Progeny (1998)

   
Directed by: Brian Yuzna

Written by: Aubrey Solomon

Story by: Stuart Gordon & Aubrey Solomon

Starring:

Arnold Vosloo .... Dr. Craig Burton
Jillian McWhirter .... Sherry Burton
Brad Dourif .... Dr. Bert Clavell
Lindsay Crouse .... Dr. Susan Lamarche
Wilford Brimley .... Dr. David Weatherly

Special Appearances:


Don Calfa .... Jimmy Stevens
Timilee Romolini .... Devon Thompson

Release Dates: Cannes Film Festival: May 14, 1998; Fantasporto Film Festival: February 26, 1999; Fantastisk Film Festival Lund: September 23, 1999

*Images courtesy at: www.scaredstiffreviews.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rating:

 

A doctor named Craig Burton (Arnold Vosloo) and his wife Sherry (Jillian McWhirter) have been trying very hard to have a child but her child was born dead. However, they didn't lose hope as she was pregnant again but is having nightmares about her unborn child being from another world as she claimed she was abdicted by aliens. She has many painful problems while being pregnant too and has depressing moods.
Craig meets up with alien abduction expert Bert Clavell (Brad Douriff) to unravel the truth.
He is also finding out others who were impregnated by these aliens are dying after giving berth to them as Craig has to make a decision to kill this unbonr alien baby before his wife is next.

 

There's a nice close up shot on Sherry Burton crying when she discovers that she lost her baby which looks believeably sad.
Both Dr. Craig Burton and Sherry shows great happiness when they discover that they are going to have a baby later on.
We have a nice dark setting with Craig in bed discovering some aliens in his room and he goes berserk by trying to attack them.
We spot a perfect setting in a psychiatrists room performed by Dr. Susan Lamarche by hypnotising Sherry with some not so good responses while she's in a trance as this looked impressive.
During this sequence we spot a nice picture of her body floating out of the house and up to a stormy sky which is a UFO.
We get a good close up shot with her on a table with the aliens circling her and doing experiments with her. She reacts well acting so out of it and then to the painful stuff and does well at crying too.
Great shot on her falling to the ground and a baby alien crawling out of her.
There's a good conversation sequence between Craig and Sherry when he tries to help her and she acts weak, upset and refusing. These moments looked truly depressing and making you feel sorry for her.
Great gothic moment of Sherry strapped to some sort of a chair with a monstrous looking alien impregnating her.
Craig almost acts like a madman in the operation table and Sherry pleading him not to take away their baby. He shows nice monstrous expressions too.
Bottom line is that this is a total X-Files ripoff as you wonder if this is a plain sci fi with horror elements in it but the horror does happen in it believe me but it's not good at all and the aliens don't appear much in this film at all. Nothing really exciting that came out of this clunker but some solid performance and special effects. Elvis has just left the building folks

The acting is quite good which saves this film from bombing as Arnold Vosloo (Dr. Craig Burton) seems to play a good intelligent doctor in the film and seems to know how to be confused with everything that goes on and knows how to act wicked to top it all off. He shows nice monstrous expressions too.
Jillian McWhirter
(Sherry Burton) stole the show with her performance as she knew how to act in pain or crying weakly as well bringing her character to life. She really did great when she was in a trance acting intense and paranoid in a certain scene. During when aliens do an experiment with her she reacts well acting so out of it and then to the painful stuff and does well at crying too.
Lindsay Crouse
(Dr. Susan Lamarche) was perfect as a shrink doing hypnotism and has the perfect serious attitude in which she does this very well.

Jillian McWhittier exposes her full naked body during many moments in this film like with a sex scene or when the aliens are doing experiments with her.
There is also a butt shot on Arnold Vosloo lying in bed.

An alien bursts out of a woman on a TV set
A womens insides are torn open at an operating table

We have the suspenseful classical composing performed by Steve Morrell in which he seems to make it sound superb with each scene in the film.