WATCH: Jersey director's new psychological sci-fi divides critics

Friday 10 December 2021

A director from Jersey's new sci-fi thriller has split film critics across the world, with many praising it as an “impressive”, “high-octane” piece of work, and others feeling “short-changed” by it.

Michael Pearce’s ‘Encounter’ - which is out on Amazon Prime today - stars Riz Ahmed as a man warning of an incoming alien invasion, and currently has a critic score of 56% from 97 reviews measured by aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

It follows his first feature, 'Beast', a psychological drama set in Jersey, which won the BAFTA for 'Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer'.

Critics who were fans of Pearce's sophomore effort singled out its sophistication, its ability to play with classic cinematic conventions and Ahmed's central performance.

Video: The trailer for the film, which streams on Amazon Prime from today.

BBC and Observer critic Mark Kermode praised the "impressive" feature in his four-star review, saying it boasts "yet another standout performance by Riz Ahmed" and that it is "a genre-hopping affair, balanced between tangible personal experience and growing paranoia, an affecting meld of inner and outer worlds in which family stresses and extraterrestrial spectres collide."

Hannah Flint of Time Out was similarly glowing, saying in her 4/5 review that "Encounter has a whole lot of heart and takes a sensitive approach to PTSD that is underscored by a cultural tension that comes to a head in its high-octane, action-packed final act."

She added that Pearce shows "both a visual and thematic appreciation for genre films in all sorts of endearing and enigmatic ways. Like his fired-up man on a mission here, he's going places."

On the other hand, some critics were less enthused with the film, with a number citing the same pivots between genres and tones that its advocates sang the praises of, such as New York Times critic Jeannette Catsoulis.

Video: Mark Kermode's radio review of 'Encounter'.

"...After setting up a potentially powerful study of damage and delusion, Pearce (whose 2018 feature debut, "Beast," signaled an unusual talent) remains torn between science fiction and psychological fact," Catsoulis wrote.

"And despite Benjamin Kracun's sometimes haunting visuals — a decaying mining community in the Nevada desert; a drone shot of government vehicles gathering with insectoid purpose — the movie finally has nowhere to run but out of steam."

This echoed the view of Times film critic Kevin Maher, who said "a typically charismatic performance from Riz Ahmed and a dazzling opening effects sequence won't be enough to stop most viewers from feeling furiously short-changed by this 'alien invasion thriller'."

However, Maher did note Pearce's 'able' direction.

Indeed, many of the critics appeared to share the view that Michael Pearce is a filmmaker with great potential, with several highlighting aspects like his "mastery of filmmaking craft", and "original voice", and another saying the film "confirms Pearce as a considerable talent."

Several reviews critical of the film itself also reiterated this, with Deadline critic Todd McCarthy calling it "more of a promising indication of things to come" for Pearce, and the Guardian's Peter Bradshaw noting that "Pearce's direction is never less than confident."