#47-B: INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1978)

THRILL SCALE 1-10

9.5

HAVE I SEEN IT BEFORE?

Never

BEST SEQUENCE

The final scene of the movie

BEST LINE

Honestly nothing really stood out, so I'll just go with the very last thing that Donald Sutherland says

ROTTEN TOMATOES SCORE

93%

ROTTEN TOMATOES CRITICS CONSENSUS

"Employing gritty camerawork and evocative sound effects, Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a powerful remake that expands upon themes and ideas only lightly explored in the original."

IMDB SYNOPSIS

"When strange seeds drift to earth from space, mysterious pods begin to grow and invade San Francisco, replicating the city's residents one body at a time."

DIRECTOR

Philip Kaufman

MAIN CAST

Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Jeff Goldblum, Veronica Cartwright, Leonard Nimoy

THOUGHTS

• Alas, this is another time when the scariest, most impactful part of the movie had its impact somewhat lessened because I was not just aware of it, but expecting it, despite this being my first viewing. Still gave me shivers, and great execution, but I can hardly imagine what the effect would have been if it caught me completely by surprise (and hence my somewhat vague descriptions above)
• I mentioned in my review of the '56 Body Snatchers that I expected more paranoia and uncertainty, and there was indeed a little more of what I expected in this movie, but still not quite at the level I anticipated. I guess John Carpenter's The Thing really is the place to go for the ultimate in sci-fi paranoid alien horror
• Loved the special effects. Packed a wallop in a somewhat cheap, no frills sort of way, and I mean that as a compliment. The simplicity of the special effects made them feel more real and more convincing, somewhat ironically. And it's impressive how much spookiness was added just through dim lighting and wonky camera angles
• There's even a moment when we see a dog with a human face that was clearly achieved by just putting a mask on a dog. Pretty silly looking, but utterly bizarre and filmed with a sincerity that still kind of sticks with you
• At times it struck me with more of a zombie movie vibe than sci-fi horror, especially in the crowd and chase scenes. Lots of overlap between the two genres here
• Finally, I thought all the performances were great, especially the leads. Sutherland has a kind of eerie, haunted vibe about him right from the get-go, with his pale blue eyes and long face, and Brooke Adams is winning and sympathetic. This was also one of Jeff Goldblum's first major roles, and he brings his classic Goldblum-ness to it - quirky and twitchy and wholly convincing as a man whose entire world is coming unravelled (and godDAMN was he attractive back then)

Up next: It's another big one, and the first appearance of Stephen King on the official AFI list (and the first time we've talked about Stephen King since Pet Sematary made an appearance on the readers' choice list almost exactly a year ago, last Dec. 28th). Up next is Carrie from 1976