Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A great tale of alien invasion with a chilling end, 15 Feb 2000
By A Customer
I know that this is a remake but this is a great tale.
The best part is the ending which leaves you wondering - 'where you gonna run? where you gonna hide?'
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Things happen for a reason, even if you don't like what that reason is..., 21 Mar 2007
Very rarely, with the exception of being threatened at knife-point, do I ever throw anything away. Despite rushing out to buy a DVD player before they even had time to collect dust on the shop shelves when they were first launched, I still kept my VHS collection and, even to this day, ritually watch my videos from time to time. Having re-watched "Body Snatchers" yesterday, I am pleased that I am so incapable of letting go - in short, what a brilliant film.
Briefly, "The Pod people are back. Abel Ferrara directs a brilliantly paranoid and atmospheric version of the classic story...of creatures who steal our bodies and minds. When a family moves into an army base, they assume that the dull and uniform life is all part of the military existence. The easy pace of life is soon exploded and the terror and tension zoom to dizzying heights as the sinister goings-on in the swamp turn out to have deadly consequences, not just for the base, but for the entire world".
When I think of "Body Snatchers", I think of that ITV 2 programme "Supernatural" and it's leading line of "sexy just got scary": without a doubt, this film is both. On the one hand, you have a genuinely frightening film, not just because the setting itself is so isolated, but also because you have some eerie "hairs-standing-up-on-the-back-of-your-neck" scenes which make you come back for a second viewing. Look out for the unsettling transformation that occurs in Jen's mother - going from being an inhospitable drunk to being a water-drinking, bridge-playing "Stepford Wife" within the a space of her two scenes. Also keep your eyes open for the frightening persuasiveness of Carol (the first of our nuclear family to be taken over by a body-snatcher) - couple this with her monotonic voice and her emotionless expression and you have a truly unnerving piece of film. For me, the most disturbing piece of the whole film is Andy's first day at school: the look on the teacher's face when she sees that all of the children have drawn the same picture apart from him is worthy of five stars alone. The film is not only frightening as a result of it's content, but also because of it's length. At only 83 minutes, it is exceptionally concise. By the time we hear the first chilling wail that indicates a deserter - half of the town have already been "snatched", allowing the audience to relate to Marti's sense of confusion at the situation developing around her.
Not only is the film scary, but it also has an element of sexiness too. Both the leading female ("Marti") and the leading male ("Tim") are good-looking; and the sexual chemistry between them is somewhat undeniable. For the ladies, watch out for a young and handsome Forest Whitaker who looks remarkably good in his uniform.
Despite giving "Body Snatchers" five stars, I am not saying that it is perfect by any strectch of the imagination. Some people who watch it may be slightly dismayed at the lack of clarity in the story given it's conciseness - there would seem to be no real beginning or end to the film which leaves it open to questioning (where did the pods come from? Why are they here? How do they relate to the toxins that Steve is investigating? What happened after the credits began to role?) Others may find the story-line a little too convenient in places - for example, how does Steve not notice the change in Carol after she is "snatched" (ok, so you wouldn't necessarily assume your partner's body had been taken over by aliens, but you might at least ask them if there is anything wrong if they went through a personality change!). The escape at the end seems a little far-fetched too - look out for Tim being confronted by Pete as he is about to fly off in a helicopter. Pete asks Tim where he is going and he merely replies that he "has orders". Although Pete suspects Tim is bluffing, he never actually asks the one question that would naturally arise from that response and thus blow Tim's cover there and then - "from who?". Similarly, Marti is only saved form the hospital by a well-timed diversion from a man being drugged, giving Tim the opportunity to set her free. For those of you who think that these diversions aren't very realistic - you may be right, but, then again, why are you watching a film about alien invasion if you want to see something that reflects reality?
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