Amanda and the Alien

Did You Know?

• Michael Dorn was cast as government agent Lieutenant Vint, whose body is eventually taken over by the alien.
• Rifftrax released a version of the movie with jokes by Bridget Nelson and Mary Jo Pehl.
• The film was given a Blu-ray release in 2024 by the American Genre Film Archive (AGFA).

Premise

Amanda Patterson, a Gen X woman working at a high-end clothing boutique, lives a fairly isolated and ordinary existence. That changes when an alien, previously detained at a secret military facility, breaks free by inhabiting the body of a staff member. Amanda discovers the creature and chooses to assist it in evading government pursuers, a relatively simple task since the alien is forced to switch hosts every few days. She develops feelings for it after it takes over the body of her cheating boyfriend and treats her much better than he ever did.

They begin a romantic relationship, and Amanda guides the alien toward its meeting point. Government agents, having learned of her role, tail them. They manage to reach the rendezvous, though the alien changes bodies multiple times along the way. It vows to warn its species to steer clear of Earth for resources and food, as they typically avoid planets with intelligent life.

As a parting gift, the alien grants Amanda a cosmic vision, which she later uses in her art. The film concludes with Amanda as a guest on a talk show discussing alien encounters. When she tries to clarify that the alien only fed when necessary and was otherwise benevolent, the host ridicules her.