Invasion of the Body Snatchers Film Review
Invasion of the Body Snatchers has long been considered one of the greatest remakes of all time. The original film, created in 1956, is equal to this film's greatness. What makes this movie so incredible is not the aliens or the chase scenes, but rather the subtlety and paranoia that goes along with the realization that your world is crumbling around you.
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This film opens with images of deep space and gelatinous creatures leaving their planet to go to a new one. Once they enter Earth, many of them fall on plant leaves, which results in pink flowers with small pods sprouting up everywhere. These flowers have the capability to duplicate a human, especially while he or she sleeps. The original human, if asleep, will eventually perish and turn into dust. These aliens are not flashy nor are they really violent or inhumane, instead they are more like worker bees, efficient and just wanting their population to survive. Many characters resist being duplicated and the main character, Matthew Bennell (Donald Sutherland) leads his friends throughout the city of San Francisco in order to avoid the aliens.
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Again, there is nothing flashy about this movie; what it relies on is a much more quiet and philosophical idea. If you woke up tomorrow morning and the person you love was cold, blunted, and clearly not themselves, you would naturally be worried. Now imagine that not only your significant other, but also others around you are beginning to act the same way. Naturally you would freak out and other people may find you crazy. It is the experience of losing control and not being sure whether or not you are actually crazy that makes this movie horrifying. Not to mention these aliens, referred to as pods, make a terrifying shriek when they see someone who is still human, which is an effective way to warn all the aliens around that there is fresh meat.
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I honestly can’t think of any negatives with this film. The characters are realistic and smart when it comes to dire situations that take quick thinking. If I was in this movie, I can’t imagine doing anything different than what these characters did. The ending of this movie is by far one of the best endings I have ever seen in a horror movie. If you like movies that are subtle and have many different levels, then this movie is for you. If you are a slave to pyrotechnics, flash, and crazy graphics, then this movie probably isn’t for you. Horror island welcomes the pods with open arms. No matter what season you visit horror island, it appears there will always be an abundance of pink flowers blossoming. Whatever you do - don’t touch, smell, or fall asleep near one.
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If you liked Invasion of the Body Snatchers, you might also like Dark Skies or The Thing.