Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

Director:

Philip Kaufman

Writers:

Jack Finney (novel)
W.D. Richter (screenplay)

Release Date:

20 December 1978 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Get some sleep

Plot:

In San Francisco, a group of people discover the human race is being replaced one by one, with clones devoid of emotion.

Plot Keywords:

Remake | Escape | Sleep | Planet | Amazing Grace Hymn

Awards:

3 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Donald Sutherland	...	Matthew Bennell
Brooke Adams	...	Elizabeth Driscoll
Jeff Goldblum	...	Jack Bellicec
Veronica Cartwright	...	Nancy Bellicec
Leonard Nimoy	...	Dr. David Kibner
Art Hindle	...	Dr. Geoffrey Howell, DDS
Lelia Goldoni	...	Katherine Hendley
Kevin McCarthy	...	Dr. Miles J. Bennell
Don Siegel	...	Taxi Driver
Tom Luddy	...	Ted Hendley
Stan Ritchie	...	Stan
David Fisher	...	Mr. Gianni
Tom Dahlgren	...	Detective
Garry Goodrow	...	Dr. Boccardo
Jerry Walter	...	Restaurant Owner
Maurice Argent	...	Chef
Sam Conti	...	Street Barker
Wood Moy	...	Mr. Tong
R. Wong	...	Mrs. Tong
Rose Kaufman	...	Outraged Woman
Joe Bellan	...	Harry
Sam Hiona	...	Policeman #1
Lee McVeigh	...	Policeman #2
Al Nalbandian	...	Rodent Man (as Albert Nalbandian)
Lee Mines	...	Schoolteacher
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Misty	...	Harry's Boxer Dog
Michael Chapman	...	Health Dept. Floor Cleaner (uncredited)
Robert Duvall	...	Priest on Swing (uncredited)
Philip Kaufman	...	City Official on Phone (voice) (uncredited)
Al Perez	...	PG&E Man (uncredited)
Jeff Scheftel	...	Pod Person at Party (uncredited)

Directed by
Philip Kaufman

Writing credits
Jack Finney		(novel "The Body Snatchers")
W.D. Richter		(screenplay)

Produced by
Robert H. Solo	....	producer

Original Music by
Denny Zeitlin

Cinematography by
Michael Chapman		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Douglas Stewart

Casting by
Mary Goldberg

Production Design by
Charles Rosen

Set Decoration by
Doug von Koss

Costume Design by
Aggie Guerard Rodgers		(as Agnes Anne Rogers)

Makeup Department
Thomas R. Burman	....	makeup artist (as Thomas Burman)
Edouard F. Henriques	....	makeup artist (as Edouard Henriques)
Edie Panda	....	hair stylist
Bob Westmoreland	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Alan Levine	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jim Bloom	....	first assistant director
Toby Lovallo	....	second assistant director

Art Department
Sherman Labby	....	production illustrator
Michael O'Donnell	....	assistant property master
Holly Walker	....	assistant property master
Burt C. Wiley	....	property master (as Burt Wiley)
Dale Woodall	....	construction coordinator
Dale Haugo	....	scenic artist (uncredited)

Sound Department
Mark Berger	....	supervising re-recording mixer
Ben Burtt	....	special sound effects
Susan R. Crutcher	....	stereo sound effects recordist (as Susan Crutcher)
Bonnie Koehler	....	supervising sound editor
John Nutt	....	sound editor
Steve Powell	....	boom operator (as Stephen Powell)
Art Rochester	....	production sound mixer
Art Rochester	....	sound
Andy Wiskes	....	sound re-recording mixer
Andy Wiskes	....	stereo sound effects recordist
Barbara McBane	....	assistant sound editor (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Russel Hessey	....	special effects (as Russ Hessey)
Dell Rheaume	....	special effects

Stunts
David R. Ellis	....	stunt coordinator (as David Ellis)

Camera and Electrical Department
Alan S. Blauvelt	....	second assistant camera (as Allan Blauvelt)
Dustin Blauvelt	....	first assistant camera (as Dusty Blauvelt)
Dick Dova	....	key grip (as Dick Dova Spah)
Wynn Hammer	....	still photographer
Leo Loverro	....	dolly grip
Joe R. Marquette Jr.	....	camera operator (as Joe Marquette)
George Michael Pantages	....	head electrician
Bill Pelkey	....	electrician (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Mary Elizabeth Still	....	assistant costumer (as Mary Still)

Editorial Department
Norman Mau	....	apprentice editor

Music Department
Julian Bream	....	musician: solo guitar, "De la Tromba Pavin"
Jerry Garcia	....	musician: banjo
Ving Hershon	....	music editor
Roger Kellaway	....	conductor
Greig McRitchie	....	orchestrator
Phill Sawyer	....	music production coordinator
Dan Wallin	....	music scoring mixer (uncredited)

Other crew
John Blowitz	....	unit publicist
Patrick Burns	....	production assistant
Ron Dexter	....	space sequence
Allen Pettigrew	....	location manager
Howard Preston	....	space sequence
Alice Tompkins	....	script supervisor
Joan Wellman	....	production secretary
Bret Culpepper	....	owner: "Misty" (uncredited)
Bret Culpepper	....	trainer: "Misty" (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Solofilm

Distributors

• United Artists (1978) (USA) (theatrical)
• United Artists Pictures (1979) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Chapel Distribution (1997) (Australia) (theatrical) (35mm print)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1980) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Egmont Entertainment (2000) (Finland) (DVD)
• Fazer Musiikki Oy/Fazer Video (1988) (Finland) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (Europe) (2000) (UK) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (1995) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (1997) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (1998) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1995) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2000) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2003) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (Brazil) (DVD)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1993) (Finland) (TV) (TV2)

Other Companies

• American Zoetrope  rerecorded at
• Pacific Title  titles and opticals

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Canada:14+ (Ontario) | Netherlands:16 (orginal rating) | Finland:K-16 (2000) (uncut) (DVD) | Finland:K-16 (1987) (cut) (video) | Finland:K-18 (1979) (uncut) | West Germany:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | France:-12 | Australia:M | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:PG (certificate #25153) | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

1227 Montgomery Street, Telegraph Hill, San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Solofilm

Trivia:

Donald Sutherland insisted on performing his own stunts in the film's climax. His scenes at the pod factory were filmed without harnesses or nets. In the shot of a fireball erupting from the factory, Sutherland barely missed it. However, an extra missed his cue and was seriously injured from the explosion.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: The cameraman is reflected in the phone booth window while Matthew Bennell is inside.

Quotes:

Matthew Bennell: [Elizabeth and Matthew are captured by snathcers in the Health Department office. Kibner gives them sedatives, so that they can be snatched while asleep] There are people who will fight you.
Elizabeth Driscoll: They'll stop you.
Dr. David Kibner: In an hour... you won't want them to.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Big Trouble (2002)

Soundtrack:

De La Tromba Pavin

Phillip Kaufman's update of classic science fiction chiller improves on Siegel's original.

I admit that it's been some time since I've seen Don Siegel's 1956 classic, Invasion Of The Bodysnatchers. I plan to revisit it, having watched Kaufman's masterful update for the first time, this week.

In truth, there is very little that ties the two films together. Siegel and his star Kevin McCarthy both make excellent cameos (McCarthy's is particularly striking), but a distinctive 70's-Hollywood-by-way-of-European-New-Wave style has replaced Siegel's expert B movie craftsmanship. Donald Sutherland is familiar in this setting, due to his roles in paranoid thrillers like Don't Look Now (1973) and Klute (1971), and his assured, natural performance is one of the high points of this film.

Whereas the original Body Snatchers was seen by many as a Communist allegory, Kaufman's film is, like Dawn Of The Dead (also released in 1978), more likely a critique of mindless consumerism. A key scene is at the book signing of Leonard Nimoy's psychologist, a local celebrity famous for his shock therapy treatments. It's these easy answers that the film critiques, that we are becoming more and more passive, more willing to believe what we are being told with each passing year.

This theme is supported by Danny Zeitman's classic score (unfortunately his only film credit), which blends pulsating, hypnotic drones, with ominous clangs and clanks, generally creating a very oppressive atmosphere. Often, a motif will start quietly enough, while we follow one of our main characters through a throng of pod people, until it gets louder and louder, becoming almost unbearably claustrophobic, before abruptly cutting to another scene.

As well as this, the use of amplified natural sound contributes to this paranoia right from the start of the film, as Robert Duvall's priest watches Brooke Adams' character, while swinging from a swing in a park. The un-oiled swing sounds more like the squeals of a rat. It is utterly unsettling, and we are grateful for Kaufman to move us on to the next scene.

Michael Chapman's cinematography is also worth mentioning. He uses hand-held camera for several scenes, creating an unstable energy between the characters in dialogue scenes, and capturing a spontaneous verité quality in the street scenes. Interiors are lit by deep chiaroscuro, which reminds me of noir films, where the world itself becomes the enemy. He complements Kaufman's direction so well.

But Kaufman's direction is superb. He chooses the oddest camera angles for this film. In this world, everything is off-centre. There are lots of inserts of people walking past windows, or people looking out of windows. We are used to seeing this, but Kaufman dwells on it, suggesting that there is always someone watching. Combined with an excellent cast, and truly frightening and believable special effects, the film is totally convincing.

The best films always become more about us than they do about the characters on-screen, and this is such a film. You'll never look at your neighbour the same way again.