They Live - Collector's Edition [DVD]

This movie is a SciFi depiction about Secret Societies and the way they operate that I review about on Secret Messages: Concealment, Codes, and Other Types of Ingenious Communication.The author probably find out about it and decided to write a screenplay to portrait and maybe make sense of what he discover. And from the way the movie portrait that they do not know how long the Aliens been around, I can tell that the author does not know as much as I do about these secret societies.It is a very good depiction of secret societies. All you have to do is replace "Aliens" with "Secret Societies" & the "Sunglass" that allow the wearer to see the Aliens with a "Secret Message Translator" that allow you to understand these Secret Societies and you are pretty close to it.When I saw this movie over 20 years ago, I sense some truth to it but was not able to grasp the whole truth. After 20 years I was able to put it on the review mentioned above.If you watch this movie and like it, then I would recommend you read my review mentioned above to further stimulate your mind from the stimulation you already got in this movie.This movie is one of those movie you would want to keep in your movie collections.Update 4/16/2013I finally got the Blu-ray Version of "They Live" from Amazon on Feb.12, 2013. I tried to get it a few years back but the Blu-ray version was out of production and the only one available was costing $50-$60. I wanted it as a collection because of the story and what it represents, but the movie itself was not really extra-ordinary.The quality of the pictures is excellent. But that is to be expected from a release this later version where they have perfected the Hi-Definition transfer of film. If you get earlier version of Blu-ray of any movie, sometime it is not all it crack up to be because they were still new in adapting and perfecting the Blu-ray technology.After watching the movie, I notice that this is not the director cut version. And that the "They Live" movie that I saw originally on television must have been a director cut version. An example is that on the scene where all the humans who had the gadgets to see the aliens assemble at a meeting and they were raided by the police, this Blu-ray version only has the aliens having prune faces. But in the director cuts, the aliens had prune faces but some also look like monster with tentacles sticking out of their heads like Medusa.And this movie looks so much like what I review on Secret Messages: Concealment, Codes, and Other Types of Ingenious Communication. The following are some example in this movie of the uncanny similarity:1) the aliens are said to be extra-terrestrial businessman just exploiting earth. Where as in real life, the secret society also consider themselves to be businessman.2) In the liquor store where Nada (Roddy Piper) put on the sunglasses and see these aliens, the aliens said "we have one that can see". But in real life, when I notice the secret coded language of the secret society, they say "He understands", not knowing that I understand the general ideas & concept and not the nitty gritty. As my brain is too busy thinking of what kind of plausible deniability tactics to deal with these people who practice plausible deniability, with this gibberish they call a language/code, according to Newton's 3rd Law. And the last thing on your mind is communication when you see a rattlesnake.3) In the bank when Roddy Piper were shooting and killing these aliens, an alien in the bank can just disappear, which we later find out by using his special watch. But in real life, these secret society members can just disappear and blend into society by using the coded word, not in the coded meaning, but in regular language whether it is English, French, Spanish, Chinese, etc.4) When Roddy Piper discovers the existence of these aliens, he was so disgusted with them that he kills a whole bunch of these aliens. And in real life, when I discover the existence of this secret society, I was so disgusted with them, from the troubles, attitudes, lies, slanders & problems I experienced from these trouble makers since elementary school, that I write the review of Secret Messages: Concealment, Codes, and Other Types of Ingenious Communication to expose this secret society.However the writer of this movie portraits that they don't know how long the aliens have been around, demonstrating that the writer just learned about the secret society recently or not long enough to know more details about them when writing the movie script for "They Live". Where as in real life, the secret society claims to have been around during Jesus Christ existence and had fellowship with Jesus Christ. Due to similarity item #3 above, attempts to eradicate this secret society/underground society for over 2000 years have all been in vain. Like a hydra, once you cut off one head, two more will grow in it's place. To the present time where they are all over the world in almost every continent on Earth.One might think that this is just a coincident that the existence of the secret society and this movie is similar. But I am sure that the author of this movie writes this movie script as a way to express his discovery of secret society.This is a movie that everyone must see at least once, if not to keep as a collection, whether they believe this is a cult classic or not.

John Carpenter wrote and directed his second and last feature in the ill-fated Alive Films deal. This flick was a fun alien invasion, Sci-Fi/Action flick based on the short story Eight O'Clock In The Morning by Ray Nelson. Carpenter also mixed in some deft messages about class warfare and how the rich and powerful manipulate the government and media to reduce the rest of us to little more then slaves... a message even more relevant today then it was in 1988, with big corporations running our media and, to be honest, our government... but I digress...The story focuses on unemployed construction worker John Nada (Roddy Piper) who through a series of events comes across a pair of special sunglasses that let him see the world for what it truly is, an alien run society where humans who collaborate and cooperate are made rich and powerful and those who don't, are coerced by subliminal messages placed in all the media to basically follow orders and do what they are told. If you're not one of the haves, you're little more then a have-not slave. Nada has nothing else to lose so, he decides to join a growing underground rebellion and fight back, taking reluctant friend Frank (Keith David) and accidental hostage Holly (Meg Foster) along for the ride. But, the aliens are everywhere and so are the traitorous humans that have sold out and John Nada and Co. have some pretty big odds to overcome if they are to find and eliminate the beings' hypnotic signal and wake the world up from it's alien induced slumber.They Live may not be Carpenter's strongest work but, it is still a fan favorite and a lot of fun. The film moves fast and there is a lot of suspenseful action including a now classic fistfight between "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and The Thing's Keith David and the gunfight finale inside a cable TV office building. As usual Carpenter gives the film a nice look on a low budget with Gary B. Kibbe once again filling former Carpenter DOP Dean Cundey's shoes nicely with some beautiful camerawork. The political messages are a little heavy-handed but, there is enough action and aliens to even it out and the film has some really nice SPFX for a very modestly budgeted film especially those that portray the real world as seen through the signal blocking glasses. The film has some clunky dialog and it could have used some more time within the workings of the rebellion to get us a bit more endeared to the freedom fighters before they clash with the invaders but, the focus is on Nada and Frank and it is they who are left with the task of taking the bizarre invaders down and the film does have some very uniquely designed extraterrestrials to act as our villains. It is both one of Carpenter's lighter films and yet, ironically, one of his most politically and socially critical. As, despite the dire message, the film also has a very satirical sense of humor as well and that helps us past some of it's flaws as it doesn't take itself too seriously that we don't have a good time watching Piper run out of bubblegum and kick ass.And as for our leading man, Piper does OK here. Carpenter hired him because he felt he had a look of someone who has lived a hard life and that works in the case of down on his luck Nada. Piper isn't the best actor but, he holds his on especially during the action scenes and only stumbles a little in some of the more dialog heavy moments. Kurt Russell would have been prefect but, Piper works better than expected. Keith David is good as always. He makes Frank a likable and honorable man but, one who we believe doesn't take any crap from anyone. Foster is a little stiff as Holly but, since she plays a woman thrust into a very surreal situation, it almost fits the part. There are also some solid small roles from frequent Carpenter collaborators like Peter Jason as the rebellion leader Gilbert and George `Buck' Flower as a homeless man who discovers the benefit of playing nice with the ruling alien elite. Carpenter and associate Alan Howarth again deliver a memorable score to support the film.They Live is now considered a cult classic and I certainly agree. While it may have some familiar elements and common themes, it still comes across as a unique little movie and one with an important message that still resonates well over two decades later. And despite it's message being a large part of the film's plot, Carpenter wraps it with a fun, Action/ Sci-Fi coating to make it easily digestible. Piper may not have been the strongest actor to cast in the lead but, he does carry the flick and it's fun to watch him have a good time with the part even if he stumbles a bit in the film's more serious moments. Not Carpenter's best flick but, still very enjoyable and once again another film that has found it's audience years later. Again John Carpenter proves he is a director who is well ahead of his time.The film is now available in this beautiful new transfer from Scream Factory!

"PUT THE GLASSES ON!!!"If you haven't seen this in 4K, you've missed out on one of life's rare wonderful moments.

One of the greatest sci-fi films that capture the reality of advertising and induced slavery through product!