Horror genre icon Tobe Hooper takes the directorial reigns and creates this remake of the fine film of the same name from the 50's. This Invaders from Mars is a lot different in many ways. Wheras the original was strictly a science fiction film about the dangers of alien attack and a hidden agenda about who you could trust from a child's point of view, this version goes for laughs as well. Sometimes these "laughs" detract from the thematic structure of the film. Basically the story is the same, but there are ample distinctions as well. A young boy sees a cosmic entity land just beyond his house, discovers changes in his parents, and eventually enlists the aid of a school nurse and later the military to crush the alien threat from Mars. Hooper does some obvious homage type stuff, all of that working very well I thought. The lighted path to the hill had an almost surreal look to it and was reminiscent of the original. Hooper had a school name after Menzies, the director of the original film. The child star falls short in his role exuding limited credibility, but most of the other performers are adequate. Lovely Karen Black plays the nurse, and Timothy Bottoms and Laraine Newman portray the youngster's parents. James Karen camps it up as the general in charge of the military. The performance problem for me was Louise Fletcher. Sure, she makes for a great witchy teacher, but her campy performance was a bit much at times - too incredible. Hooper also over does it with some of the special effects. The Martian creatures really look quite ridiculous with fat bodies and mouths the size of Volkswagens. But some of the effects are pulled off nicely, such as the sand tunnels and the men being devoured in the middle of a sandy pit. This remake, while I firmly believe an unnecessary remake, has some fun aspects to it and is if nothing else an interesting and diverting film. I am not at all sure of what hooper was trying to achieve at the end of the film, but I did feel it was quite contrived and departed from the spirit of the film's unity.
