gore, entirely practical effects and no "found footage". He even set his script in the Eighties to establish a period feel. In a time-honored tradition of independent filmmakers (although Ethier had professional credits, including editing several episodes of Holliston), the two friends maxed out their credit cards, assembled a cast and crew and began shooting. They were rewarded with a pickup from IFC.

In the process, though, something odd occurred; you could almost call it "uncanny". Both Begos and Ethier are film buffs. Their two commentaries on this Blu-ray, plus the feature-length documentary, are studded with references to both horror and non-horror films. Yet nowhere does anyone mention the classic horror film of which Almost Human is so obviously a remake (and by no means the first). The similarities are so apparent and numerous, and the prior film is so famous, that it's impossible to believe that Begos simply stumbled upon the exact same plot points by accident. It's more likely that he absorbed them unconsciously and may not even have realized what he was reproducing. Throughout the extensive extras, Begos and Ethier gladly pay tribute to their predecessors; so it's hard to imagine that they wouldn't acknowledge this major inspiration unless they simply didn't recognize its pervasive influence on their project. Still, anyone familiar with the source can hardly watch Almost Human without noticing that it's essentially a remake. For the sake of readers who wish to see Almost Human without foreknowledge, I will withhold the source's title until after the first screenshot. Read past that point at your own risk.

Almost Human premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2013 and was given a limited theatrical run by IFC Films the following February. Its primary exposure will be on Blu-ray and DVD.

Almost Human begins promisingly, as Seth Hampton (Graham Skipper) drives frantically to the door of his friend, Mark Fisher (Ethier), and his girlfriend, Jen Craven (Vanessa Leigh). Babbling and hysterical, Seth tells a barely coherent tale of a bright blue light that sucked their friend, Rob, into the sky. Before Mark and Jen can make any sense of Seth's story, something attacks the house. Mark vanishes. It is October 13, 1987. Neither Seth nor Jen can remember what happened.

Jagged fragments of news reports reveal an inconclusive police investigation that resolves nothing, although Seth remains a suspect in Mark's disappearance. The town of Patten, Maine acquires minor notoriety as the site of a potential UFO incident. Two years later, Seth remains badly traumatized, haunted by dreams and nosebleeds, while Jen has moved on and become engaged to Clyde Dutton (Anthony Amaral III).

Then, some distance from Patten, two hunters (Kristopher Avedisian and David Langill) find a naked man shivering in the woods. He appears to be Mark, but as soon as the hunters reach out to touch him, "Mark" emits an inhuman, ear-piercing shriek—the same paralyzing sound that was heard by Seth and Jen the night Mark disappeared. Then "Mark" stands up and begins a gory killing spree that cuts across the State of Maine as he returns to his former home. When he arrives, he finds new owners in residence. They are unprepared to be accosted by a homicidal maniac. Once in possession of Mark's former home, the stranger with his face commences a process that will be familiar to anyone who has seen a few alien invasion movies—he begins making more like him.

The notion of alien invaders who look and sound like people we've known for years, and also have all their knowledge and memories, was the basis of Don Siegel's classic 1956 chiller, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, which has been remade at least four times, most memorably by Philip Kaufman in 1978. None of the remakes featured the kind of gore displayed in Almost Human, but it was Kaufman who gave the aliens the same piercing cry heard repeatedly in Begos' film; indeed, that shriek supplied one of Kaufman's most memorably terrifying moments. But if you substitute alien abduction for the freakish pods in which Siegel's and Kaufman's aliens arrived on earth, then Almost Human follows Body Snatchers' story almost exactly. In both of them, an initially infected human goes about infecting others. In both of them, and much more explicitly in Kaufman's, the infected humans are "hatched" from some sort of cocoon or pod (Begos has the victims generate the cocoon out of their own bodies). In both, one's closest friends and lovers can no longer be trusted. Both feature a scene in which someone known to the hero suddenly transforms in a moment when he's not looking.

Begos' one interesting twist is the method by which victims are "infected". I won't reveal it here, but it's a nasty bit of ickiness that's also been borrowed from elsewhere. To his credit, Begos puts an unusual erotic spin on the whole disgusting mess before the film reaches its conclusion. Director Stuart Gordon, for whom Begos once worked, should be proud.

Abel Ferrara called his remake Body Snatchers. Oliver Hirschbiegel called his The Invasion. According to the commentary, Begos and Ethier had a long list of potential titles, including The Extraterrestrial. They should have just called their film The Body Snatcher Murders or Killer Body Snatchers or Blood of the Body Snatchers. Such a title would have provided continuity with the past, while signaling to the hardcore horror crowd that this version of the story pulls out all the Grand Guignol stops (which it does). Note to viewers: Keep watching until after the credits.

Almost Human Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Begos served as his own cinematographer, shooting the film on a Red digital camera that he was able to rent cheaply (he describes the deal in one of the commentaries). Although the Red can produce a sharply crystalline image, that is not the look that Begos wanted. On the commentary, he describes spending hours looking at various film stocks and choosing a specific 16mm format as the style he asked his digital colorist to achieve in post-production. He wanted the texture of an Eighties horror film, but produced with the economies of modern digital technology. The image on MPI's 1080p, AVC-encoded Blu-ray, presumably sourced from digital files, accurately captures that look. At first glance, the image may even appear to have a kind of "grain", but on close inspection the grain is artificial. It's merely a digital "roughening" to evoke a mood, much like the handheld camerawork.

Given the artistic parameters that Begos established, MPI's Blu-ray does a fine job of recreating the sense of small town New England in a chilly season 25 years ago. The palette is earth-toned, muted and dull, so that even the copious bloodshed isn't overwhelming. When the alien blue lights appear, however, they provide a stark contrast to the surroundings. Detail is quite good, despite the digital processing, which has created a film-like appearance without sacrificing picture information. Black levels are strong, but Begos stages most his mayhem in well-lit places, because he wants the audience to see the bloodshed. He knows that's why they came.

Almost Human Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Among his many other functions, producer and star Josh Ethier designed the 5.1 sound mix for Almost Human, which is presented here in lossless DTS-HD MA. On the commentary, Begos notes a few instances where he isn't satisfied with the foley effects, but the track gets the big moments right, and those are the one that involve screams (human and otherwise), assaults (terrestrial and non) and grievous bodily harm. Dynamic range is broad, and bass extension reaches down to reinforce several key events. The rear speakers are rarely used for discrete effects, but they contribute to the sense of being immersed in a nightmare. The score by Andy Garfield (Frozen and Hatchet) adds polish and credibility.

Almost Human Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentaries: The commentaries are located under "Setup".


• With Writer/Director Joe Begos and Josh Ethier: Expressly taking their cue from Robert Rodriguez, the two prime movers behind the film set themselves the task of explaining "how we did it", starting with their determination to get a film made and some of the cost-saving measures that allowed them to assemble a crew and professional equipment on a shoestring. Of the two commentaries, this is by far the more informative.


• With Joe Begos, Josh Ethier, Actor Graham Skipper and Camera Operator Cory Lockman: The participants announce that this commentary is intended to be scene-specific, but as so often happens with group commentary, they knock each other off-topic with jokes, questions and tangents. Still, the discussion conveys a sense of the atmosphere on the set. In both commentaries, references to other movies are plentiful, just not to the most obvious source for Almost Human.



• Making Of (1080p; 1.78:1; 45:06): This unusually detailed history of the film's production features participation by most of the cast and crew (many of whom overlap, because so many people involved in Almost Human wore multiple hats). The constant praise by each interviewee for his or her coworkers becomes repetitious, however well-deserved, but the extensive footage capturing the effects team at work and the cast on location provides a rare opportunity to watch a horror film take shape.



• Behind the Scenes (1080p; 1.78:1; 5:12): A shorter version of the long documentary.



• On Set with Graham Skipper (1080p; 1.78:1; 2:06): A compilation of "Seth's" best moments from the documentary.



• Toxin (Short Film) (1080p; 1.78:1; 4:06): A horror short by Begos, also starring Ethier. It is shot entirely from the point of view of someone suffering from a distinctive type of "contagion".



• Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 2.35:1; 2:10): This trailer relies more on the film's "mad killer" elements.



• Alternate Trailer (1080p; 2.35:1; 1:39): This trailer emphasizes the alien abduction theme.



• IFC Trailer (1080p; 2.35:1; 1:57): The IFC trailer combines elements from both previous trailers.



• Vintage TV Spot (1080p; 2.35:1; 0:32): With an endorsement from veteran horror director Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator).



• Photo Gallery (1080p; various): Seventy-eight behind-the-scenes photos, many of which show the practical effects crew at work.

Almost Human Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Genre fans will want to take a look at Almost Human, because it's a well-executed throwback to the kind of basic horror tale that has been largely supplanted by high concepts and computer graphics. My take (for those of you who skipped the "Feature" discussion) is that one's enjoyment is enhanced by knowing the source from which the film's story is derived, however unconsciously, because then you're not taken out of the movie by the sudden realization that "Hey, I've seen this before!" With that caveat, and especially considering the generous complement of extras, the disc is recommended.