The Man Who Loved UFOs review: Manufacturing and selling a sensational lie 

The Man Who Loved UFOs is a 2024 Argentine drama film directed by Diego Lerman. It stars Leonardo Sbaraglia, Sergio Prina, Osmar Núñez, Renata Lerman, María Merlino, Agustín Rittano, and Norman Briski in prominent roles.

The film tells the story of entertainment journalist José de Zer, who created the most memorable and sensational alien phenomenon in the history of Latin American television. The Man Who Loved UFOs is based on an interesting man who manufactured incredible events for ratings, but the screenplay by Diego Lerman and Adrián Biniez doesn't do justice to the original story.

However, Leonardo Sbaraglia as José de Zer carries the film with his performance. But, apart from his work and a few good enough scenes, there isn't enough in the movie to hold viewers for its 107-minute runtime.

The Man Who Loved UFOs premiered globally on Netflix on October 18, 2024. It has also been released in a few selected theaters in Argentina.

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The Man Who Loved UFOs is about the man who sensationalized alien sighting conspiracy theories

(Image via Netflix)

In the 1980s, journalist José de Zer and his cameraman Chango went to a small hilly town named La Candelaria and investigated some peculiar reports of alien sightings and extraterrestrial communication. The duo lived in the hills for six months, investigated the caves, and filmed everything that could get them closer to the truth about aliens. Their journey became a media phenomenon, mostly due to Jose's brilliant presentation.

However, as it turned out, it was all a lie. A well-planned, well-thought-out, and ambitious lie to get a high rating for the channel and increase tourism in the area. In the film, the lie is orchestrated and funded by Isadora Lopez Cortese and Pedro Echevarria, the president of the Cerro Mining Cooperative.

The Man Who Loved UFOs focuses on how José turned a lie into popular entertainment and how it affected his personal and professional life. It even delves into the issues that come with sudden fame and the mental health of a media con man. But none of the subtext of the film is convincing enough and mostly slows down the narrative, which becomes the biggest issue with this film.

The official Netflix synopsis of the film reads:

"In late 1980s Argentina, a reporter’s investigation into alien activity is nearly halted by a lack of evidence — until he decides to fabricate his own."

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Leonardo Sbaraglia carries the film as José de Zer

Leonardo Sbaraglia plays the lead character of José de Zer, a charming man and a brilliant presenter who took the opportunity to gain a fortune by creating a massive hoax. He succeeds in his plan, becomes a celebrity, appears on talk shows, and gets mobbed by people while driving to work. But it came with a cost, constantly seeking and creating materials that could be used to fool the viewers, often making him neurotic.

The screenplay might not have taken the best route to tell this story, but it provided plenty of material for Leonardo Sbaraglia to show his acting chops. And the actor delivers. He is loud and subtle when required and plays with the camera like the real guy. The rest of the cast members have also done a decent job, particularly Sergio Prina as the cameraman Carlos Chango Torres.

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The Man Who Loved UFOs has a peculiar and confusing ending

What José de Zer did was against journalistic integrity, but the film isn't interested in exploring that side. Rather, the screenplay focuses on Jose's relentless determination to succeed at all costs, to keep the viewers hooked on his lies for as long as possible.

This pressure to keep churning out sensational stuff on aliens takes a toll on his mental health, making him sporadically bitter and harsh. He even starts getting irritated with the constant presence of his fans.

It is a peculiar route to show only the brilliant part of a brilliant liar and show his work with sympathy rather than with criticism. This is why many gangster films are frowned upon because they show the bad guys as heroes and a product of their circumstances.

In the case of The Man Who Loved UFOs, Jose wasn't a slave to his circumstances; he did what he did for money and fame. But the film somehow tries to make him the victim of fame rather than the people whose trust was broken. The most peculiar part of the film is to show Jose being taken away by a UFO while his daughter and other bystanders marvel at the spacecraft.

It's unclear what the makers wanted to achieve with this ending, because the real José de Zer died in a hospital on April 2, 1997, suffering from Parkinson's disease and esophageal cancer. Years later, it was found that his reporting was fake and manufactured to fool the public.

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The Man Who Loved UFOs is available for streaming on Netflix. It's a good one-time watch, but do not expect an accurate biographical portrayal.