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The Puppet Masters (1994)

tomatometer

0

Average Rating: 4.2/10
Critic Reviews: 6
Fresh: 0 | Rotten: 6

No consensus yet.

audience

38

liked it
Average Rating: 2.8/5
User Ratings: 7,231

My Rating

Movie Info

Robert A. Heinlein's 1951 novel The Puppet Masters comes to the screen 43 years later. Sharp-eyed viewers will recognize similarities to Invasion of the Body Snatchers, but Heinlein's book came first. Parasitic space aliens invade the Midwest, taking over the bodies of humans and manipulating these unfortunates to do their bidding. US security agent Donald Sutherland and his team of troubleshooters attempt to squash the extraterrestrial scheme before everyone in the world is turned into Howdy

R, 1 hr. 36 min.

Science Fiction & Fantasy, Horror

Sep 3, 2002

Cast

All Critics (23) | Top Critics (6) | Fresh (6) | Rotten (17) | DVD (2)

Only the most undiscriminating monster-pic buff will come away satisfied.

December 6, 2009 Full Review Source: Variety | Comment
Variety
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A choppy, unsuspenseful succession of chases, melodramatic showdowns and routine special effects.

August 30, 2004 Full Review Source: New York Times | Comment
New York Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The Puppet Masters occasionally lives up to its reputation, but the delay between story conception and celluloid conversion has clearly wilted its power and potential.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Washington Post | Comment
Washington Post
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Attempts at detailed characterization don't work particularly well, and there's a love story that feels as forced as it is superfluous - although even that isn't as unnecessary as the film's final ten minutes.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: ReelViews | Comment
ReelViews
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Despite accomplished special effects and a coolly intelligent script, this paranoid thriller never follows through on its eerie promise.

December 6, 2009 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | Comment
TV Guide's Movie Guide

...generally as far-fetched and overwrought as its 1950s sci-fi brethren.

January 11, 2007 Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | Comment
Reel Film Reviews

Lacked suspense.

June 9, 2006 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | Comment
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

There's no suspense (ETs rampage from the word go); no frissons (loud hailers telegraph the shocks); and it's insufficiently bright to be an hommage.

February 9, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment

About as nerve-wracking as a warm bath.

January 30, 2006 Full Review Source: Lessons of Darkness | Comment
Lessons of Darkness

Not bad if you can get past the "Invasion of the Plot Snatchers" set-up.

May 24, 2005 Comment
7M Pictures

its story logic is solid, its science is satisfying and its thrills are nerve-wracking

November 6, 2004 Comment

Some movies with great potential can be ruined or denied their greatness by a single detail.

May 30, 2003 Full Review | Comment
rec.arts.movies.reviews

The special effects are low-budget, but effective. The creatures are disgustingly realistic.

March 23, 2003 Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | Comment
Laramie Movie Scope

Robert Heinlein's 1951 novel comes to the screen in a film that takes little time away from the main plot to develop its characters, but does strike home with a story of a hard-fought battle with a fairly alien and devious enemy.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | Comment
rec.arts.movies.reviews

This movie is so wonderfully archaic and reminiscent of 1950s alien invasion stories that one cannot help but like it -- despite rather lacklustre directing.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Sci-Fi Movie Page | Comment
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for The Puppet Masters

Conspiracy sci-fi in which the human race is being infiltrated by aliens who can control the bodies of their human victims. On their trail are two FBI agents, one male, one female. One is a believer, the other a sceptic. Any of this sound familiar...? Yes, it's a total rip off of the X-Files, but it's adequately done,

May 24, 2007
garyX
xGary Xx

Super Reviewer

A captivating paraniod sci-fi thriller well directed by Stuart Orme, that features a outstanding lead star performance by Donald Sutherland, as Andrew Nivens the shrewd, sardonic head of a secret top-level U.S. Security Agency who leads his team consisting of agent Sam Nivens his disaffected son, Dr. Mary Sefton a

October 2, 2010
Dannyrovira

Super Reviewer

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