Invasion of the Body Snatchers

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Dave 10/18/2022 It was a blast to see this classic film on the big screen. It's a perfect creepy movie for Halloween season. I would have given the review five stars but the theater I saw it in chose to turn on the lights during the last five minutes of the film which ruined the atmosphere completely. See more Christopher R @RT33320041 5d A phenomenal, thought-provoking film with a horrifying concept. See more Noel L @RT15930389 Jan 19 What a crazy thriller where you never know he can trust See more V H @Theemrvern Nov 13 Great movie. It’s a sci fi so it still works in this day and age albeit black and white. See more Ted B. @Movieaddicted Nov 12 4.0 stars; One of the top classic sci-fi films of all time. Its release was in the era of the big Red Scare, i.e. McCarthyism. The plot was pretty much an allegory of those times. I saw the original release, and it left me shaken after leaving the theater. The story was very original in concept and was very scary on the big screen. The opening scene of Kevin McCarthy running down the freeway screaming, "They're coming to get you, they're coming to get us all!" is one of the most harrowing openings to a motion picture ever. The original release is by far the best. See more Kevin P @RT55971421 Nov 4 A very fun and exciting noir-inspired sci-fi horror classic that holds up a lot better than I anticipated for a 1950's B-movie. The main premise is very iconic and creative, with aliens replacing people with plant pod mimics. The rules get a bit jumbled, but the stakes are reasoned early on and keep you on the edge of your seat the entire runtime. I love the opening scene with Kevin McCarthy’s character desperately trying to warn everyone at the asylum was great in a "how did we get to this point?" Prologue flash forward before to move kicks off. It's some great acting and really sets the urgency in fast. Kevin McCarthy's character is very likable and shares great chemistry with the female lead. They both contribute the main theme of emotional perseverance, as they both rekindle their high school romance after each recuperating from separate divorces of their own. The film has solid pacing, with the subtle buildup of people acting out of ordinary and characters gradually investigating to realize it's an alien replacement invasion. There's a real battle of wills between peaceful conformity vs the preservation of the emotion that truly makes us human. It's fun trying to guess who's an alien/pod person mimic, and who's still normal. The climax is great, with all the creepy crowds congregating in unison, like some sort of hivemind. All culminating in an exciting case scene across the desert, into the cave, and out onto the highway with one final plea for help. The Hays Code forced a happier ending, but even then it still ends with an exciting cliffhanger that makes you want to watch a Part 2 that will never happen. There are Cold War parallels that could be easily interpreted as with fear of influence on the American people from both communism ("the other") and McCarthyism (from within). But the main theme is about continuing to keep our humanity, desires, ambitions, and emotional connections despite all the harshness that life throws at us. So, one could even argue the pods are a metaphor for mental trials, such as depression, cynicism apathy, or even nihilism. While the film is still clearly from another era, it holds up better than you'd expect and is easily one of the best sci-fi/horror movies of the 1950's. See more Read all reviews

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

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