Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

--Reviewed by Lindy Loo

Plotline: In San Francisco, a strange epidemic seems to be spreading--perfectly sane people are becoming convinced that their friends/lovers are no longer themselves. Strangeness becomes even stranger as a group of folks discovers strange mutated bodies that are slowly forming into their physical replacements.

Scariness factor: Ooooh creepy! It's got a bit of that 1970s campiness going for it, but it DOES have its freaky threatening moments.

Gross-Out Factor: Just creepy gooey cocoon-like peoples.



Complaints: Nothing major.

High Points: My absolute favorite part of this movie was the end--completely caught me off-guard and horrified the crap outta me. No shit. Best and most unsettling horror-movie ending I've seen in a while. Although the original 1950s version is obviously a classic, I definitely think this movie was much creepier than the original (but, obviously, that's probably moreso just a matter of the time-period it was being made in). The acting was better. I kinda dig Donald Sutherland, so that was cool too. And the threat of pod-people taking over the city was a lot scarier and more panic-driven. I got more of a sense from this remake of how terrifying such an event would actually be. I think my favorite scary movies are ones in which a mass epidemic of some sort breaks out that people can't seem to escape because it's EVERYWHERE. (I used to think it was just zombie-movies that were my favorites, but I think the reason I heart zombie movies so much is because they FIT so perfectly in this category.) And the pod-people screams? F-ing creeps my shit out. *Getting the willies just thinking about it*



Overall: Worth seeing, if just for the ending.

Grade: A-