''Alien Autopsy'' is a 2006 British comedy film with elements of science fiction directed by Jonny Campbell. Written by William Davies, it relates the events surrounding the infamous " alien autopsy" film promoted by

Ray Santilli Ray Santilli (born 30 September 1958) is a British musician, record and film producer. He is best known for his exploitation in 1995 of the controversial "alien autopsy" footage and subject of the Warner Bros. film ''Alien Autopsy''. Early li ...

and stars Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, also known as Ant & Dec, as Santilli and Gary Shoefield. The film was a moderate commercial success domestically, making no. 3 on the British box office chart.

Plot

The film is framed by

and his friend Gary Shoefield retelling the events to a documentary maker named Morgan Banner. In 1995, Ray and Gary go to the United States to find Elvis memorabilia to sell on the market stall Ray runs in London. A former US Army cameraman, Harvey, sells them a silent

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

film of Elvis performing live, but later returns with an intriguing offer. Harvey takes Ray to Miami, Florida to see a film from 1947, showing the

autopsy An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any di ...

of an alien supposedly killed in a UFO crash in

Roswell, New Mexico Roswell () is a city in, and the County seat, seat of, Chaves County, New Mexico, Chaves County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Chaves County forms the entirety of the List of micropolitan areas in New Mexico, Roswell micropolitan area. As of ...

. Harvey wants to sell the film for $30,000. Gary and Ray return to England to look for an investor to give them the money. Ray convinces Laszlo Voros, a Hungarian homosexual art and drug dealer obsessed with

crop circles A crop circle, crop formation, or corn circle is a pattern created by flattening a crop, usually a cereal. The term was first coined in the early 1980s by Colin Andrews. Crop circles have been described as all falling "within the range of the ...

, to give him the $30,000 and retrieves the film from Harvey. Back in England, the pair discover that the film has degraded from humidity and heat and is now completely unwatchable. In order to avoid serious repercussions from Voros, they decide to make their own recreation of it. They base the content on Ray's memories of the original, and, with the help of some friends, fashion a convincing replica of the dead alien using a mannequin and meat products obtained from a friend's butcher's shop, turn the living room of Gary's sister into a film set, and shoot the film on a Bell and Howell spring-wound camera. Ray gives a copy of the final product to Voros, who believes it to be real. Having convinced Voros, Ray and Gary decide to sell the film to other venues, earning them a large sum of money. However, when Voros hears about its international distribution, he demands 80% of the profits. A potential clash is averted when Voros is killed by a green Land Rover while standing naked in the middle of a crop circle, leading to speculation that he has been killed by a CIA agent. Ray and Gary travel to Argentina to promote the film, followed by reporter Amber Fuentes, who seduces Ray. She eventually tracks down Harvey, who demands from Ray and Gary that they maintain his anonymity. To fulfil this obligation, they produce an interview with a homeless former actor playing Harvey, which convinces Amber. She remains sceptical, however, about the film's authenticity. Ray and Gary are now persuaded that some of the original 1947 footage might actually be recovered by

film restoration Film preservation, or film restoration, describes a series of ongoing efforts among film historians, archivists, museums, cinematheques, and non-profit organizations to rescue decaying film stock and preserve the images they contain. In the wi ...

experts in order to be viewed. However, after viewing the results, the pair bury the film, telling each other that they cannot continue with the endeavour.

Cast

The film also contains brief appearances by

and Gary Shoefield.

Reception

The film received mainly positive reviews, earning a 75% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on eight reviews.

Releases

The film was released as a Region 2 DVD by Warner Home Video on 3 July 2006. In America, the film was released as a Region 1 DVD by Warner Home Video on 21 September 2010.

Soundtrack

Supergrass Supergrass are an English rock band formed in 1993 in Oxford. For the majority of the band's tenure, the line-up consisted of brothers Gaz (lead vocals, guitar) and Rob Coombes (keyboards), Mick Quinn (bass, backing vocals) and Danny Goffey ( ...

– " Alright" * Pete Moore – "Asteroid" * The Beloved – " Sweet Harmony" *

Stakka Bo Bo Johan Renck (born 5 December 1966) is a Swedish director of music videos, TV and film. He was originally a singer-songwriter from 1991 to 2001, using the moniker Stakka Bo, and had an international hit with his single " Here We Go" in 1993. Ren ...

– "Here We Go" * The Monkees – " I'm a Believer" *

Stereo MC's Stereo MC's are an English Hip hop music, hip hop/electronic dance music, electronic dance group which formed in Nottingham, England, in 1985. They had an international Top 40, top 20 hit with their single "Connected (Stereo MCs song), Connected ...

– " Step It Up" *

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer * Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in ...

– "If Only I Knew" * Nouvelle Vague – " Just Can't Get Enough" *

Son of Dork Son of Dork were a British pop punk band formed by James Bourne after his previous band, Busted, split in January 2005. The name of the band came from a scene in the 1990 film '' Problem Child'' where the chant "Son of Dork" is used. Their de ...

– "We're Not Alone" * Babylon Zoo - "Spaceman"

References

External links

''Alien Autopsy - The Full Original Footage on YouTube''

''Alien Autopsy - Fact or Fiction? - Documentary on YouTube''
* * {{Rotten Tomatoes, alien-autopsy, Alien Autopsy 2006 films 2006 LGBT-related films Roswell incident in fiction 2000s science fiction comedy films British science fiction comedy films British LGBT-related films LGBT-related science fiction comedy films Films about filmmaking Films directed by Jonny Campbell Films set in 1995 Films set in 2005 Films set in London Films set in Ohio Films set in Miami Films set in Los Angeles Films set in Argentina Films set in Venezuela Films about hoaxes Films with screenplays by William Davies Films shot at Pinewood Studios Qwerty Films films 2006 comedy films 2000s English-language films 2000s British films Films scored by Murray Gold