Invasion Of The Body Snatchers Analysis

Precious Osuchukwu
D&D 1313-19
Prof. Knight
6 December 2013
Essay Three
Twentieth century short story author, Flannery O 'Connor, coined the phrase "grotesque" and mothered the genre of grotesque literature. The grotesque can also be cross applied to other forms of art, such as film. Director Don Sigel and Producer Walter Wangner collaborated on the award-winning film, Invasion of the Body Snatchers. In the movie, an alien invasion with the intent to usher in a utopia that is homogenous in mentality threatens humanity. The Invasion of the Body Snatchers made its debut during a time of internal turmoil and hysteria during American history. The Invasion of the Body Snatchers is grotesque because it meets the criterion of such works and could
They both worked on Riot in Cell Block 11 together, a film that made the case for prison reform at the time. Even though the film was a success, it was not made in a major studio, "[Wanger 's] ideas would have been perfect for the 1930 's, but in the anxious `50 's, Wanger 's projects scared off the major studios" (Fifty). This is because the film industry was sensitive to popular opinion and threats to boycotts at the time. The major studios did not want to take risk of coming off as political, so the directors, producers and writers opted for minor studios where "science fiction films and filmmakers found a political refuge" (Fifty). The fact that the government was threatened by movies confirms that in our society political messages perpetuate through media and are able to persuade people en masse to accept new ideas or reject the status quo, and because the implications of the film are political, the interpretations are also
McCarthyism is seen as the response to Communism as the two ideologies are on different ends of the political spectrum. In the 1950 's, many perceived Communism as a threat to the American way of life. Senator Joseph McCarthy managed to convince the American people to believe one 's political ideology was directly linked and exclusive to patriotism, citizenship, morals and values, "government officials were calling for and enacting extreme measures to combat a perceived threat" (Whitehead). This ideology is portrayed in the movie through the people that fell victim to the alien invasion. Once they are taken over by aliens, they aren 't not physically different. This is parallel to people and ideology. People look alike, and do not look physically different based on what they believe in, "the Soviets were considered ice cold, outwardly peaceful but very authoritarian and emotionless" (Whitehead). However, people could be perceived as less than human because they do not believe a certain thing or think a certain way, "Many Americans even considered Russians a different species who, because of their disbelief in God, were soulless and wanted to destroy Americans or turn them into Communist clones" (Whitehead). The McCarthyist capitalized on the hysteria of the Red Scare and imposed a domestic inquisition of political ideologies. McCarthyism was a reaction to and offensive against the proliferation of Communist dogma in