A small-town doctor learns that the population of his community is being replaced by emotionless alien duplicates.A small-town doctor learns that the population of his community is being replaced by emotionless alien duplicates.A small-town doctor learns that the population of his community is being replaced by emotionless alien duplicates.
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
47K
YOUR RATING
- Director
- Writers
- Daniel Mainwaring(screenplay)
- Jack Finney(Collier's magazine serial)
- Richard Collins(uncredited)
- Stars
Top credits
- Director
- Writers
- Daniel Mainwaring(screenplay)
- Jack Finney(Collier's magazine serial)
- Richard Collins(uncredited)
- Stars
- Awards
- 2 wins
Videos2
- Director
- Writers
- Daniel Mainwaring(screenplay)
- Jack Finney(Collier's magazine serial)
- Richard Collins(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- See more cast details at IMDbPro
Storyline
Dr. Miles Bennell returns to his small town practice to find several of his patients suffering the paranoid delusion that their friends or relatives are impostors. He is initially skeptical, especially when the alleged doppelgangers are able to answer detailed questions about their victim's lives, but he is eventually persuaded that something odd has happened and determines to find out what is causing this phenomenon. —Mark Thompson <mrt@oasis.icl.co.uk>
- Taglines
- The original Black & White classic
- Genres
- Certificate
- Approved
- Parents guide
Did you know
- TriviaKevin McCarthy and author Jack Finney have always denied the rumor that the story is a statement against McCarthyism and Communism; they just saw it as a thriller. Director Don Siegel, however, believes that the political references to Sen. Joseph McCarthy and totalitarianism are inescapable, even though he tried not to emphasize them.
- GoofsNear the end of the movie, Becky falls asleep for an instant and wakes up as a "pod person." This contradicts the entire premise of the rest of the movie, in which humans are physically being replaced by "pod person" duplicates. (The 1978 version resolved this plot hole).
- Quotes
Dr. Miles J. Bennell: They're here already! You're next! You're next, You're next...!
- Crazy creditsTHE END comes up on the final shot of the film of Miles looking relieved that Dr Hill has believed his story, and is calling the FBI about the alien invasion of Santa Mira.
- Alternate versionsOriginally released at 80 minutes; reissued in 1979 at 76 minutes, deleting the studio-imposed prologue and epilogue starring Whit Bissel and Richard Deacon.
- ConnectionsEdited into The Giant Claw (1957)
Top review
Excellent genre film with intellectual subtexts
Dr. Miles J. Bennell (Kevin McCarthy) is called back to his small California home early from a conference because a number of his patients have been frantically asking to see him. But oddly, when he returns home, most forget about their unspecified needs. At the same time, it seems that a mass hysteria is building where residents believe that friends and loved ones are "not themselves", literally. Just what is going on? As of this writing, it has been more than twenty years since I have seen the 1978 remake of this film, so I can't compare the two at the moment. However, it would have to be flawless to top this, the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
The sole factor that caused me to give the film less than a ten was the pacing during portions of the first half hour or so. While it's not bad, exactly, director Don Siegel does not build atmosphere and tension as effectively as he might have while the viewer is being filled in on the necessary exposition. Admittedly, this section is directed in a standard way for its era, but "standard" here is enough to subtract a point.
However, once we reach Miles' friend Jack Belicec (King Donovan) discovering a body on his billiard table, the suspense and tension gradually increase, and the remainder of the film is a very solid ten.
The literal "weapon" of the film's horror could have easily come across as cheesy, but it doesn't. Don Post and Milt Rice's special make-up effects and props are threateningly eerie. The transformation sequences involving the props are beautifully shot and edited--showing just enough to make them effective, but not so much that the mystery is gone.
It was ingenious to create a story where a whole town gradually turns into a villain, and even natural, unavoidable biological functions threaten our heroes' destruction. In conjunction, it all creates an intense sense of claustrophobia and paranoia for the audience.
McCarthy and Dana Wynter, as Miles' girlfriend Becky Driscoll, expertly convey a gradual transformation from common citizens to panic-stricken, desperate victims on the run. The film is also notable for slightly ahead-of-its time portrayals of relationships and divorce.
Much has been said about the parallels between Invasion of the Body Snatchers and the "communist paranoia" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, especially as it was directed against Hollywood by the House of Un-American Activities Committee. (And how ironic that the star of Invasion of the Body Snatchers is named McCarthy?) However, there is another very interesting subtext present that isn't so often mentioned. The film can also be looked at as a philosophical exploration of personal identity. Just what does it take for people to be themselves? Is it how they look, act, the things they say? Is it not the case that people are constantly transformed into something they weren't just hours ago, or even moments ago? Among the many ways that these kinds of ideas are worked into the script is that sleep is a metaphor for unconscious physical change over time. It would be easy to analyze each scene in the film in this manner, going into detail about the various implications each plot development has on the matter of personal identity.
Despite the slight pacing/atmosphere flaw in the beginning, this is a gem of a film, not just for sci-fi and horror fans, and not just for its era. It's worth seeing by anyone with a serious interest in film, and can be enjoyed either on its suspenseful surface level, or more in-depth by those who want to look at the film as more metaphorical material for societal and philosophical concerns.
The sole factor that caused me to give the film less than a ten was the pacing during portions of the first half hour or so. While it's not bad, exactly, director Don Siegel does not build atmosphere and tension as effectively as he might have while the viewer is being filled in on the necessary exposition. Admittedly, this section is directed in a standard way for its era, but "standard" here is enough to subtract a point.
However, once we reach Miles' friend Jack Belicec (King Donovan) discovering a body on his billiard table, the suspense and tension gradually increase, and the remainder of the film is a very solid ten.
The literal "weapon" of the film's horror could have easily come across as cheesy, but it doesn't. Don Post and Milt Rice's special make-up effects and props are threateningly eerie. The transformation sequences involving the props are beautifully shot and edited--showing just enough to make them effective, but not so much that the mystery is gone.
It was ingenious to create a story where a whole town gradually turns into a villain, and even natural, unavoidable biological functions threaten our heroes' destruction. In conjunction, it all creates an intense sense of claustrophobia and paranoia for the audience.
McCarthy and Dana Wynter, as Miles' girlfriend Becky Driscoll, expertly convey a gradual transformation from common citizens to panic-stricken, desperate victims on the run. The film is also notable for slightly ahead-of-its time portrayals of relationships and divorce.
Much has been said about the parallels between Invasion of the Body Snatchers and the "communist paranoia" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, especially as it was directed against Hollywood by the House of Un-American Activities Committee. (And how ironic that the star of Invasion of the Body Snatchers is named McCarthy?) However, there is another very interesting subtext present that isn't so often mentioned. The film can also be looked at as a philosophical exploration of personal identity. Just what does it take for people to be themselves? Is it how they look, act, the things they say? Is it not the case that people are constantly transformed into something they weren't just hours ago, or even moments ago? Among the many ways that these kinds of ideas are worked into the script is that sleep is a metaphor for unconscious physical change over time. It would be easy to analyze each scene in the film in this manner, going into detail about the various implications each plot development has on the matter of personal identity.
Despite the slight pacing/atmosphere flaw in the beginning, this is a gem of a film, not just for sci-fi and horror fans, and not just for its era. It's worth seeing by anyone with a serious interest in film, and can be enjoyed either on its suspenseful surface level, or more in-depth by those who want to look at the film as more metaphorical material for societal and philosophical concerns.
helpful•10316
- BrandtSponseller
- Feb 1, 2005
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Walter Wanger's Invasion of the Body Snatchers
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $417,000 (estimated)
- Gross worldwide
- $1,861
- Runtime
- 1h 20min
- Color
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