Sam thought Noah might be the one, because he is also a fireman, but he turned out to be another lying dog of a good-for-nothing man. To cheer her up, and to celebrate Shannon’s homecoming, Dianne organizes a desert resort weekend. She has the horndog owner Cody eating out of the palm of her hand, so he comps them a bonus off-road excursion. Unfortunately, during their desert exploration, a mysterious force cuts off all cell service, GPS, and radio contact.
Given their limited provisions, the trio seeks shelter at the nearest man-made outpost, an old government radio-satellite installation converted into an airplane graveyard, which serves as the headquarters for “A.K.A.,” a conspiracy podcaster with a taste for questionable hip hop. Whatever happened, he sort of expected it. However, he cannot broadcast his scoop or call for help, because of the alien interference. Shannon might be able to restore communications, but fighting off the interstellar predators will be a tricker proposition.
Even by B-movie standards, Milla had to make do with a tragically tight budget constraint. The effects are conspicuous cut-rate, yet lack the cheesy charm of MST3K fodder. The alien invasion business is also rather uninspired. Pretty much the only positive for Milla and Damien Douglas’s screenplay is the sympathetic depictions of veterans and firefighters (arguably including Noah, who tries to redeem himself). Regardless, it takes Milla forever to get the film going, devoting the full first act to boring exposition.
Why is it called “Onyx?” It is a reference to some double-secret government project, but do you really even care? The five principals (including Sean Riggs as Noah) do their best to maintain a high level of energy, but the film’s level of intelligence is always pretty dumb. Nowhere near sufficiently entertaining to recommend, Onyx is now streaming on BET+.
