Invasion of the Body Snatchers (Olive Signature)

This review is for the Blu-Ray edition of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" released by Olive Signature in October, 2018.If you are reading this review, you have almost certainly seen the movie and are looking to see if it is worth upgrading to this version. I won't waste much space with PLOT/SUMMARY. Just look below under BLU-RAY and EXTRA'S. I purchased this upon release and immediately sat down to watch the movie with and without commentary along with the extra's.This should absolutely be a 5 star release. There are numerous extra's that make this a worth while purchase. Even though I am giving it 4 stars this is still a must buy for 50's science fiction fans. The reason I'm knocking it down a star is because of the picture quality.The Extra's are numerous and very good.BLU-RAY: I have to admit that I am disappointed in the picture quality. I thought that the print was going to be pristine but unfortunately it is not. I did not see the previous Blu-ray release so I can't compare the picture quality of the two.I don't know much about cinematography and film and print quality. I can only go by what my eyes see. To me the picture looked soft. I have seen quite a few black & white movies from the time period that have much sharper pictures. I don't know if that has to do with the way the movie was filmed or the camera equipment. I learned from the extra's that over the years this movie has been shown in different formats that require clipping part of the film and/or enlarging the film. There aren't many imperfections. There are just a few specks and scratches here and there that I only noticed because I was looking for it. So for the most part the print is clean. My issue is with the clarity. Depending upon lighting and how far away the camera was from the action, the picture would sharpen and soften regularly.Bottom line is that I think they can do better.EXTRA'S:-Audio Commentary by stars Kevin McCarthy,Dana Wynter and Joe Dante. I listened to this commentary and it is quite entertaining. McCarthy dominates it with Dante egging him on. McCarthy shows quite a bit of personality and tells stories and pokes fun at himself throughout. Wynter is basically reserved and very complimentary to McCarthy. Joe Dante is always good at commentaries as he has personality and is rarely dry. I recommend listening to this.-Audio Commentary by film historian Richard Harland Smith. I did not listen to this and will perhaps listen to it in the future. Generally film historians spend a lot of time on biographies of the people involved with the movie. There is a lot of other material here in the extra's including commentaries, interviews, etc. So a lot of the stuff gets repetitive. I'm guessing that there won't be a whole lot of new and interesting material that isn't covered elsewhere in the extra's.-"The Stranger in Your Lover's Eyes" This is a talk with the son of the director, Don Siegel.-"The Fear is Real" - This is an interview with two well known science fiction directors, Joe Dante and Larry Cohen. They are interviewed seperately and they give their comments on the movie.-"I No Longer Belong: The Rise and Fall of Walter Wanger" - This is documentary about 20 minutes long that gives a brief biography of studio head Walter Wanger. It tells of how he started out and how he came to produce "Invasion". Along the way he ended up shooting an agent who was having an affair with his wife. His experiences in jail led to a well received movie shot by Don Siegel which led to "Invasion". His career ends after the famous "Cleopatra" cost overrun disaster.-"Sleep No More: Invasion of the Body Snatchers Revisited" - A short documentary with Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter, Mick Garris, Stuart Gordon, John Landis, etc.-"The Fear and the Fiction: The Body Snatchers Phenomenon" - Another short documentary with Kevin McCarthy, DanaWynter, Mick Garris, Stuart Gordon, John Landis, etc. Some of these docs could have been combined into one as they appear to be made at the same time.-1985 archival interview with Kevin McCarthy - This is a short interview with McCarthy. It's interesting because today more is known about "Invasion" and he is not completely knowledgeable of some details about the movie.-"Return to Santa Mira" - I always enjoy documentaries that revisit the locations of where movie scenes were shot. This one covers most of the locations including a section called "Wrecking Ball" which details that places that no longer exist. However there are two problems with this documentary. Firstly, I was not able to figure out a way to view all the locations at once. There is a sub menu of approximately 8 or so locations and you have to wait for each to finish and then select each location from the menu. So you can't watch them consecutively. This is minor but a bit tedious. Second issue is the narrator kept telling incredibly bad jokes. I found myself cringing after each one.-"What's in a Name?"- This is obviously about the film's title.-Gallery of rare documents - Normally I find these galleries boring. For once this was interesting. One of the documents gives a breakdown of all costs involved and shows you the exact final cost of production.-Essay by author and film programmer Kier-La-Janisse-Original Theatrical TrailerPLOT/SUMMARY: The movie opens with Dr. Miles Bennell (Kevin McCarthy) being held at by the police at a hospital. He is ranting and raving and convinces the police and doctors to listen to his story. It is as follows:Miles returns to his home town of Santa Mira after being away and goes back to his practice. He meets up with his former girlfriend, Becky Driscoll (Dana Wynter). Immediately upon returning he notices things are not right in his town. His patients are frequently cancelling appointments and there seems to be some sort of mass hysteria with people in town claiming that their loved ones have changed and are not who they claim to be despite having the same memories and same looks.One evening, Miles' friend Jack calls him and tells him to come over right away. There is a body lying on Jack's pool table that bears a resemblance to him but seems to be incomplete. Later that evening after everyone goes to sleep, the body gets up and disappears, but not before Jack's wife, Teddy, notices that he is an exact duplicate of her husband.Miles, Becky, Jack, Teddy discover mysterious pods that are growing duplicate human forms. They figure out that these pod reproductions take over their hosts as soon as they go to sleep. The reproductions have taken over the town and control the local police, government and phones. They learn that they are planning on taking over the world by going town to town. Miles and Company must try to figure out how to get out of town to warn the world.After finishing his story, Miles begs the police to believe him.PRODUCTION: Thanks to the extra's we know exactly how much this movie cost down to the penny! They show a document in the extra's breaking down everything including cost overruns. The budget was $382,196.00 and the actual cost was $416,922.36.The movie ran 3 days over the planned schedule.It is not clear if these figures include the extra shoot that became the framing story. This was done about 6 months later after the original shoot finished.-The location shots were mostly shot in Sierra Madre, California but there were scenes in Los Feliz and Beachwood Canyons also. The town in which the story takes place in the novel (which itself, is a cobbled together collection of short stories by Jack Finney) is Mill Valley, California.-The tunnel scene was filmed in Bronson Caverns, just as literally hundreds of other Sci-Fi, western and other movies have been. The production design team dug a hole in the floor for the scene where Miles and Becky hide under the floorboards. They also built the small pond and stream in the caverns. The caverns aren't really caves, they are the remains of an old mine.NOTES ON THE ORIGINAL ENDING and FINAL ENDING along with some other changes:- It is well known today, that the framing story was added after shooting was complete. This decision was made after test screenings. The movie originally ended with Miles yelling on the highway overpass "You're Next!" The producers felt that this ending was too pessimistic. I agree. For the time period, this wouldn't have worked. I think the movie would have still ended up being a classic with this ending but it is well known, that most successful movies have happy endings or at least optimistic endings. Artistically the original was better. I think a very good comparison would be that of 'Blade Runner.' 'Blade Runner' ended up being a classic after a failed original release became a classic. This too, had narration and a 'happy ending' scene added.-It is debatable as to which ending is better. Kevin McCarthy said in his interview that he felt the original ending was better but he doubts the movie would have done as well with the original ending. McCarthy says that he has never seen the movie the way it was originally filmed.-McCarthy also tells a story of how a few of the production team got their hands on print before the movie was released and brought it to a theater and showed it to the consternation of the producers. According to McCarthy, as a result, all scenes of humor were removed. Apparently the film caused the audience to laugh at certain points and Walter Wanger, the producer, wanted a serious movie.-The director, Don Siegel wanted the movie to stay as he finished it but was given a choice, either film a framing story with an optimistic ending or they would hire somebody else to do it. He chose to finish it himself but did manage to leave some doubt at the end. It is never clear if the earth is saved.-In addition to the additional shoots, the decision was made to add in narration because it was felt that some things needed to be explained to the audience.-On a personal note, the final scene is my favorite in the movie. I thought it was well done and I like the shot of Miles up against the wall looking completely exhausted from lack of sleep. The whole movie up to the point is almost non-stop tension. You can finally relax and breathe for a moment and then the movie ends.ONE FINAL NOTE ON THE ENDING: The original ending in the novel is different from either ending in this movie or any of the remakes made in the future. It is almost universally disliked. In the novel, the seed pods leave and fly into outer space after they realize that they will not be able to take over the Earth.RECOMMENDATIONS/CONCLUSIONS: Lets call it a 9/10 or 4 1/2 stars. I'm giving the print 3 stars, I'm giving the movie 5 stars and the extra's 5 stars. I normally round up the half star to the higher number but I don't want to do that because I believe that the picture can be improved upon.I am a big fan of classic science fiction movies and this is definitely one of my favorites. I don't really have one favorite but this movie would be in my top 10 from the 50's and 60's.Highly recommended for all 50's science fiction fans. Recommended for any science fiction fans. The only reason I see for someone to not purchase this is because they already own it and they don't care about the extra's.

SPECIAL FEATURES AND TECHNICAL SPECS:NEW HIGH-DEFINITION RESTORATIONAudio Commentary by film historian Richard Harland SmithAudio Commentary by actors Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter, and filmmaker Joe Dante"The Stranger in Your Lover's Eyes" – A two-part visual essay with actor and son of director Don Siegel, Kristoffer Tabori, reading from his father's book A Siegel Film"The Fear is Real" – Filmmakers Larry Cohen and Joe Dante on the film's cultural significance"I No Longer Belong: The Rise and Fall of Walter Wanger" – Film scholar and author Matthew Bernstein discusses the life and career of the film's producer"Sleep No More: Invasion of the Body Snatchers Revisited" – Never-before-seen appreciation of the film featuring actors Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter, along with comments from film directors and fans, John Landis, Mick Garris, and Stuart Gordon"The Fear and the Fiction: The Body Snatchers Phenomenon" – Never-before-seen interviews with Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter, along with film directors John Landis, Mick Garris and Stuart Gordon, discussing the making of the film, its place in history, and its meaning1985 archival interview with Kevin McCarthy hosted by Tom Hatten"Return to Santa Mira" – An exploration of the film's locations"What's In a Name?" – On the film's titleGallery of rare documents detailing aspects of the film's production including the never-produced opening narration to have been read by Orson WellesEssay by author and film programmer Kier-La JanisseOriginal theatrical trailerOptional English SDH subtitles for the main feature

I like the special features on the disc. However, on close examination of the feature film, I could not detect a remastered version of this movie from its former release on blu ray. They both look identical. And I was expecting this release to look better.

This is my second Olive Signature purchase the first being their release of "High Noon" which was pretty good and this release of the influential original metaphor for paranoia and the persecution that results for the hysteria recalling the McCarthy Red scare of the time doesn't disappoint. They say history never repeats itself but rhymes and one wonders if this film still remains relevant given today's environment of the "immigrant scare" that seems to permeate some areas of the country with the support of the McCarthy of today?Olive strikes me as the poorer cousin of Criterion as they appear to have the same mission but having owned many Criterion releases myself in terms of picture and sound restoration Criterion still has the edge but as this release shows Olive is catching up. The picture quality is good but not that great but is certainly worth the upgrade from the dvd. Also included is an 8-page booklet containing an essay by Kier-La Janisse.Overall this is a worthy blu ray upgrade release from Olive and should be part of every sci-fi lover's film library.Highly recommended!

The image quality is fine. What makes this Blu-ray release so much fun are the bonus features, like the audio commentary with stars Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter & director Joe Dante, or 'Return to Santa Mira' which explores the film's locations, then & now.

I remember watching this as a kid and it scared the heck out of me. After seeing it again, it had the same impact! A very creepy movie with good performances and great atmosphere. Olive's signature edition is excellent, with great picture and sound quality and the special features are very good as well. I especially enjoyed the interviews with the cast. A classic sci-fi/horror film from the Cold War era of paranoia. Highly recommended!

Disc will only play in USA and Canada -- requires multi-region blu-ray player for UK.Do not buy if you are expecting a remastered high quality picture.Nice extras

Rivals Criterion for quality and contentPristine quality DvdAnd loads of extras