Thursday, July 17, 2014

They Live (1988)


IMDb plot summary: A drifter discovers a pair of sunglasses that allow him to wake up to the fact that aliens have taken over the Earth.
Directed by John Carpenter. Starring Roddy Piper, Keith Ddavid, and Meg Foster.

(Spoilers about the ending.)

This movie is a ridiculous amount of fun. It's a cross between mostly-serious sci-fi horror and really cheesy 1980s action flicks. (I described it to one friend as "half Invasion of the Body Snatchers and half Logan's Run.") I was definitely more drawn to the horror scenes -- LOVED the scene where he explores the world after putting the glasses on -- but I also got a kick out of the cheesy fight scenes. I also really enjoyed the ending -- an unexpected tone to end on, but it totally works. I liked this one a lot.

4 stars.

Flickchart: #496 out of 2180, below The Pirates! Band of Misfits and above Goodfellas.

No comments: