They Live

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2:00

They Live

R

1988

1h 33m

Sci-Fi

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

86%

Tomatometer

76 Reviews

80%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

Nada (Roddy Piper), a wanderer without meaning in his life, discovers a pair of sunglasses capable of showing the world the way it truly is. As he walks the streets of Los Angeles, Nada notices that both the media and the government are comprised of subliminal messages meant to keep the population subdued, and that most of the social elite are skull-faced aliens bent on world domination. With this shocking discovery, Nada fights to free humanity from the mind-controlling aliens.

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Critics Consensus

A politically subversive blend of horror and sci fi, They Live is an underrated genre film from John Carpenter.

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Chris Bennion

The Times (UK)

02/02/2024

It is a big, silly barrel of fun, with a delirious, tongue-in-cheek script...

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Phil Hoad

Guardian

10/25/2018

4/5

The film was was responding to the start of the US rust belt and Reagan-era consumerism, but its themes of working-class subjugation and omnipresent media control have only become more pressing.

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Jason Bailey

Flavorwire

02/17/2017

Carpenter's primary objective was to make a tough action flick, which he does; it fits snugly into his filmography's subset of urban mayhem movies (alongside 'Escape from New York,' 'Assault on Precinct 13,' and parts of 'Big Trouble in Little China').

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Richard Freedman

Newark Star-Ledger

4d

0/4

Swamped in cliches and bone-weary with lack of inspiration, "They Live" is a sad science-fiction comedown for director John Carpenter.

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John Ferguson

Radio Times

09/13/2024

3/5

Piper handles the action scenes better than he deals with dialogue, but he is well supported by Keith David and Meg Foster.

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Dennis Harvey

48 Hills

10/16/2023

[It] provides moments of catharsis, not to mention a measure of gloating-at-somebody-else’s-trainwreck satisfaction.

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12/29/2023

one of the best movies ever made probably more true than we know

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06/22/2022

A True Classic that rings true today.

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nick s

@Nick_S Dec 30

A little trashy but at the same time not bad for a low budget action flick. The lead wasn't a great choice for a serious movie but fitted with the so bad it's good vibe of this one. Every aspect of the production is B grade 80s quality.

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Davide l

Dec 29

Unmissable classic in the panorama relevant in our dystopian hypnagogic contemporary insanity masquerading as normality.

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Ayan K

Dec 29

The movie is worth watching, I truly enjoyed it. It is even more worth watching in 2025, 2026 or later!

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MAURICIO M

@Macedomj Dec 25

um dos meu filmes favoritos que inspirou um dos meu jogos favoritos duke nuken 3dum dos meu filmes favoritos que inspirou um dos meu jogos favoritos duke nuken 3d

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John Carpenter

Director

Roddy Piper

Nada

Keith David

Frank

Meg Foster

Holly

George "Buck" Flower

Drifter

Peter Jason

Gilbert

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They Live: Trailer 1

2:00

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Synopsis

Nada (Roddy Piper), a wanderer without meaning in his life, discovers a pair of sunglasses capable of showing the world the way it truly is. As he walks the streets of Los Angeles, Nada notices that both the media and the government are comprised of subliminal messages meant to keep the population subdued, and that most of the social elite are skull-faced aliens bent on world domination. With this shocking discovery, Nada fights to free humanity from the mind-controlling aliens.

Director: John Carpenter
Producer: Larry J. Franco
Screenwriter: John Carpenter
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Alive Films, Larry Franco Productions
Rating: R
Genre: Sci-Fi
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 23, 1988, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Sep 3, 2023
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 5, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $12.3M
Runtime: 1h 33m
Sound Mix: Surround

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