Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Director: Philip Kaufman
Cast: Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Jeff Goldblum
Reviewed by Brian M. Sammons
This is the rare remake that is better than the original. Yes, the 1956 Invasion of the Body Snatchers is great, a classic, but this one does kick it up a notch or two. The paranoia is more palpable, the invaders are more coldly alien, the effects are amazing, the acting is wonderful by a who’s who of 1970s actors, the direction is impeccable, and oh my god, that dog with the man’s face on it. That still gives me nightmares to this day. The original is a thought provoking sci-fi movie that has stood the test to time. This one, the first remake (but in no way the last – two more, far lesser redo’s would follow) is that too, but it’s more. It’s one of the most frightening films ever made, so despite its outer space origins, it’s as horror with a capital H as any flick about vampires, ghosts, psychos, et al. And now it has gotten the two disc collector’s edition treatment from Scream Factory. So how did the premiere horror label treat this awesome movie? Well let’s find out, but whatever you do, don’t fall asleep.
Now even if you’ve never seen this movie, you know the story, it’s that much a part of the culture now. In short, aliens are among us, slowly taking over people one by one and replacing them with perfect doubles. They could be anyone: your friends, your family, and there’s no way of knowing. Worse yet, they’re inescapable as they replace you when you sleep, and everyone needs to sleep sometime. I would say not since Freddy has horror been so inescapable, but this movie predates A Nightmare on Elm Street by quite a few years, and the original by a few decades. Speaking of the original, while in the 50s the story was a parable about the encroaching evils of communism. In this movie it plays out more like a dark take on the “I’m okay, you’re okay” psychobabble of the 1970s. If the excellent story and great direction weren’t enough, the film is populated with fine actors that were either stars at the time or soon would be. I’m talking about Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Jeff Goldblum, Veronica Cartwright, Leonard Nimoy, and even cameos by Robert Duvall and the original whistleblower on the invasion, Kevin McCarthy. That’s a whole lot of star power right there. Furthermore, it is chock-full of great suspense moments, one truly great WTF scene involving an old man and his dog, and one of the most memorable and frightening endings in all of cinema. So yeah, the movie is golden, but how is the new Blu-ray release from Scream Factory?
Well first there are two commentary tracks here: one is with director Philip Kaufman and the other is with author and film historian Steve Haberman. There is an interview with star Brooke Adams that runs nine minutes, and another with fellow actor Art Hindle that’s 25 minutes long. There is another interview with W.D. Richter, who wrote the screenplay, that’s just under 16 minutes, and yet another interview with Denny Zeitlin who did the music in the movie that’s over 15 minutes. There is a 16 minute making-of featurette about the remake, and a featurette about the special effects behind the iconic and infamous pods and pod people which is four minutes. There is a nearly 13 minute long featurette about the sound design and effects, and a five minute one on the cinematography. Trailers, TV spots, and a photo gallery are also on this impressively packed disc. Last but in no way least, there is a 25 minute short that appeared on the classic Science Fiction Theater called “Time is Just a Place” that was written by Jack Finney, the man who wrote the original Invasion of the Body Snatcher novel. That’s a whole lot of bang for the buck.
This version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers is must-watch, must-own cinema, and this is the version to have of this amazing movie. Scream Factory has once more knocked one way out of the park, so do yourself a favor and get this new Blu-ray release when it comes out August 2nd. This is very highly recommended.
