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They Live
1988
John Nada (Roddy Piper) is a quiet loner, a drifter who gets work where ever he can find it. While working on a construction site in L.A. and sleeping in a vagrant community at night, John stumbles upon a secret society of alien beings who pose as wealthy and powerful people in human society. John joins a rebel group commited .. Read more
| Starring | Roddy Piper, Keith David, Meg Foster, George Flower |
|---|---|
| Director | John Carpenter |
| Genres | Horror, Sci-Fi/Fantasy |
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They Live
John Nada (Roddy Piper) is a quiet loner, a drifter who gets work where ever he can find it. While working on a construction site in L.A. and sleeping in a vagrant community at night, John stumbles upon a secret society of alien beings who pose as wealthy and powerful people in human society. John joins a rebel group commited to exposing this conspiricy, and becomes their reluctant leader and the only hope of the human race. Wrestler Rowdy Roddy Piper is outstanding as the unassuming hero, playing the role with understated shock at what he uncovers and stubborn courage when he confronts it. Director John Carpenter laces the film with his trademark blend of humour and horror, making aliens that are hideously arrogant, greedy, and easy to hate, while the humans are confused and desperate in their struggle against them. The world looks a little different at the end of THEY LIVE, and one will never look at billboards, money, or sunglasses the same way again. The film contains the longest, and perhaps most realistic, fist fight in film history. Paying homage to INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, the film was based on the short story EIGHT O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING by Ray Nelson.
| Starring | Roddy Piper, Keith David, Meg Foster, George Flower |
|---|---|
| Director | John Carpenter |
| Studio | OPTIMUM HOME ENTERTAINMENT |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 29 mins Blu-ray: 1 hr 30 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Horror, Sci-Fi/Fantasy |
| Language | DVD: English Blu-ray: English |
| Dubbed | German, Spanish |
| Subtitles | DVD: Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, German, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish |
| Released | DVD: 21 Oct 2002 Blu-ray: not available Production year: 1988 |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (3)
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A return to his B-movie roots for John Carpenter, this is a cheerful knockabout salute to the alien invasion sci-fi movies of the 1950s Wrestler-turned-actor Roddy Piper is the working-class hero who, on finding a special pair of sunglasses, discovers that alien-like creatures appear to have taken over Los Angeles and are controlling the remaining human residents with subliminal advertising. There's a nicely relaxed feel to Carpenter's direction and he keeps the action roaring along, stopping only to take a few satirical swipes at yuppie life. Piper handles the action scenes better than he deals with dialogue, but he is well supported by Keith David and Meg Foster.
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John Nada (Piper) is grouchy because ever since he arrived in Los Angeles from Colorado, there's been nothing but... read more on Time Out
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Most helpful member's review
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15 out of 16 people found this review helpful
YOU EITHER LOVE OR YOU HATE IT... I LOVE IT.
The title says it all. This is one of those films that most people like but won't admit to it. It has one of the more believable 'alien invasion' plots and at least it could theoretically work.
Carpenter is one of the most underated directors of our time- (The Thing, Halloween, Big Trouble in Little China) these are great films, but They Live is so full of goodness it's like an apple pie. Yes he has made some truly awful films but who hasn't. this film looks gritty and low budget because it is, but that lends itself to the crappy world the characters live in. I like Piper, yes it is because I'm a wrestling fan. But it's more than that. He makes a believable Drifter almost like Eastwood in A Fist Full of Dollars. The fight scene, one of the longest ever is so over the top that it is wonderful.
Don't listen to any criticism of this film, just sit back, and let go. You'll thank me for it in th end. -
Most recent members' review
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3 out of 3 people found this review helpful
We live
Classic dystopic myopic topic.
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They Live - BLU-RAY Version
John Nada (Roddy Piper) is a quiet loner, a drifter who gets work where ever he can find it. While working on a construction site in L.A. and sleeping in a vagrant community at night, John stumbles upon a secret society of alien beings who pose as wealthy and powerful people in human society. John ...
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They Live
John Nada (Roddy Piper) is a quiet loner, a drifter who gets work where ever he can find it. While working on a construction site in L.A. and sleeping in a vagrant community at night, John stumbles upon a secret society of alien beings who pose as wealthy and powerful people in human society. John ...
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