"The Fourth Kind" is one peculiar movie.

Part archive footage, part dramatization, this heavily segmented film is structured like a big budget version of "Beyond Belief." An uncharacteristic warning from star Milla Jovovich cautions that it's a graphic dramatization of actual events. If this tactic is meant to create suspense, it's as threatening as a warning from Marge Simpson in "Treehouse of Horror."

After this uninspired intro, audiences are exposed to the troubles of Alaskan psychologist Abigail Tyler (Jovovich). Following the death of her husband, Abigail returns to work in the isolated town of Nome, Alaska.

Nome is an inaccessible melting pot of peculiarity. A number of citizens are having identical dreams about an eerie white owl. In an attempt to finish her husband's research on these occurrences Abigail puts her patients under hypnosis.

Enter a gaggle of questionable video evidence and you have the core of "The Fourth Kind." The primary scare tactic in this film is showing multiple patients under hypnosis flail wildly as they answer questions about their dreams. Looks of terror make an odd merger on a split-screen that depicts both video footage and dramatized sequences.

Director Olatunde Osunsammi opts for a simple effect that looks like it came straight out of a comic book. Broad black lines separate two versions of the same scene. Placing the raw footage next to a recreation of the same movements renders the technique ineffective. Constantly flashing text prompts saying "name removed" and cutting the picture in half also murders the suspense.

Audiences are likely to scratch their heads, asking why the events in this film needed to be acted out. Frankly, this movie would have been better off as a documentary.

      A believe-it-or-not conclusion also hinders this halfhearted abduction flick. Chronic overacting courtesy of Will Patton as slack-jawed Sheriff August coupled with a debatable label of "actual events" hampers the impact. Validity seems to be based on interpretation for this drama-documentary hybrid.

From an analytical standpoint "The Fourth Kind" comes across as far-fetched and imaginary, making for a mediocre experience.

The opinions expressed are solely the writer's. Devin Heller is a second-year student at Purdue University Calumet. Reach him at mdevinheller@yahoo.com.

IFYOUGO

"The Fourth Kind"

CAST: Milla Jovovich, Will Patton

DIRECTOR: Olantunde Osunsammi

RATING: PG-13 for violent/disturbing images, some terror, thematic elements and brief sexuality

GRADE: 1 out of 5 stars