Be afraid. Be very afraid. The truth is out there. And "The 11th Green" is way out there.
Occasional writer-director Christopher Munch digs deep into the nation's E.T. diaries and produces this cheap, bizarre and underwhelming mash-up of history and drama. Campbell Scott, rumpled up a bit to make him look a little older than his 58 years, plays Jeremy Rudd, called from his gloomy East Coast drudge work anchoring a left-wing newscast to the sunny climes of California to settle the affairs of his father, who had been neck-deep in the government's clandestine flying-saucer program.
Let's cut to the chase: One scene involves Barack Obama (never so named and played by Leith Burke) chilling in a time warp (ca. 1967) with Dwight Eisenhower (George Gerdes) and some enlightened alien dude swathed in stereotypical loose robes and groomed in Jesus chic. Just, you know, hanging in the den trying to figure out why we can't all get along.
Agnes Bruckner, 20 years Scott's junior, shows up as the father's former assistant and rocks the flowery name Laurie Larkspur. Of course, Laurie's attracted to Jeremy -- though is she part of the conspiracy and up to something? Good question.
Munch delves into arcane history dating back to Roswell in the late '40s, even the suspicious suicide of James Forrestal, the former Navy Secretary under Truman. But this is all so slapped together, and Munch can barely get his actors to look like they care. The production values and special effects reflect a scrawny B-movie budget. And just when you think this might get interesting, we get over-written dialogue or a slug to the jaw that will make you think this is a lost product of the '40s gumshoe era. Or something.
GRADE: C
* - Holy Crap is an occasional series about unique films, cutting a wide swath from brilliant to awful. Check out previous entries here.
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