Body Snatchers: Parasitic Monsters in Film

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

One of the first examples of monstrous body snatchers in film is Don Siegel's Invasion of the Body Snatchers. This film involves the arrival of alien spores at an idyllic American town. These spores grow into plant-like pods that eventually burst open to reveal cold, emotionless copies of the town's residents. These copies kill and replace their originals, intending to overtake the world.

Released in 1956 at the peak of McCarthyism in America, critics are divided on Siegel's commentary on the Second Red Scare in Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Some believe that it is a McCarthyist film, detailing the threats and loss of individuality that a Communist infiltration might pose. Others view the film as a critique of McCarthyism, employing the body snatchers as representations of conservative politicians' apparent desire to create a society that is ideologically homogeneous. Some even see Invasion as a parody of McCarthyism, questioning why so many Americans saw Communists as evil, inhuman beings who would so readily degrade society.







 

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