Movie Title: Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Genre: Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi,
Writer: Daniel Mainwaring, based on Jack Finney's Collier's magazine serial
Starring: Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter, Larry Gates, King Donovan, Carolyn Jones, Jean Willes, Ralph Dumke, Virginia Christine, Tom Fadden, Kenneth Patterson, Guy Way
Review: Dr. Miles Bennell (Kevin McCarthy) is a small town doctor that discovers the citizens of Santa Mira are being replaced by emotionless alien duplicates. The original Invasion of the Body Snatchers is still one of the scariest movies ever made. That's probably why it gets remade every generation.
What makes this movie so scary is the conceit that if you sleep then you will become one of the "Pod People". And as a pod person you are part of the collective;no sleep, no emotion, no individuality, no humanity. What a frightening thought!
Unlike most sci-fi movies of the '50s, Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a classy, quality production in every sense. The script is brilliant, Don Siegel's direction is perfect, the music, editing, tone, and the cast makes the entire movie believable, as extraordinary as the premise is. It's unsettling and scary, while you watch and after you watch. It sticks with you and is always scary to think about.
What really makes the movie for me is the likability and chemistry of our stars Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter. Both are extraordinary on screen and their romance and relationship make you care for them and fear for them when the invasion begins to happen.
This is a classic! I highly recommend it to everyone, sci-fi fans or not. And beware...They're here already! You're next! You're next, You're next...!
Fun Fact: Director Sam Peckinpah, who has a small role in the film as a meter reader, also worked on the movie as a dialogue coach. He performed the same job on Don Siegel's other films of the 1950s.