Movie Review: Occupation (2018)

July 20, 2018

Written by DanXIII

Daniel XIII; the result of an arcane ritual involving a King Diamond album, a box of Count Chocula, and a copy of Swank magazine, is a screenwriter, director, producer, actor, artist, and reviewer of fright flicks…Who hates ya baby?

Occupation begins with Reagan’s famous speech about the world’s differences being set aside and all mankind uniting if faced with an alien threat (also a large part of the plot of ’80’s comic book masterpiece Watchmen)…which is put to the test as a disparate band of residents of a small Australian town go about their daily lives until they are faced with just that…an invasion from beyond the stars that begins as they all enjoy a carnival where a football match…game…I don’t know, maybe it even isn’t football…I know jack shit-all about sports, and I’m sure the participants ability to kick a ball in no way foreshadows anything to come as the story plays out. Any way, a right unruly lot of armor clad star-borne bastards begin shooting up the carnival with their “pew-pew” lasers six ways to Sunday (in a spectacular action set piece). As the days (and months) progress our normal folk must rise up and become heroes in order to save the Earth and hopefully send those antagonistic aliens packing!
Look, I’m going to tell ya straight up; Occupation isn’t going to set the world on fire with it’s shit hot originality…this is an alien invasion tale that hits all the tried and true notes; you get the small band of normal folks that rise to the occasion and decide to fight back against those insidious invaders, the explosive action sequences filled with laser blasted mayhem, the harvesting of the human race…hell you even get the shot of the massive spaceship hovering in the sky so our heroes get a clear cut visual of just how fucked they appear to be. Does the reliance on tropes hurt the overall picture though? In my opinion that’s answered with an asteroid sized “No way!”
You see, Occupation has some things going for it that make it one hell of a great watch; slick cinematography, a strong ensemble cast that you end up actually caring about (you know what a rarity that can be in genre cinema at times), wonderfully choreographed action sequences, images of epic destruction, great special effects and unique alien designs (think knights in armor combined with a nightmare version of a “grey” and you’re getting there)…and that last one earns major points with your’s cruelly!
I really love a good alien invasion flick, and pound for pound Occupation is certainly one of those! Fully loaded with action, a wonderful cast, and fantastic design and effects work, this one is a great time to be had with some fast paced sci-fi cinema (just forgive it it’s “Greatest Hits” story points)!
 

 

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