THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, October 27, 1994 TAG: 9410280797
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E4 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Movie Review
SOURCE: BY MAL VINCENT, MOVIE CRITIC
LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
THERE'S AN ALIEN on the back of a lot of folks in ``The Puppet Masters,'' an oh-so-serious adaptation of the novel by cult favorite Robert A. Heinlein.
Without a trace of humor, the hapless cast goes about the business of playing out yet another threat from messy little mind-grabbers from another planet. It's ``Invasion of the Body Snatchers'' all over again.
Since Heinlein wrote his novel in 1951, five years before Don Siegel's black-and-white classic film, one can't accuse him of being unoriginal. After all, it was his story first. Nonetheless, moviegoers have seen this one before.
Here, gushy, gooey, jellylike ``things'' fly through the air and attach themselves to the unwary. They first take over the spinal column, then the brain.
The afflicted folks still look like humans, but make no mistake about it, they're possessed.
The center for the little nasties is bucolic Iowa, home of the ``Field of Dreams'' and seemingly a favored quiet spot for alien landings.
Donald Sutherland, whispering as if he doesn't want anyone to really notice him, plays a lead honcho scientist who is always cool and calm in the face of terrific odds. His son, played by TV hunk Eric Thal, is Robin to Sutherland's Batman. He specializes in taking off his shirt at the slightest encouragement - to prove that he's been to the gym as well as that the ``thing'' hasn't latched on to him yet.
Julie Warner, in a sexist mood, thinks that if males don't respond to her flashes of flesh, they must be possessed. She's the resident scientist who mouths pseudo-scientific mumbo-jumbo, even though the audience knows she'll scream sooner or later.
Predictably, the ``creature'' takes over most of the lead actors. But you can count on the inevitable - there is an antidote. There also is simplistic symbolism about the herding tendency of modern society and such.
Director Stuart Orme takes a chance by playing it all without a hint of humor. On the plus side, it's refreshing that he doesn't get cute with it. On the minus side, it's pretty quiet, especially with special effects that aren't particularly special. (After you've seen ``Alien,'' this little booger is small time).
If you're easily threatened by things from the outer realm, and you're willing to invest the time, go along. As for me, there are things in THIS world a good deal scarier than anything in ``The Puppet Masters.'' ILLUSTRATION: Graphic
MOVIE REVIEW
``The Puppet Masters''
Cast: Donald Sutherland, Eric Thal, Julie Warner, Will Patton,
Yaphet Kotto
Director: Stuart Orme
MPAA rating: R (gooey, messy things attached to human backs)
Mal's rating: One star
Locations: Chesapeake Square in Chesapeake; Military Circle, Main
Gate in Norfolk; Kemps River, Lynnhaven Mall in Virginia Beach
by CNB