Screened in the comfort of my own apartment, somewhere around a 10pm showtime. Movie Theater Snacks: None. I was still full from dinner. Crazy.
I had recently watched the original Invasion of The Body Snatchers from 1956. I got to build a 35mm print at work and quality test it before the official audience screening. I loved it. It was atmospheric, wonderfully shot, and very well written. I immediately became interested in watching the 70’s remake.
Slowly, day by day, people across San Francisco are changing. Not physically, but their loved ones can just sense that something is off about them. More and more people are being taken over by this unseen force, becoming emotionless beings, and nobody knows why or what is going on.
From the moment the film starts, I quickly realized it was scene-for-scene, moment-for-moment a direct remake of the original. I was taken aback by how closely it resembled the first, wondering why it didn’t try to live on it’s own. But I was quickly proven wrong. The film may be extremely similar to it’s source material, but it showed me how individualistic it really is. The movie isn’t just a carbon replica of the original film, ya know, like the alien creatures in the story, but it stands on it’s own as an incredible exercise in terror.
The movie hits the ground running, wasting no time getting into the story. And even faster than that, the horror begins creeping under your skin. The person you love the most may no longer be themselves… Honestly, I don’t know what’s more terrifying than that. This remake took me by complete surprise. I wasn’t expecting this film to be as good as it was, but it’s a truly captivating movie. And, crazy enough, I’d say it justifies remakes.
Yagi Film Reviews 