There’s a refreshing lack of spiritual or cosmic mumbo jumbo.
In 1993, a film called Fire in the Sky dramatized the story of Travis Walton, an Arizona logger allegedly abducted by aliens. When I reviewed the film in 2008, I said that the heavily fictionalized version of Walton’s story created more questions than answers. Now, a 2015 documentary called Travis: The True Story of Travis Walton has given me those answers. Not all of the answers, mind you. I don’t think anything will answer all of the questions Walton’s story raises.
In November, 1975, Travis Walton and a crew of six other loggers were cutting brush in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest near Snowflake, Arizona. Upon finishing their shift, the men saw a light shining through the trees. As their truck rounded a bend, they saw the light source. It was not a campfire or oncoming headlights but a sleek, saucer-shaped object hovering about 15 feet off the ground. Before the truck came to a stop, Travis Walton jumped out and ran toward the object. As he approached, a blue beam erupted from the craft and struck him. His body rose into the air in a spread-eagle position. He then dropped to the ground. His frightened co-workers sped off. After driving for about a half mile, the crew turned around to find their friend. On their return to the site, there was no sign of the object or Travis Walton’s body.
The crew reported the incident to the local sheriff who remained understandably skeptical. Soon, the six loggers were accused of murdering Walton and hiding his body. All six stood by their story. Five of the men passed polygraph tests. (One test was inconclusive.) A search party could not locate Walton’s body. Five days later, Walton called his brother from a phone booth in Heber, Arizona. Confused, 12 pounds lighter, and with five days of facial hair growth, Walton believed it was the same day the crew had seen the object.
What Walton can remember from those five days only spans about two hours. The controversy his story has put into motion has lasted for forty years.
Travis: The True Story of Travis Walton focuses on not only Walton’s recollections from inside the saucer but the impact it’s had on his life and his crew’s lives. Through archival and new interviews, director Jennifer Stein paints a picture of a man who’s endured a great deal of ridicule as a result of coming forward with this story. She also makes a case that, even though some came to resent their involvement in the incident, Walton’s crew members refused to embellish the story or profit from it. Truthfully, even though Walton claims that he encountered alien creatures, the actual events of his story aren’t terribly outlandish.
Stein assembled a group of investigators, professors, and researchers to weigh in on Walton’s story and how it was handled by law enforcement and the media afterwards. Walton himself understands that skepticism is healthy and, in fact, necessary when dealing with an account like his own. The film goes to great lengths to demonize those who aim to debunk UFO encounter stories without an open mind.
Philip Klass, a well-known journalist and noted UFO debunker, becomes the film’s ersatz villain. Interviewees — including Klass’ rival Stanton Friedman — spend considerable time explaining Klass’ connections to the NSA and other government organizations. Klass supposedly attempted to get Walton’s crew to admit they lied about the whole thing. Allegedly, he even offered a bribe of $10,000 to Steve Pierce to recant his story. (Klass had a standing offer of $10,000 to anyone who could produce what he considered to be irrefutable evidence of a UFO encounter. It’s possible that a bribe was misconstrued.)
Aside from that detour, the film stays away from tying any conspiracy theories to Walton’s story or the events on that November evening. There’s a refreshing lack of spiritual or cosmic mumbo jumbo. Travis: The True Story of Travis Walton focuses on what happened, who it happened to, and what has happened to them since. It may leave you wanting more information but that is true for the film’s subject as well. If nothing else, you’ll come away from the film appreciating the fact that Walton and his crew passed multiple polygraph tests and never wavered from their story.
4.0 out of 5.0 stars
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