The Puppet Masters (1994)

Director:

Stuart Orme

Writers (WGA):

Robert A. Heinlein (novel)
Ted Elliott (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

21 October 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Trust No-one.

Plot:

The Earth is invaded by alien "slugs" that ride on people's backs and control their minds.

Plot Keywords:

Alien | Iowa | President | Suicide | Des Moines Iowa

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Donald Sutherland	...	Andrew Nivens
Eric Thal	...	Sam Nivens
Julie Warner	...	Mary Sefton
Keith David	...	Alex Holland
Will Patton	...	Dr. Graves
Richard Belzer	...	Jarvis
Tom Mason	...	President Douglas
Yaphet Kotto	...	Ressler
Gerry Bamman	...	Viscott
Sam Anderson	...	Culbertson
J. Patrick McCormack	...	Gidding
Marshall Bell	...	General Morgan
Nicholas Cascone	...	Greenberg
Bruce Jarchow	...	Barnes
Benjamin Mouton	...	Higgins

Also Known As:

Robert A. Heinlein's The Puppet Masters (USA) (complete title)
Les maîtres du monde (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
A parazita (Hungary) [hu]
Ailen Master (South Korea) [ko]
Alguien mueve los hilos (Spain) [es]
Gospodarji lutk (Slovenia) [sl]
Il terrore della sesta luna (Italy) [it]
Invadatorii (Romania) [ro]
Puppet Masters (Sweden) [sv]
Puppet Masters - Bedrohung aus dem All (Germany) [de]
Uhka tuntemattomasta (Finland) (TV title) [fi]
Varastetut ihmiset (Finland) [fi]

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, sci-fi gore and brief language.

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Hungary:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Manitoba) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | France:U | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 (video premiere) | Germany:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #33291) | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

City Hall - 2600 Fresno Street, Fresno, California, USA

Company:

Hollywood Pictures

Trivia:

At the start of the film when the boys are trying to convince Mary to go inside the fake spaceship, Andrew Nivens says, "She balked at Pirates of the Caribbean." Both Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, two of the films credited screenwriters, went on to write all three of the, "Pirates of the Caribbean," movies.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: After the president is saved by the OSI agents, just after Donald Sutherland enters the room a crew member's hand can be seen catching the door.

Quotes:

[After Sam rescues Andrew by shooting him]
Andrew: [musingly] I can't believe you shot me.
Sam: Well, what would you have done?
Andrew: [nonchalant] Oh, I'd have shot you, of course.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Faculty (1998)

Better Than Expected

One science-fiction film that turns out to be less disappointing than expected is this loose adaptation of Robert A. Heinlein's novel.

Donald (give me another part in an alien pod movie) Sutherland interprets the role of Adam "The Old Man" Nivens, head of a secret government protection agency that has its hands full trying to stop an alien invasion by slug-like mental parasites which tap into people's brains, controlling them toward their own ends.

Eric Thal (of A STRANGER AMONG US) draws a blank where a strong character should be in the role of Sam, son of the Old Man, and fellow agent. Julie Warner (from DOC HOLLYWOOD) fares a little better as Mary, a NASA xenobiologist along for the roller coaster ride.

The opening scenes do justice to the setting and atmosphere of the book, and the skeleton of the original plot is unpredictable and thrilling, but eventually, the compromises in adaptation give rise to Hollywood-style sci-fi conventions such as alien hives.

Several realistic, key elements are thrown out, along with almost all of the sharp dialogue which made the book a hit.

However, the special effects are convincing, and the cinematography and editing are streamlined and tight. Far from being definitive, this version of the tale is nonetheless sufficiently satisfying and worth a look.