Film Review: Star People
Directed by Adam Finberg
Starring Kat Cunning, McCabe Slye, Connor Paolo, Eddie Martinez, Bradley Fisher, Adriana Aluna Martinez
In Theaters July 25 | VOD Nationwide August 12
★★★★☆
By Valerie Milano
Los Angeles, CA (The Hollywood Times) 7/22/25 – Adam Finberg’s debut feature Star People arrives like a heat shimmer on the horizon—beautiful, elusive, and brimming with the kind of yearning that haunts long after the credits roll. Rooted in the infamous 1997 Phoenix Lights mass UFO sighting, Finberg’s atmospheric, character-driven sci-fi drama reimagines that night sky event through the lens of trauma, obsession, and the ache for connection. It’s a story that doesn’t just look to the stars, but deep into the hearts of those who’ve lost something they’re still trying to name.
At the center is Claire (played with aching sensitivity by Kat Cunning), a photographer who, as a child, witnessed the Phoenix Lights and never quite let go. Now an adult, she’s returned to the desert landscape with her UFO-obsessed boyfriend (Connor Paolo, quietly unnerving) and troubled brother (McCabe Slye, searing and unpredictable) in tow. Their mission: to capture the lights again—if they were ever real at all. But when the trio encounters a vulnerable immigrant family stranded in the brutal desert, Claire’s search for extraterrestrial truth collides with a far more urgent terrestrial reality.
In speaking with The Hollywood Times, Finberg revealed that this story has been with him for decades. “I grew up in Phoenix,” he said, “and that night in 1997—the Phoenix Lights—just stuck with me. I knew people who saw them. It was deeply emotional for them, not just sensational. I wanted to tell a story that honored that sense of mystery, but also one grounded in real emotional stakes.”
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Finberg’s Arizona roots are felt in every frame. The film treats the desert not as a barren void but as an echo chamber of memory and meaning. The terrain, shot with both reverence and dread, becomes its own character—cruel, majestic, and quietly alive. “I’ve always felt Arizona hasn’t gotten the cinematic attention it deserves,” Finberg shared. “It’s a state of contradictions—gorgeous and punishing—and that duality fit the tone of Star People perfectly.”
Though Finberg’s previous work has largely been in documentary—his 2015 exposé The Business of Recovery received national attention—his leap into narrative storytelling feels seamless. That’s in large part due to his ability to build intimacy within large-scale themes. Star People may center on a UFO mystery, but it is deeply concerned with human pain: addiction, alienation, grief, and the private languages of families on the edge.
That same sense of nuance drove Finberg’s casting of Kat Cunning in the lead role. “When I saw their audition tape, even through Zoom, they just jumped off the screen,” Finberg recalled. “They had this rare ability to convey obsession and fragility all at once. We built trust, and they gave this incredibly raw, honest performance.”
And indeed, Cunning brings Claire to life with a quiet, bruised determination. They never play her as a victim, but as someone constantly grappling with the pull between past and present, between hope and delusion. Their performance is the film’s emotional anchor, drawing viewers into Claire’s disoriented sense of purpose as she confronts the unknown—out there and within herself.
The supporting cast is equally strong. Connor Paolo plays against type as a wannabe streamer whose motivations feel increasingly murky, while McCabe Slye channels a dangerous volatility that keeps the story taut. Eddie Martinez, Bradley Fisher, and Adriana Aluna Martinez round out a cast that feels lived-in and emotionally authentic.
What also makes Star People stand apart is how deftly it blends its genre influences. This isn’t just another UFO thriller—it’s a film more interested in why we look to the skies than what we might find there. “I grew up during the era of Carl Sagan, the Voyager missions, before we had the Hubble and these incredible images of the universe,” Finberg said. “There was this sense of wonder and discovery that really shaped me. But I also wanted to explore the very human stories—the ones we often ignore while looking up.”
Those human stories are never more evident than in the film’s haunting middle act, where the arrival of a family of immigrants—a mother and her young child, dehydrated and lost—turns Claire’s personal quest into a moral one. It’s here that the film finds its clearest voice, refusing to draw easy lines between salvation and selfishness. The literal desert heat may be draining, but it’s the emotional temperature that truly scalds.
Finberg credits distributor Blue Harbor Entertainment with helping ensure the film didn’t get lost in the noise. “They really connected with the material,” he said. “With indie films, that kind of support is everything. They helped put it in front of the right people.”
Despite its modest scale, Star People feels epic in ambition. It reaches for the cosmic while keeping its feet firmly planted in the real—a tonal balance that recalls the emotional depth of Contact or Midnight Special, rather than standard alien-abduction fare. And for all its intrigue and intensity, it never loses sight of its central question: What do we do with the things we cannot explain?
For those expecting a conventional UFO movie, Finberg offers a quiet challenge: “Go in with an open mind,” he said. “The best stories surprise you. The most compelling science fiction has a strong human core—and that’s what this film is really about.”
With its soulful performances, arresting visuals, and poignant emotional core, Star People is a quietly riveting debut from a filmmaker with something urgent—and deeply personal—to say. Adam Finberg doesn’t just ask us to look up; he asks us to look inward.
Rating: ★★★★☆ (4 out of 5 stars)
Where to Watch:
In Theaters – July 25
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Cinema Village (New York)
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Harkins Theatres: Arrowhead (Peoria), Fashion Center 20 (Chandler), Shea (Scottsdale), Superstition Springs (Mesa)
Los Angeles – August 8
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Laemmle Royal
VOD Nationwide – August 12
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Apple, Amazon, and all major digital platforms
Trailer: Watch here
