I know a person who lives his life as though the world is conspiring to oppress him. In fact, I don't think there's a single conspiracy theory to which he doesn't subscribe. It's no surprise that he recommended 'They Live (1988)' as one of his favourites, and, I must admit, it is a rip-roaring film with an intriguing premise. Robust drifter George Nada (pro-wrestler Roddy Piper) discovers a pair of sunglasses that reveals the world for how it actually is: billboards and magazines sparkle with Orwellian phrases, and many "people" are actually grotesque extraterrestrial beings bent on enslaving humanity. Nada begins to resist the status quo, recruiting a reluctant co-worker (Keith David) into the true nature of reality, but only after a gratuitous but hilariously intense fist-fight that lasts a good five minutes.
'They Live' was apparently a response to the Yuppie subculture that was prevalent throughout the 1980s; that is, young middle-class businessmen obsessed with wealth, status, and materialism. The Yuppies have gotten a raw deal in popular culture: The Narrator in 'Fight Club (1999)' was a disenchanted consumerist seeking to feel human again, and Bret Easton Ellis' novel "American Psycho" (certainly one of the more disturbing books I've ever read) was an altogether unflattering depiction of "stereotypical" yuppie Patrick Bateman (superbly played by Christian Bale in the tamer 2000 film adaptation). 'They Live' subscribes to a working-class fantasy in which all wealthy people are either aliens – here, Carpenter takes an uproarious dig at Siskel and Ebert – or humans who have betrayed their species for the good life.
'They Live' was apparently a response to the Yuppie subculture that was prevalent throughout the 1980s; that is, young middle-class businessmen obsessed with wealth, status, and materialism. The Yuppies have gotten a raw deal in popular culture: The Narrator in 'Fight Club (1999)' was a disenchanted consumerist seeking to feel human again, and Bret Easton Ellis' novel "American Psycho" (certainly one of the more disturbing books I've ever read) was an altogether unflattering depiction of "stereotypical" yuppie Patrick Bateman (superbly played by Christian Bale in the tamer 2000 film adaptation). 'They Live' subscribes to a working-class fantasy in which all wealthy people are either aliens – here, Carpenter takes an uproarious dig at Siskel and Ebert – or humans who have betrayed their species for the good life.