jadzia92 On the surface Roswell may looked like a science fiction TV movie but it is actually based on actual events from eyewitness accounts of what went on in Roswell in 1947. This TV movie intercuts between the present day of the late 1970s and the immediate aftermath of that certain event in 1947.Kyle MacLachlan played the real-life Jesse Marcel, a retired major who was there in Roswell in 1947 who is trying to piece together of what went on in Roswell back then and he plays very well with extreme sincerity. The flashbacks of the eyewitness accounts were very fascinating and made for thrilling viewing especially the account of what happened to Defence Secretary James V Forrestral. This account of what really account in Roswell was very fascinating and a gripping movie to watch.

Robert J. Maxwell Kyle MacLachlan is the real-life retired USAF Major Jesse Marcel. He was one of the first people to handle the debris from a suspected alien spacecraft crash on a remote field in Roswell, New Mexico. The government then ordered him to shut up. Many years later, at a reunion of his unit, MacLachlan is old and dying of emphysema, and is intent on prying the Truth out of the several others who were involved in collecting and disposing of the mysterious trash.It's pretty dull going, even for UFOlogists. MacLachlan goes from barbecue to swimming pool to dinners, encountering others, and getting their stories in flashbacks.The more dubious aspects of the legend -- disappearing participants, living alien corpses, "men in dark suits" -- are accepted with the same eager alacrity as the more credible claims -- the government's throwing all kinds of humdrum explanations against the wall to see if any of them stick, the tendency of agencies to beef up their own importance by classifying information about what they do.The movie gives you the legend in its full-blown form here, with Michael Sheen showing up as "Townsend", the man who takes MacLachlan aside and spills the beans in their entirety, in a scene that is an anti-climax if there ever was one. The explanation is all hearsay from an anonymous source. MacLachlan must depart the scene still in a state of distress and confusion.With the exception of some of the supporting players, the acting is perfunctory. The direction is pedestrian. There isn't any real tension and there is no real ending. It all just seems to fade away.These comments, I ought to emphasize, are about the movie, not about the question of UFOs. I should think that by now, with multiple, credible witnesses, the presence of something inexplicable is indisputable. Oh, maybe not alien space ships but surely something. The alternative belief is that many of our military and commercial pilots, scientists, police officers -- people to whom we entrust our lives -- are crazy. Well, let's throw out 99% of the most reliable sighting. That leaves 1% who are believable. All it takes is one case. Too bad none of the UFOs has been obliging enough to put down on the White House lawn.

carlmc29670 i'm not sure about the other versions of incident at Roswell already reviewed here. I have a different version which has an exclusive. contains extra alien footage never seen before..be advised...viewers may find contents disturbing!. The whole documentary was quite interesting but what fascinated me was this extra footage at the end. Was it real or was it a very very very good hoax. I mean how do you fake an autopsy on an alien and at the same time make it look pretty genuine. The copy i have MER 1023. MER standing for Merlin Home Entertnainment. It is copyrighted 1995 Channel 4 Television Corporation. Production Company: Union Pictures/Big World for Channel Four Television Producer: John Purdie Director: Tim ShawcrossThe Roswell Incident is marketed by MASTERvision Limited. Running Time: 75 Min's (approx) E Exempt from classification.I can't understand the rating considering the warning on the front of the VHS box 'viewers may find disturbing'. also additional footage supposedly of debris taken from crashed spacecraft. I particularly liked the piece that looks like it says V I D E O on it. This is supposed to be where we got the word video from. I mean what does Video stand for. My guess is Vertically, Interlaced, Dynamic or Digital, Encoded, O ? O ? what on earth does O stand for. Does anyone know.

FallynAngel Having been privy to many of the related details in this fine made-for-tv movie, i feel that 'Roswell' is probably the most well-researched film dealing with the subject of close encounters and linked government conspiracies that one can find, and i recommend it wholeheartedly to anyone interested in this subject. Further, allow me to direct interested viewers to the similar, if largely dramatized, 1980 film 'Hangar 18'.