Beyond Skyline: A Fun Sci-Fi Movie That Features Iko Uwais Beating up Jerky Aliens

.

Beyond Skyline is the rare  B-movie sequel that is better than its predecessor on every level. The 2010 film Skyline was a subpar Sci-Fi cheapy that featured a bunch of people watching an alien invasion from their loft. I admired what it was able to do on a tiny budget but I never felt anything for the characters or the insanity unfolding around them. However, while watching the second half of Beyond Skyline I was in awe of Iko Uwais, Frank Grillo and Yayn Ruhian and their ability to destroy aliens in hand-to-hand combat. If you are a fan of Iko Uwais murdering aliens with his knees, elbows, fists and various weapons you will love Beyond Skyline.

Beyond Skyline starts off in Los Angeles and features a dour cop named Mark (Frank Grillo) collecting his troubled twenty-something son Trent (Jonny Weston) from a local police precinct. They are forced to take the subway when Mark’s truck won’t start which saves them from the initial alien attack (the blue lights from the original are back). However, the aliens eventually make their way down into the subway and after some slick battles, Mark, Trent, Audrey (Bojana Novakovic) and blind Vietnam vet Sarge (Antonio Fargas) are brought to the alien ship where the jerky creatures are sucking out human brains and implanting them into robot bodies. The foursome eventually manages to bring the ship down in Laos (yep!) where they team up with Sua (Iko Uwais), Chief (Yayan Ruhian), Kanya (Pamelyn Chee) and Harper (Callan Mulvey).

.

Beyond Skyline really kicks off in Laos because once there the characters engage in an all-out war with the jerky aliens. There are multiple setpieces that hit above their B-movie weight and allow the main characters to murder their attackers in various ways (flamethrower, grenades, knives, guns, elbows). My favorite moment is a one-on-one fight between Uwais and 10-foot tall alien. The battle pits Iko’s brand of awesome butt-kicking against an alien who fights like a giant rugby player who can throw insane spin kicks in tight corridors.

.

Beyond Skyline is a very fun B-movie that proves action films with low budgets can be pretty great when done right. Director/writer Liam O’Donnell works wonders with his cast/budget and the final product is a lot of fun. If you are a fan of Frank Grillo, Iko Uwais, and spin kicking aliens you need to watch this movie.