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Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

timespace coordinates: 1970’s San Francisco

Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a 1978 American science-fiction horror film directed by Philip Kaufman and starring Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Veronica Cartwright, Jeff Goldblum, and Leonard Nimoy. It is based on the 1955 novel The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney.

The plot involves a San Francisco health inspector and his colleague who over the course of a few days discover that humans are being replaced by alien duplicates; each is a perfect biological clone of the person replaced, but devoid of empathy and humanity. It is hailed as one of the greatest remakes ever, as well as one of the best science-fiction horror films of all time. (wiki)

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Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

timespace coordinates: 1950’s Santa Mira, California

Invasion of the Body Snatchers is a 1956 American science-fiction horror film produced by Walter Wanger, directed by Don Siegel, and starring Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter. The black-and-white film was shot in 2.00:1 Superscope and in the film noir style. (wiki)

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Body Snatchers (1993)

timespace coordinates: 1990’s military base in Alabama

Body Snatchers is a 1993 American science fiction horror film directed by Abel Ferrara and starring Gabrielle Anwar, Billy Wirth, Terry Kinney, Meg Tilly, Christine Elise, R. Lee Ermey, and Forest Whitaker. Body Snatchers is the third film adaptation of Finney’s novel. (wiki)

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The Invasion (2007)

timespace coordinates: 2000’s Washington, D.C.

The Invasion is a 2007 American science fiction horror film directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel, with additional scenes written by The Wachowskis and directed by James McTeigue, and starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig.

analysis: Writer David Kajganich described the story to reflect contemporary times, saying, “You just have to look around our world today to see that power inspires nothing more than the desire to retain it and to eliminate anything that threatens it.” (wiki)

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2049

timespace coordinates: 1990’s / 2020’s Woodsboro, California

Scream (1996 film)

Scream is a 1996 American slasher film directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson. The film stars David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Matthew Lillard, Rose McGowan, Skeet Ulrich, Jamie Kennedy, and Drew Barrymore. Released on December 20, it follows Sidney Prescott (Campbell), a high school student who becomes the target of a mysterious killer in a Halloween costume known as Ghostface. The film satirizes the clichés of the slasher genre popularized in films such as Halloween (1978), Friday the 13th (1980) and Craven’s own A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). Scream was considered unique at the time of its release for featuring characters aware of real-world horror films who openly discussed the clichés that the film attempted to subvert.

Inspired by the real-life case of the Gainesville Ripper, Scream was influenced by Williamson’s passion for horror films, especially Halloween (1978).

The soundtrack by Marco Beltrami was cited as “[one] of the most intriguing horror scores composed in years”. The score has since earned “cult status”. Scream marked a change in the genre as it cast already-established and successful actors, which was considered to have helped it find a wider audience, including a significant female viewership.

Scream was credited with revitalizing the slasher genre in the 1990s, which was considered to be almost dead following an influx of direct-to-video titles and numerous sequels to established horror franchises of the 1970s and 1980s. Scream‘s success spawned a series of sequels. (wiki)

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Scream (2022 film)

Scream (also known as Scream 5) is a 2022 American slasher film directed by Radio Silence (Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett). It is the fifth installment in the Scream film series. Though billed as a relaunch of the film series, the film is a direct sequel to Scream 4 (2011) and is the first film in the series to not be directed by Wes Craven, following his death in 2015. The film is dedicated to Craven at the beginning of the closing credits.

The film stars Melissa Barrera, Kyle Gallner, Mason Gooding, Mikey Madison, Dylan Minnette, Jenna Ortega, Jack Quaid, Jasmin Savoy Brown, and Sonia Ammar, alongside Roger L. Jackson, Marley Shelton, Skeet Ulrich, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, and Neve Campbell, who reprise their roles from previous installments. The film takes place twenty-five years after the original Woodsboro murders, when yet another Ghostface appears and begins targeting a group of teenagers who are each somehow linked to the original killings. Similar to previous entries, Scream combines the violence of the slasher genre with elements of black comedy and “whodunit” mystery to satirize the trend of reboots and legacy sequels. The film also provides commentary on fandom culture and the divide between “elevated horror” and classic slasher films.

Scream was praised by critics for honoring Craven’s legacy and offering thoughtful meta-commentary on horror films, with some calling it the best of the Scream sequels. The development of a sequel was announced in February 2022. (wiki)

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0621 – The Book of Eli (2010)

spacetime coordinates: 2043 Pacific Coast / San Francisco Bay Area

The Book of Eli is a 2010 American post-apocalyptic neo-Western action film directed by the Hughes brothers, written by Gary Whitta, and starring Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis, Ray Stevenson, Jennifer Beals and  Tom Waits. The story revolves around Eli, a nomad in a post-apocalyptic world, who is told by a voice to deliver his copy of a mysterious book to a safe location on the West Coast of the United States. The history of the post-war world is explained along the way, as is the importance of Eli’s task.

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