The UFO Incident

• Directed by Richard A. Colla
• October 10, 1975
• NBC
• Based on the alleged 1961 alien abduction of Barney and Betty Hill

In the early 60s a married couple undergo hypnosis to unlock memories only to come to believe they were abducted by aliens.

When I look back I think this might have been what sparked my interest in the UFO phenomena though that was after viewing The UFO Incident on repeats. I was but a babe when this first aired on NBC. I’ve been a science-fiction fan all my life but something about watching this got me interested in UFOs.

Given its release date and the film’s atmosphere they were certainly aiming for something that was mild horror or just simply unsettling. For a mid-70s TV movie it hits the mark in that. You feel that these people don’t understand what happened to them and that something inexplicable did indeed occur. They doubt themselves and they doubt their environment.

The UFO Incident is presented largely as a flashback as Betty and Barney Hill sit in a psychiatrist’s office. The story moves between moments of their everyday life and hints of the UFO abduction. It is during those moments director Richard A. Colla shows as little as they possibly can. There are hints of what happened with the couple but no shots of a saucer or detailed sets when the action takes you inside. The bare minimum is done to let you know.

The cast is pretty small with maybe a total of eight actors on screen. It focuses on three characters-Barney Hill (James Earl Jones), Betty Hill (Estelle Parsons) and their therapist Dr. Benjamin Simon (Barnard Hughes). Anybody else on screen has few if any lines. They exist to expand the world beyond the three main actors but not to soak up screentime.

James Earl Jones could sell anything with that voice of his. He communicates the confusion and just disbelief of Barney Hill. What he thought and what he believed are two very different things. He’s trying to come to terms with that in a social environment that doesn’t allow an African-American gentleman to step outside of a box of certain social comfort very much if ever.

In that aspect it hints of the racism that Barney must deal with and maybe even touches of what Betty experiences as a white woman in the early 60s married to a black man. They pushed it as far as they could go without overshadowing the central topic which was the aftermath of their experience.

Estelle Parsons is a character actress that is probably best known to audiences as Beverly Harris on Roseanne. She’s one of those people who’s been around for quite some time and done plenty but you’d be hard-pressed to name one thing beyond Roseanne even if you do recognize her. Her character is more “It happened but I don’t understand what happened” than Barney is. It’s upsetting and confusing as well as quite disturbing.

From the start of the movie you believe this is a real couple. Sometimes they get frustrated with each other but at the end of it all they genuinely love one another. They bicker but not to the point that they’re dysfunctional. Something forgotten in most modern presentations.

Barnard Hughes does a fine job of walking the line between entertaining the thought of them being abducted and dismissing it as the doctor. He doesn’t necessarily believe that they were abducted but without any other explanation he’s at least willing to consider it until a better idea presents itself.

It takes a bit before they get to the hypnosis element of this film which is what made the story stand out among so many other reported UFO encounters. The Hills’ memories of the missing time come to light only deepening the mystery.

The ending of The UFO Incident doesn’t necessarily confirm or deny aliens though a voiceover with accompanying text does ‘confirm’ a viewed map was accurate. That has since been refuted with better data. Nice hook at the time though.

I haven’t seen The UFO Incident in nearly 40 years, and I still enjoyed it. It may not get you into UFOs you will enjoy yourself.