Sleep, Obey, Consume, and Watch "They Live"

Annalee Newitz — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 18:21:41 PDT

If you want to spend your Friday evening contemplating the joys of alien-based paranoia, plus a little wrestling, then there's nothing better than a nice heaping of They Live. Released in the late 1980s, this ironic-paranoid classic was John Carpenter's giant fuck you to the Reagan Administration and social conformity of all types. Aliens have taken over, and are controlling all of the United States (and perhaps the whole world) by beaming a signal into everybody's mind that masks the true aliens, as well as the "obey" signs they've planted everywhere. In this awesome scene, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper puts on some sunglasses that allow him to see the truth. It's like the "taking the red pill" moment — suddenly the extent of his manipulation becomes clear.

And of course, it's hilarious. Instead of spouting some speech about simulation Wachowski-Bros-style, Piper is basically dumbstruck. He finally lashes out at an old lady alien by telling her she looks like her face has "been in the cheese dip since 1957." Yup, those were the days, when high tech social control was solved with a nice wrassle and you didn't need any of them fancy computer hackers to do the job. If it were possible to force every human in the U.S. and Canada to watch this movie, I would do it. Using my MIND CONTROL BEAM.

They Live [Amazon]

Must See: They Live

Annalee Newitz — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 14:19:14 PDT

Must-see movies are futuristic classics that shouldn't be missed. Of course, not every must-see is perfect. That's why we've rated them 1-5 on the patented "crunchy goodness" scale. Written by Sherilyn Connelly.

Title: John Carpenter's They Live
Date: 1988

Vitals: A hunky drifter discovers that via special sunglasses he can see both the aliens who run the world and the hidden propaganda they use to control humanity. Any parallels to consumer culture and/or the Reagan Administration purely intentional.

Famous names: John Carpenter, Rowdy Roddy Piper

Crunchy goodness: 4

Elevator pitch: "It's The Manchurian Candidate meets No Holds Barred!"

Stunt casting: Wrestler "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, whose wooden acting is oddly perfect for the now-classic line: "I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass, and I'm all out of bubblegum."

Sights you'll never unsee: The final shot of the film: one of the formaldehyde-faced aliens having sex with a topless woman.

Life lesson: If a friend tells you to put on a pair of sunglasses, you'll have to kick each others' asses for five and half minutes if you refuse, so put the glasses on!

John Carpenter's They Live Site Must See by Sherilyn Connelly.

io9: Rowdy Roddy Piper

Sleep, Obey, Consume, and Watch "They Live"

Must See: They Live