- Directed by: Seth Breedlove
- Written by: Seth Breedlove
- Stars: Aaron Deese, Dewey Edwards, Micah Hanks
- Run Time: 1 Hour, 26 Minutes
- Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8caYiqMPOtc
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
It’s another interesting documentary from Seth Breedlove, obvious from the title, focusing on UFO sightings during and after world war two. The film is put together with stock footage, aged CGI recreations, movie clips, interviews, historical accounts, and recounted eyewitness reports. Some of the scenes might lead people to believe they’re seeing the actual events and saucers in the sky when it’s a mashup of real military footage from other events and realistically created footage. There’s a heavy focus on one case in particular, a fatal crash by pilot Thomas Mantell, known as “The Mantell Incident.”
Spoilery Synopsis
The Thomas Mantell Case took place in Kentucky, and there’s quite a bit of mystery surrounding it. There was a horrific military crash in a rural area, and we are shown the peaceful-looking spot where it happened many years ago. Credits roll.
We get a brief recap of World War II and the aircraft involved in the fight. We then get an overview of the magic and natural beauty of Kentucky. We then segue into discussion about UFO sightings during the war. We are told about one sighting in 1943 where dozens of glowing discs were seen, then a 1944 sighting of a black, teardrop shaped craft. Throughout these stories, we see a great deal of old stock footage of airplanes and aged-looking CGI re-enactments.
By 1947, UFO sightings were everywhere. Mt. Rainier, Roswell, Maury Island, and other sightings all took place around that point. Were they alien spaceships or were they advanced military prototypes or even something natural? That’s always the question with UFO sightings and “lights in the sky.”
In January of 1948, the Mantell Incident took place. A pilot shot at a UFO, which shot back, and the pilot, Thomas Mantell, crashed and died. The military plane crashed because of an alien attack. The story has changed and expanded over the decades, and it’s become hard to know what really happened.
Thomas’s two grandsons are interviewed, and they give us a lot of biographical information about the deceased pilot. There were many sightings of something in the sky that day, and they took off to investigate. Of the four planes, Mantell was the only one who ascended beyond what his oxygen level would allow, he passed out, and crashed.
We then get a string of living witnesses who saw the crash in 1948, and they each tell their stories. Did Mantell fly too high chasing a weather balloon, or was he shot down? The military claimed that Mantell was chasing Venus, which was visible at that time.
Brian’s Commentary
I always enjoy these documentaries, but this one includes lots of computer-generated footage of flying saucers and such, but they’re “aged” to make them match the many stock footage clips, which makes it all look historical. This seems dishonest, not something you’d want in a documentary. It becomes easy to imagine that it’s all real footage, but it’s not– but some of it could be real old footage, there’s no way to know. Everything the people on-screen are saying is either factual or at least their own opinions, but that’s not necessarily true of what we see.
Otherwise, it’s well put together, has lots of good interviews, and overall is an interesting look at one of the major UFO mysteries that was never fully explained. It mostly focuses on the Mantell incident, and if that interests you, you should absolutely check this one out.
Kevin’s Commentary
It’s another work from Seth Breedlove that is put together well and interesting. This has lots of good stock footage, accounts of historical events, accounts of historical stories and sightings, and interviews with historians. As always, it’s left up to the viewer if they want to believe it or not. But as Brian mentioned, the way real footage – even if it’s not from the actual event they are talking about – is combined with recreated footage is concerning. Some folks could be confused and misled.