{"id":4238,"date":"2007-09-13T07:57:40","date_gmt":"2007-09-13T14:57:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=4238"},"modified":"2020-12-01T22:25:46","modified_gmt":"2020-12-02T05:25:46","slug":"invaders-from-mars-1953","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=4238","title":{"rendered":"Invaders From Mars (1953)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;David says something landed in the field out back. It doesn&#8217;t make sense, but he seems so convinced!&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Poster-208x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"208\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-55916\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Poster-208x300.png 208w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Poster-711x1024.png 711w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Poster-89x128.png 89w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Poster-187x270.png 187w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Poster.png 767w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 208px) 100vw, 208px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nYoung David (Jimmy Hunt) awakens at night to see a flying saucer landing under a plot of sand behind his house. When his father (Leif Erickson) goes out to investigate, he&#8217;s sucked into the sand and returns brainwashed; soon the same thing happens to David&#8217;s mother (Hillary Brooke), two investigating policemen, a neighbor girl (Janine Perreau), and others. When David finally convinces a kind, beautiful doctor (Helena Carter) that he&#8217;s telling the truth, the military becomes involved in a massive effort to stop the aliens.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Aliens<\/li>\n<li>Mind Control and Hypnosis<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;No One Believes Me!&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>Science Fiction<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary notes that while <em>Invaders From Mars<\/em> is &#8220;not as good as&#8230; <em>Invasion of the Body Snatchers<\/em> [or] <em>I Married a Monster<\/em>&#8221; (both films dealing with similar themes), it&#8217;s &#8220;fondly remembered by those of us who saw it when we were children&#8221;; DVD Savant (see link below) is another fan, and his blow-by-blow analysis (he claims to have seen it roughly <u>50 times<\/u> over the years!) shows just how deep an impression it must have made on many young boys. Viewers today will likely classify it as yet another low-budget &#8217;50s sci-fi paranoia film (with possible overtones of &#8220;an anti-communist political allegory because the aliens use mind control&#8221;), and laugh at its uneven acting, campy special effects (those Martian costumes!), and over-reliance on stock military footage during the denouement. With that said, <em>Invaders From Mars<\/em> is notable both for its effective portrayal of a young boy struggling to make adults believe him (freckle-faced Jimmy Hunt is perfectly cast), and for director William Cameron Menzies&#8217; truly unusual set designs, which add &#8220;to the film&#8217;s surreal look&#8221;.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>An effectively paranoid portrayal of a happy nuclear family destroyed by alien forces<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Family.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Family.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-55921\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Family.jpg 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Family-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Family-128x96.jpg 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Family-360x270.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>The stylized low-budget set designs<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Set2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Set2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-55919\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Set2.jpg 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Set2-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Set2-128x96.jpg 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Set2-360x270.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Campy special effects and alien costumes<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Campy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Campy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-55920\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Campy.jpg 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Campy-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Campy-128x96.jpg 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Campy-360x270.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Several memorable shots<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Head.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Head.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-55922\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Head.jpg 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Head-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Head-128x96.jpg 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/09\/Invaders-From-Mars-Head-360x270.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, for its historical importance as a seminal alien invasion flick. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Historically Relevant<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/imdb.com\/title\/tt0045917\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1953\/05\/30\/archives\/here-come-those-flying-saucers-again.html\">NY Times Original Review (spoilers)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/3761\/invaders-from-mars#articles-reviews?articleId=20242\">Turner Classic Movies DVD Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s96InvadersA.html\">DVD Savant Review<\/a> <em>(this detailed &#8212; nay, downright obsessive &#8212; two-part review immediately gives away spoilers, but makes for indispensable reading once you&#8217;ve finished viewing the film)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/wm04.allmovie.com\/cg\/avg.dll?p=avg&#038;sql=1:25264\">All Movie Guide Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;David says something landed in the field out back. It doesn&#8217;t make sense, but he seems so convinced!&#8221; Synopsis: Young David (Jimmy Hunt) awakens at night to see a flying saucer landing under a plot of sand behind his house. When his father (Leif Erickson) goes out to investigate, he&#8217;s sucked into the sand and returns brainwashed; soon the same thing happens to David&#8217;s mother (Hillary Brooke), two investigating policemen, a neighbor girl (Janine Perreau), and others. When David finally&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=4238\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4238","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4238","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4238"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4238\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":55924,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4238\/revisions\/55924"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4238"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4238"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4238"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}