They Live (1988): Halloween

October 19, 2018

Time for the scariest thing of all time... consuuuuuumerism. This John Carpenter film follows a drifter whose eyes are opened to the fact that aliens are infiltrating society and pushing people to consume and not open their eyes to the fact that they are being controlled. He and his friend join an anti-alien alliance and try to fight their way out. This movie is amazingly entertaining. Obviously its message is incredibly 80's in its "they're controlling your mind through the television and just want you to buy things and be sheeple" but it was certainly a necessary message at the time. Apart from its sociological message, this film is a wonderful body snatcher sci-fi film and stars American treasure, Keith David. I highly recommend checking this film out if you are in the mood for some 80's alien fun this Halloween. While this film doesn't have much in the way of holiday imagery, its bug eyed aliens are enough to give you the chills.

Netflix available? No

Hulu available? No

Xfinity available? Yes

Holiday rating: 7 pumpkins