If Pearce weren't so heavy-handed... then Encounter, a flawed sci-fi flick with a simple premise, could be a great adventure fit for the stars.

Exactly half of a good movie.

In an era of, frankly, incredulous credulity where shared delusions are leaping from the screen to your aunt's Facebook page, and gullibility is literally infectious, Encounter insists that skepticism is a virtue.

Encounter used a bunch of tools from its toolbox to construct a wobbly house. The story is solid — it’s unexpected, there are twists, the suspense is off the charts, and heartfelt moments are designed to move you. But the optics are all wrong.