365+ movies in 365 Days: Day 135 - Invasion Of The Body Snatchers

Actor Kevin McCarthy passed away this weekend at the age of 96. He was a well known character actor and appeared in hundreds of movies, TV shows and stage productions. His film work included appearances in The Misfits, Mirage, The Best Man, Distinguished Gentleman and Innerspace. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Death Of A Salesman in 1951.

He made appearances on some of the most popular TV shows including Twilight Zone, Columbo, The Fugitive, Hotel, Murder She Wrote, Matlock and Dynasty.

For years he toured the country in a one man stage show based on president Harry Truman called "Give 'em Hell, Harry".

But he will always be remembered for one of his few leading roles. Dr. Miles Bennell in the science fiction classic Invasion Of the Body Snatchers.

Released in 1956 the film was an early work of director Don Siegel who would go on to direct Hell Is For Heroes with Steve McQueen, The Killers with Lee Marvin and multiple films with Clint Eastwood including Dirty Harry and Escape From Alcatraz.

The movie was based on the novel The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney, which was originally published as a serialized novel in Collier's Magazine. The novel has been a popular source for inspiration in Hollywood. A direct remake of the 1956 film was made in 1978 and then two other adaptations, Body Snatchers (1993) and Invasion (2007).

The original is still considered the best and has appeared on numerous best films lists and has been preserved by the Library of Congress in the National Film Registry.

After it's release the film was viewed by many as an allegory against the invasion of communism. Other scholars and film critics saw it as an indictment of McCarthyism that was spreading across the country. The producer, director, screen writer, original author have all said there was no intention or discussion about connecting the film to prevailing political themes at the time. Those ideas have been imposed on the film after it's released.

In the movie Dr. Miles Bennell does discuss the dehumanization aspect of society and states that with the pods it happens all at once instead of people losing there humanity a little bit at a time.

It is one of the scariest movies of the 1950's and the thrills are achieved without giant monsters, spaceships and ray guns. Because of budget restraints the film has very few special effects and the terror is found in the paranoia of everyday things. What is dad doing in the cellar. Why is Uncle Ira looking at me that way while he mows the lawn. The terror builds slowly and culminates when we see the pod people growing in a greenhouse in Miles backyard. Then the film transition to a chase film as Miles and Becky Driscoll (Dana Wynter) attempt to get out of town and warn others about the pending invasion.

The film ends with the iconic moment of Bernell frantic, half-crazed, standing in traffic and yelling directly into the camera. "They're here already! you're next! You're next!"

I should say that is how the film originally ended. After viewing it, the studio insisted that the film have a more upbeat ending so a prologue and epilogue were added. In the beginning of the film we meet Dr. Bernell in a hospital. He is crazed and being held against his will. The doctor (Richard Deacon) thinks he is "as mad as a March hare". Another Doctor played by Whit Bissell agrees to listen to his story and then the narrative begins with a voice over by Kevin McCarthy, and the films main story is told in flashback. We return to the hospital when the story is finished. Both doctors are extremely skeptical until they are told of a truck accident on the highway where a driver was injured and these strange seed pods spilled out all over the road. Hearing this the doctor's and police jump into action to alert the authorities to stop the invasion. The film is left open if they succeed or not.

Political allegory or not the film is still a nightmare of paranoia and holds up well even by modern movie making standards. the running time is brief 80 minutes and the tension builds and builds and never lets up. The reduced budget forced the producer to keep things tight and also required him to cast a relatively unknown actor, Kevin McCarthy for the lead. Sometimes things work out for the best.







At The Movie House rating **** stars