Following in the same steps as Paranormal Activity, The Fourth Kind documents strange disappearances happening in Nome, Alaska which Dr. Abagail Tyler believes to be because of alien abductions. The film is spliced with archived footage and interviews from “real” cases and is said to be a reenactment of what happened.

Before the movie even begins, Mila Jovovich, who plays Dr. Tyler, approaches the camera and speaks to the audience saying that what you’re about to witness is real and blah, blah, blah.

First, to get things out of the way, none of this is real. There is no real Dr. Tyler or any of the other characters portrayed in the film. The only hint of truth it contains is that there have been an unusual amount of disappearances in Nome, Alaska (accredited to alcohol and the harsh climate by the FBI). Aside from that, the entire story is pure fiction.

The fact that the film tries so hard to make it appear real is a huge letdown. Names are given as aliases and background stories are created for all important characters. Throughout the film, archived footage is show side-by-side with the reenactment to show just how similar, and disturbing, the scene is.

The same can be said for recorded interviews and dialogs. They are nicely played overlapping generic scenes or even in sync with what’s happening on screen, just to show that they are using the audio word for word. This would be cool; if not for the fact that they’re reenacting something they created themselves.

With all things to consider, the so-called archived footage does look real. It will make you think and question the possibility that aliens did come to Nome and abduct all these people. This aspect is what drives the fear for the film; the possibility that this all could be real and caught on camera.

The acting, mostly by the actors in the footage, is great. You can see the fear in their eyes and the sincerity in which they believe they have been abducted by aliens. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the actors on screen. While they do put on an alright show, it’s just not as convincing.

The Fourth Kind is a decent attempt at creating a true sense of fright, although it fails in leaving a lasting impression. The style, in which it’s shown, laced with archived footage and audio, is quite unique and surprisingly works well. Still, the fact that you’re constantly being reminded that what you’re watching is real, even though it’s false, is somewhat of a downer.