Soho Horror Film Fest 2025 Coverage
Straight Outta Space review
An alien invasion…of a sort.
Festival reviews will not contain spoilers.
Straight Outta Space
Directed by Michael Middelkoop
Written by Michael Middelkoop, Daan Baker, Nico van den Brink and Paul de Vrijer
Starring Shahine El-Hamus, Daniël Kolf, Sinem Kavus, Stephanie van Eer, Oscar Aerts, Jim Deddes and Défano Holwijn
Straight Outta Space Review
A very brief short film preceded Straight Outta Space’s screening. ESCAPE is a first person account of an alien invasion that can’t last more than three minutes. It’s a thematic fit for the feature it’s attached to…that’s for sure. Not much can be accomplished in three minutes…but ESCAPE manages to create and execute on its atmosphere and concept as quickly as possible. A tiny appetizer for the main course to come.
Straight Outta Space has a concept that, on paper, will sound incredibly familiar to anyone who has seen Attack the Block. I was a bit worried that it was going to steer too closely to that movie in practice as well…but Straight Outta Space finds its own path. In fairness, it does that by mixing in a healthy dose of Shaun of the Dead…but it all blends well together. Despite wearing its influences firmly on its sleeve…Straight Outta Space manages to feel like its own thing thanks to some new ideas and a cast of good characters.
Amin (Shahine El-Hamus) lacks ambition. He likes to spend his days helping out in the neighborhood with his best friend Mitch (Daniël Kolf). His girlfriend Steph (Stephanie van Eer) wants him to move out of the neighborhood with her and find a life path for himself. She happens to work for the evil corporation planning on building high price housing next to the neighborhood. Which, it turns out, is itself built on top of an alien.
The first scene in the movie shows us that last bit. We start in 1982 in a vacant lot that will become the Schijndrecht neighborhood. A large alien tentacle comes out of the ground and pulls one of the workers away. We’ll see his body again when it’s dug up in present day…as construction on the expensive living space has, once again, freed the alien.
Straight Outta Space is more a zombie movie than an alien invasion story. The alien infects people with its colorful goo. They, in turn, infect others the same way. Spitting or vomiting goop onto people is all it takes to turn them into zombie-like creatures. These creatures are smart enough to figure some things out…which makes them a bit more dangerous. Amin and Mitch plan to wait out the quarantine the neighborhood is placed under with their friend Panter (Sinem Kavus) but the zombies have other plans.
As is the case in nearly every outbreak story…the government does more harm than good. They quickly decide to level the neighborhood because their financial interests won’t be too poorly impacted. Amin, Mitch and Panter aren’t aware of this, of course. Amin simply wants to find Steph and make sure she’s ok. When they find a member of their neighborhood is immune to the infection…their entire purpose changes. The opportunity to finally accomplish something good has fallen into their laps. If they can survive the night and beat the clock on an impending bomb.
Straight Outta Space is a fun one. It’s gorgeously shot, features strong effect work, and is full of unique characters. It’s also very well-paced. That last one is very important for a movie like this. You have to feel like danger is everywhere and a clock is ticking against you for its story beats to land with full impact. There is no part of the story that drags whatsoever. You’re rooting for this ragtag group of people that society has counted out. Just as importantly, you’re into the alien’s story that is unveiled in the background. There’s more to everyone, and everything in Schijndrecht than we initially thought there was.
The dialog in Straight Outta Space is another highlight. The characters sound like real people stuck in a dire situation…but they’re likeable and relatable people. Sure, everyone is a little cleverer and a tad funnier than your neighbor probably is…but that’s what makes them so engaging. Even a character initially presented to annoy you ends up winning you over by the end. Not because these characters change in any dramatic way…because a terrible event allows them to be who they were all along.
Scare Value
Straight Outta Space does a good job avoiding the obvious comparisons to Attack the Block. The movie is a bit of that and a bit of Shaun of the Dead…but it makes things feel fresh anyway. Likeable characters forging an unlikely resistance to an alien/zombie horde is just as fun as it should be. Straight Outta Space has fun throughout…and a few new ideas to throw at the genre.
