They Live
Just finished watching "John Carpenter's They Live" released by Universal Studios back in 1988.
"They Live" is rather a curious movie that is based on the short story "Eight O'Clock In The Morning" by science-fiction writer and cartoonist Radell Faraday Nelson, who also created the iconic propeller beanie cap, and Carpenter's own disdain of authority - unless it's his own as a director and parent - and President Ronald Reagan. Watch the interview with Carpenter where he declares that he was inspired to write this movie over his hatred of Trickle Down Economics and President Reagan.
I can't help but wonder who Carpenter would incorporate Cancel Culture on Social Media if he made "They Live" today. I had previously seen bits and pieces of it on old fashioned cable television over the years.
To summarize "The Live": In the present Los Angeles, an unnamed drifter who goes by the name John Nada, goes looking for work at an employment agency without any success. He finally walks to a construction site and gets hired. After work on his first day, he meets Frank Armitage. Armitage invites him to join him at his shelter. Armitage has a family that he was forced to leave and now lives at an abandoned site that serves as a homeless shelter of sorts. The site's leader is a man named Gilbert. From time to time, the television set that the shelter occupants are watching has the signal broken into. The signal, that doesn't last long, seems to be a warning about the population being controlled. The next day, Nada follows Gilbert to a nearby church. He discovers a secret meeting and discretely listens to a meeting while a recording of church music plays. While in an unoccupied room, Nada discovers a batch of sunglasses that are being manufactured for an unknown reason. A blind preacher from the shelter walks in on him and Nada leaves. That evening the police raid the area. They cause a lot of destruction and beat on the locals. Nada gets away unharmed and returns the next morning. He goes back to the church and goes to a secret room he discovered by accident the day before. He takes a box of from the room. He goes downtown and walks down a deserted alley and opens the box to discover that it is filled with sunglasses. He takes one pair and hides the box in a garbage can. Once Nada gets to a major street he puts the glasses on and discovers that he can only see in black & white. He notices that every single sign as well books, magazines and even money, have a slogan in place of what is seen without the glasses. They are all messages that seem to be orders of some sort, such as 'obey', 'consume', 'submit', 'sleep', etc. Nada also notices that some people have a face that looks 'skeletal' or alien in appearance. Nada wanders around and becomes indignant toward what he is seeing An alien disguised as an old woman, alerts the police to Nada via her wristwatch. The police chase Nada but he disables a couple of cops and takes their guns. He goes to a bank and starts firing on aliens. He leaves the bank and is pursued by alien drones and cops. He meets a woman, Holly Thompson, in a car garage and takes her hostage. He has her drive them both to her home.At her home, Holly, tells Nada that she is a program director for a television studio. Nada is exhausted and wants to rest. He tries to get Holly to put on the glasses but she doesn't. She then hits him over the head with a bottle and pushes him out off her balcony and calls the cops. Nada dropped the glasses at Holly's home and he makes his way back to the construction site. Frank tells him to get lost and Nada works his way back to the alley where he left the box. Once there, he gets the glasses and Frank shows up. Frank is showing pity on Nada and gives him money and tells him to leave him alone. Nada unsuccessfully tries to convince Frank to put on the sunglasses. He refuses and a massive brawl takes place between the two. After it is over, Frank finally puts on the glasses and understands what is happening. Frank and Nada make their way to a hotel. While staying there, one day, Gilbert shows up. He tells them about a meeting that is taking place that evening. At the meeting of the human resistance, Frank and Nada are given contact lenses to replace their glasses. They learn that there are humans who have sided with the aliens for money. The aliens treat Earth as if it is a 'third world' country. They want the Earth to suffer from global warming in order to make the planet closer to the alien homeworld. While there, Nada meets Holly. Holly apologizes for her behavior at her home. The police raid the resistance safe house. Nada and Frank escape and Holly apparently gets away as well. While cornered in an alley, Frank and Nada use an alien wristwatch to open up a portal. They escape to an underground tunnel. There, they find a political dinner of sorts for the aliens. They encounter one of citizens of the homeless shelter who has gone over to the aliens. He shows them around the facility. Eventually he brings them to the television studio where the alien signal originates. Frank and Nada start blasting away and eventually come across Holly. The three continue battling their way up to the roof of the building they are in. While Nada isn't looking, Holly kills Frank. Nada reaches the transmitter on the roof. Nada takes his gun and aims at the transmitter and Holly stops him by pointing a gun at him. Nada drops his gun but pulls out a hidden gun and kills Hollly. He then destroys the transmitter as a group of helicopters gun him down. As he lies dying, Nada gives the aliens the finger. Now all over the world, the alien cover is gone. Everyone can now see the aliens.
And I'm probably going to get in trouble for these two observations - the musical theme and score, co-written by Carpenter, has a weird porn movie vibe to it and there is a rather strange homoerotic undertone between Nada and Armitage the runs throughout the movie. Oh yes, since "They Live" was released in 1988, don't expect to see blood splattering from bullet ridden bodies - the R-rating is more due to the last scene in the movie where a topless woman finds out that the "man" she's having sex with is an alien.
"They Live" is a bit dated, but it still holds up well.
Recommended.
Four Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
"They Live" is rather a curious movie that is based on the short story "Eight O'Clock In The Morning" by science-fiction writer and cartoonist Radell Faraday Nelson, who also created the iconic propeller beanie cap, and Carpenter's own disdain of authority - unless it's his own as a director and parent - and President Ronald Reagan. Watch the interview with Carpenter where he declares that he was inspired to write this movie over his hatred of Trickle Down Economics and President Reagan.
I can't help but wonder who Carpenter would incorporate Cancel Culture on Social Media if he made "They Live" today. I had previously seen bits and pieces of it on old fashioned cable television over the years.
To summarize "The Live": In the present Los Angeles, an unnamed drifter who goes by the name John Nada, goes looking for work at an employment agency without any success. He finally walks to a construction site and gets hired. After work on his first day, he meets Frank Armitage. Armitage invites him to join him at his shelter. Armitage has a family that he was forced to leave and now lives at an abandoned site that serves as a homeless shelter of sorts. The site's leader is a man named Gilbert. From time to time, the television set that the shelter occupants are watching has the signal broken into. The signal, that doesn't last long, seems to be a warning about the population being controlled. The next day, Nada follows Gilbert to a nearby church. He discovers a secret meeting and discretely listens to a meeting while a recording of church music plays. While in an unoccupied room, Nada discovers a batch of sunglasses that are being manufactured for an unknown reason. A blind preacher from the shelter walks in on him and Nada leaves. That evening the police raid the area. They cause a lot of destruction and beat on the locals. Nada gets away unharmed and returns the next morning. He goes back to the church and goes to a secret room he discovered by accident the day before. He takes a box of from the room. He goes downtown and walks down a deserted alley and opens the box to discover that it is filled with sunglasses. He takes one pair and hides the box in a garbage can. Once Nada gets to a major street he puts the glasses on and discovers that he can only see in black & white. He notices that every single sign as well books, magazines and even money, have a slogan in place of what is seen without the glasses. They are all messages that seem to be orders of some sort, such as 'obey', 'consume', 'submit', 'sleep', etc. Nada also notices that some people have a face that looks 'skeletal' or alien in appearance. Nada wanders around and becomes indignant toward what he is seeing An alien disguised as an old woman, alerts the police to Nada via her wristwatch. The police chase Nada but he disables a couple of cops and takes their guns. He goes to a bank and starts firing on aliens. He leaves the bank and is pursued by alien drones and cops. He meets a woman, Holly Thompson, in a car garage and takes her hostage. He has her drive them both to her home.At her home, Holly, tells Nada that she is a program director for a television studio. Nada is exhausted and wants to rest. He tries to get Holly to put on the glasses but she doesn't. She then hits him over the head with a bottle and pushes him out off her balcony and calls the cops. Nada dropped the glasses at Holly's home and he makes his way back to the construction site. Frank tells him to get lost and Nada works his way back to the alley where he left the box. Once there, he gets the glasses and Frank shows up. Frank is showing pity on Nada and gives him money and tells him to leave him alone. Nada unsuccessfully tries to convince Frank to put on the sunglasses. He refuses and a massive brawl takes place between the two. After it is over, Frank finally puts on the glasses and understands what is happening. Frank and Nada make their way to a hotel. While staying there, one day, Gilbert shows up. He tells them about a meeting that is taking place that evening. At the meeting of the human resistance, Frank and Nada are given contact lenses to replace their glasses. They learn that there are humans who have sided with the aliens for money. The aliens treat Earth as if it is a 'third world' country. They want the Earth to suffer from global warming in order to make the planet closer to the alien homeworld. While there, Nada meets Holly. Holly apologizes for her behavior at her home. The police raid the resistance safe house. Nada and Frank escape and Holly apparently gets away as well. While cornered in an alley, Frank and Nada use an alien wristwatch to open up a portal. They escape to an underground tunnel. There, they find a political dinner of sorts for the aliens. They encounter one of citizens of the homeless shelter who has gone over to the aliens. He shows them around the facility. Eventually he brings them to the television studio where the alien signal originates. Frank and Nada start blasting away and eventually come across Holly. The three continue battling their way up to the roof of the building they are in. While Nada isn't looking, Holly kills Frank. Nada reaches the transmitter on the roof. Nada takes his gun and aims at the transmitter and Holly stops him by pointing a gun at him. Nada drops his gun but pulls out a hidden gun and kills Hollly. He then destroys the transmitter as a group of helicopters gun him down. As he lies dying, Nada gives the aliens the finger. Now all over the world, the alien cover is gone. Everyone can now see the aliens.
And I'm probably going to get in trouble for these two observations - the musical theme and score, co-written by Carpenter, has a weird porn movie vibe to it and there is a rather strange homoerotic undertone between Nada and Armitage the runs throughout the movie. Oh yes, since "They Live" was released in 1988, don't expect to see blood splattering from bullet ridden bodies - the R-rating is more due to the last scene in the movie where a topless woman finds out that the "man" she's having sex with is an alien.
"They Live" is a bit dated, but it still holds up well.
Recommended.
Four Stars.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
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