Robert Patrick Stars In This '90s Sci-Fi Film Based On A Real-Life Alien Abduction Claim
After James Cameron's blockbuster "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" exploded onto the pop culture landscape in the early-'90s, it was the natural order of things that Robert Patrick got cast in movies trying to capitalize on his newfound fame either as a villain or a sci-fi star. The former stuck better and longer, but two years after playing the T-1000, Patrick appeared in Robert Lieberman's 1993 sci-fi horror "Fire in the Sky" as a loyal, caring friend and family man.
Based on Travis Walton's 1978 non-fiction book, "The Walton Experience," which documented his famous (allegedly) real-life alien abduction, "Fire in the Sky" attempted to tell his story on the big screen, with creative liberties taken by screenwriter Tracy Torme to appeal to a broader audience. The movie's plot is centered around Walton (D.B. Sweeney), a lumberjack in Snowflake, Arizona, in 1975, who's headed back home from the White Mountains with his buddies/co-workers Mike (Robert Patrick), Allan (Craig Sheffer), David (Peter Berg), Greg (Henry Thomas), and Bobby (Bradley Gregg).
They all notice a strange, blood-red light coming from the woods (which they first think is a bushfire), start to follow it, and stumble upon a disc-shaped UFO nearby. As Walton gets out of the car to take a closer look (despite his friends' warnings), he's suddenly struck by a blinding beam that knocks him out. Terrified, the group flees, thinking he's dead, but Mike decides to go back for him, only to discover he's vanished. Returning to town, the five men tell the local police and a state investigator (played by James Garner) what they witnessed, but everyone thinks they're lying. Yet when Walton turns up naked out of nowhere at a gas station, recalling the harrowing experience of what happened to him, the story takes a different turn for all involved.
Fire in the Sky was dismissed initially, but turned into a cult classic for UFO enthusiasts over time
Interestingly, "Fire in the Sky" came out the same year "The X-Files" kicked off and became a phenomenon, yet it was largely ignored by critics and audiences. Its critical reception was lukewarm at best, and it only made $19 million at the box office against a $15 million budget. That's ironic because, in essence, the movie plays like a feature-length mythology episode of "The X-Files" (which is filled with unresolved storylines). It opens with a slow, atmospheric build-up to frame its central mystery as a potential hoax. We, the audience, know that the five men aren't lying, but what they're saying strikes the townsfolk as unthinkable. The police believe it must be foul play, because any other explanation feels too outrageous and unrealistic.
Although the script spends too much time on the five men trying to prove and defend their story, Lieberman is a skilful enough director to carve out maximum tension from those early scenes focused on the investigation. By the time we get to the juicy climax of Walton's abduction, the suspense is ripe for the reaping. Walton's flashbacks serve as pure nightmare fuel, evoking an inherent fear and all-consuming terror we've learned to associate with little green men.
With simple but impressive practical effects, "Fire in the Sky" nails that depiction to a T, preying on our collective dread of the unknown. It's by far the best part of a movie that deserved a more thorough exploration to help us get closer to potential explanations before the rather opaque ending, which leaves many plot points unresolved. Still, if you're hunting for old-school gems on extraterrestrial and UFO phenomena, "Fire in the Sky" is certainly one of those forgotten flicks that can scratch that itch.