With the recent passing of Budd Hopkins, I thought it might be worth posting something that gives an insight into ‘alien abduction’ research. So here is the entire, award-winning 2003 documentary Touched, directed and produced by Laurel Chiten. Touched sits apart from other mass-market cable documentaries on this topic that trade in hype and gullibility, and instead does a great job of looking at the human story behind the phenomenon:
A few years ago, Harvard psychiatrist John Mack, a leading researcher in the alien encounter phenomenon, approached me after seeing my recent film The Jew in the Lotus. He wanted me to consider making a movie about encounters with these alien life forms. I told him no. I knew next to nothing about alien abduction, had no interest and thought it was all rather foolish. Then, he invited me to meet some of the people who claim to have had these experiences. They seemed rather normal and spoke about their feelings of connection and longing for these uninvited intruders to return. I had stumbled into a world filled by people who had been touched by something … and had their lives blown apart because of it. I was mesmerized. I feel that I was abducted by John Mack.
This started my journey into the lives and minds of alleged abductees around the world, and into my own personal journey through skepticism, fear, insomnia, fascination, confusion and led to many many questions.
…As there is no conclusive physical proof, the debate as to whether these stories are true or not could go on forever. Instead, I became more interested in the people — those who have had their lives both torn apart and transformed by this experience.
What happens when the unexplained intrudes into our lives, and how do lives and relationships respond when credulity is strained to a breaking point? This is the leading question I set out to explore. This is a film about the human experience — about longing for connection and fear of separation.
If you would like your own personal copy, and/or want to reward the film-makers for their presentation of the topic, you can purchase the documentary on DVD from Amazon.com.