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USA 2007
Director: Justin Jones
Cast: Erica Roby, Jessica Bork, Sarah Lieving, Danae Nason, Shaley Scott, Michael Tower, Marat Glazer
Rating: R
Release Date: 24 July 2007
Running Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
The Movie Review
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INVASION
Of The POD PEOPLE |
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Whew... I had a really rough time in the last 2 days, with so minimum sleeping time and eventually not able to write any review. That's unproductive... Bummer... Hmpfh so I pop in an obscure little title that at least I could hope for some craziness or some wackiness that it could at least distract me from all this hectic week. Invasion of the Pod People, that's what I chose for this evening. Not without any reason, a mail came to me asking me about this movie. Well it all depends on his personal taste in the end, but I just want to remind him and all readers, this film was a product of The Asylum. So basically this is another Mockbuster.
In Monterey, California, a sudden meteor shower is striking the city causing many casualties as we witness through the TV watched by a girl named Melissa. Melissa (Erica Roby) is working in a modelling agency called Blackthorn. The company is currently facing a hard time for having none of the new faces as their models. And so the boss, Vickland (Michael Tower), asks Melissa and her other 2 friends to hire one of the up and coming model named Taylor Michaels (Shaley Scott), the problem is Taylor seems to know two things only, to be a hot model and to be an annoying b!tch, yep she is one heckuva stuck up woman.
Snobbishness apparently is a common trait possessed by most of Melissa's co-workers. But then suddenly, one of the senior models, Bailey Rogers (Lorraine Smith), asks Melissa to give a very weird looking plant to Melissa's superior, Samantha (Jessica Bork). Strange thing is, Taylor also has one of those plant. We see her watering it and when she turns back, the plant has gone. And as she's about to take a shower (cue nude scene), she hears something from inside her house as if someone is lurking.
Days went by, and since that weird-looking plant is present, all the annoying female co-workers in the office have suddenly turned into friendly and easygoing people. Samantha ---who used to be like a Nazi (not my word, the script says so)-- is now asking Melissa and her bestfriend, Billie (Danae Nason), for a girls nite out (cue more nudity) and eventually could easily make Taylor Michaels to sign a modelling contract. Amidst the confusion, a friendly detective Pete Alexander (Marat Glazer), is trying to help Melissa to uncover these freakish coincidences. What is happening in that city really? What will happen to Melissa?
Uhmm... About the "weird-looking-plant", actually it's not that weird folks, it's a very common vegetable in Indonesia, we call it as Kunyit but english-speaking people know it better as Turmeric. So frankly, it was a mixed feeling I had watching this movie, personally this movie leans more to horror side instead of the action, let alone comedy. But seeing how Kunyit was treated as some kind of a dark magic, I couldn't help not to chuckle since I used to see my Mom chopping it off in the kitchen. I guess my fellow countrymen would also scratch their head. But okay enough of my personal 'laughing at' moment. This science fiction motion picture does have this chilling atmosphere. The sound effect particularly as well as the musical score are great for such low-budget film.
The opening scene and several scenes after that are very promising, but afterwards, sadly, everything goes downhill. Invasion of Pod People suffers from many flaws. The acting needs much more improvement, for most of the time the cast are having difficulties to articulate their feelings or emotions, only when the scene is already intense enough, they seem to go well with the script. Scenes that I like the most is the fighting scene between a pod people and a real person and another one is the Mexican-standoff scene among Melissa, Vickland, and the rest. And the pacing, oh the pacing is so slow, and it's worsened by the lackluster dialogue, dull-looking interior, plot holes, the ending is irresponsible which doesn't give us any clue whatsoever about the creatures' secret, and finally again... the acting. Good sound effects and score alone can not save this movie. And oh, even though all actresses (except Danae Nason) are having topless nude scenes, but without solid storyline, even nudity can not save the movie, at least not this time.
I actually think the movie has potential, if only it hadn't intended as a Mockbuster. Mockbuster is a term referring to a movie that's try to cash in the success of other more famous movie, which in this case The Invasion (2007). The premise underlying Invasion of the Pod People has a long history way back to the year 1956. It all began with Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) based on a novel by Jack Finney, and then the remake follows: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978); Body Snatchers (1993), The Invasion (2007) and eventually Invasion of the Pod People (2007). If you love Asylum, grab this movie, but if you love the original, you know what to do...
> Cheesy Invasion movie which may just amuse you: Invasion of the Star Creatures (1962), Invasion of the Bee Girls (1973) and Alien Trespass (2009).
> The realistic, raw and deeply engaging movie of Body Snatchers from Croatia (Yugoslavia): The Rat Savior AKA Izbavitelj (1976).
© iwan pranowo of Movielogy.com
Twitter: @movielogy
posted: Saturday, 15 October 2011 11:51 pm
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