''The Being from Earth'' is a 1990 German science fiction drama film directed by

David Vostell David Vostell (born 10 October 1960) is a German-Spanish composer and film director. Biography David Vostell was born in Cologne, the first child of Wolf Vostell and his Spanish wife Mercedes Guardado. His father and his father's art have fo ...

. It was filmed in Los Angeles in English. The Being from Earth tells the story of a day when the lives of various people are in danger due to the connection between their actions and the inexplicable events surrounding the birth of The Being from Earth. A hybrid of animal and plant, born from the sands of the Mojave Desert.

Plot

Melissa finishes her night shift in a genetics lab in the morning and drives to her boyfriend Teddy, who is planning a bank robbery with Goofy, a friend. Melissa tries to dissuade him. While driving on a highway through the Mojave Desert, Melissa panics and tells Teddy to stop the car immediately. They see the birth of the being out of the sands of the desert and take it home with them. A police officer is already on Teddy because of the planned bank robbery and follows them. After a fight, they leave the downed cop and drive back to Goofy's. They are pursued by curious neighbors. A group of three people, having found out about the birth through the visions of the medium Miriam, track down Melissa and Teddy. Goofy dies in a shootout. Melissa and the being are kidnapped by the group. Teddy tracks them to an abandoned factory floor and tries to free Melissa, but fails. Melissa gets tied up. With the

sperm Sperm is the male reproductive cell, or gamete, in anisogamous forms of sexual reproduction (forms in which there is a larger, female reproductive cell and a smaller, male one). Animals produce motile sperm with a tail known as a flagellum, whi ...

of the being, Melissa is supposed to be fertilized and give birth to a new being. Teddy can prevent this at the last second.

Production

The Being from Earth was created by Georg Sili, Bruce Fuller /

KNB EFX Group KNB EFX Group is an American special effects company that specializes in prosthetic makeup, animatronics, and other practical effects. It was founded in 1988 by Robert Kurtzman, Greg Nicotero, and Howard Berger, though Kurtzman left in 2003. Afte ...

and David Vostell. Filming took place in Los Angeles in

Palmdale, California Palmdale is a city in northern Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California. The city lies in the Antelope Valley region of Southern California. The San Gabriel Mountains separate Palmdale from the Los Angeles Basin to the south. On Aug ...

and in the Mojave Desert. Film laboratory was Consolidated Film Industries / CFI-

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

and Geyer-Werke Berlin. The film premiered on December 8, 1991, in the

Kino Babylon The Kino Babylon is a cinema in the Mitte neighbourhood of Berlin and part of a listed building complex at Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz opposite the Volksbühne theatre. The building was erected 1928–29. It was designed by the architect Hans Poelzig i ...

in Berlin. The film was released on VHS in 1992 and in 2022 on Blu-ray in the Original English Version.

Reception

The film's title primarily refers to the being born from the earth. But it can also be understood as a metaphor. The being in the film is not a monster or beast. It's a kind of life that we don't know. The Being from Earth differs greatly from the conventional understanding of cinema and is an enigmatic film. The viewer's expectation of an explanatory, conventional narrative structure quickly gives way to the search for insight. Different interpretations of the plot are possible and also wanted. The film takes on a life of its own that is difficult to follow. The being in the film is extremely passive. It does not bite or kill. Characteristically, it can be compared to the creature in

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

's film Eraserhead.The World of David Vostell 1976 - 2018, Sun Chariot Books, Cáceres 2019, ISBN 978-84-949836-3-4.

Sources

*David Vostell, Biografia / Recopilation 1978 - 2008 by Michaela Nolte, nivel88 Editor. . *The World of David Vostell 1976 - 2018, Sun Chariot Books, Cáceres , 2019. .
David Vostell, Worldcat

Releases

* 1992: ''The Being from Earth''. Original English Version, VHS. * 2022: ''The Being from Earth''. Original English Version, Blu-ray, nine disc, Limited Edition of 100, 9 exclusive double-sided Art Cards. Extra content on USB flash drive. * 2022: ''The Being from Earth''. Original English Version, Blu-ray, Illuminated Nebula, Limited Edition of 100. * 2022: ''The Being from Earth''. Original English Version, Blu-ray, Illuminated Nebula, Limited Edition of 150 in metal box, from the Original 35 mm - 1.85:1 Negative digitally remastered.

References

External links

*
The Being from Earth (Trailer)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Being from Earth 1990 films 1990 science fiction films 1990s avant-garde and experimental films German avant-garde and experimental films English-language German films Films shot in California 1990 drama films 1990s English-language films 1990 independent films Films set in deserts 1990s German films