Character Relationship Map: UFOria

Characters

• Brother Bud Sanders (played by Harry Dean Stanton) — supporting

  Sheldon's old friend and a big-time con man involved in faith healing and fencing stolen cars. He unexpectedly develops a genuine healing ability and later manipulates Arlene's UFO visions to establis...

• Arlene Stewart (played by Cindy Williams) — supporting

  A local supermarket clerk who is deeply religious, lonely, and firmly believes in UFOs. She experiences a vision of an approaching UFO, which becomes a focal point that others react to differently, in...

• Sheldon Bart (played by Fred Ward) — supporting

  A drifter and small-time con man who reunites with his old friend Brother Bud. While assisting Bud, he falls in love with Arlene Stewart.

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Brother Bud Sanders → Arlene Stewart (Power Manipulator) — Bud exploits Arlene's religious and UFO beliefs to increase his influence.

  Brother Bud twists Arlene's belief and visions into a new pseudoreligious cult.

• Sheldon Bart → Arlene Stewart (Romantic Love Interest) — Sheldon develops romantic feelings for Arlene after meeting her in the small town.

  The plot explicitly states that Sheldon falls in love with Arlene.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Sheldon Bart → Brother Bud Sanders (Social Old Friend) — Sheldon and Bud have an established friendship from before the events of the film.

  The plot states that Sheldon meets his old friend, Brother Bud Sanders, at Bud's revival tent.

Story Analysis

A drifter's love for a lonely UFO believer becomes entangled with his friend's transformation of her vision into a pseudoreligious cult.

Plot Progression

1. The Drifter Returns — Sheldon, a drifter and small-time con man, reaches Bud's revival tent outside a small town. He reunites with his old friend and begins helping with Bud's activities.
2. The Impossible Healing — Bud is revealed as a con man involved in faith healing and fencing stolen cars. His situation becomes stranger when he develops a genuine ability to heal without understanding its source.
3. A Lonely Believer — Sheldon meets Arlene, a local supermarket clerk who is deeply religious, lonely, and convinced that UFOs exist. Sheldon falls in love with her.
4. The Coming UFO — Arlene experiences a vision of a coming UFO. The vision becomes a focus through which Sheldon, Bud, and Arlene respond differently.
5. A Manufactured Faith — Bud twists Arlene's belief and visions into a new pseudoreligious cult. Her personal vision is transformed into the foundation of Bud's larger religious enterprise.