Fantastic Fest 2011 movie review- INVASION OF ALIEN BIKINI- She said

INVASION OF ALIEN BIKINI

Directed by: Oh Young-doo

Starring: Eun-Jung Ha and Young Geun Hong

Synopsis: A young hero meets and saves a damsel in distress, takes her home for a game of Jenga, but she has other plans for him.

With next to no budget, INVASION OF ALIEN BIKINI is a fun and pleasant surprise.  Though the title is a tad misleading, because the gal is in more of lingerie than a bikini, the story begins as a pseudo crime fighting flick, but then takes a turn for the strange.

Our hero, Young Gun, dons a horribly fake mustache during night hours as he patrols the streets fighting crime.  He stumbles across three thugs terrorizing Monica, so he comes to her rescue.  She's injured, and he brings her to his apartment to fix her up, and the two strike up a flirtatious relationship.  And that's where the real fun begins.  Each has their own agenda.  Young Gun seems to be looking for a nice girl, and Monica, well, she needs his human sperm...tonight.

ALIEN BIKINI is quirky movie.  The movie utilizes the its lack of funds by keeping the bulk of the story in Young Gun's apartment.  We're solely focused on the two of them and their relationship that director, Young-doo, is able to establish some interesting dynamics in such a short amount of time.  Young Gun is very endearing as our hero.  He wants to be a good guy even though he's tempted by this hot young lady and has a host of past demons that haunt him.  Most men would jump at the chance to sleep with a girl like her, but Young Gun has made a promise to himself...no sex.  So she needs his sperm, and he won't give it up.  You can only imagine the madness that ensues. The main fun and craziness of the movie was when both play an almost cat-and-mouse game of wills.  

I was completely 100% on board with the movie, until the last ten minutes.  After the climax (no pun intended), the plot takes a very odd and macabre turn.  I can't describe what happened because I'm not sure I understood myself.  The tone completely shifts, and the ending appears to be an afterthought by the director.  If those ten minutes had been left on the cutting room floor, this would have been my favorite movie of Fantastic Fest.

I'm not expecting ALIEN BIKINI to win any Academy Awards anytime soon, but I doubt that was ever the director's goal.  The movie is fun and just plain weird.  There's an audience out there; maybe a group of friends on a Friday night who dig weird movies.  It's a fun journey if you ever get the chance to watch.


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