IGN.com|AskMen.com|Rotten Tomatoes|GameSpy|FilePlanet|TeamXbox|CheatsCodesGuides|GameStats|Direct2Drive

RottenTomatoes.com

Register | Log In | What is RT?
It's our 10th birthday, so you get presents!
Home Movies DVD Celebrities News Critics Photos & Trailers The Vine Forums
Box Office | Best Of | Certified Fresh | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
 
MOVIES / ON DVD / INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS
Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Rate This Movie

Write a Review
Share This Movie
Add to List
Buy Poster

Bookmark and Share

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

100%
100%
93%
N/A
N/A
N/A
100 %
Reviews Counted: 33 Fresh: 33  Rotten:0 Average Rating: 9/10
 
Consensus: One of the best political allegories of the 1950s, Invasion of the Body Snatchers is an efficient, chilling blend of sci-fi and horror.
 

How does the Tomatometer work?

The Tomatometer measures the percentage of positive reviews from Approved Tomatometer Critics for a certain movie.[-]

Runtime: 1 hr 43 mins

Synopsis: Don Siegel's cult masterpiece, interpreted as an allegory of both McCarthyism and Communism, is undoubtedly one of the screen's most disturbing evocations of paranoia. It stars Kevin McCarthy as Dr. Miles Binnell, a physician whose traumatized arrival in the emergency room of a San... Don Siegel's cult masterpiece, interpreted as an allegory of both McCarthyism and Communism, is undoubtedly one of the screen's most disturbing evocations of paranoia. It stars Kevin McCarthy as Dr. Miles Binnell, a physician whose traumatized arrival in the emergency room of a San Francisco hospital leads the staff to believe he's lost his mind. In a series of flashbacks, he unwinds a bizarre account of his last few days. After his return from a trip to rural Santa Mira, his nurse, Sally (Jean Willes), explains that his office has been flooded with patients who have made appointments yet never appeared. Former girlfriend Becky Driscoll (Dana Wynter) tells him that she's unable to rid herself of the belief that the man claiming to be her uncle is an impostor. A hysterical young boy refuses to return home, claiming that his mother is not his mother. Miles's concern over this pattern of incidents, temporarily allayed by some jargon from the town psychiatrist, is newly aroused when he gets a phone call from friend Jack Belicec (King Donovan), who begs him to come over and take a look at the strange mannequinlike figure that's suddenly appeared on his pool table. This exceptionally well written and directed fable, the ultimate comment on the subtly coercive conformity of the 1950s, may be Siegel's best film, and it is undoubtedly one of the most exciting science fiction films ever made. [More]

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Starring: Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter, Carolyn Jones, Larry Gates, Virginia Christine

Director: Don Siegel
Producer: Walter Wanger
Screenwriter: Geoffrey Homes
Composer: Carmen Dragon

DVD Info

Release:

Apr 6, 1999

[DVD Details]

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Keep Case
  • Widescreen - 2.35:1
  • Fullscreen - 1.33:1

Additional Release Material:

  • Interview
  • Kevin McCarthy - Star
  • Trailer
  • Theatrical

Reviews

 
T-Meter Critics
 
 
Top Critics
 
 
RT Community
 
 
My Critics
 
 
My Friends
 
 
DVD
 
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By: Name | Fresh | Rotten | Date | Source
 
 
Ratings Image
5/5

A 50s horror classic that remains a gem of allegorical paranoia.

Full Review | comment Comment
05/30/07
Ian Nathan
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
N/A

It's still a chilling picture, gaining over Phil Kaufman's smart remake by virtue of its intimate small town setting, and it has one of the greatest endings ever filmed.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/24/06
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
5/5

Wonderfully performed and imbued with a genuine sense of trepidation and unease.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/13/01
David Wood
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
10/10

One of the very best sci-fi/horror pictures of one of that genre's best decades.

Full Review | comment Comment
09/12/07
Tim Brayton
Antagony & Ecstasy
Ratings Image
87/100

what if the mask of your neighbor tilts for a second and you catch a glimpse of the riot going on behind his face?

Full Review | comment Comment
08/21/07
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Ratings Image
4/4

A superbly crafted film by innovative director Siegel, this low-budget science fiction tale became one of the great cult classics of the genre.

Full Review | comment Comment
05/30/07
TV Guide's Movie Guide
Ratings Image
N/A

Don Siegel's superb little effort, with its matter-of-fact isolation of hero Kevin McCarthy (ironic, no?) from the smarmy complacency of a small town gone to hell -- and way beyond -- points the way to his gripping action films of the 60s and 70s.

Full Review | comment Comment
05/30/07
Don Druker
Chicago Reader
Ratings Image
5/5

An all time classic. The "message" was lost on most original viewers.

comment Comment
03/25/07
Michael A. Smith
Nolan's Pop Culture Review
Ratings Image
A-

The first--and still best--version of the Cold War sci-fi, despite compromised ending that was imposed by producer Walter Wanger on the director to make the tale less downbeat and anarchic.

Full Review | comment Comment
12/14/06
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Ratings Image
3.5/4

Some genuinely creepy moments and good social commentary raise this horror film

Full Review | comment Comment
08/12/06
Marty Mapes
Movie Habit
Ratings Image
5/5

Siegel's brilliant movie sits as a perfect bookend to Romero's "Night Of The Living Dead."

comment Comment
12/19/05
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com
Ratings Image
5/5

No review available.

comment Comment
07/06/05
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Ratings Image
5/5

Tenso e bem construído, conta com uma ótima trilha sonora, a direção expressiva de Siegel e com um roteiro que pode ser lido como uma alegoria clara do mccarthismo.

comment Comment
07/03/05
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena
Ratings Image
4/5

No review available.

comment Comment
11/18/04
Mark R. Leeper
rec.arts.movies.reviews
Ratings Image
5/5

Chilling still. Do not fall asleep while watching it!

comment Comment
10/15/04
Steve Crum
Kansas City Kansan
Ratings Image
5/5

I still believe in the reality of pod people.

comment Comment
05/31/04
Victoria Alexander
FilmsInReview.com
Ratings Image
4/5

No review available.

comment Comment
03/25/04
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice
Ratings Image
5/5

No review available.

comment Comment
03/12/04
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal
Ratings Image
5/5

No review available.

comment Comment
02/13/04
Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly
Ratings Image
A

Don Siegel directs this chilling sci-fi allegory with economy, speed and efficiency.

Full Review | comment Comment
01/03/04
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
See More Topics...

Related Forums

Academy Salute to Don Siegel
by: Hollywood Gothique 7/23/05
all

News

Guide of the Dead - An RT Romero Retrospective
posted by Chris Hewitt (UK) March 07, 2008
As Diary of the Dead hits cinemas, we sit down with George A. Romero to talk retrospectively about what has come from his...


Box Office Guru Preview: Make Way for McLovin
posted by Gitesh Pandya August 16, 2007
Carrying some major buzz into the marketplace, Sony's teen comedy Superbad hits the multiplexes this weekend aiming...


Trailer Bulletin: Craig & Kidman in "The Invasion"
posted by Scott Weinberg June 11, 2007
There's been a lot of talk about the Nicole Kidman / Daniel Craig sci-fi flick "The Invasion," most of it ......


"Vendetta" Team Took Over Kidman's "Invasion"?
posted by Scott Weinberg April 05, 2007
Seems like we've been hearing about upcoming sci-fi flick "The Invasion" for a pretty long time now. You...

Around the Network

• Invasion of the Body Snatchers at Rotten Tomatoes
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | ModCenter | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2008, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.