| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
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Guy Stockwell | ... |
Harry
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| Susan Oliver | ... |
Barbara
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| Larry Storch | ... |
Colonel Stutz
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| Avery Schreiber | ... |
Max
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| Sherry Jackson | ... |
Mona
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Shepperd Strudwick | ... |
Tersh Jeterax
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| Keenan Wynn | ... |
General
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| Ed Begley | ... |
President
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J.J. Barry | ... |
Culp
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Martin Harvey Friedberg | ... |
Newt
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Sid Grossfeld | ... |
Gate Guard
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Burt Heyman | ... |
Fink
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Helen Malone | ... |
Mrs. Jordan
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| Mike Nussbaum | ... |
Exercise Chief
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Murphy Dunne | ... |
Monitor Driver
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Unusual sci-fi invasion film, with a black-comedy twist: The Earth is taken over by The Monitors, aliens who run it like hall monitors in a 1950's high school, with overtones of Big Brother. The film follows the progress of the human underground rebellion. The twist is that as the film goes on, the audience's sympathies shift to the aliens, who are basically benevolent. When the humans manage to oust them, it's back to corruption and bribery by the usual suspects. Written by Phil Olenick <prolenik@world.std.com>
I saw this on TV back in the 70s. A comic twist on a classic SF theme, made on a shoestring in Chicago. I think some of the Second City troupe was involved in it. I don't remember how it ends, so I can't spoil it. The part that tickled me the most were the constant radio ads the Monitors ran. They sounded exactly like the AM radio station ID jingles of the 60s and 70s. One went "The Monitors are here/There's nothing left to fear/The Monitors!" (I know, hard to translate into print, but it had the same saccharine harmonies that top 40 jingles had.) I don't recall exactly how they conquered the Earth--there was no bloodshed. Maybe those jingles had subliminal messages! I also remember seeing a riot in progress, and the Monitors sending a car with a PA system that said "Reason, not force. Reason, not force." It was kind of like very polite cops running the world. The Monitors were very nice folks, but a little too naive. Would love to see it again.