Altered (2006)

Excellent adaptation.

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

I like Eduardo Sanchez, the director of 'Blaire Witch' and 'Lovely Molly'. Sure, 'Exists' wasn't too good, but of the four movies I've seen of his, 3 were really great.'Altered' is a sci-fi/thriller/horror hybrid. In a nutshell, it's a movie about a few hillbillies who capture an alien in the woods years after having been abducted and experimented upon by the same extraterrestrial menaces. They bring the captured yet alive E.T back to one of there friends house, where horror and havoc ensue. I'm not going to go too much into what happens from there as that would be giving away the movie, but the plot is simple enough to be interesting without getting convoluted. The first thing I liked about this movie is that it clearly had a pretty limited budget. IMO, that worked out in Sanchez's favor, for instead of gratuitous use of CGI for effects, we get good old fashioned puppets, costumes and great make-up. It looks like a really good horror movie from the late 80's/early 90's which was a golden age in terms of special effects for the horror and sic-fi genre IMO.Most of the film takes place in one of two rooms, which creates a sense of claustrophobia and tension. Ridiculous as the premise may sound, it is not a light-hearted or campy movie. There is a constant sense of dread and fear, and the actors do there job without too much backstory to lend towards this effect. I also must commend the make up artist and costume designer. The Alien looks great, probably the best portrayal of an E.T since H.R Giegers' Alien design. The gore is noteworthy as well if you're into that kind of thing. When one of the red-necks becomes infected, it truly is pretty sickening .Unlike a lot of his other films ('Blaire Witch', 'Exists' and 'Lovely Molly') there is no 'found- footage' angle or use in 'Altered', which is a nice change of pace. I've said it before, so excuse me for being redundant, but while I don't mind the 'found-footage' technique when it's applied in a way that makes sense, it's nice to see a talented director like Sanchez step out of what I imagine might be his comfort zone and achieve with some grace, a traditional movie in terms of cinematography (it looks great btw).Fans of Sci-FI and Horror will both like this movie. It's kind of sad to think that this one's probably been overlooked, and truth be told, had I not known who directed it, I would never have rented a movie with a cover which screams 'B-MOVIE'!.My only complaint is that I wish it was a bit longer, but really, everything was quite satisfactory. A nice change of pace for the director of 'Blaire Witch'.

Just a slice of pure sci-fi fun. Enjoyed the actor playing the part of Wyatt. He was also enjoyable to watch in TAKEN. Always appreciate live action movies as the CGI has been far over done. The characters interact well and their development isn't over hindered by a straight forward plot. The guys play well off of each others giving a real feel of friendship, although strained during this incident. The female character, Hope comes across as truly upset and angry at the invasion of her home. An invasion by both Wyatt's friends and the ALIEN The scenes are well plotted and work well in terms of continuity. The alien creature is sufficiently nasty ad as fun to watch as the creature in ALIEN. I own the DVD and watch it frequently.

I was really surprised with what I got from Altered. Its a movie i've heard nothing about, so i wasn't expecting much, but what i got was a very thrilling, entertaining and suspenseful film that deserves more recognition than it gets.This movie creates something that is difficult to do. Build a dreaded atmosphere and icy cold psychology! I thought the idea behind the story was creative, while not trying to do too much with it. Its simple to follow and the characters contribute to some hidden depth.If you want a film that will give you more than just blood and guts, then Altered is one worth checking out!

That was going to be the original title to this film.Ans they were gonna make it a comedy! That would have been interesting to see but I'm glad they just kept it the way they did it.They was some decent acting and scares around.Adam Kaufman as our hero "Wyatt" did an OK job.His 3 partners-in-crime, big Brad William Henke as "Duke", Michael C. Williams as "Otis"(from Blair Witch) and Paul McCarthy-Boyington as "Cody". Did OK also as some "good-ole hick-boys" alien hunters.Out of those three, Paul McCarthy-Boyington as 'Cody', stood out for me. His portrayal of Cody, reminded me so much of David Patrick Kelly. The same compact, feisty and slightly crazed-look. His Cody was like a grenade with the pin pulled.It was a very nice surprise to see the late great character actor, James Gammon as "Sheriff Henderson" in one of his last film roles before he passed away.Ala in all, not a great film but not a bad one either. Check it out!