Transmission 18 · Thursday 29 October · 2 days until Halloween

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

dir. Philip Kaufman
ENTRY 19:00CARVING 19:00–20:00RITUAL 20:15RUNTIME 115 min

Synopsis

From Kino Lorber

From acclaimed filmmaker Philip Kaufman (The Wanderers) comes this chilling ’70s adaptation of Jack Finney’s classic novel The Body Snatchers. Filmy spores fall from space over San Francisco, and the city blossoms with beautiful new flora. People take the flowers home and, as they sleep, the plants creep over them, devouring their bodies and stealing their identities—their emotions, their uniqueness, their souls. If you notice an eerie change in someone very close to you, chances are you’re next!

More than just a highly effective sci-fi thriller, Invasion of the Body Snatchers treats contemporary problems of urban paranoia and loss of individuality with intelligence and sensitivity… and ends with the single most horrifying frame in movies.

Featuring a brilliant screenplay by W.D. Richter (Big Trouble in Little China), gritty camerawork by Michael Chapman (Raging Bull) and awe-inspiring special effects, Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a pulse-pounding shocker with wonderful performances by Donald Sutherland (The Puppet Masters), Brooke Adams (The Dead Zone), Leonard Nimoy (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan), Jeff Goldblum (The Fly) and Veronica Cartwright (Alien).

Dispatch

theatrical trailer

Report

Florilegium
“May be the best movie of its kind ever made.”
— Pauline Kael, The New Yorker, 1978
“Validates the entire concept of remakes.”
— Variety, 1978
“As a thriller, it’s basically perfect.”
— A.A. Dowd