Preview

A private preview promises to deliver something far more radical than another polished Hollywood production. Mr. Scanlon, an unnervingly confident promoter, gathers a small group of critics and urges them to witness a new kind of realism—one stripped of romance, convention, and every familiar theatrical illusion. His star, Stella, is presented as the perfect embodiment of this philosophy: natural, unadorned, and ready to transform the screen.

At first, the film appears to be an expertly crafted Western, complete with rugged landscapes, heroic riders, and startlingly lifelike sound. Then the scene begins to fracture. An impossible figure intrudes, the setting seems to shift beneath the audience’s eyes, and Stella undergoes a change no actress could perform through ordinary cinematic technique. As Mr. Scanlon disappears without explanation, the baffled spectators are left to wonder whether they have witnessed a technical triumph, an alien intrusion, or something even more disturbing. This brief science-fiction tale turns moviegoing into a confrontation with realities humanity may not be prepared to see.