Invasion Of The Body Snatchers Essay

“It is said that films often reflect the times in which they are made.”

The Invasion Of The Body Snatchers is a prime example to support the truth behind this statement. The film, released in 1956, aimed to tap into common fears among Americans at that time, such as the fear of others, and the fear of nuclear annihilation.

From the outset of the film, we are introduced to a preconceived state of panic that exists in the small town of Santa Mira. Our main protagonist, Miles, is shown in a hysterical state, screaming about how a danger is imminent and that he is, more importantly, ‘not crazy.’ The film is introduced in this way in order to relate to the state of 1950’s USA, during which the fear of others, such as communists and homosexuals, was high, and the world was on the very brink of a nuclear war. Miles serves as a personification of the reaction to these notions, with his continued shouting of ‘I’m not crazy.’ This also represents the idea of conformity, in which he is trying to assure the authority figures that he is not an ‘other’ and is, therefore, not a threat. This conveys one of the main motives for conformity, not wanting to stand out, meaning that the film has already picked up on the national reaction to the lingering anxiety.

On the subject of conformity, it is significant that the police are the ones that arrived at the scene of Miles’ breakdown. During the 1950s, many of those who criticised the government and spoke up on their beliefs were prosecuted; just one example of how the fifth amendment was violated in order to keep the country in a form of ‘lockdown’, so to speak, during tense societal times.

Then comes the flashback sequence, when Miles begins his story, starting from when he returned to his hometown Santa Mira. He claims that, although it looked physically normal, there was something about it that seemed ‘not right.’ This line connotes the idea that the people that their society fears could, in fact be, absolutely anyone. As we come to learn later, this aforementioned threat isn’t strictly physical, but psychological – this personifies every segregated group that were shown prejudice during the 50s, including homosexuals and communists alike, and the fact that these were invisible. It is also significant that the threat is introduced immediately, instead of being a gradual process, as the film was created in a time when there was a constant and almost perpetual threat of war.

Additionally, he talks about the fact that several of his patients had cancelled their appointments, and had only wanted to talk to him. This portrays the lack of trust that people had in others; people wanted to talk to only him and wouldn’t settle for any alternatives because they were so afraid of others that they weren’t willing to take any sort of risk. In context with the film, the reason for this is that this possession (by the pods/invaders) could have affected anyone (like previously stated), and so the alternatives to Miles had potential to be pod-people. This can be applied to the time in which the film was created – people severely lacked trust in people that they didn’t know because they couldn’t differentiate others from ‘trustworthy’ people, and so kept to themselves. This sense of fear was another motive for conformity in society. The line “usually people want to talk about their ales” affirms this idea, as it shows a conformed and collected silence out of sheer paranoia.

Throughout the introduction to the pod-people, we constantly see others trying to rationalise the situation to make it applicable to something more conventional. For instance, at the first sight of unusual behaviour (Jimmy), his mother pins it down to being afraid of going to school. We find out later that he believes his mother is an impostor  Here, we have a direct link to McCarthyism, and how Joseph McCarthy made heavy-handed accusations against people, claiming that they weren’t who they said they were. (This was often by tapping into national fears of homosexuality and communism.) Additionally, Becky later claims that her cousin believes Uncle Ira is also an impostor  though she describes this as a ‘delusion’. Even though Miles’ suspicions have been raised (or in context, McCarthy’s aims have been attained), there is still not enough evidence to reveal the physical threat (given that this is a restricted narrative). This expresses the idea that people were generally on the fence when it came to whether to trust spectacle or the government. The government had a huge influence on its people, hence why when they released their anti-homosexual agenda and propaganda to the nation, so many people followed suit and went against homosexuality. It took a lot for people to break conformity and speak out what they believed in if it contradicted what the government had said. Therefore, the accuser, in this case Jimmy, is not taken seriously; the minority is ignored.

As a character, Miles represents a lot of things. Initially, he represents reaction to conformity; after he has faced the worst (pre-flashback), he refuses to blend in and shows a dire need to get his point across. At the start of the flashback, he aims to keep his anxiety to himself, mainly because he thinks nothing of it, but equally importantly because he is concerned of the consequences of breaking conformity. Additionally, he is positioned as an other. Baring in mind that he starts out as fitting in, he shows an innate refusal to change in order to fit in to the majority throughout the film. It’s almost as if there is a mutual fear of others by both the pod-people and the unaffected people; the unaffected people are afraid of changing, and the pod-people are afraid of not changing everyone. This, when applied to the 1950s in America, is almost exactly the same as the political rivalry. Although communism was a minority, by a great stretch, capitalism was threatened by it, and so people became afraid of the spread of communism in the west; the red scare. However, the minority of communists were afraid of capitalism as they were in danger due to conformity. Several people had been prosecuted because they were accused as being communist; another example of how the fifth amendment had been violated. This fear was most definitely mutual. Miles is also relatable as a character; every person has a doctor or knows a doctor, and so the profession is quite apt in this context. It shows how easy it is to reflect Miles onto the whole of society, not only in regards to his reaction, but also in regards to how he lives.

It is of great significance that the first few to be identified as others (pod-people) are figures of authority, i.e police officers. This is purposeful as it shows corruption within the government. Additionally, it shows how easy it would be to force people to conform.