Movie Crunch

The Real Story Behind The Fourth Kind – True Story? Or Fake?

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November 7th, 2009 by Wendy

Tagged as: Horror Movies, Sci-Fi, The Fourth Kind, Trailers, Video



There’s nothing freakier than horror movies that are based on a true story… so how about the real story behind “The Fourth Kind,” which touts that it’s based on true case studies and includes actual footage? Is “The Fourth Kind” a true story?

Check out the trailer for The Fourth Kind in the video clip above, which sets up a re-enactment of real events, interspersed with what is supposedly real, true-blue footage.

Is the real story behind The Fourth Kind just the latest in the docu-sci fi/horror genre that wants audiences to believe it’s true to up the scare factor?

It appears that the film studio’s attempt at creating a back story, based on the supposedly true events of psychiatrist Abagail Tyler in Nome, Alaska, a real person who interviewed sleep-deprived patients that claimed they were abducted by aliens – is only semi-based on any reality.

The Fourth Kind is said to have been recreated from “archival footage,” however, Nome residents have no knowledge of these events and the Anchorage Daily News reports that no psychiatrist even exists by that name.

The Alaska town did, however, have a high death and disappearance rate over the years, which the FBI investigated and attributed to the winter climage and alcoholism. But hey, the deaths/disappearances do serve the story well – if they’re mostly unexplained/unsolved cases, then why not alien abductions?

So, it appears that The Fourth Kind is not a real, true story… but rather a fake. Hey, you’ve gotta have a gimmick.

By the way, Nome mayor Denise Michels told CNN that they’ve been receiving a lot of phone calls: “Some of the calls I’m just ignoring, because the issue we had to deal with in real life was very sensitive. The movie is portraying something like the ‘Blair Witch Project,’ and we’re just hoping the message gets out that this is supposed to be for entertainment.”

Did you see The Fourth Kind? What did you think?

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27 Responses to “The Real Story Behind The Fourth Kind – True Story? Or Fake?”

  1. On November 7th 2009, » The Real Story Behind the Fourth Kind – True Story ? Or Fake? James’s Random Journal wrote:

    [...] There’s nothing freakier than horror movies that are based on a true story … so how about the real story behind “ The Fourth Kind ,” which touts that it’s based on true case studies and includes actual footage? Is “ The Fourth Kind ” a true …Continue [...]

  2. On November 8th 2009, The Fourth Kind - Entertainment - MilitarySOS.com wrote:

    [...] [...]

  3. On November 8th 2009, Shally wrote:

    TOTALLY FAKE! As a Nome resident it is upsetting to think that the people that are really missing are being used for entertainment purposes. The family and freinds of these people who are missing deserve an apology. Just like the Vampires in Barrow in was is 31 days of Night … I will watch the movie just to make fun of all the missleading information the movie will have.

  4. On November 8th 2009, jon jon wrote:

    so if the movie isn’t real…how can they get away with stating in the movie that the footage IS real? wouldn’t they get sued for misreprensentation or fraud and fraudulant claims? How is that any different then someone saying they were kidnapped by a person…the person who claimed to be kidnapped then found to not have will go to court and can be faced with a hefty fine and/or jail time. I know of such a case that is happening in my town and is in the paper everyday.

  5. On November 8th 2009, Jordan wrote:

    Overall, the story was great and kept it’s viewers tied into the story. The scary parts were mainly loud noises, and creepy images, but other than that, it was a typical story of alien abduction. The footage you can tell isn’t real, due to the clarity of the image. In 2000, the setting of the story, video camera filming was very blurry and pixelated, you can easily tell that the so called “recordings” were set up and done more recently, especially through the actors body language. The story may not be true, but also could actually BE true. With the FBI does like to hide things from its citizens, and the responses from those from Nome could have easily been influenced by government control. So, basically, the story very well could be true, but sadly, most likely isn’t. But, in the end, it was still a terrifying movie.

  6. On November 8th 2009, Joey DeDios wrote:

    If there are as many disappearances in nome then why cant 6 or 7 be due to alien abductions? In order for you to believe these abductions could have occured you must first believe in UFO’s. If you dont, its very egotistical to think we are the only living beings in space (something thats infinite). You also have to explain to 11 million witness’s including U.S. presidents and astronauts that what they saw (and you didn’t) was a weather ballon, atmospheric gases, or some other random explaination. If people are trying to research this story and looking for an “Abigal Tyler”, they must have missed the first minutes of the film when they said names were changed for the protection of individuals involved. Abigal Tyler doesn’t exist but the person her charichter was based off of does…
    It still surprises me that many people dont believe in UFO’s. I hope they did their own research to come up with that conclusion themselves and not just believing what the government feeds them. The government also denied Area 51 existed….up until recent years when they decided not to hide/deny it any longer. How is it that almost every other country has admitted to the existance of UFO’s and we still remain silent? I know im not the smartest person on earth but I am educated. If people insist on claiming everyone who believes in UFO’s are nuts, our the majority of our population should be locked up….

  7. On November 8th 2009, Dan wrote:

    (quoting)

    The film’s trailer states that the story is based on “actual case studies,” but does not specify which cases. As a result, much speculation has arisen regarding the search for documented evidence from the actual cases and whether Dr. Abigail Tyler is a real person or a fictional character for use in an internet viral marketing campaign.

    (some people might say… “or is that what they want you to think” ;) )

  8. On November 8th 2009, Matt wrote:

    Yeah I saw it states cleary before the film that the dramatizations are based on actual archival footage. I mean they could probably be safe by saying Based on True Events like other movies in that genre and we know its very loosely based, they did not have to go that far.

  9. On November 8th 2009, Hugh wrote:

    they cant get sued for lieing bc its a fuckin movie retard! its for entertainment purposes only. Star wars isnt getting sued bc people think luke skywalker is real

  10. On November 9th 2009, simba wrote:

    it states at the beginning of the film that this is a dramatised version of the actual events that occured but the footage IS real. you can tell the parts of the dramatised areas. like when she is being dragged away herself, that reinactment is clearly dramatised. and the parts where its showing the real clips and the reinactment then just strays off to the reinactment there will obviously changed things araound. and the somalian is 100% real

  11. On November 9th 2009, Tim Carlquist wrote:

    This movie was real. People just choose not to believe what they cannot understand. Go see the film. The footage of the man killing his family and then turning the gun on himself, is real. It is actual police video. How can you say that it isn’t real? What your back in Nome – actually, you don’t have to worry, you can’t remember what happened to you anyway.

  12. On November 9th 2009, Ruth wrote:

    I saw the movie and thought it was ridiculous! I laughed through the whole thing. I thought the person who played Dr. Abagail Tyler looked like an alien and thats the closest this movie cam to convincing me that there are aliens.

  13. On November 9th 2009, Amcore Bank President wrote:

    That is what I am saying jon jon!
    If this is fake only time will tell with lawsuits and allegations of people who actually want to live up to their cover up stories.
    People have made a hefty buck sueing for less than something that is “supposedly” as false as the critcis are stating about this movie.
    Of course town officials are going to cry wolf about this movie. What small town would want to admit to something like this. It would put them on the map as “crazies”.
    So who really wants to own up to their truth and all of this hurt caused by the movie and bring their balls forward by pressing charges against the creators of such a false story.

  14. On November 9th 2009, tony wrote:

    what think is that paranormal activities is still better then this movie!

  15. On November 10th 2009, mikeyspowerclaim » Blog Archive » The Real Story Behind the Fourth Kind – True Story? Or Fake? wrote:

    [...] It appears that the film studio’s attempt at creating a back story, based on the supposedly true events of psychiatrist Abagail Tyler in Nome , Alaska , a real person who interviewed sleep-deprived patients that claimed they were abducted by … The Alaska town did, however, have a high death and disappearance rate over the years, which the FBI investigated and attributed to the winter climage and alcoholism. But hey, the deaths/ disappearances do serve the story well – if …More Here [...]

  16. On November 10th 2009, Tyler wrote:

    Dr. Abagail Tyler.. hmm, we all know in movies names can be changed for confedential reasons, am I right? So maybe that’s just the name they came up with, and “Dr. Tyler” didn’t want her name exposed. Specifying cases also puts confedential rights aside.

    The Fourth Kind is a movie, no duh they are going to spoof it up. The reason for this movies was to frighten people with what’s been frightening people for years and years. Saying it’s a true story makes the audience more focused, and freaked. The Texas Chinsaw Massacre wouldn’t be famous had it not been told to us that it was real. I’m sure no one quite knows what happened to people who just happen to run across him.. But they have imaginations, and police cases of some causes of deaths by the dude. They just made a scene to follow up someone’s decapitation. So, the point is, it’s real but altered. That’s my belief. And the point is to get your thinker thinking. So stop complaining and enjoy the show.

  17. On November 12th 2009, Elaine Q wrote:

    I think that people just need to watch this movie for what it’s worth. I went and saw it last night, and I will say that it was a decent movie. Yes you can pick this movie apart but you can do that with every single movie ever created. I will not sit here and say whether I think it is real or fake. One of my biggest problems though was the setting. It was supposed to be set in Nome Alaska but if you were to put that in Google, you would not see lush green forests and mountains, you’d see tundra and flat land. If you’re going to set a movie in a specific location and state that the movie is based off real events, you might want to put it in the right location for starters. Aside from definite faults, The Fourth Kind is a decent movie. Just give it a chance. People just need to learn and understand that movies are created for entertainment

  18. On November 14th 2009, tpatcomcast wrote:

    I really liked this movie. It had the whole ’small town something weird is happening’ feel to it like most of the 50’s sci-fi and monster movies. Plus, this movie never got silly and tried to show us aliens..it was all suggested and all in the mind..which is the scariest movie you can make.

  19. On November 16th 2009, ian sassoon wrote:

    The movie was good and definitely scary, but i didn’t buy into the “actual footage” plot. Not to throw in spoilers…but it would have been cool to see the aliens.

  20. On November 16th 2009, mr.ocho wrote:

    What made it feel real to me was the whole tie in of the anunnaki*. I’ve read about them in books by zecheria sitchin & david icke. & I don’t mean like 100% real. But it was nice to have them give other folks a little lesson on sumerian civilization. You guys should go read about it or look it up on youtube.

  21. On November 16th 2009, Mandi wrote:

    I was born and raised in Fairbanks Alaska, and currently live 20 min south of there in North Pole (those who laugh, google zip/postal code 99705) Those who believe all this, go to http://www.newsminer.com/ and type in Universal Studios.
    They’ve reached a settlement to the Alaska Press Club to reimberse Alaska journalists for the trouble they are causing by putting fake news stories beside actual news and claiming they’re from our local newspapers – such as The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner and The Nome Nugget. I do not doubt Nome has a lot of missing persons reports as it is a harsh climate and there are a lot of stupid people who are careless. I also admit Alaskans drink the most alcohol per capita and has the most depression per capita (and therfore a lot of suicides). Alien abduction, however unlikely, is a slim possibility (I doubt we are completely alone in the Universe) but, is certainly not the cause for the mass majority of these disappearances, the climate and alcohol are, the climate more so. As for the sleep deprivation, they probably were new to Alaska and hadn’t acclimated to the 24-hour daylight.

  22. On November 16th 2009, Mandi wrote:

    I do give them props for getting people digging though.

  23. On November 17th 2009, jenn wrote:

    I think it look like some evil thing that has nothing to do wid aliens….. Evil comes in different forms.. if the story is true. The lady look like an alien though lol…….

  24. On November 17th 2009, kris wrote:

    you may not believe me when i tell you this but if you dont i dont care because what is there to prove to people i dont even know…I am from nome, my name is kris. i saw something strange while walking my dog back in june 1999 , A black though silent object blocking the stars behind as i looked up. i thought maybe it was a smudge on my glasses, i cleaned my glasses and looked up once more. the dark object moved to a different location then suddenly it just disappeared , i was crapping myself and ran as fast as i could with luka (my dog) back home, now this story has come to light, i am crapping my self even more. i will not see this movie, i refuse. I feel i need a phyciatrist right now, I wanna leave nome and relocate.

    Only joking folks!!! thought i would creep you out a little,, what a load of sceptical bull.. GET FACTS OR GET ABDUCTED THE CHOICE IS YOURS or not,,,,,lol…..but most of all just enjoy the movie…lifes too short…hang on….whats that at my door agghhhhhhhh!!

  25. On November 17th 2009, Adrey wrote:

    ..without a doubt this was one of the most disturbing movies i have ever seen…in reality people don’t know what happens when their heads hit the pillow at night and they go to sleep…that is why hypnosis is such a wonderful thing..it’s like going back to the past but at the same time being aware of everything, even if you were asleep…who is to say that what this people experienced isn’t real?..some or most of the deaths/dissapearances may have been due to the weather and alcohol problems..but one can’t really say that every single one of this persons was an alcoholic..people don’t know what really goes on out there…the movie was great and i give it alot of credit for bringing up ancient beliefs that people simply don’t know or have never bother to search about…our ancient cultures were visited and aided by extraterrestrials..but just like in humanity having a good and evil side there is obviously good e.t.s and bad ones as well…by the way, Dr. Tyler’s daughter has never been found…are they going to blame it on the weather and alcohol problems on a child as well?…they can do better than that..people try to give an explanation for things they do not understand..and certainly when it comes to the alien subject and the disappearances, alien abductions is the last thing they would blame it on obviously…people need to get educated because if they were they would not simply classify this movie as “fake” or “real”..they would really try to understand that this movie deals further into other subjects and they would get the real message of it.

  26. On November 19th 2009, Search Engine Watch » Blog Archive » The Real Story Behind the Fourth Kind – True Story ? Or Fake? wrote:

    [...] There’s nothing freakier than horror movies that are based on a true story … so how about the real story behind “ The Fourth Kind ,” which touts that it’s based on true case studies and includes actual footage? Is “ The Fourth Kind ” a true …Continue Reading [...]

  27. On November 19th 2009, The Real Story Behind the Fourth Kind – True Story ? Or Fake? « debtconsolidationandcreditrating wrote:

    [...] There’s nothing freakier than horror movies that are based on a true story … so how about the real story behind “ The Fourth Kind ,” which touts that it’s based on true case studies and includes actual footage? Is “ The Fourth Kind ” a true …Page 2 [...]

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