Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

A small-town doctor learns that the population of his community is being replaced by emotionless alien duplicates.

Director:

Don Siegel

Writers:

Daniel Mainwaring (screenplay), Jack Finney (Collier's magazine serial)

Stars:

Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter, Larry Gates

2 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kevin McCarthy	...	Dr. Miles J. Bennell
Dana Wynter	...	Becky Driscoll
Larry Gates	...	Dr. Dan 'Danny' Kauffman
King Donovan	...	Jack Belicec
Carolyn Jones	...	Theodora 'Teddy' Belicec
Jean Willes	...	Nurse Sally Withers
Ralph Dumke	...	Police Chief Nick Grivett
Virginia Christine	...	Wilma Lentz
Tom Fadden	...	Uncle Ira Lentz
Kenneth Patterson	...	Stanley Driscoll
Guy Way	...	Officer Sam Janzek
Eileen Stevens	...	Anne Grimaldi
Beatrice Maude	...	Grandma Grimaldi
Jean Andren	...	Eleda Lentz
Bobby Clark	...	Jimmy Grimaldi

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.

---

Plot Keywords:

alien infiltration | alien invasion | surprise ending | small town | psychiatrist | 

---

Taglines:

The original Black & White classic

---

Genres:

Drama | Horror | Sci-Fi

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 February 1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

Walter Wanger's Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Filming Locations:

Sunset Studios, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$417,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,000,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walter Wanger Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Perspecta Sound encoding) (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Filming was supposed to commence in Mill Valley, north of San Francisco, but the budget wouldn't allow it. In fact, several locations made up the town of Santa Mira, including the actual towns of Sierra Madre, Chatsworth, and Glendale and the areas of Los Feliz, Bronson Caves and Beachwood Canyon, the latter two in the hills above Hollywood. Some interiors were also done on the Allied Artists lot on the east side of Hollywood.

---

Goofs

When Dr. Bennell is shown the body on the pool table he never bothers to ask where it came from or why it is there. One would think that would be the first question.

---

Quotes

Becky Driscoll: Miles, why don't you call Danny? Maybe he can help.
Dr. Miles J. Bennell: Danny? No. The way he was behaving last night... I'm afraid it's too late to call Danny too.
Becky Driscoll: Well, what are you going to do?
Dr. Miles J. Bennell: Get help. I hope whatever's taking place is confined to Santa Mira!

---

Crazy Credits

THE 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 Versions

There is a colorized version by Republic Pictures 80 minutes in length.

---

Connections

Referenced in ER: Getting to Know You (1999)

User Reviews

Classic chiller

A doctor comes to a hospital on a late night call to hear a man whom everybody else deems insane. The doctor persuades the man to be patient and tell his story. The man then tells the doctor about how a small California town has been invaded by some sort of alien seeds that grow into human clones...

Coming straight from the McCarthy era and general Cold War paranoia this is one scary movie. There is not a gun fired, not a drop of gore shed but the final effect of the film will stay with you for a good while. More contemporary film viewers might recognize the concept from John Carpenter's "The Thing" which itself was an update of the 1951 film. However, the themes of paranoia and tension are just as nail-biting and intense here.

There is a lack of visual punch that so many people are used to today, but just think of the historical context and the implications, basically use your mind! Then you'll see why the film scared studio executives so much that they forced Don Siegel to add an intro and outro to help soften the overall effect. It wasn't the best play in the book, but the film remains a great classic chiller. --- 9/10

Not Rated. It would most likely receive a PG from the MPAA, there are several tense moments, though no violence.