Hangar 18 is a 1980 sci-fi film directed by James L. Conway.
The story sees a 3-man crew aboard the space shuttle about to launch a satellite. Whilst doing so, they witness an apparent UFO moving at great speed, which ends up colliding with the satellite. The resulting explosion kills one astronaut and when the two survivors, Steve and Lew, return to Earth, they find themselves blamed for their colleague’s death.
Conspiracy and coverups ensue as the astronauts find themselves stonewalled and eventually in serious danger from the powers-that-be.
At the same time, it turns out the alien ship has crash landed on Earth and is taken to the mysterious Hangar 18, where a team of NASA boffins – led by NASA’s deputy director Harry Forbes – study the mysterious craft and make some startling deductions.
If it sounds as though there’s a lot going on, well, you would be correct, there is, but I am pleased to say that all in all, Hangar 18 is a fun film. It is an interesting UFO / conspiracy thriller and I think it works rather well.
The film has a couple of nice set-pieces, such as when the scientists watch as the craft opens up for the first time. There is a real sense of anticipation as to what they might find. Also, despite not being particularly frightening, it has a lovely little jump-scare when the scientists find an unconscious woman in the alien ship. She is taken away in an ambulance and, completely out of the blue, she sits up and starts screaming. It is a moment which is highly unexpected and cleverly filmed.
The story basically has two strands. The first sees the two surviving astronauts trying to find the truth behind their dead colleague, and the second is the scientists investigating the alien ship. You would think the scientist scenes would slow the pace down but I think they are done nicely and they also come up with some interesting revelations. (Eventually the boffins deduce that the aliens have been to Earth before and the humans are their descendants. Think Quatermass and the Pit).
The acting in Hangar 18 is strong. Gary Collins and James Hampton are good as Steve and Lew, the frustrated astronauts determined to get to the bottom of their colleague’s death. And the fab Darren McGavin plays Harry, the NASA deputy director who threatens to go to the media unless the truth is revealed.
The finale is nicely done as we see just how far the powers-that-be are willing to go in order to protect their secrets. Unfortunately for them, things do not go quite to plan and, as the credits rolled, I would really like to have seen more.
Hangar 18 is a smart, fun film, a cut above some of the nonsense of this era, and it is well worth a watch.
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