Except for a pretty darn good amount of people on the internet. Such as James Rolfe. And Chuck Dowling.
Eh, screw it.
I'm in my fourth year of doing this. Yes, I'm as surprised (and slightly disappointed) as you are. Over the years, I've felt that this has become slim pickings for me, at least in terms of providing quality entertainment for which to write about. Still, the advent of streaming sites, assorted video hosting services, and good books will always help keep my interest piqued and my passion fiery. So let's dive in, shall we? And for those of you who are new to my yearly tradition, I say welcome! I always welcome feedback, comments, and your own thoughts.
In the small town of Santa Mira, California, doctor Miles Bennell has been receiving an unusual amount of strange complaints and calls from patients, all based around the same peculiar observation: the claim that their loved ones aren't themselves. Though they may still physically resemble the same individuals, the emotions of these people are seemingly stagnant. Some initially dismiss it as "mass hysteria," but the good doctor has his reservations. Soon, he slowly unravels a horrifying extraterrestrial-based plot that aims to replicate and replace every human being in the world.
My first exposure to this now-classic science fiction/horror piece came from two different, although eerily similar sources. First, there was the Looney Tunes short "Invasion of the Bunny Snatchers," which you can still watch at this link. The second was a short from the comic books based on "The Simpsons" entitled "Immigration of the Body Snatchers," which you can read at your local comic book shop…hey, I was a weird kid, okay? Either way you slice it, I was very familiar with the original source material, although I had never actually sat down to watch it in its entirety.
Which is a damn shame, especially considering how well and still effective a movie like Invasion of the Body Snatchers really is. For starters, it is brilliant in its simplicity. The idea of all living creatures, be they bipedal homo sapiens or other specimens, being replaced by soulless, emotionless, and "blank" aliens, is a concept that could truly worry any rational-thinking person on the planet. If you were absolutely convinced that such an act were occurring, but felt that nobody would listen to you and that there was no easy way out from this madness, wouldn't you too go a little mad? Invasion plays exactly like an old serial, or even an old short from a comic book. Oddly, neither of those provides the source material for this particular film (that belongs to the novel The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney), but head honcho Don Siegel, later of Dirty Harry fame, directs this script (adapted by Daniel Mainwaring) with an honest-to-god seriousness and overwhelming sense of paranoia, and it isn't hard to see why it is held in such high regard all of these years later. Oddly enough, the movie was primarily shunned upon its release, which I can only assume was due to the abundance of "heebie jeebies" films being released throughout the decade.
While Siegel is certainly a good director, and composer Carmen Dragon (yes, that's really his name) weaves together a pretty outstanding score (keep an ear open when watching the Looney Tunes homage I discussed above), I feel like one of my main gripes lies in something that has just always been a pet peeve of mine. Invasion of the Body Snatchers' acting can be quite hokey at times, even if a large portion of it is mostly confined to parts of the first act. Don't get me wrong, Kevin McCarthy is FANTASTIC as Dr. Miles Bennell, and Larry Gates and King Donovan (how badass of a name is that?) are enjoyable as two of his confidants who discover this horrible breach in their mostly-secluded community. The others? Well, Dana Wynter is a classic 1950s beauty, but I thought she could have expressed a little more emotion here and there (I'm not enough of a scumbag to make a joke in relation to the title), primarily because of her decision to take on the pivotal role of Bennell's ex-girlfriend who is stuck in the middle of this horrible conspiracy after returning home to discover her cousin's uncle acting rather odd himself. I'm sorry if it sounds blasphemous, but while I certainly respect an immense amount of actors and actresses from this time period, most of their methods and performances just don't seem to click with me the way that some of the more prominent roles from the mid-60s and onward do. Besides, Wynter's American accent begins to slip towards the end. And I'm a real nitpicking jerk when that type of stuff happens.
My assholery aside, the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers is one of those stories that can stand the test of time and be told, updated, or reinterpreted while still never losing its primary themes or failing to creep out the audience. Its message on the fear of conformity, especially in a post-war period or tragic timeline, or even the grievances of disgusting tactics began by McCarthyism (which in short, is a form of witch hunting through defamation) can resonate with most cinephiles. There's also the metaphor of sleeper agents lying in wait to get us when we are at our most vulnerable (perhaps the fear of falling asleep played one of several influences on a young Wes Craven), which can still be felt today with such shows as The Americans and movies like Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Most importantly, you could also choose to just view it as a good science fiction story, and enjoy it all the more (though I personally could have done without the seemingly forced prologue and epilogue). After all, they've only remade this THREE FRIGGIN' TIMES since its release, though you can probably skip the last of the three mentioned.
And heck, I don't think that the title "The Capgras Delusion" would have helped garner as much attention anyway.
Tomorrow, we're going to make things slimy, as I begin a brief foray into the realm of bugs (and sequels!) with Mimic 2!
