Reading Between the Lines: to perceive or detect a Hidden Meaning that is not directly expressed — behind something written or said.
Sometimes extraordinary events in SCI-FI are not explicitly spelled out for the viewer — they are “subtle” or implied; when the story at first appears to be about one thing — but is actually about something else.
In storytelling, when a person’s life seems to ‘jump’ — inexplicably from one place to another, with no memories of what happened in between — possible explanations may include: alcohol-induced Amnesia, head Trauma, Dissociative Identity Disorder, spiritual Possession or … Alien Abduction.
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“Stopover in a Quiet Town” — The Twilight Zone — (1964)
After drinking too much at a party, Bob and Millie Frazier awaken in a strange bed, in a strange house in a strange town. They’re still dressed in the clothes they wore to the party but their memories are fuzzy. Bob was too drunk to drive so Millie was behind the wheel and she vaguely remembers a shadow falling over them. They soon realize that everything in the town is fake: the telephone in the house isn’t wired; the drawers and cupboards in the kitchen are only a façade; even the trees are fake. The town is deserted and Millie begins to wonder if they’re dead. They keep hearing a child laughing and begin a search. They’re not prepared for what they encounter.
Interestingly, this episode aired three years after Betty and Barney Hill were abducted by Aliens from their car one night driving home in rural New Hampshire (September, 1961) but before their story came out in the best-selling book The Interrupted Journey (1966). It was later adapted into a TV movie: The UFO Incident (1975).
MISSING TIME
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In 1981, Missing Time by Budd Hopkins was the first focused study of an enigma that would come to captivate the world and challenge our understanding of the universe. The influence of this pioneering book was such that its title is now deeply embedded into the lexicon of UFO study — synonymous with that most controversial and troubling of topics: Alien Abduction.
At the time of its writing, Hopkins could not have predicted the impact of Missing Time, not only within UFOlogy, but in popular culture worldwide. The facts, stories, and theories presented herein laid the foundation for the first mainstream debates surrounding reports of human encounters with small, grey-skinned entities-non-human beings with hypnotic black eyes who came silently in the night for their own mysterious purposes. These vivid descriptions as documented by Hopkins would trigger buried memories worldwide in people from all walks of life-to the extent that the so-called “Greys” now represent the dominant cultural imagining of an Alien lifeform.
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The Mothman Prophecies — (2002)
The Mothman Prophecies is an American supernatural horror-mystery film starring Richard Gere and Laura Linney, based on the 1975 book by journalist and influential UFOlogist John Keel.
The story follows John Klein (Gere), a reporter who researches the legend of the “Mothman”. Still shaken by the death of his wife two years earlier from a glioblastoma, Klein is sent to cover a news piece and inexplicably finds himself in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, where there have been sightings of an unusual creature and other unexplained phenomena. As he becomes increasingly drawn into mysterious forces at work, he hopes they can reconnect him to his wife, while the local sheriff (Linney) becomes concerned about his obsessions. (Will Patton also gives a stellar performance as Gordon Smallwood.)
In the story, Klein experiences an episode of “Missing Time” (inexplicably traveling 400 miles in less than two hours with no memory of it) and all indications are — to the astute observer familiar with this phenomenon — that he has been abducted.
In his writing, Keel used the term “ultraterrestrials” to describe UFO occupants he believed to be non-human entities capable of assuming whatever form they desire. He did not state any hypothesis about the ultimate purpose of the phenomenon other than that the UFO intelligence seems to have a long-standing interest with interacting with the human race
The film claims to be based on actual events that occurred between November 1966 and December 1967 in Point Pleasant, as described by Keel — and has since gained a cult following.
HIDDEN MEANING
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The Forgotten — (2004)
In New York, Telly Paretta (Julianne Moore) has been under the psychiatric care of a doctor for months, the therapy to help her deal with the grief associated with losing her nine year old son, Sam, one of 6 children in a plane which disappeared. Slowly, incidents make it seem like Telly is losing her grip on the past, until one day all physical evidence of Sam ever existing disappears. Her husband, Jim (Anthony Edwards) and Dr. Munce (Gary Sinise) try to explain to her that her therapy is to help her get over the delusion that she had a son. As Telly alone goes on a search for evidence to prove the existence of Sam, the only person she is eventually able to convince is Ash Correll (Dominic West) an ex-Hockey player whose daughter was also one of the missing children.
Telly: “Do you ever feel like somebody–?
Something’s watching you?”
Ash: “Like surveillance?”
Telly: “No, l mean that sometimes people are … taken.
We hear that.”
Ash: “What are you talking about?”
Telly: “Abduction.”
One other person they’re able to convince of there ever having been a Sam and Lauren is NYC cop, Ann Pope (Alfre Woodard). Pope believes that 2 people having the same delusion is not a coincidence, and must decide who she can or cannot trust in the matter … to uncover the Truth.
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Outer Range — (2022)
Outer Range is an American SCI-FI neo-Western TV series created by Brian Watkins and starring Josh Brolin, Imogen Poots and Will Patton.
In Episode 1 (“The Void”) Royal Abbot (Brolin) awakens on his Wyoming family ranch, unaware that his life is about to change forever. He does the rounds on horseback, heading out into the pasture — where he hears strange noises; ominous rumbles, then returns home — surprised to discover that it’s later than he thought. Royal has inexplicably lost two hours of “Missing Time”. That night, another ominous groan echoes across the pasture, and the Abbots receive a mysterious phone call from neighboring rancher Wayne Tillerson (Patton) who warns “Something is coming.”
The next morning, as Royal and son Rhett try to account for missing cows, they are caught off-guard by the arrival of a woman named Autumn (Poots), who wants to camp on their land (and can pay handsomely for it). Later, searching alone in the West pasture, Royal encounters a bizarre giant hole in the ground, with strange particles swirling around. When he inserts his hand, flashes to the future cause him to race back home.
The whole family are gathered, and together they learn from acting Sherriff Joy that the FBI are going to stop looking for Rebecca (son Perry’s missing wife), who disappeared more than nine months ago. Concerned about the strange hole, Royal heads out to warn Autumn, who broaches the subject of selling the ranch, offering upwards of 6 million to take it off his hands. “Do you have any secrets you want to share?” She says, with a mischievous smile that has layers of deception to it.
Already at odds with the Tillersons over a land dispute (Wayne wants the West pasture) things only get worse that night, when Tillerson brother Trevor gets into a fight with Perry outside the local bar — and dies.
Rhett and Perry drive back to the ranch, Trevor’s body in the back of the truck. Royal decides to protect his family by covering it up — so he rides off with Trevor on horseback, headed for the West pasture. The Tillersons search for Royal, but he drops Trevor’s body deep into the bowels of this mysterious hole before they can find him.
A blinding light from behind reveals Autumn’s arrival with a flashlight. She wants to know what’s going on, having witnessed the act — and talks about the Greek God Kronos. Apparently this hole is the manifestation of a tear between Heaven and Earth. Autumn promises to keep it a secret … before pushing Royal into the hole.
And that’s only the beginning! You may have to watch the entire series more than once to grasp its many SCI-FI layers — but it’s totally worth it.
[Interesting TRIVIA: Viewers have drawn parallels between Outer Range and “The Phantom Tollbooth” — a movie title that appears on the town theater marquee in episode 3. While the show is set in present day, this live-action/animated fantasy film came out in 1970 (produced by Chuck Jones with many voice talents, including Mel Blanc) — based on a classic 1961 children’s book by Norton Juster. In the story, Milo, a bored young boy, unexpectedly encounters a magic tollbooth — that transports him to the once prosperous, but now troubled, Kingdom of Wisdom. Both stories explore the fantastical and unexplainable!]
So … be on the lookout for “Between the Lines” SCI-FI — when extraordinary events point to Hidden Meaning that’s implied but not directly spelled out.
It may be your best clue to what the story’s really all about!
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Outer Range | Official Trailer — (click on image)