Managed to squeeze in all three of a theme today/tonight. Now, I don't trust who anyone says they are.
You all know the plot. Alien pods rain down. People get caught and duplicated. As fun as these all are, I have seen all three. Though it has been a while.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
This one is a classic in every sense of the word. The pacing is a bit slow, but better than I remembered. Speaking of which I can't actually recall the last time I saw this one. Kevin McCarthy is great in this, and it quite possibly put him on the map in terms of character acting.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
It is rare that a remake does as well as the original. It is even rarer still when that remake can one up or do better. Well 1978's Body Snatchers does exactly that. I mean really is there a more iconic movie moment than Donald Sutherland's Pod person scream at the end? Or maybe when Harry and his dog are combined into one creature? That one always freaked me out.
This one also features the talents of Jeff Goldblum, Leonard Nimoy, and Kevin McCarthy(!) in a cameo role saying the same line, "You're next! You're next!" from the first movie. I have to admit, I love it when they do that.
Body Snatchers (1993)
A remake or a sequel? Or a bit of both? Hard to say, I am a bit tired now, and the sleepier I get, the more like a sequel I can see it.
This was the first real big film roles for then rising star Gabrielle Anwar. The scene of her in the bathtub is the iconic one from this movie. Somehow it doesn't quite measure up to Kevin McCarthy's frantic warning or Donald Sutherland's alien scream.
Though this is the movie that my wife and I saw when it first came out that started us using the term "Pod People." As in "You know I have been replaced by a pod person when..."
Featured Monster: Doppelgangers
The idea of Doppelgangers goes way back. So there is no way, no matter how iconic the movie, that I can claim these movies had any influence on the AD&D Monster Manual. I can guess, but can't make the claim with any certainty.
I can, however, claim that the Ravenloft AD&D monster, Doppelganger Plant, was.
Personally, I like having both sorts of doppelgangers in my games. The trickster fae types and the destructive alien pods.
October Horror Movie Challenge 2024
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