The Invasion (2007)
Starring:  Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Jeremy Northam, Jackson Bond, Jeffrey Wright, Veronica Cartwright, Josef Sommer, Celia Weston, Roger Rees, and Eric Benjamin
DIRECTOR:  Oliver Hirschbiegel (James McTeigue – no screen credit)
WRITER:  David Kajganich (based upon the novel The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney)
PRODUCER:  Joel Silver
GENRES:  Action, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
RATING:  MPAA – PG-13 for violence, disturbing images, and terror
DISTRIBUTOR:  Warner Bros.

The Invasion is the fourth big screen iteration of Jack Finney’s 1954 novel, The Body Snatchers.  Despite Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig headlining, The Invasion opened to poor box office and, at best, mixed reviews.  It’s not at all a bad movie; in fact, it’s quite entertaining, but whereas the first two movie versions of this story were brainy, allegorical, and spoke to the time in which they first appeared, The Invasion is merely an action/thriller.

It didn’t help The Invasion’s cause that Warner Bros., the studio behind this film, was not satisfied with the cut director Oliver Hirschbiegel delivered.  The Invasion wrapped shooting in 2006, but underwent massive reshooting in 2007 when the studio brought in The Matrix maestros, Andy and Larry Wachowski, and their frequent collaborator, director James McTeigue, to put more action in The Invasion.  When movie critics and Net wags learned of the reworking, they just laid in wait to pounce on this film.

Anyway, the story:  A mysterious shuttle crash in Virginia area leads to a terrifying discovery.  An alien virus has come to earth, and those who come into contact with it change in ominous, strange, and inexplicable ways.  Washington DC psychiatrist Carol Bennell (Nicole Kidman) notices something wrong when a patient having severe marriage problems shockingly claims that her husband is no long himself.  Even Carol’s estranged husband, Tucker Kaufman (Jeremy Northam), seems overly peculiar, especially when he suddenly demands time with their son, Oliver (Jackson Bond), whom Tucker hasn’t seen in four years.

After Carol has a strange encounter with some neighbors, she takes her misgivings to her close friend, Dr. Ben Driscoll (Daniel Craig), and a fellow scientist, Dr. Stephen Galeano (Jeffrey Wright).  The trio slowly learns the shocking truth about a rapidly spreading extraterrestrial viral epidemic.  It takes effect when the victims are asleep; then, leaves them physically unchanged, but acting unfeeling and inhuman.  The virus spreads, and Carol is soon infected.  She can’t sleep or rest for fear of changing, and she must rescue Oliver from the clutches of her ex-husband because the boy may hold the key to stopping this monstrous invasion.

A still image from a terrifying sequence midway through the film.

The 1956 Invasion of the Body Snatchers spoke to audiences with its themes about communism and loss of personal autonomy.  The 1978 film, moody and paranoid, dealt with the 70’s malaise of the “Me” generation and the lingering collectivism of the 60’s Love Generation.  [I don’t remember much about 1993’s Body Snatchers.]

The Invasion does address the issues of the current day, while coming across as being two films in one.  The first and more complex movie features a narrative that basically says that humans seem fixated on hurting one another.  Humans changed by the virus no longer believe in the individual, but believe the all of humanity will become (literally) like one human.  This will offer an end to the violent and selfish excesses of individualism and instead offer the safety and sameness of a collective.

The second and more simplistic film – the action thriller – wins out.  This action/thriller aspect of The Invasion takes charge, and it is obvious from the opening scenes that this “Body Snatcher” flick is going to be a bit more edge-of-your-seat and less moody social commentary.  And it’s not a bad film.  The Invasion is terrifying, compelling, and does indeed keep you on the edge of your seat.  It’s a light weight, soupy remix of the 1956 and 1978 Invasion of the Body Snatchers movies with elements of Night of the Living Dead and 28 Days Later… and a rousing car chase to close things.

The Invasion also offers Nicole Kidman, a true movie star because of both her tremendous acting chops and the fact that the camera loves, loves, loves her, plus it has the happiest ending of any of the four “Body Snatcher” movies.  The Invasion is sometimes creepy, often unsettling, and frequently terrifying, and that’s enough to make it an entertaining sci-fi/horror turned action/thriller.

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