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Movies / On DVD / They Live
They Live

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They Live (1988)

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Reviews Counted:34

Fresh:30

Rotten:4

Average Rating:7.1/10

Consensus: A politically subversive blend of horror and sci fi, They Live is an underrated genre film from John Carpenter.

Runtime: 1 hr 35 mins

Genre: Science-Fiction/Fantasy

Synopsis: John Nada (Roddy Piper) is a quiet loner, a drifter who gets work where ever he can find it. While working on a construction site in L.A. and sleeping in a vagrant community at night, John stumbles... John Nada (Roddy Piper) is a quiet loner, a drifter who gets work where ever he can find it. While working on a construction site in L.A. and sleeping in a vagrant community at night, John stumbles upon a secret society of alien beings who pose as wealthy and powerful people in human society. John joins a rebel group commited to exposing this conspiracy, and becomes their reluctant leader and the only hope of the human race. Former wrestler Rowdy Roddy Piper is outstanding as the unassuming hero, playing the role with understated shock at what he uncovers and stubborn courage when he confronts it. Director John Carpenter laces the film with his trademark blend of humor and horror, making aliens that are hideously arrogant, greedy, and easy to hate, while the humans are confused and desperate in their struggle against them. The world looks a little different at the end of THEY LIVE, and one will never look at billboards, money, or sunglasses the same way again. The film contains the longest, and perhaps most realistic, fist fight in film history. Paying homage to INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, the film was based on the short story EIGHT O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING by Ray Nelson. [More]

Starring: Roddy Piper, Keith David, Meg Foster, George Flower

Starring: Roddy Piper, Keith David, Meg Foster, George Flower

Director: John Carpenter

Director: John Carpenter

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Release:

Jul 21, 1998

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Reviews for They Live

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1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z)
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The black-and-white visuals disturb for only so long, and while themes of indoctrination and conspiracy prove initially intriguing, the film quickly descends into fistfights and gunfire.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment 2 Comments
06/24/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out

Posits aliens not as intergalactic warlords or rapacious monsters, but as the ultimate force in asset stripping and insider trading

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Shane Burridge
Shane Burridge
rec.arts.movies.reviews

As is often the case with Carpenter, the concept is better than the execution.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
09/18/03
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

The plot for They Live is full of black holes, the acting is wretched, the effects are second-rate.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment 4 Comments
01/01/00
Richard Harrington
Richard Harrington
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

In spite of the fact that there was only about thirty minutes worth of story here, it is a good story.

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mark R. Leeper
Mark R. Leeper
rec.arts.movies.reviews

All the powerful, rich people are from another planet, while the working-class and the sycophantic are humans. Guess it was the only way Carpenter could make sense of the greed of the ’80s.

Full Review Source: Movie Habit | comment Comment
08/21/02
Marty Mapes
Marty Mapes
Movie Habit

Credibility isn't the problem with John Carpenter's They Live... but execution is.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment 1 Comment
05/20/03
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Apparently the (rent) alien invaders (this) never read the studies (movie) that proved that (it) subliminal advertising (ain't) doesn't work (bad).

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
03/19/03
Brian Mckay
Brian Mckay
eFilmCritic.com

Piper is easily the star of the show, making They Live Carpenter's best film -- I don't care what you say.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
09/25/03
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

Probably one of the most subversive films to have come out of Hollywood in decades, They Live is a welcome return to form by legendary cult film director John Carpenter.

Full Review Source: Sci-Fi Movie Page | comment Comment
01/01/00
James O'Ehley
James O'Ehley
Sci-Fi Movie Page

John Carpenter completists generally hate this slab of satiric sci-fi, but it's one of my favorite junk movies and a sure-fire Halloween rental.

Full Review Source: Nashville Scene | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jim Ridley
Jim Ridley
Nashville Scene

An engaging and compelling minor sci-fi flick.

Full Review Source: Netflix | comment Comment
11/07/02
James Rocchi
James Rocchi
Netflix

All in all, an entertaining (if ideologically incoherent) response to the valorization of greed in our midst.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
06/04/07
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The loopiest, and coolest, entry in the director’s canon.

Full Review Source: Lessons of Darkness | comment Comment
05/04/05
Nick Schager
Nick Schager
Lessons of Darkness

Carpenter's ability to fuse the bawdy humor and action with an intelligent script make for a genre film that is both thoughtful and entertaining

Full Review Source: Cinematic Reflections | comment Comment
08/19/06
Derek Smith
Derek Smith
Cinematic Reflections

great cult flick

Full Review Source: sbs.is | comment Comment
07/22/06
Stefan Birgir Stefansson
Stefan Birgir Stefansson
sbs.is

The film’s portrayal of capitalism is so wittingly sharp that I applaud the film. Securing my praise is the film’s brilliant ending: it is a brief and harrowingly comedic few minutes.

Full Review Source: Not Coming to a Theater Near You | comment Comment
09/03/02
Rumsey Taylor
Rumsey Taylor
Not Coming to a Theater Near You

An erratically amusing throwback to the science-fiction paranoia films of the 1950s.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
06/04/07
TV Guide's Movie Guide
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

They Live is thought-provoking while maintaining its B-movie credentials.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
04/15/08
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A fantastically subversive film, a nifty little confection pitting us vs them, the haves vs the have-nots.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
06/04/07
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z)
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Latest News for They Live

December 04, 2008: They Live All Over Again Opens in new window
Who will be all out of bubblegum this time? Universal has announced plans to remake John Carpenter's 1988 cult classic, "They Live." More...

April 17, 2008: Total Recall: The 20 Greatest Fights Scenes Ever
The long-awaited showdown between Jackie Chan and Jet Li in The Forbidden Kingdom got us thinking; what are the greatest fights ever filmed? We sifted through quite a few... More...

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