Night 4: ‘They Live’ (1988)
This is part of the ‘31 Nights of Horror Classics’ series, which I’ll be doing for Halloween 2017. Every night of this month, I’ll be watching a horror film made before the 90s and I’ll be posting a short review here.
What happens when you combine action, comedy and social commentary? You get John Carpenter’s ‘They Live’.
The film follows a man who moves into Los Angeles in search of a job, and ends up in a homeless colony where a mysterious broadcast has been interrupting their TV signal. Soon after, he finds out that there is more to the broadcaster’s apocalyptic speech, as he discovers a pair of sunglasses that allow him to see subliminal messages, as well as some strange creatures disguised as humans.
They Live is not your typical horror movie. Although there are certainly some disturbing images and ideas, it leans more heavily on ‘action’ tropes than those of the horror genre. For example, at one point the narrative stops entirely to show a long sequence where two of the characters have a fistfight. It also feels like a buddy cop movie for a few minutes, and there is even a token sexy girl that requires saving–although she serves a purpose by the end of the film.
For someone like me, who doesn’t truly gravitate towards action films, it was a little off-putting.
Nonetheless, They Live sort of makes up for it with some ambitious concepts. The story presents an interesting take on how society sees the select few who hold the majority of power as they force the rest to do their bidding in some refined type of slavery. In the film, they’re portrayed as ‘aliens’, both literally –they are odd-looking humanoids with bulging eyes and an eerie appearance- and metaphorically, as they hold positions of authority that separate them from the rest of the population. And after their deception crumbles, people are forced to recognize their oddness instead of normalizing it.
It also paints a thought-provoking picture of how we choose comfort over freedom. While some characters instinctively refuse to ‘see’ –like Nada’s friend, who refuses to put on the sunglasses-, many of those who do ‘see’ willingly prefer to doom their peers into submission as long as it entails enjoying a good and acceptable position in the chain of power.
There are also tidbits of commentary about minorities, communism, environmentalism, the role of media, consumerism… It’s a loaded film with a lot to say!
They Live also had some good comedic moments that made the heavy and not-so-subtle commentary more bearable. The legendary bubblegum line is definitely one for the ages!
On the downside, the film might estrange people who don’t really enjoying that style of ‘macho’ violence. And, unfortunately, the characters don’t have much to offer to make it palatable. Neither their personalities nor their motivations have time to develop, and the relationships formed between some of them are shallow and rushed.
Still, I give credit to the filmmakers for pushing the boundaries and combining genres in order to create something unique, with a message that remains surprisingly relevant in our current world.
Grade: 6/10 — Thought-provoking. More ‘Action’ than Horror.
Scare Factor: some scary-looking creatures.
Gore/Violence: a lot of violence and a bit of blood.
Nudity/Sexual Situations: a brief scene towards the end.
Previous Night: ‘Nosferatu, the Vampyre’ (79)
Next up: ‘The Mummy’ (32)
