Brendon Jones
It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.
LeonLouisRicci
This is the Third in a Series of Four Films from Jack Finney's Novel "The Body Snatchers" Written in the 1940's and Published in 1955. It First was Serialized in Collier's Magazine in 1954."Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956) Directed by Don Siegel... "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1978) Directed by Philip Kaufman... "Body Snatchers" (1993) Directed by Abel Ferrara... "The Invasion" (2007) Directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel The First Three Versions all have Redeeming Value as Films and Social Commentary, although this one is Certainly Concerned almost Exclusively with the more Personal Horror of it all. Director Abel Ferrara, most known for Fringe Exploitation with Hard Edged Realism, gives this Sci-Fi Stalwart a Good Try with the Help of Horror Genre Participants Larry Cohen and Stuart Gordon.It's a Fittingly Creepy Affair with a Share of Chills and Shadowy Sullenness. A Few Scenes are Decidedly Unsettling with Ferrara Skirting the Edges to Disturb. But Overall the Movie seems a bit Rushed and its Short Running Time (88 Minutes) does not allow for much Suspenseful Buildup. A Good Cast all Contribute to make this a Watchable Remake and Despite a Tacked On "Explosive" Ending (the weakest element) it has a Following that Grows Every Year. Most Likely because of Cult Director Abel Ferrara. Note...The latest remake with Daniel Craig and Nicole Kidman is virtually worthless and nowhere near as entertaining or artful as the other three telling. In fact it is borderline bad.
Leofwine_draca
The original story by Jack Finney is thrown headlong into the 1990s in this, the third adaptation of the original classic of paranoia, following the other versions released in 1956 and 1978. While this film could have been a total fiasco, much like other remakes we've been seeing in the '90s, the one saving grace is the presence of director Abel Ferrara, who, along with Stuart Gordon and Larry Cohen lifts the average material to more than it might have been. However, it might not be enough...The trouble with horror films of the 1990s is that even when they do get something right, they do just about everything else wrong. WISHMASTER had great gory ideas, but a tepid plot. I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER, well... that didn't really have anything did it? Anyhow I digress. BODY SNATCHERS is full of atmospheric imagery and bursting with style, but sadly the plot and script are turgid, relentlessly chewed up hundreds of times before in other films, and therefore lacking any real sense of menace.Ferrara gets carried away with the Raimi-like diagonal camera angles, filling every scene with haunting shadows. Which is great, you know, but somewhat...pretentious? Unfortunately the cast is populated with dense, unlikable characters, and even the little boy turns out to be a stereotyped whining American brat. The females are bland, the actor playing the father is expressionless, with the only believable character being Forest Whitaker (ironically his character is almost an exact replica of Kevin McCarthy's hero in the original classic). This really drags down the attention level. Plot wise, the idea of setting the story in a military base is quite effective, but once you realise that it's just a one-note idea which is never fully explored, then you feel that it's quite a letdown.The film is in two halves. In the first half, there are vague shadows and sounds but nothing much really happens. After an effects-laden scene in the middle of the film, it becomes one elongated chase movie, all set at night and involving people running in a variety of settings. Does this sound like your idea of fun? Not really. The film does benefit from some good special effects in the form of the alien pods, although they're almost exact replicas of the pods from 1978's sublime INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS.There is some nudity put in to spice things up which seems quite desperate, and two great scenes which make the film worth watching. However apart from these key moments and an ambiguous ending, the film never really goes anywhere. If it was original I would give it a higher mark but the trouble is that we've seen it all before, twice before, and it was better both of those times so the third outing just appears to be a tired rerun of the earlier events.
Ben Larson
In this remake of a classic, they used Bad Lieutenant and King of New York director Abel Ferrara, and cast the young beauty Gabrielle Anwar (The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines) and "thirthsomething" Terry Kinney in the leads.Kinney went on to do The Laramie Project later and was fantastic. If you want conformity, then setting your movie on a military installation ensures that you have an easier time of it. Younger people will love this version, but just updating to modern techniques and special effects doesn't always make for a better picture. Skintastic Moment: Great view of Gabrielle Anwar's ta-tas waking up on a stretcher.
