Extraterrestrial (2011) - Nacho Vigalondo

_Julio, wakes up in a apartment after a heavy night of partying, pleasantly surprised to discover it's the home to a beautiful one-night stand he can't remember, Julia.  Already quite awkward, things take a turn for the strange when they discover a giant spaceship is hovering over the city, which appears to be deserted.  Things become more complicated with the addition of her boyfriend who comes looking for Julia, and an incredibly eccentric neighbor, who obsesses with Julia too.  From the title alone, one would think 'Extraterrestrial' is a science fiction film about an alien life form making contact with earth.  The fact is, anyone going into this film expecting a science fiction film is bound to be disappointed, as this film is much more a truly original relationship dramedy.   The film's pace is rather tepid, yet never boring, slowly revealing more details of Julia's relationships with the various men, who as fate would have it, she is stuck with at the end of the world.  As things progress, Julia begins to have feelings for Julio, as the two deal with possibly telling the boyfriend, oh and also the possible the end of the world.   The film wisely uses some of the genre tropes, particularly paranoia of aliens being among us, to make this a fun, charming little character drama.  The film doesn't really have much tension, much more settling into a quirky, oddball tone that works more than it doesnt.   Going in, I honestly was expecting something more profound from such an interesting concept, but this is a nice piece of filmmaking that uses the alien invasion genre to inject new life into the somewhat tired relationship dramedy that is poetic and charming. 

7.25/10

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