Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (1956)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a 1956 film adaptation of the Jack Finney novel of the same name. The film as a film adaption is pretty decent, though has some big differences especially in the radically different ending. Invasion of the Body Snatchers was mostly ignored by critics upon release, and suffered from a severely cut budget, and demands by the studio to make several changes, including an addition of a prologue and epilogue. The film is a sci-fi, horror, thriller, with elements of film noir. Many of the cuts that were done to the film were a removal of comedic parts, which is said to be because the studio didn't like the mixing of horror and comedy. The casting is all really well done, and there seems to be a good chemistry between the lead actors in the film. The film also looks really good, and has stood up well to the test of time. The film was originally released in Superscope ratio, meaning a 2.00:1 ratio rather than the standard 1.85:1 ratio, which director Don Siegel thought took away the crispness and clearness of the film. I cannot attest to how this looked in the theater obviously, however re-watching it on DVD on a 4k television the film look amazing, and absolutely beautiful and crisp. My thoughts on the film, is that it is one of great classic films of the 1950s sci-fi era. The story is great, there is the right amount of humour mixed with horror and suspense. I have watched this film many times over the years, and this is a film that I always return to, I have tended to love this original more than any of the remakes that have been made over the years. I like that this film was made in the age of Mcarthyism and that it made a not so subtle social commentary about how Mcarthyism was trying to create a homogeneous populace that unquestioningly followed US capitalist imperialism. The director has stated that he had no intended political message, but considering when it was made it is hard to not see the political connection in the film. My only real issue with the film is the ending, I wish that they would have stuck instead with the original ending that Jack Finney had written in the book, and I'm not sure why they felt that they needed to deviate from that. Would I recommend this film? Yes, absolutely, this film should be on everyone's must-watch list. This is a great sci-fi horror classic that has really set the bar from what we should expect from great sci-fi horror films. This is a film that has been revered as a classic over the years, and loved and celebrated as a great classic film. So even though it was largely ignored by the critics of the time, it has gone on to be hailed as one of the great classics of our time. So, if you get a chance to see this amazing classic, don't miss out on it. This is a film that I will definitely revisit many times in the future as I have in the past.