...not coping after seeing 'The Fourth Kind'

Last night, as a belated birthday day, SL and I went to see 'The Fourth Kind' as I wanted to see it the day before (on my birthday). It was a late night showing of the film, starting at 11pm. Last night was also the last showing of it.

Alien abduction has always been a curious thing for me. Both an interest and a root fear of mine. Maybe it's because I'm of the X-Files generation. It is on record that alien and UFO reports peaked at the same time ratings for the show peaked.

There are three fears that as a kid or even as a teenager, struck to my core; alien encounters and the idea of possession, in my mind, linked, the idea of ghosts and poltergeists.

The reason that I had these things stick, is because figures of authority; parents, teachers, Scully and other pivotal people in my life, could not explain away these things.

Logic and reason could be used to iron out explainations from the mass of often contradictory 'facts'.

What also pushed these fears over into my conscious was my catholic upbringing. Remember, it's the catholic's who believe or in fact, have tools to combat demonic possession. The idea of another soul taking control of the only thing that's truly yours; your own body.

Yes, no matter how silly my catholic mother would say I was being, it was her religion that accommodates one of my worst notions.

Moving on 15 or more years, if two films were to scare me to my teenage frailty it would be one about 'true' alien abduction and encounters, and one about poltergeist and spirit possession.

Roll on 'The Fourth Kind' and 'Paranormal Activities'.

So, feeling brave on my 24th birthday, I went to see the former. Oh, it's only now, 4pm the next day, that I'm together. Reading that it's all just a hoax will help me sleep tonight. However, it's just a temporary thing surely, just because this film wasn't real, doesn't mean the concept isn't.

Now I'm feeling I'm not ready to see the latter. not just yet.

Strangely enough, one of my favourite films is the 'Mothman Prophecies' where Richard Gere gets abducted, well, moved 500 miles in the opposite directions and stuck in a loop, arriving at 'The Fourth Kind's' Sheriff August's house (I can't remember the actor's name but he's getting a little stuck in these weird movies). Anyway, Richard's there to stop most of the town dying in a disaster of some kind. He comes into indirect contact with Indrid Cold, the benign being, the mothman. The disaster was a true event, collapse of the Silver across the Ohio River from Point Pleasant to Gallipolis, Ohio. The film was based on a book, of the same title as the film, also based on true events.

Will Patton, the actor's called Will Patton. He was Sheriff August and also the crazed bloke Indrid spoke directly to.

My point, yes, my point...

...I'm ok with the whole Mothman phenomenon. The phenomenon which has been reported before Chernobyl, before other massive accidental losses of human life in history. The idea behind it all, is more like a protective influence rather than a thing to be scared of.

In 'The Fourth Kind', however, the unknown force, the disturbing entity is just that, purely disturbing. In it to do harm, not to help, but to interfere in a bottom rummaging way.

There's just so much more to say about this whole subject. Not the bottom thing, the alien, mothman, paranormal milieu, but no, not today. It's a Sunday. You should be working on something with the family. Not reading this nonsense, half-baked with no construct on which I navigated.

I would like to add however, in watching the film lastnight, I remember in our old house, a four storey place on a hill, there were a couple of times were strange things accured. Shadows of a hand and on one occasion, I didn't move for the full 9 hours of sleep. My blanket was exactly how it was when I went to sleep. Considering I'm a really restless sleeper, this was, well.

Also of note. Why is it as soon as someone else mentions lights in the sky or beams of light from above, we switch off. It's like the notion that the universe is never ending. A space with no physical end, no boundaries. On going, ever expanding. Nothing beyond it all.

Anywho.....