I’m not sure why I never saw this. The story never seemed that appealing to me, probably because it’s been done several times with a wide variety of variants. But Netflix was carrying it, and it seemed like enough of a horror classic that I should probably watch it.
It’s better than I expected. There are variations on the story that I’ve seen on TV, but this is impressive. The story moves along more quickly than I expected. There’s less padding. Kevin McCarthy plays the lead, someone who I mostly know from his roles in UHF and Innerspace. It’s strange to see him as a leading man, but he does well.
It’s hard to point to any sequences that are especially notable, except that there’s this very gradual ramping up. Things are normal, and they get progressively weirder. During the last act, we get a scene where a bunch of citizens wander to a town square. Three trucks pull up with pods, and they get instructions for who is supposed to take some pods to distribute to relatives in nearby towns. Most of this sequence is show with wide shots, which is fantastic. Keeping distance from the subjects reduces their humanity, and without the sound of them moving, it seems much more alien.
As the town starts chasing our hero and his girl, there seems to be less and less hope. This makes the ending especially awkward, since they tack on an ending that is hopeful, at least. It’s actually a little disappointing, since it doesn’t address how they would handle the invasion.
It was also nice to see Richard Deacon playing a doctor. I know him mostly for playing Mel on The Dick Van Dyke Show, and he’s very charming.
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