As Terrestrial opens, we meet Allen (Jermaine Fowler), a successful sci-fi writer who is of late enjoying a massive career upswing as his work has seemingly net him a fortune, with his next project already tapped to be produced into a major feature film adaptation. To celebrate his accomplishments, he invites college friends Maddie (Pauline Chalamet, sister of Timothée and of The Sex Lives of College Girls fame), Ryan (James Morosini), and Vic (Edy Modica) to stay over at his Hollywood mansion, enjoying a relaxed weekend of casual merriment and revelry. Inspired by a series of novels known as The Neptune Cycle, penned by Allen’s literary hero S.J. Purcell (Brendan Hunt), Allen shares news of an alien encounter he had with his friends, which is what has inspired him to write his next novel. Though supportive of their friend, the trio can’t help but feel that something is off about Allen’s behavior, with their host frequently stepping away for unknown activities and displaying erratic mood swings. As the getaway weekend carries on, nothing is revealed to be as it seems, with the proceedings eventually taking a darker, more unexpected turn.
Director Steve Pink, boasting quite the diverse filmography, has engaged more lightheartedly with sci-fi trappings in past projects, most notably in Hot Tub Time Machine (good for a laugh at least) and its sequel (not so good for a laugh). Working from a script courtesy of Connor Diedrich and Samuel Johnson, Terrestrial definitely hints at something otherworldly, with a potential close encounter hanging out on the narrative’s fringes, allowing Allen to put his creativity to good use. But as the title slyly suggests, Terrestrial is actually a much more grounded affair at its core, blending science fiction, comedy, and even horror, all while it takes care to stay close to the humans at the film’s center. For Allen, the reunion is a time of celebration, hoping his friends will see his newfound success and that this will help overshadow any of his past doubts or failures as a writer. Allen is an excitable man, but perhaps one with a too unhealthy an infatuation on esteemed writer Purcell, even dedicating an entire room in his mansion to all things The Neptune Cycle (a television set airs reruns of the show on a loop, featuring cameos by Hot Tub alums Rob Corddry and Craig Robinson). For Maddie, Ryan, and Vic, they’re just thrilled to spend time in such a gorgeous estate, which means they’re arguably slower to admit something is off about their friend and his fast-tracked achievements than they should be.
If this vaguish accounting hasn’t already made it clear, Terrestrial is a very difficult film to summarize to any meaningful degree, as revealing any of the film’s many secrets would spoil all the fun present therein. Without giving too much away, there’s a hard turn at the end of act one that shifts focus to another major character and places all the film’s preceding events into new perspective. Pink successfully juggles multiple tones as the weekend stay grows much darker from this point, even wading into material regarding the dangers of toxic fandom and para-social relationships. At a point, this surfeit all threatens to crumble under its own weight, but Terrestrial keeps things intact by committing to a lightness of foot, moving briskly through any potential danger zone so as to not any one thing saddle proceedings. The cast is especially helpful in service of the film’s aims, and Fowler in particular, as the actor is tasked with a very difficult role that must be played at multiple registers, which he executes impressively as he carries the film across the finish line. Ultimately, then, Terrestrial proves to be a solidly entertaining genre sandbox, a film savvy enough to undercut its weaknesses of overinflation, and one that will certainly play better to viewers who go in as blind as possible.
Published as part of Fantasia Festival 2025 — Dispatch 1.
Comments are closed.