Dir. Paul Ziller
When Jacob Glaser (Misha Collins), a renegade astrophysicist and underground radio host, is alerted to unusual electromagnetic energy fields occurring throughout the globe, his initial investigations lead him to Stonehenge. Somehow, the stones have begun to move independently and are building up enough energy to vaporise anyone who comes within a certain range. Jacob’s theory is that Stonehenge is a key part of a massive alien terraforming machine connected to other historical sites around the world...
Meanwhile, in the US state of Maine, a former colleague of Jacob’s has discovered an underground pyramid linked to the ongoing events at Stonehenge and is actively working towards the destruction of mankind in the hopes that he and his followers can survive the coming apocalypse and be the rulers of the next era of life on earth. When Jacob discovers the existence of a key that he believes is capable of switching off the doomsday machine, he sets about getting his hands on it before the military begins a series of nuclear strikes on the ancient sites!
What once created life on earth is about to wipe it out! Or something.
With an incredibly evocative title, Stonehenge Apocalypse has cinematic summer blockbuster vibes written all over it. It is, however, a very modestly budgeted made-for-TV movie. Produced for the SyFy channel for a pittance, it has some fascinating ideas at its core, but with a weak screenplay and ambitions its budget just can't effectively realise, it falls short of the mark. Director Ziller is well versed in low budget B-movies, having already helmed Solar Attack, Swarmed and Yeti: Curse of the Snow Demon, but here he is impacted by the scope of the story and a desire to show everything, even when it's rendered in cheap CGI. There are so many great low-budget films out there, where filmmakers have had to get creative to make things work and tell a story with insufficient funds. A large budget does not a good film make. Despite the colourful title and potential for wry humour or self-effacing irony, Ziller takes things very seriously, which is fine, of course, but the tone of the film doesn't always work with the absurd central premise of aliens using a CGI Stonehenge to wipe out humanity.
Hinging on the concept that aliens have already been to earth, millions of years ago and left markers for future visitations, Stonehenge Apocalypse has at its core a provocative idea. Had it been handled in a more subtle manner, it could have had chilling implications as the story unravelled, a la the BBC's Quatermass series (1979). Ziller’s approach doesn’t really do the idea any justice. Then again neither does the screenplay he co-wrote with Brad Abraham, as the epic feel they aim for falls short, mainly due to the underdeveloped characters and rudimentary writing. The film unfolds as a series of dialogue-heavy, expository scenes featuring scientists in labs starring intently at monitors while urgently reciting techno-jargon. These scenes are intercut with depictions of various global landmarks, such as the pyramids and Mayan temples, turning into CGI volcanoes and destroying the surrounding areas. Everything is just very cheap and uninspiring.
All the old clichés are present and correct: the protagonist is a disgraced scientist whose theories proved too progressive for his contemporaries and so he was ostracised. There’s also a tough, sexy woman scientist who teams up with the hero, and an over zealous military general who just wants to blow shit up.
While Stonehenge Apocalypse can’t live up to the promise of its title, it's still an entertaining flick for fans of The Asylum and B-budgeted sci-fi.
Stonehenge Apocalypse (cert. 15) was released on DVD (£9.99) by Anchor Bay Entertainment on 28th February 2011. Extras include: Behind the Scenes featurette and trailer.