The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)

The review hails the 4K restoration of Roeg's masterpiece, with Bowie astonishing as the alien visitor building a tech empire. It singles out the film's elliptical editing, pessimistic yet hopeful vision of a volatile world, and status as one of the director's most unique achievements.

David Bowie is back in cinemas as the alienated alien in the re-release of Nicolas Roeg’s surreal film. The critic singles out Bowie’s beyond-cool performance as stealing the show in a smorgasbord of strangeness.

Nicolas Roeg’s 1976 sci-fi about an alien visitor played by David Bowie is rereleased and looks more exotic and fascinating than ever. The critic singles out Bowie’s sui generis central performance for its unselfconscious gentleness and vulnerability.

The film is a demanding, disorientating yet beguilingly beautiful work that buries its plot but rewards repeated viewings with its suggestion that Earth is the strangest planet. Roeg's direction captures striking landscapes and the alien lead's unsettling presence amid earthly distractions.

The critic finds the film retains its cool, confounding strangeness as a sci-fi dedicated to how freakish Earth would seem to a visitor. It singles out the piercing tristesse of the final scene and Roeg's pessimistic vision of abandoning the hero to his fate.

The review calls the film beautiful science fiction that is mainly about exile and being an alien on Earth. It singles out David Bowie's inspired, extraordinary performance as the space visitor for praise.

The review calls it a haunting classic with a riveting Bowie performance as the alien sidetracked by human flaws. It singles out sublime moments like eye extractions and desert landscapes, while noting the second half wanders and some elements are dated.

The review highlights the film's cult status and strange imagery about aliens, technology, corporate conspiracy and government interference. It praises the director's approved version and Bowie's powerful performance as the ultimate stranger in a strange land.

The critic praises David Bowie's eerie, urbane performance as the alien visitor and the film's focus on character and ideas over plot. He notes it is slow at times with unfocused scenes but finds it a unique product of 1970s ambition.

The review establishes Roeg as one of the most talented new filmmakers and calls the film a demanding but stunning visual and aural achievement. It singles out Bowie's inspired casting and performance as the ethereal visitor and Candy Clark's winning contribution.

The critic praises the film's emotional continuity over intellectual logic and Bowie's convincing portrayal of vulnerability as an alien. It explores themes of human connection, disorientation, and parallel worlds through elliptical storytelling and motifs like trains and incarceration.

Roeg delivers a singular, haunting sci-fi experience that strips narrative to essentials in favor of tone and emotion through elliptical editing and disruptive sound design. The film is aggressively imperfect yet treasured for its ambitious failures and glorious moments.

The critic calls the film a hallucinatory, heartfelt and wholly bizarre sci-fi masterpiece that endures due to its exploration of alienation and commerce, singling out Bowie's captivating, hypnotic performance as its central strength.

The film is an experimental, one-of-a-kind piece of filmmaking about alienation, standing alongside Roeg’s finest work. It is worthy of enduring attention thanks to its committed, moving central performances, especially Bowie’s.

The critic praises the film as a rich meditation on spiritual emptiness and materialism, highlighting Bowie's perfect casting and the director's virtuoso weirdness in atmosphere, imagery, and eroticism.

Roeg's cult sci-fi remains hypnotic, profound and densely layered nearly 50 years later, with Bowie integral as the alien emitting a timeless aura. It is an ambitious, complex and beautiful experimental triumph open to many interpretations.

Roeg's film stands the test of time thanks to superb casting of Bowie as the alien and its decision not to spoon-feed explanations. Its bold surreal imagery and unconventional structure make it a standout sci-fi experience unlike anything else.

Roeg's sprawling, complex story of an alien who loses his way on Earth is full of dazzling images and striking scenes. The film uses visual beauty as a metaphor for the seductiveness of a world that proves culturally overwhelming for its protagonist.

The critic describes the film as challenging and authentically alien due to its fragmented storytelling and elliptical style, praising its striking visuals and Bowie's anchoring performance while noting it is sad but not particularly moving.

The critic finds the film an acquired taste that is incoherent and poorly adapted from the novel, but praises Bowie's uniquely perfect casting and performance along with the surreal visuals and memorable scenes.