THE INVASION (2007)

THE INVASION (2007). Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel.

"My husband is not my husband!"

This is the fourth film version of Jack Finney's novel The Body Snatchers, famously filmed in the fifties as Invasion of the Body Snatchers (which remains the best version of the story). Washington D.C. psychiatrist Carol Bennell (Nicole Kidman) has patients who insist that their loved ones aren't really their loved ones, and there seems to be an epidemic of this sort of thing going on. A friend, Ben Driscoll (Daniel Craig of James Bond fame), learns that spores picked up by a space shuttle that crash landed are infecting people, turning them into emotionless drones that only resemble their former selves and have their memories. Before long Carol is on the run, desperate to save her little boy, Ollie (Jackson Bond), from her ex-husband (Jeremy Northam) and others who have been infected. [The presence of the child, as well as switching the sexes of the two main characters and eliminating the pods from the first two film versions, are the major changes to the story.] Although not a classic like the first film, this version is still disquieting and thought-provoking. An interesting aspect is that the point is made that there are some positive aspects to the invasion, such as a drop in hostility and greed, all caused by human emotions. [But there's also no joy or love.] Unfortunately, director Hirschbiegel seems too interested in providing action scenes and car chases that spoil the film's mood, and some sequences -- such as when a lone woman in a crowd reacts to a double-suicide, proving that she is still human -- aren't handled with the dramatic intensity they require. The entire cast gives good performances, however (Kidman has never looked better), including Veronica Cartwright, who appeared in the 70's remake, as a patient. This was excoriated by many critics but it isn't that bad.

Verdict: In any version this story is still unsettling. ***.

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956)

Dana Wynter, Kevin McCarthy and King Donovan

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956). Director: Don Siegel.

Miles, a young doctor (Kevin McCarthy) returns from a trip to his home town of Santa Mira and discovers that many of the residents – his patients – are convinced that their loved ones – mothers, uncles, husbands and the like -- are not really their loved ones anymore. He and his one true love Becky (Dana Wynter) discover that the townspeople are slowly being replaced by unemotional, alien doppelgängers, This low-budget terror-by-daylight masterpiece manages to be creepy by slowly inserting the outré, such as a half-formed “corpse” slowly taking on the features of one victim, into the ordinary. Although this is as much a horror film as science fiction, it generally avoids the usual horror conventions, and there are no monsters in the sense that the monsters are alternate versions of us. [The film's detractors complain about this very prosaic, matter-of-fact element, which seems deliberate and not just due to budgetary restrictions.] In the fifties this was seen as having a subtext of anti-communism although today it can just as easily be seen (and usually is) as a comment on McCarthyism and the fear of non-conformity. Hell, mainly it works because it's just a good, scary movie that is very disquieting and even poignant: remember -- the townspeople are not just turned into drones, they are killed and replaced, their feelings, aspirations, and personalities [except when “performing” for the unconverted] simply eradicated. If there's a general flaw to the film it is that despite its intelligence, it at times fails to rise above a certain “schlock” level. Although Wynter and especially McCarthy are quite good in the film, neither of them really gets across the raw, terrified desperation – in fact, the utter despair -- they should be feeling. But the film is very well photographed, interestingly scored by Carmen Dragon (although the opening theme is forgettable), and for the most part works -- and chills – beautifully. One scene that always gives one pause is when Becky falls asleep and is replaced while Miles checks out the source of some music in the distance. One has to assume that a pod was somehow left near where she was sleeping, and that the duplicate put on her clothes and assumed the same position as the now-dead Becky. [The 1978 remake pretty much shows this happening, but despite some good sequences, it doesn't really compare to the original, being at times campy and a bit slow.]

Verdict: Great scary science fiction. ***1/2.