Movies Best 'Aliens are impersonating Humans and taking over Earth' films

[650lb Sumo]

This is one of my favourite film premises. It would be interesting to dig down psychologically and see why it's so effective. Vampires, werewolves, zombies and demons possessing people are also popular in the human-seeming-but-not-actually category. There are also films where the person's body is controlled by a parasite, internal or external.

There's something slightly off or uncanny about the imposters. And you don't know whom you can trust. And people don't believe you!

It's very creepy but also relatable.




The Capgras Delusion

Capgras delusion or Capgras syndrome is a psychiatric disorder in which a person holds a delusion that a friend, spouse, parent, other close family member, or pet has been replaced by an identical impostor. [Is it really a delusion? ]

I remember reading that the original novel was based on the Capgras Delusion. There are films using the same basic premise from before the novel though, and I'm sure the idea goes back into the mists of time. Capgras lived from 1873 - 1950. But it was Finney's novel (and the film adaptations) that propelled the idea to the prominence it has reached.


The Body Snatchers (1954 novel)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)




Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)




Body Snatchers (1993)




The Faculty (1998)




The Invasion (2007)




Assimilate (2019)




Do you enjoy this kind of film? Which is your favourite? The 1978 version, with Donald Sutherland, a 26-year-old Jeff Goldblum, and Leonard Nimoy is perhaps the most famous and considered a classic. I think The Faculty is very good though. It has Josh Hartnett, Salma Hayek, Robert Patrick, Summer Phoenix, Jon Stewart, Usher and Elijah Wood in!

 

[moreorless87]

They Live I spose is the obvious one not mentioned.

 

[chill doggie]

Under The Skin is good.
Not trying to take over earth, just snatching a couple humans at a time but definitely freaky and uncanny.

 

[ColemanwastheGOAT]

The 1970s Body Snatchers with Donald Sutherland is the best imo.

The Faculty is a fun one.

The Thing is a classic obviously.

Slither is another fun one.

 

[Fishmonger]

not "best," but world's end is another movie

and, in the mouth of madness

 

[moreorless87]

I do think that The Thing, Body Snatchers, The Fly, etc do highlight that theres nothing wrong with remakes in themselves, with horror I think the idea of taking these basic ideas and updating them to deal with societies shifting neuroses is very legitmate. The problem for me is that unlike the 70's/80's its much harder for genuinely creative directors to get the chance to do this, these properties have become jeliously guarded cash cows now which execs use as their personal playthings, hiring more hackish directors to make rather vapid nostalgia films that just fall back on basic slasher formula.

When was the last remake which could really claim to have some genuine substance? Maybe The Invisible Man? even that was a bit generic.

 

[Kyler Ruxin]

the second season of The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes

 

[650lb Sumo]

They Live I spose is the obvious one not mentioned.

They Live is a great selection!

Under The Skin is good.
Not trying to take over earth, just snatching a couple humans at a time but definitely freaky and uncanny.

A really good film out of left field. It lost money actually though it seems some people rate it high and some low. It also is supposedly about immigration and feminism (from a sympathetic point of view) but that didn't spoil my enjoyment.

The 1970s Body Snatchers with Donald Sutherland is the best imo.

The Faculty is a fun one.

The Thing is a classic obviously.

Slither is another fun one.

The Thing is a classic! One of the best horror films.

 

[moreorless87]

A really good film out of left field. It lost money actually though it seems some people rate it high and some low. It also is supposedly about immigration and feminism (from a sympathetic point of view) but that didn't spoil my enjoyment.

Most good horror these days I think comes from the arthouse scene, mainstream Hollywood stuff tends to just be generic slashers feeding the market which will endlessly watch them, really creative horror is mostly outside of Hollywood now.