Carpenter rounded off his eighties career with They Live, an action and sci-fi mix with all the usual Carpenter traits, but which also works as a propaganda piece, and seems to have influenced films such as The Matrix. It is a film about unseen forces controlling us, about speaking out and taking action, rather than sitting back and accepting that what you see is the way the world should be. Featuring many good ideas, minimal and cool dialogue, shady characters and unlikely heroes, They Live is considered by many as Carpenter's last good film, though I have enjoyed most of what he has done since.
The film begins with a drifter walking into town, looking for any sort of work. His name is Nada, though this is never said, and he eventually finds work at a building site. There he meets Frank who introduces him to his slum neighbourhood on the outskirts of the city. Pirate TV broadcasts tell of the upper class getting richer, and the middle class being drained. Nada sees that these broadcasts are coming from a nearby church, but is warned not to get involved or the cops will take him away. When one day the church is raided, Nada finds a box of sunglasses. When he wears a pair he begins to see things- advertisements turn to slogans such as 'sleep' and 'obey', and realises that aliens are walking disguised amongst them, mostly the rich people. He grabs a gun and begins killing them, trying to find out why, who, from where etc. He meets Holly who works for a TV station and tries to convince her, but she doesn't believe him and calls the cops. After a long fight Nada manages to give Frank a pair, and he too sees what has been hidden from the public. They find the people who made the glasses, and set out to stop the aliens who are using humans, and other planets as resources for their own wealth.
This works as a social commentary on class, wealth, the politics of the time, and as an anti-war message for today. Invasion and subtle control are tolerated until a few rebels realise the truth and fight back. We should not be content with buying what we think makes us look good and become numb and dumb. Roddy Piper of WWF fame gives a fine performance as Nada, and of course his strength is exploited. Keith David is as strong as always, and Foster looks chilling and distant. The effects are still effective even if they do resemble something from the forties, and the story is good. After a slow start things speed up towards a typically Carpenter ending. This is another good film by Carpenter which lacks the best scares of The Thing and the fun of Big Trouble, but still is greatly entertaining and worth watching.
8 out of 10
The film begins with a drifter walking into town, looking for any sort of work. His name is Nada, though this is never said, and he eventually finds work at a building site. There he meets Frank who introduces him to his slum neighbourhood on the outskirts of the city. Pirate TV broadcasts tell of the upper class getting richer, and the middle class being drained. Nada sees that these broadcasts are coming from a nearby church, but is warned not to get involved or the cops will take him away. When one day the church is raided, Nada finds a box of sunglasses. When he wears a pair he begins to see things- advertisements turn to slogans such as 'sleep' and 'obey', and realises that aliens are walking disguised amongst them, mostly the rich people. He grabs a gun and begins killing them, trying to find out why, who, from where etc. He meets Holly who works for a TV station and tries to convince her, but she doesn't believe him and calls the cops. After a long fight Nada manages to give Frank a pair, and he too sees what has been hidden from the public. They find the people who made the glasses, and set out to stop the aliens who are using humans, and other planets as resources for their own wealth.
This works as a social commentary on class, wealth, the politics of the time, and as an anti-war message for today. Invasion and subtle control are tolerated until a few rebels realise the truth and fight back. We should not be content with buying what we think makes us look good and become numb and dumb. Roddy Piper of WWF fame gives a fine performance as Nada, and of course his strength is exploited. Keith David is as strong as always, and Foster looks chilling and distant. The effects are still effective even if they do resemble something from the forties, and the story is good. After a slow start things speed up towards a typically Carpenter ending. This is another good film by Carpenter which lacks the best scares of The Thing and the fun of Big Trouble, but still is greatly entertaining and worth watching.
8 out of 10