In Invasion of the Body Snatchers Don Siegel and Walter Wanger’s sci-fi/horror classic returns to disc with new 4K remasters, plus new and archival supplements.
The Production: 4.5/5
“At first glance, everything looked the same. It wasn’t. Something evil had taken possession of the town.”
The 1950s were chock full of iconic science fiction films. The genre lends itself more to the absurd and fantastic, but enough great films have defined the genre and remain part of the cinema lexicon. Invasion of the Body Snatchers, directed by Don Siegel and released in 1956, is one of those icons of science fiction cinema alongside Forbidden Planet and The War of the Worlds.
Dr. Miles Bennell (Kevin McCarthy) is introduced as a possible madman pleading to be taken seriously about a horrific invasion occurring on the California coast. In a flashback that makes up the bulk of the film, Dr. Bennell is returning from a medical convention to his home town of Santa Mira, where he’s delighted to meet up with his newly divorced friend Becky Driscoll (Dana Wynter). However, this happiness is short-lived as a feeling of unease begins to spread, where patients and acquaintances swear that their own loved ones may not actually be who they are. Naturally, he finds rational explanations for this phenomenon until his friend, also a doctor, finds what seems to be a corpse in his home. Except this corpse is lacking any detail – not even fingerprints. Eventually, another is found emerging from what appears to be a pod in a greenhouse. Within a day, it seems like the entire town is in on this – except for Miles and Becky. Will they be able to keep the spread of “pod people” from the rest of the country?
Often cited as an allegory for both sides of the “Red Scare” of the time, I’ll spare the reader from several paragraphs ranting about the evils of Communism. Instead, I find Invasion of the Body Snatchers to be more of a commentary on the postwar boom. Becky’s divorce isn’t even mentioned, but rather “she went to Reno” and that’s that. A child doesn’t recognize his own mother, a wife doesn’t recognize her own husband. The newly replaced men insist the wonders of living without emotions. Perhaps an allegory for the alcohol and drug dependency of the time that’s often glossed over by those pining for the “good old days.”
On a more serious note, one aspect of the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers is how breathless it is. While there was some post-production futzing like adding the bookend sequences and adapting to SuperScope, the simplicity and pacing of its 80 minute runtime really allow the story to crescendo into a nightmarish tone. What keeps the film from becoming overly silly are the earnest performances, especially by McCarthy and Wynter. The shadowy nighttime photography by Ellsworth Fredericks adds another layer to the nightmare, as well as a spooky score by Carmen Dragon. You also get a few interesting actors on the side like Carolyn Jones, as well as a few quick bits by a younger Sam Peckinpah.
Rewatching this film after many years brought me a new admiration for the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers, even if I find the 1993 re-imagining directed by Abel Ferrara, Body Snatchers, to be an even more superb film. However, one will always be reminded of Kevin McCarthy wandering around traffic shouting “They’re here already! You’re next! You’re next…”
Video: 3.5/5
3D Rating: NA
Kino Lorber has been gracious enough to bring the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers to 4K UHD after two Blu-ray releases by the defunct Olive Films. Originally an Allied Artists release produced by Walter Wanger, the film has changed hands a few times over the decades. Sold to National Telefilm Associates, which became part of Republic Pictures, now part of the Paramount Pictures library. The original camera negative is long gone and what remains isn’t exactly perfect. The new 4K UHD, as well as Blu-ray edition started with 4K scans by Paramount of “the best surviving elements,” with digital cleanup and mastering by Kino Lorber. They have also provided two aspect ratios: 1.85:1 (as it was filmed for) and 2.00:1, which was how it was originally presented theatrically in SuperScope. Both aspect ratio presentations appear to originate from the exact same base master, just one with less matting than the other.
Given that Invasion of the Body Snatchers is only 80 minutes long, even with the two aspect ratio options, one would assume that a BD-100 (for the 4K UHD) and BD-50 (for the Blu-ray) would be more than enough space for a healthy encode. The 4K UHD presentations tends to hover in the 40s for the bitrate while the 1080p presentation average at 26mbps. Film grain tends to look soft and “swarmy” in larger fields of similar grayscale during daylight scenes, while they fare better in the night. I kept feeling like the image was slightly out of focus for much of the running time. It doesn’t help that so much of the film is made up of nth generation opticals for dissolves and fades, which look even softer. The image is quite clean, though, with very little dirt and scratches visible. I did notice a few moments of faint vertical scratches visible just on the edges of the image, but never obtrusive. The 1.85:1 version occasionally has gate hairs visible in the area cropped by the 2.00:1 version, most visible during the opening credits. While I think the image would be helped somewhat by better encoding, I’m skeptical whether a more robust encode would make that much of a difference.
The 4K UHD disc features Dolby Vision HDR, but I really don’t see much difference in the 4K and HD presentations. Ultimately, this seems like a title Kino Lorber would have been better off sticking to regular Blu-ray. It’s obvious they put quite a lot of work into the remastering, but the quality of the surviving elements aren’t really 4K-friendly. I don’t believe any fault is really to be blamed on Kino Lorber, they’re just working with compromised material.
However, despite the shortcomings of the image quality, I do find it to be a subtle improvement over the Olive Signature edition and the enjoyment of this film isn’t hampered. The image is quite a bit cleaner and smoother. If only more care was put into preservation over the years, one can only imagine what this could look like.
Audio: 4/5
Being a 1956 low budget production, the original monaural soundtrack is provided for Invasion of the Body Snatchers as DTS-HD MA 2.0. The original theatrical release did feature a Perspecta stereo track, which has allegedly not been preserved (Kino Lorber did apparently attempt to include it). It’s a problem-free track with plenty of detail in dialogue and the music.
Special Features: 4/5
Where this release of Invasion of the Body Snatchers really shines is the utterly packed array of supplemental content.
On both the 4K UHD disc and the Blu-ray, four commentary tracks are provided. The first two were included on the Olive Signature Blu-ray from 2018, the other two recorded for this Kino Lorber release.
Commentary one features stars Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter, moderated by director Joe Dante. I believe this was recorded in the early 2000s for a special edition release that never materialized.
Commentary two features film historian Richard Harland Smith.
Commentary three features film historians Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson, who have contributed to a lot of other Kino Lorber releases.
Commentary four features professor and film scholar Jason A. Ney.
The remaining supplements are included on the Blu-ray:
The Fear is Real (12:27) – Fun interviews with directors Larry Cohen and Joe Dante. Both talk about the impression left on them seeing Invasion of the Body Snatchers as adolescents, what the film means to them now, and background on the film from their friendships with cast and crew. This was originally produced for the 2018 Olive Signature Blu-ray.
The Stranger in Your Lover’s Eyes (11:55) – A video essay by director Don Siegel’s son Kristoffer Tabori, who reads passages from his father’s autobiography concerning the making of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Also from the Olive edition.
I No Longer Belong – The Rise and Fall of Walter Wanger (21:05) – An interview with historian Matthew Bernstein discussing Wanger’s history as producer.
Theatrical trailers for the 1956 original and 1978 remake are included in HD.
Puzzlingly, Kino Lorber has not brought over several of the documentaries and featurettes from the Olive Signature edition, all of which appear to be copyrighted to Paramount. This includes a quite good making-of documentary, featurettes on locations, and an interview with Kevin McCarthy. Those with that edition may want to hold onto it for those supplements. (The UK Region B BFI release actually includes all of the omitted supplements, though does not include three of the four commentaries)
This edition has a reversible cover and slipcase for its initial printing.
Overall: 4/5
While this version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers may not be a reference disc due to surviving film elements and some oversights in terms of supplements, this is a must-have disc for those without it on their shelves yet.
Current Home Theater setup (as of 01/2019):
Monitor:
Samsung 60" LED 4K UHD (UN60J7090)
Players:
Primary - Sony UBP-X700 UltraHD Player
Secondary - Sony BDP-S5500 Blu-ray 3D Player (all region modded)
Sound:
VIZIO 5.1 Soundbar SB-3851C0
Other Players:
PS3
Apple TV (4th generation)
3-D Glasses:
Samsung Active Shutter (4x)
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