--- title: "Invasion of the Body Snatchers: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers" critics_score: 85 critics_reviews: 11 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978): what the critics said Critics' score 85 from 11 reviews: 11 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. Eleven reviews, all positive, and unusually united for a remake. Most critics say Kaufman’s 1978 version matches or improves on the 1956 original; a few call it as much a sequel as a rerun. The praise clusters on the move to San Francisco and what it lets the film say about post-Watergate distrust and Sixties idealism curdling into complacency. Denny Zeitlin’s layered score, the sound design, restrained effects and an ensemble led by Sutherland are all singled out, and several reviews rank it among the most frightening American films of its decade. The spread is narrow; nobody dislikes it, and the cooler notices simply admire it a little less. The New York Times finds it dazzling but showy, closer to an affectionate joke on the material than straight horror, and Time Out reads it as a knowing Movie Brat exercise toying with psychology and ecology. The rest take the fear at face value. ## Empire — Kim Newman Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. The critic praises Kaufman's 1978 remake as an intelligent upgrade and even a sequel to the 1956 original, highlighting its subtle effects, layered soundtrack by Denny Zeitlin, and depiction of post-Summer of Love alienation in San Francisco. It singles out the eerie open-mouthed pod yell and the film's standing among the most intelligent and frightening American sci-fi films of the decade. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/empire-essay-invasion-bodysnatchers-review/) ## Slant Magazine — Chuck Bowen Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 16 August 2016. The review praises Philip Kaufman's film as a funny and terrifyingly sensual portrait of conformity, highlighting its textured, tactile scenes rich in emotional detail and subtle social commentary on the shift from 1960s/70s idealism to corporate culture and complacency. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-1978/) ## The AV Club — Keith Phipps Rating A-. 29 August 2007. The review commends the film's blend of post-Vietnam paranoia and Me Decade introspection, noting how it alternates sharp social commentary with impeccably crafted scares while updating the original's formula effectively. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-1798202942) ## The New Yorker — Pauline Kael Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 18 December 1978. The film is sheer fun and a new classic, a full-scale realization of the story's potential with confident direction and witty script. Kael praises the sumptuous production, sound design, San Francisco setting, and the way it captures the fear of losing individuality. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1978/12/25/pods) ## Variety — Variety Staff Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1977. The remake validates the concept of remakes by matching and exceeding the original in tone, conception, and execution. The critic highlights the strong ensemble cast led by Sutherland and the methodical ominousness of the later pursuit scenes. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1977/film/reviews/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-2-1200424229/) ## The New York Times — Vincent Canby Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 22 December 1978. Kaufman's remake is a dazzling, showy update of the horror classic that operates as both a valentine and a good-hearted joke on the material. The critic singles out the director's inventive visual style and attention to beautiful minutiae for praise. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/22/archives/screen-body-snatchers-return-in-all-their-creepy-glory.html) ## Time Out — PT Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 21 July 2014. The 1978 remake is a far from redundant update that transposes the story to San Francisco and erupts into a world already obsessed with changing lifestyles and conspiracies. It toys cleverly with modern thought systems like psychology and ecology while delivering a knowing, Movie Brat-ish take that avoids overdoing effects or in-jokes. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-1) ## Collider — Andre Dellamorte Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 23 October 2010. The critic calls Philip Kaufman's film a perfect work and the best of a Blu-ray set, praising its mood, pitch-perfect paranoia, expert direction and lighting, strong cast including Leonard Nimoy, and the iconic shock ending. [Read the review](https://collider.com/the-invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-blu-ray-review-the-return-of-the-living-dead-the-amityville-horror/) ## Den of Geek — Ryan Lambie Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 28 June 2018. The critic celebrates Kaufman's remake as a clever and scary update that improves on the original by relocating it to San Francisco and offering a bleaker ending. It singles out the film's practical effects, quirky neurotic characters and post-Watergate relevance for praise. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-how-philip-kaufmans-remake-improved-on-the-original/) ## The Ringer Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 2 October 2018. The piece hails the film as the scariest American movie of the 1970s, a paranoid remake that builds from a whisper to an otherworldly shriek with greater humanity and subtext than its predecessor, culminating in a cold, calculating final scream. [Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2018/10/02/movies/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers-remake-donald-sutherland) ## The Skinny — Rachel Ashenden Rating 4/5. 18 November 2013. The review praises Kaufman's 1978 update for its body horror and post-Nixon subtext, relocating the pod invasion to San Francisco amid themes of Vietnam-era violence and distrust of authority. It singles out the film's compelling eco-horror as its strongest element. [Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/dvd-reviews/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers.md