Budget: $65-80 Million
Directed By: Oliver Hirschbiegel
The fourth film based on the novel and now third
remake of the 1956 version. Now is the 2000s
it's time to be edgier and sharper than ever before
cut out body-snatchers completely!
lets just go The Invasion, that's enough, we are
on borrowed time here, a sense of urgency that
all 2000's films now need to have.
How much can we pack in in our allotted time?
Action, story, horror we need to get it all in there,
along with a budding bleaker than ever outlook
that seems to take another ten years to fully take
over movie land.
This film however had A LOT of problems which hiked up its production cost. Number one was Kidman's massive $17 million paycheck. Second was extensive re-shoots after initial screening running into $10 million more on the already inflated budget. These re-shoots were done by a completely different director too. Not only that the re-writes were also done by the Wachowskis, these were done to increase action scenes and ad a new ending. Not only that 13 month delays also harmed this films release too. It's not all doom and gloom though this film did use amazing camera angles, also enclosed spaces to make scenes feel surreal and claustrophobic. This was instead of CGI as was Hirschbiegel's vision, despite the re-shoots still were kept in.
Also despite all this it does unlike the last film go back to using more of the earlier films ideas, but changing the main thing which we'll touch on soon, so lets get into how this version plays out.
The main change is at the beginning of the film. A space craft breaks up and crashes back to earth after a mission. Each of these pieces may or may not have a fungus on board the part that infects differently to how the pods infect. Now its always inside you if your infected but if you reach REM sleep the fungus is then able to take over your body.
This is of course a big step away from cloning a new emotionless you from a plant based pod, so you can't even call these pod people!
We do also get a lot a of familiar names such as Kaufman, Bennell and bellicec except none of roles are who they are in any of the previous movies. The closest is Kidman as Doctor Carol Bennell.
Shes a still a doctor and gets word of mouthed by a patient Wendy Lenk (played by Veronica Cartwright from the 782 version, a nice nod like having McCarthy guest appear was in the 78" version), that some people she knows aren't acting like they used too. She also notices one of her sons friends acting detached also.
She finds other evidence such as strange patches of skin on some people too, though she believes it's linked to a new strain of flu. As one of the first people infected and also Carols Ex-husband Tucker Kaufman uses the CDC to spread the virus even further saying it's a flu vaccine.
I feel like this is perhaps a stab at no vaccination people or maybe vice versa, whether it is or not it certain is a fear tool in the film. As loads of people take the vaccine in fear against the new flu.
Ben Driscoll (Craig) who was working on the patch of skin finds the spores, he and a colleague discover that the spores are taking over people who enter REM sleep. They also discover that some brain diseases such as ADEM or encephalitis prevent the virus from maturing in the brain.
Carol's son Oliver suffered from ADEM as a young child, which makes him immune, due to this Carol thinks that her son may hold a chance at a cure.
They see a few of Ben's friends turn in front of them, then Carol goes to get her son from Tuckers house. She's caught by him and a few other infected people where they (do the old trope of) try to persuade her that their way is better. When she refuses to accept it willingly he forcefully infects her anyway, she escapes heading back to Ben without Oliver.
They both escape after being chased, then make their way to a fort in Baltimore where other scientists are working to make a cure too. Carol gets a text off Oliver with his location, Ben and her separate to get him. They find him in Tuckers Mothers apartment, Carol manages to rescue him but has to kill Tucker in the process.
She asks Ben to meet her but almost falls asleep until Oliver keeps her awake, unfortunately when Ben arrives Carol realises he's succumbed to the virus too. He tries to persuade Carol to convert but he says they will have to eradicate all people like Oliver she shoots him in the leg and then escapes.
I'll leave it there but I will say this version too has a happy ending as it was still kind of popular at the time to have a hopeful ending in things. It's okay these days to have a bleak ending if you want just like back in the 70's and 80's it may go out of fashion again, who knows.
The Invasion is not a bad film, it's also not good but if you like the snatchers type films it might be worth your time. if not give it a miss, THN awards The Invasion 2007 2 strong stars out of 5.
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