As the third major motion picture adaptation of Jack Finneys novel The Body Snatchers, The Invasion is, sadly, the weakest of the three. Both the 1956 and 1978 Invasion of the Body Snatchers films are considered classics of sci-fi/horror cinema, and director Oliver Hirschbiegel had a hard road to travel for his take to be considered alongside its sister films. Unfortunately, writer Dave Kaiganichs significant alterations to the original story dilutes the tension and anxiety of The Invasions predecessors, creating a somewhat forgettable thriller that has more in common with The Forgotten and Flightplan.
After a space shuttle mysteriously crash lands, covered in strange alien bio-fuzz, people begin to change. The alien microbes infect crash investigators, covering them in a sticky chrysalis during REM sleep and turning them into emotionless alien replicas upon waking. Carol Bennell (Nicole Kidman), a psychiatrist and single mother, unaware of the alien infection, sends her son Oliver (Jackson Bond) to stay with his father (Jeremy Northam) for the weekend. Unknown to her, Olivers father has been affected. As the world realises the dangers posed by the alien infection, Carol must evade capture by the "changed, search for her missing son and stay awake, lest she too be infected.
If it wasnt for the fact that The Invasion is following in the footsteps of two classic films, it would be a decent thriller. Though there are a few niggling flaws, such as several disorienting edits and some plot discrepancies that indicate inconsistent script rewrites, The Invasion manages to provide a few thrilling moments.
I wouldn't rush out to see this film in the theatre, especially when both previous Invasion of the Body Snatchers films are readily available on DVD, but The Invasion will make an entertaining enough rental once it hits shelves.
(Warner)After a space shuttle mysteriously crash lands, covered in strange alien bio-fuzz, people begin to change. The alien microbes infect crash investigators, covering them in a sticky chrysalis during REM sleep and turning them into emotionless alien replicas upon waking. Carol Bennell (Nicole Kidman), a psychiatrist and single mother, unaware of the alien infection, sends her son Oliver (Jackson Bond) to stay with his father (Jeremy Northam) for the weekend. Unknown to her, Olivers father has been affected. As the world realises the dangers posed by the alien infection, Carol must evade capture by the "changed, search for her missing son and stay awake, lest she too be infected.
If it wasnt for the fact that The Invasion is following in the footsteps of two classic films, it would be a decent thriller. Though there are a few niggling flaws, such as several disorienting edits and some plot discrepancies that indicate inconsistent script rewrites, The Invasion manages to provide a few thrilling moments.
I wouldn't rush out to see this film in the theatre, especially when both previous Invasion of the Body Snatchers films are readily available on DVD, but The Invasion will make an entertaining enough rental once it hits shelves.