The Puppet Masters (1994)

The Earth is invaded by stingray-shaped alien "slugs" that ride on people's backs and control their minds.

Director:

Stuart Orme

Writers:

Robert A. Heinlein (novel), Ted Elliott (screenplay)

Stars:

Donald Sutherland, Eric Thal, Julie Warner

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Donald Sutherland	...	Andrew Nivens
Eric Thal	...	Sam Nivens
Julie Warner	...	Mary Sefton
Keith David	...	Alex Holland
Will Patton	...	Dr. Graves
Richard Belzer	...	Jarvis
Tom Mason	...	President Douglas
Yaphet Kotto	...	Ressler
Gerry Bamman	...	Viscott
Sam Anderson	...	Culbertson
J. Patrick McCormack	...	Gidding
Marshall Bell	...	General Morgan
Nicholas Cascone	...	Greenberg
Bruce Jarchow	...	Barnes
Benjamin Mouton	...	Higgins

Storyline

Strange aliens land in the Midwest, taking over people's minds in order to spread their dominion. Sam Nivens and Andrew Nivens, aided by Mary Sefton, are part of a government agency who must stop the the aliens before the aliens get to them...

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Plot Keywords:

alien | iowa | ambulance | fire truck | sheriff | 

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Taglines:

Trust No-one.

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, sci-fi gore and brief language

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the French dubbed version Donald Sutherland's voice is dubbed by actor Jean-Pierre Cassel.

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Goofs

After Jarvis is captured and searched, an agent hold up a 3.5" floppy disc which he says contains their plans to handle scenarios like this. He's holding the floppy up with one side facing him and the other facing the Old Man. When we see the agent from the front, we see the bottom of the floppy. When we see over his shoulder, we still see the bottom of the floppy. He'd have had to turn it over in his hand repeatedly for it to look like this.

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Quotes

Niven: It's the kid from the spaceship. Get him off the car.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Another Top 10 Scariest Movie Aliens (2015)

User Reviews

Better Than Expected

One science-fiction film that turns out to be less disappointing than expected is this loose adaptation of Robert A. Heinlein's novel.

Donald (give me another part in an alien pod movie) Sutherland interprets the role of Adam "The Old Man" Nivens, head of a secret government protection agency that has its hands full trying to stop an alien invasion by slug-like mental parasites which tap into people's brains, controlling them toward their own ends.

Eric Thal (of A STRANGER AMONG US) draws a blank where a strong character should be in the role of Sam, son of the Old Man, and fellow agent. Julie Warner (from DOC HOLLYWOOD) fares a little better as Mary, a NASA xenobiologist along for the roller coaster ride.

The opening scenes do justice to the setting and atmosphere of the book, and the skeleton of the original plot is unpredictable and thrilling, but eventually, the compromises in adaptation give rise to Hollywood-style sci-fi conventions such as alien hives.

Several realistic, key elements are thrown out, along with almost all of the sharp dialogue which made the book a hit.

However, the special effects are convincing, and the cinematography and editing are streamlined and tight. Far from being definitive, this version of the tale is nonetheless sufficiently satisfying and worth a look.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 October 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

Robert A. Heinlein's The Puppet Masters

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles Convention Center - 1201 S. Figueroa Street, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,069,057, 23 October 1994

Gross USA:

$8,647,042

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$8,647,042

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hollywood Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1