All the Gods in the Sky (2 Stars)

This is the 18th film in the Stuttgart Fantasy Film Festival.

This is a very disturbing film. I feel tempted to describe the whole plot, just to explain what's so bad about it. But I shouldn't give spoilers, should I? I'll try to keep myself to what's essential.

When Simon and Estelle are children they play with their father's gun. Estelle shoots herself in the head, and she survives as an invalid, unable to speak or walk.

As adults, Simon has never married. He looks after his sister, feeding her and reading her stories. He doesn't even have time for friends. Simon has made radio contact with aliens, and he's waiting for them to come to Earth to beam him up with his sister. Other people think Simon is crazy. He's receiving medication for paranoia and other mental illnesses.

A nine-year-old orphan called Zoe comes into their life. She considers Estelle her friend and lies in bed with her to keep her company. Simon tries to get rid of her, but she hides in the house to spend time with Estelle while Simon is at work. Zoe can see ghosts, and she helps Simon to see ghosts as well. Or is he just becoming even crazier?

I have to stop there, even though there's much more I could write. Maybe you can see the problem already. There are too many conflicting themes mixed together. There are science fiction elements and supernatural elements. There is social criticism. There's murder.

It's not necessarily a bad film, but it's impossible for me to like it. I didn't talk to anyone after the film. I sat alone, thinking about it. I read a few reviews that I read online. One reviewer writes, "It's The Secret Garden on LSD, and it's obvious from the start that this is going to be a very bad trip indeed". I couldn't have put it better myself.