They Live (1988 film)
Summary
"You see them on the street. You watch them on TV. You might even vote for one this fall. You think they're people just like you. You're wrong. Dead wrong. They live, we sleep. Who are they? And what do they want?" A drifter discovers a pair of sunglasses that allow him to wake up to the fact that aliens have taken over the Earth.
Details
- Release Date: 1988
- Country/Language: US, English
- Genres/Technical: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi, Comedy (satire)
- Runtime: 1 hr 33 min
- Starring: Roddy Piper, Keith David, Meg Foster
- Director: John Carpenter
- Writer: Ray Nelson (story), John Carpenter (screenplay) (as Frank Armitage)
- Producer/Production Co: Alive Films, Larry Franco Productions
- View Trailer: (link)
- TVTropes: (link)
- IMDB Page: (link)
Ratings
MPAA Ratings
- Rated: R (Violence, Profanity, Nudity, Adult Content, Sexual Situations)
Tentacle Ratings
A rough measure of how "Lovecraftian" the work is:
- Ss___ (One and a Half Tentacles: Barely Lovecraftian)
Not very Lovecraftian, but some elements are there. A homeless drifter discovers a pair of sunglasses that allows him to see through the charade of 'reality' and realize that the Earth has been invaded by a race of grotesque, corpse-like aliens from another dimension; as the only man who can stop them, nobody believes him: the truth sounds like the ravings of a delusional madman!
Note: This rating is not intended as a measure of quality, merely of how closely related to Lovecraftian "Weird" fiction the work is.
Reviews
Review Links:
- (review needed)
Synopsis
A homeless drifter discovers a reason for the ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor: a conspiracy by non-human aliens who have infiltrated American society in the guise of wealthy yuppies. With the help of special sunglasses that reveal the aliens' true faces and their subliminal messages ("marry and reproduce," "submit to authority"), our hero tries to stop the invasion.
Notes
Comments, Trivia, Dedication
Associated Mythos Elements
- TO DO
- setting: Delta Green
- family: Armitage (used by Director John Carpenter as a pseudonym)
- fiction: Ray Nelson's short story "Eight O'Clock in the Morning"
